Fantasy Football Week 8 Cheat Sheet: Deep Sleepers to Grab on Waiver Wire
With real-life NFL activity creating opportunities for fresh faces, the fantasy football waiver wire could be a gold mine in Week 8.
While there isn't a Kenneth Walker III on the market, there are a ton of carries up for grabs in Carolina following the Christian McCaffrey trade. There is a new starting quarterback to track, too, as the Indianapolis Colts are turning away from Matt Ryan to see what Sam Ehlinger can do.
All fantasy football managers should monitor the movement, even if they don't have any glaring needs at the moment. For deep-league managers who do, we've found three plug-and-play streamers who are available in 50-plus percent of Yahoo leagues, per FantasyPros, one each at the marquee positions.
Quarterback: Andy Dalton, New Orleans Saints (7 Percent Rostered)
If you're searching for season-long potential on the waiver wire, you can probably do better than Dalton. While he jumped ahead of Jameis Winston on the depth chart, Saints coach Dennis Allen would only commit to keeping Dalton there "if we continue to play well offensively and move the ball offensively."
If you're simply looking for a short-term streamer, Dalton tops the list.
Just last Thursday, he threw for 361 yards and four scores against the Arizona Cardinals. Granted, that's a favorable matchup, and he also threw three interceptions in the contest, but the only players who put up more fantasy points in Week 7 were Joe Burrow and Josh Jacobs, per FantasyPros.
Dalton could cook up another gem this week, as the matchup is as good as it gets. Dalton will go up against the Las Vegas Raiders, who have allowed the most fantasy points to the quarterback position this season, per Yahoo.
Running Back: Chuba Hubbard, Carolina Panthers (50 Percent Rostered)
If you were beaten to the waiver wire for D'Onta Foreman and Gus Edwards, then Hubbard looms as an intriguing consolation prize.
No, he wasn't the featured back for the McCaffrey-less Panthers, and given how well Foreman handled the gig (17 touches, 145 scrimmage yards), Hubbard may not have that opportunity any time soon. He could, however, serve in a fairly prominent change-of-pace capacity, and with burners like his, he only needs so many touches to make an impact.
Just look at last Sunday. Playing against a stingy Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense, Hubbard still turned his 11 touches into 73 scrimmage yards and a score.
As long as he's healthy—he missed practice Wednesday with an ankle injury, so keep an eye out—he should see enough chances to put up streamer-quality stats.
Wide Receiver: Marquise Goodwin, Seattle Seahawks (23 Percent Rostered)
It's been a while since Goodwin was on the fantasy radar, but opportunity's knock can come in an instant.
DK Metcalf left Seattle's game Sunday with a knee injury, and Goodwin immediately seized his moment. He caught four of the five passes thrown his way for 67 yards and two touchdowns.
If Metcalf can't go this weekend—he didn't practice Wednesday—then Goodwin could be in line for another fantasy-relevant workload. Seattle's receiving corps thins pretty quickly without Metcalf, as it's essentially Tyler Lockett and no one else.
If Goodwin is Seattle's WR2, then he can certainly be at least a WR3 for deep-league fantasy managers.