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Kate Magdziuk shares her Week 8 running back rankings for standard scoring leagues and highlights three flex options with favorable matchups.
Despite the narratives that have circulated about the running back position “not mattering” over the past few seasons, there’s no doubt that they have certainly been the ones to carry our fantasy teams, especially in Week 7. Now, fantasy football managers will have a full pool of RBs to work with this week (outside of injuries), as there are no teams on bye.
Here’s a look at my top-60 Week 8 RB rankings, plus several RB flex plays (and sleepers) to consider in your fantasy lineups.
Week 8 RB flex plays
Javonte Williams, Denver Broncos (vs. CAR)
Is Javonte Williams a viable every-week starter in fantasy football? Well, I’m not quite convinced of that. However, I am convinced that Williams has received enough volume over the past four games (17+ touches in three of them) to warrant some attention from fantasy managers — especially in a plus matchup against the Carolina Panthers. Fresh off his second career multi-touchdown game (and first career outing with multiple rushing touchdowns). Williams has tallied 80+ scrimmage yrads (including two 111 yard outings) in three of his last four games.
The Panthers’ offensive struggles have paved the way for most teams to coast against them, facing a league-high 51.1% run play rate, leading the league with 1,135 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns allowed through the first seven weeks of the season. Given the fact that they could be in line to return to former No. 1 pick Bryce Young this week, that should put the Broncos in a decent position to gain a lead with plenty of time to run the ball. Fire up Javonte Williams again with confidence.
J.K. Dobbins, Los Angeles Chargers (vs. NO)
Fantasy football managers may have been burned by Dobbins last week after some confidence that he might be able to capitalize against the Cardinals defense. Instead, they bottled him to just 66 scrimmage yards on 17 touches — a scoreless outing that produced just 6.6 fantasy points. The good news is that even after an inspiring performance from rookie Kimani Vidale in Week 6, the team continued to feed him as the top RB in the offense playing 65% or more offensive snaps for the fourth straight week. Now, despite some waning efficiency over the past three weeks, Dobbins should be in line for a bounceback performance up against the New Orleans Saints in Week 8.
The Saints have struggled in run defense this season, ranking top-10 in explosive run rate (15.5%) — a Dobbins specialty — while ranked top-two in rush yards per attempt allowed to opposing runners. That’s culminated in 9 rushing touchdowns allowed — tied for the third most in the league only behind the Dallas Cowboys and Carolina Panthers.
Week 8 RB deep sleeper of the week: Ray Davis, Buffalo Bills (vs. SEA, 26% rostered)
Ray Davis was a rookie that not many had pegged for immediate fantasy relevance. Alas, here we are. After shining as a fill-in for James Cook in Week 6 with 152 scrimage yards on 23 touches, the Bills still gave him some run — five total attempts, in fact which he took for 41 yards and a score on the ground, including two rushes of 15+ yards. He also had one target on the day, which he caught for six yards. This week, the Bills will face the Seattle Seahawks, who have allowed the fourth-most rushing yards all season (1,023), including the second-most rushing yards after contact (675). and the fifth-highest yards per carry average (5.0). If he gets some more opportunities in Week 8, he could be a viable flex play, having seen two of the team’s five red zone carries from running backs last week.
Week 8 standard RB rankings
Kate Magdziuk is an editor and contributor for Yahoo Fantasy and co-host of the Locked On Dynasty Football podcast. She is also the managing editor for Behind The Steel Curtain, SB Nation’s exclusive Pittsburgh Steelers blog. Her previous bylines include Pro Football Focus, NBC Sports Rotoworld and 4for4 Football, among others.
