Week 8 is a reset week for a lot of lineups. Houston, New Orleans, the Giants, and San Francisco are on bye, which benches C.J. Stroud, Chris Olave, and the 49ers skill players. Everyone else is still in play, starting with Carolina at Green Bay on Thursday night. MyGameSim's NFL Start or Sit tool ranks every position using projected fantasy points from our game simulations.
Here are the top projected players at each spot for Week 8. These numbers come straight from our model, not consensus rankings, so a few of them will look different from what you see elsewhere.
Quarterbacks
Jayden Daniels is the clear QB1 at 27.9 projected fantasy points, with the Commanders hosting Philadelphia on Sunday night. Nobody else on the slate is within three points of him. Josh Allen is next at 24.2 at home against Baltimore, and that game is the other quarterback matchup to circle.
Drake Maye (22.5 at Miami), Dak Prescott (22.2 vs. Arizona), and Joe Burrow (22.1 vs. Tennessee) are bunched together just behind Allen. Lamar Jackson projects for 20.9 on the road at Buffalo, so both sides of that game are strong starts. Malik Willis (19.9 vs. New England) is the streaming name if you lost a starter to a bye. Trevor Lawrence and Geno Smith both land at 18.9, and Caleb Williams (18.7 at Seattle) closes the top ten on Monday night. The full QB Start or Sit list is the place to sort a bye-week fill-in.
Running Backs
Jahmyr Gibbs leads running backs at 24.1 projected points at home against Minnesota. Kenneth Walker III (22.3 at Denver) and Kyren Williams (22.3 vs. the Chargers) are right behind him. James Cook III (20.2 vs. Baltimore) gives the Bills a second must-start next to Allen.
Bijan Robinson comes in at 19.0 at Tampa Bay, a notch below his usual week. Braelon Allen (17.5 vs. Las Vegas), Jaylen Warren (16.9 vs. Cleveland), Bhayshul Tuten (16.6 vs. Indianapolis), and Chase Brown (16.6 vs. Tennessee) are the flex tier. Derrick Henry projects for 15.8 at Buffalo, which is playable but not a smash spot against that defense. If you are replacing a 49ers or Texans back, the RB projections go well past this top ten.
Wide Receivers
Jaxon Smith-Njigba is the top receiver of the week at 22.2 projected points, with the Seahawks hosting Chicago on Monday night. That is a full tier above the rest of the position. CeeDee Lamb (17.4 vs. Arizona) is the clear WR2, and Puka Nacua (14.9 vs. the Chargers) and Drake London (14.7 at Tampa Bay) follow.
Ja'Marr Chase (14.5 vs. Tennessee) and George Pickens (13.6 vs. Arizona) give you two more every-week starters in good spots. Tetairoa McMillan (13.3) is the Thursday night name, at Green Bay, with Jalen Coker (10.4) in the same game if you need a deeper dart. Zay Flowers (12.8 at Buffalo) and Christian Watson (10.6 vs. Carolina) round out the group. Watson is the other Thursday decision. Every receiver is ranked on the WR Start or Sit page.
Tight Ends
Mark Andrews leads tight ends at 10.4 projected points at Buffalo, just ahead of Trey McBride (9.9 at Dallas) and Hunter Henry (9.7 at Miami). It is a tight board after that, so matchup matters more than the name on the back of the jersey.
Brock Bowers (8.7 at the Jets) and Dalton Kincaid (8.5 vs. Baltimore) are the next tier. Kincaid is another way into the Ravens and Bills game. Greg Dulcich (7.3 vs. New England), Tucker Kraft (7.0 vs. Carolina), and Brenton Strange (7.0 vs. Indianapolis) are the streaming options, and Kraft plays Thursday. T.J. Hockenson projects for only 6.9 at Detroit, so temper expectations if you were counting on a big week. The full TE Start or Sit rankings go deeper.
Kickers and Defense
Evan McPherson leads kickers at 11.7 projected points against Tennessee. Andre Szmyt (9.7 at Pittsburgh) and Jason Sanders (9.6 vs. Las Vegas) are next, with Jason Myers (9.5 vs. Chicago) the Monday night option. On defense, Cleveland is the top play at 21.0 points at Pittsburgh, well clear of the field. The Jets (17.0) and Bengals (15.0) follow. Carolina (13.0) and Green Bay (10.0) are the Thursday defenses if you stream week to week.
Need help with a flex spot? The FLEX board puts running backs, receivers, and tight ends on one list so you can compare them directly.
Games to Watch
Thursday's Panthers and Packers game has McMillan, Coker, Watson, and Kraft all in the mix, so set those lineups before kickoff. Sunday's headline game is Baltimore at Buffalo, with Allen, Lamar, Cook, Henry, Flowers, Andrews, and Kincaid all near the top of their positions. Arizona at Dallas is the other afternoon stack, led by Prescott, Lamb, Pickens, and McBride. Sunday night belongs to Daniels in Philadelphia at Washington. Monday night is a Smith-Njigba game, with Caleb Williams on the other side.
How to use this
Our Start or Sit grades combine projected fantasy points with opposing defensive strength from the same simulations. Players with higher projections and softer matchups rise to the top. That does not mean you should bench a proven star for every surprise name, but when the model and your gut disagree, take a second look.
Free users can see the top of each position list. GameSim+ unlocks the full Week 8 Start or Sit board, plus detailed player projections for every game on the slate. Good luck this week.
