Week 8 of the 2019 NFL season has come and gone! This past week saw a heartbreaking final kick in Chicago, a series of unbelievable game-winning touchdown passes, and the birth of a potential breakout player in Philadelphia. Let’s dive into the rundown and see which players rose above the rest this week:
DREW BREES (New Orleans Saints)
The Saints didn’t need to rush Drew Brees back from his thumb injury. As I’ve stated plenty of times already this year, New Orleans is arguably the best team in the league. With a Week 9 bye and a perfect (6-0) record with Teddy Bridgewater under center most figured we would have to wait to see Brees return until Week 10.
It turns out Brees had other plans. The surefire Hall of Famer returned in grand style against the Arizona Cardinals, throwing for almost 400 passing yards and 3 TDs in his return to action.
This team was already an NFC Championship favorite without Brees under center, if he can continue to look this good moving forward they should be favorites to represent the conference in the Super Bowl in February.
AARON JONES (Green Bay Packers)
Will someone please put more respect on this man’s name? Aaron Jones was a 3rd/4th round selection in most fantasy drafts heading into the 2019 season, and he’s quickly become arguably a Top 5 back in the league. Jones’ production has been borderline superhuman through the first half of this year, accumulating 11 total TD’s (8 rushing/3 receiving) and eclipsing the 100-yard mark twice on the ground/once through the air.
Jones continued that dominance in Week 8, shredding the Kansas City Chiefs defense to the tune of 225 total yards and 2 TDs. The multi-talented back did almost all of his damage through the air (159 yards/2 TD’s) and showed that he can beat a defense in a variety of different ways. Consider Jones a locked-in RB1 regardless of match-up and timeshare with backfield mate Jamaal Williams.
He’s a legitimate fantasy championship level player that will guide plenty of owners to greatness this year.
MILES SANDERS (Philadelphia Eagles)
When the Philadelphia Eagles drafted Miles Sanders in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft it made waves in the city of brotherly love. The selection made Sanders the highest-drafted running back by the Eagles since they took LeSean McCoy in the 2nd round of the 2009 draft.
A pick of that caliber carried high expectations, and Sanders had flirted with a breakout game for weeks leading into Week 8’s match-up with the Buffalo Bills. On Sunday afternoon everything came together for the former Penn State stand-out, as he scored his first NFL rushing TD in grand fashion, streaking down the sideline and out-running the entire Bills defense for a 65-yard score.
The touchdown marked a personal milestone for Sanders’ career, and also served to put the game away for Philly in a must-win situation. The future looks to be bright in the backfield for Philadelphia, and Sanders is a major reason why.
MIKE EVANS (Tampa Bay Bucs)
Mike Evans is a bad man. There isn’t any other way to describe what he did to the Titans defense on Sunday. The monstrous wide-out had the music city singing the blues as he dominated the Titans secondary for a final line of (11 rec/198 yds/2 TD’s). The performance marked Evans’ second game of over 150+ receiving yards on the year and solidified his spot as one of the top 5 fantasy wide receivers regardless of format.
Fire him up with confidence against a middle of the road Seattle pass defense in Week 9.
DAVID MONTGOMERY (Chicago Bears)
The fantasy world has been waiting for this one since the Preseason. Bears head coach Matt Nagy had sung the praises of David Montgomery and fantasy owners were salivating at the potential this kid had to breakout. Then, the games started and Montgomery was regularly out-snapped by guys like Mike Davis and Cordarrelle Patterson.
Montgomery’s stock plummeted from a potential RB1 to a risky FLEX play as he continued to put forth lackluster efforts on a weekly basis. That may have all changed this past week though, as Montgomery saw the largest workload of his career so far. The rookie logged 31 total touches against the LA Chargers and used those opportunities to punish them for 147 total yards and a touchdown.
This uptick in usage is a major boost for Montgomery’s fantasy value, but savvy owners should still be mindful of Nagy reverting back to a committee, especially against a tough Philadelphia run defense in Week 9.
COOPER KUPP (Los Angeles Rams)
It’s time that we start taking Cooper Kupp seriously as one of the Top 10 wide receivers in fantasy football. Regardless of what format you play in, odds are the Kupp owner currently has a winning record.
After losing the backend of his breakout rookie season to an injury, the consensus on Kupp coming into 2019 was that he was talented but injury-prone. Kupp has leaned fully into the “talented” portion of that description through the first half of the 2019 season.
