If you thought other NFL DFS weeks were hard, just wait until you see the slate for NFL Week 8. The Chargers and Chiefs are both on bye, while other star-studded teams, including the Buccaneers, Ravens, Bills, Packers, Bengals, and Browns, are not playing during the Sunday main slate. As such, those in DraftKings and FanDuel contests will have to dig deep for sleepers and stacks to buoy their daily fantasy lineups in cash games and tournaments alike.
The good news is the lack of high-end stacks creates some opportunities to be different. There are some contrarian approaches that NFL DFS players can utilize to earn lineup differentiation and a better shot at the No. 1 prize.
Additionally, there are some pricing inefficiencies on DraftKings and FanDuel this week. Why? Because some quarterbacks, like Matt Ryan, have been benched for unproven commodities. So, while they’re risky plays, they are cheap enough to draw consideration.
WEEK 8 DFS: Best values
Stacking can be effective, and that’s why it’s a preferred strategy within the fantasy community. It allows DFS players to load up on talents in potentially high-scoring games and pair quarterbacks with their No. 1 receiver(s).
Of course, that’s not the only way to stack. Some DFS players like the running back and defense combination. Others will even throw tight ends into the mix. Either way, there are plenty of methods to stacking, both normal and contrarian, that will pay off in Week 9.
DraftKings and FanDuel remain the top DFS platforms worldwide, but DraftKings has the more variable pricing. That makes it a bit easier to craft creative stacks, especially when targeting cheaper receivers. That’s not to say you can’t stack on FanDuel; it’s just sometimes harder to find value when doing so.
Below are some of our favorite sets of teammates for Week 9 DraftKings and FanDuel lineups.
Week 8 NFL DFS Picks: Top cash game stacks for DraftKings, FanDuel
QB Jalen Hurts, WR A.J. Brown, and WR Devonta Smith, Eagles vs. Steelers (DK Stack)
It’s not a great week to be looking for a top-tier quarterback-receiver stack. Patrick Mahomes’ Chiefs and Justin Herbert’s Chargers are both on bye, and Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, Tom Brady, Joe Burrow, and Aaron Rodgers are all playing in prime-time games.
As such, the pickings are slim for those wanting a high-floor quarterback. Hurts is the most expensive player on the slate, but his averages of 48.8 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown per game make him a solid play at that price.
Elsewhere, the Steelers have allowed the second-most DraftKings points per game to receivers this season. Pittsburgh’s secondary is still banged up, so it’s hard to imagine them slowing down Brown and Smith. That makes them a solid pairing with Hurts.
WEEK 8 STANDARD RANKINGS
QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | D/STs | Kickers
RB Derrick Henry and Tennessee D/ST, Titans at Texans (DK/FD Stack)
The handful of high-floor, high-ceiling RBs makes up for the lack of top-shelf quarterback options. Henry is probably the best on the board as he takes on a Texans defense that has allowed the most fantasy points per game (FPPG) to running backs this season.
The Texans allow a league-high 164.7 rushing yards per game. Henry should get most of the rushing work for the Titans in Week 8, so he will have a legitimate chance at a 150-yard game. In fact, in his past three games against the Texans, Henry has run for at least 211 yards and has racked up seven total touchdowns.
Pairing Henry with a Titans defense that allowed just 10 points and logged a pick-six against the Colts seems like a good move. Tennessee should bother Davis Mills enough to force him into some negative plays.
WEEK 8 PPR RANKINGS
QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | D/STs | Kickers
RB Raheem Mostert and Miami D/ST, Dolphins at Lions (DK/FD Stack)
Mostert has averaged 90 scrimmage yards per game in his past four outings and has solidly established himself as the team’s No. 1 back. Chase Edmonds played sparingly in Week 6 against the Steelers, so Mostert should continue to handle most of the workload.
Mostert is far from perfect, but he has breakaway speed and fits the running style of Mike McDaniel’s offense. He should feast against a Lions defense that is one of just two teams to give up 10-plus rushing touchdowns to running backs this year.
As for the Lions, they have scored six points total in the past two weeks. So, trusting a blitz-happy Miami defense is a good move, as it will force Jared Goff into mistakes after the Lions had five turnovers last week.
Week 8 DraftKings, FanDuel Picks: Best stacks for daily fantasy football tournaments
QB Daniel Jones, RB Saquon Barkley, and WR Wan’Dale Robinson, Giants at Seahawks (DK/FD Stack)
Is it time to start buying the Giants? For DFS purposes, the answer is probably yes. New York is taking on Seattle in Week 8, and that doesn’t seem like an overly difficult matchup. The Seahawks have allowed 26.6 points and 399.1 yards per game so far this season. Both numbers rank bottom-five in the NFL, which bodes well for the Giants’ top offensive players.
Jones has been one of the most mobile quarterbacks in the league this season. He is coming off a 100-yard rushing game against the Jaguars and could be poised for similar success against a porous Seahawks run defense. The same can be said of Saquon Barkley, who should rip off some big gains against Seattle.
Adding a third player to this stack gets a bit tricky, but we settled on Robinson here. He has 12 catches for 90 yards and a touchdown over his first three NFL games. That included a career-high six catches for 50 yards in Week 7. He should continue to perform the longer he stays in the lineup, provided that he can stay healthy.
QB Sam Ehlinger, RB Nyheim Hines, and WR Michael Pittman Jr. Colts vs. Commanders (DK Stack)
OK, now it’s time to get really weird. For those that don’t know, Matt Ryan was benched in favor of Sam Ehlinger ahead of Week 8. Ehlinger, a former star at Texas, was a 2021 sixth-round pick, and Indianapolis is hoping that his mobility can provide them with a spark.
That’s why Ehlinger is a great pick in DFS tournaments. He has bottom-of-the-barrel pricing at just $4,000 on DraftKings, so it will be easy to fit him into any lineup. You can spend up elsewhere and still have a good chance of Ehlinger returning value. The 24-year-old completed 24-of-29 passes for 289 yards and four touchdowns this year in the preseason. He also ran for 71 yards and a score on six carries.
Ehlinger’s legs will buoy this lineup, but the presence of Pittman and Hines gives this group a lot of upside. It’s unclear what Ehlinger’s relationship with the Colts receivers will be, but at minimum, Pittman should see about 10 targets per game, as he did earlier in the season with Ryan.
Hines also has been targeted heavily, but since he’s Jonathan Taylor’s backup, he won’t be highly owned. Still, he’ll have enough chances to pop off. If he finds the end zone, this strange lineup could pay off for us big-time.
QB Bailey Zappe (or Mac Jones), RB Rhamondre Stevenson, and New England D/ST, Patriots at Jets (DK/FD Stack)
Let’s keep this simple. Rhamondre Stevenson appears to be a true lead back who also catches passes. The Pats defense is also solid against non-scrambling quarterbacks, and if Matthew Judon can pressure Zach Wilson, the young quarterback could be in for a tough day. As such, this tandem looks like a nice pairing.
So, why throw Zappe (or Jones) into the mix? Stevenson had so much success as a receiver that any dump-off pass to the back would count as a touchdown. That would mean double points for us at a pretty low price (Zappe costs just $5,300 on DK, the same as Mac Jones).
Is this play a bit of a risk? Sure, especially if Belichick rolls with what was effectively a two-QB system again. But considering that Stevenson led the Patriots in targets against the Bears, he could be in line to do it once again.
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