Week 8 Start 'Em, Sit 'Em: Advice on Fantasy Football Stars to Play or Bench

Only two teams are on a bye in Week 8 of the 2022 NFL season: the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers.

That's great news for fantasy football managers on almost every front.

The lone exception, though, is that a full fantasy roster can be the trickiest to manage. The more players you have at your disposal, the more start-or-sit puzzles you'll have to solve.

Let's tackle a few right here with four of our top play-or-bench recommendations for the upcoming slate.

Cousins typically operates best as a streamer since his relatively high floor gives him a good amount of security.

However, this could be a week in which he deserves consideration as an outright starter. He doesn't put up big numbers often—he has thrown for 275 yards and two scores just once in six games—but given the playmakers around him, he can cook in the right matchup.

This looks like that matchup. The Cardinals have allowed the sixth-most fantasy points to the position, per Yahoo Sports, and just gave up 361 passing yards and four scores to Andy Dalton.

Lawrence has done some interesting things of late. In two of his last three games, he has set a new season-high for passing yardage, including the 310 he put up on the New York Giants last Sunday. He also has three rushing touchdowns over this stretch, which could start to elevate his fantasy floor if that becomes a constant.

However, he has just one passing touchdown (and two interceptions) in these three games combined. If he's dependent on rushing touchdowns for his fantasy value, he'll be impossible to trust. He had two rushing touchdowns all of last season and only scored his first of this campaign in Week 6.

If that wasn't worrisome enough, he'll now lock horns with a Denver defense allowing the fewest fantasy points to the position. The Broncos have allowed a league-best three passing touchdowns, and the next quarterback to rush for a touchdown against them will be the first.

Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel worked alongside Mostert when both were in San Francisco, so the skipper knows exactly how impactful Mostert's explosiveness can be. That's probably why Mostert has seemingly seized complete control of this backfield.

He's had at least 15 carries in his last four contests. While he has only found the end zone once in this stretch, he has tallied 360 scrimmage yards.

It feels like a monster outing is imminent, and this could be the weekend of its arrival. The Lions have allowed the second-most fantasy points to running backs, most recently allowing Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard to combine for 166 scrimmage yards and two scores.

Dillon has had some fantasy-relevant moments this season, but there haven't been enough of them, especially of late.

The 6'0", 247-pound bruiser operates best when Green Bay has a lead and wants to physically wear out its opponents. Well, the Packers have dropped three straight and are about to face a Bills team that's better than anyone they played during this stretch.

Dillon's lone touchdown came in the opener, and he's had fewer than 40 scrimmage yards in three of his last five games. Stay far away if you can, especially against a Buffalo defense allowing the fourth-fewest fantasy points to the running back position.