He’s flashed WR1 potential on most weeks, generating double-digit fantasy totals in all but one game and leading the league with 280 yards after the catch. Kupp has become Jared Goff’s go-to option in the Rams high octane passing attack, and that has translated to five 100+ yard receiving games and 5 TD’s. His 220-yard showing in Week 8 set a new benchmark for him as a pro, and there’s little reason to believe he can’t continue to get better as the season goes on.
He’s in the same category as Aaron Jones this year and will be on plenty of fantasy championship squads by seasons end.
GARDNER MINSHEW II (Jacksonville Jaguars)
The man that became a meme has become a legitimate quarterback before our eyes over the past two months. Gardner Minshew had the internet buzzing as soon as he stepped into the Jaguars starting QB spot.
With comparisons to Uncle Rico from Napoleon Dynamite and a sense of style that was seemingly made to be retweeted, the 6th round rookie captured the nation’s heart instantly. Then he started playing football, and the memes began to take a backseat to the reality that Minshew is a legitimately good quarterback.
In the time since Nick Foles’ injury, Minshew has guided the Jags to a (4-3) record and flashed a surprising combination of mobility and clutch play while doing it. Minshew’s also been turning heads in the fantasy community, totaling 20+ fantasy points in six of eight games that he’s started, including this past week’s 32 point blowout against the New York Jets.
It’s uncertain how Jacksonville will handle their red hot backup once Foles is available to return, but fantasy owners will get a chance to roll him out one last time for sure against the Houston Texans in Week 9.
DESHAUN WATSON (Houston Texans)
What can you say about Deshaun Watson that hasn’t already been said a million times over? The man is a human highlight reel, capable of overcoming seemingly any obstacle thrown in his way to keep the Texans in games. This week marked one of Watson’s most impressive feats yet.
With the game on the line towards the end of the fourth quarter, Watson produced a trademark play. He escaped a sack, got kicked in the face and threw the go-ahead touchdown to his tight end while being sacked a second time. Houston does not win that game this week with almost any other quarterback under center.
Watson’s total stat line was impressive (279 Pass yds/3 TD’s), but it was his ability to create greatness in an otherwise hopeless situation that made him stand out above the rest.
MY MAIN TAKEAWAY FROM WEEK 8:
THE GREEN BAY PACKERS ARE A LEGITIMATE SUPER BOWL THREAT.
If you told most people that the Green Bay Packers were going to be 7-1 through eight weeks after dumping Mike McCarthy in the offseason they would’ve probably called you a liar. It isn’t far fetched because Green Bay isn’t talented, but the team just felt like a bleeding wound coming out of the 2018 season.
Aaron Rodgers was publicly annoyed and aggravated by the status of the team, and the appointment of former Titans OC Matt LaFleur as the new head coach was met with silent judgment and unease by most. Yet, despite all of these factors, the Packers have been dominant in 2019, and they should be looked at as one of the league’s best teams.
The blueprint for the quick turnaround in Green Bay is a simple one. For the first time in what feels like years, the Packers spent real money in the off-season to bring in impact players and bolster a defense that has often been overlooked and ignored during the Rodgers era. In past years Rodgers was expected to score 30+ points per game in support of a lackluster defense, but this year he has support. The additions of Za’Darius Smith, Preston Smith, and Adrian Amos in combination with the growth of players like Jaire Alexander and Darnell Savage have made Green Bay a much fiercer force to be reckoned with for opposing offenses.
However, for all of this turnover and growth on the defensive side of the ball, just as much credit should be given to the Packers offense. Under LaFleur, Green Bay has averaged 25 points per contest and has produced two legitimate stud running backs in Aaron Jones and Jamaal Williams. Both backs can attack opposing defenses on the ground and through the air, making them a lethal combination for opponents to solve.
The final part of this Packer’s puzzle is No. 12 himself. Rodgers started the year slowly, feeding the ball to the rushing attack and playing more a bit part as the defense did its job. Recently, we’ve seen him really open things up in the offense, and he’s looked like a borderline MVP candidate over the past month because of it. In the past five games, Rodgers has thrown for 300+ yards in four of them and logged a clean TD/INT ratio of 12/2. Coincidentally, Green Bay has won four of those five contests, and they’ve done it without their top wide receiver in the lineup (Davante Adams).
Green Bay certainly is a great team, but they aren’t flawless. An upset loss at home to the Philadelphia Eagles and a questionable victory over the Detroit Lions give reason to question them, but ultimately they’ve proven to be good enough to take care of business when they need to. In a crowded conference of contenders, the Packers look to be one of the best the NFC has to offer.
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