Week 8 NFL DFS Top Plays: Cash, GPP, and Cheap WR

Jahmyr Gibbs will be in more than half the cash lineups Sunday, and he's in ours too. The real decision is at quarterback. Josh Allen costs $7,700 and has the highest rushing line of any quarterback, and paying for him means punting tight end and leaning on a couple of cheap receivers. If you're chasing points, Baltimore at Buffalo has the highest total at 53, and Arizona at Dallas should run the most plays, about 126, with Dallas sitting on the top team total at 29.9. New England at Miami is the slowest game, about 118 plays, and the windiest. It's Friday, so a few of the tags below could still flip. Some of the board moved since Wednesday. The injury section below has a tab for what changed. Wednesday's Matchups piece has every game broken down.

For cash, we want guys who still hand you a usable score on a bad day, at a fair price, with the touches to back it up. If the rest of the field is on them too, fine. That usually means the price is wrong. Last week Amon-Ra St. Brown caught nine balls for 153 yards and Jahmyr Gibbs ran 29 times for 116. Our miss was paying $5,300 for a tight end who caught two passes for 12 yards, which is why we're back on a cheap one. Tournaments are different, and that's where ownership and stacking take over.

Injuries and News

Full ranked board, updated all week: NFL injury report for DFS

High Impact Weather

Two games have wind worth a sentence. Atlanta at Tampa Bay should play through steady wind near 16 miles an hour, with gusts around 21 and a 62% chance of rain. New England at Miami looks a bit worse, with wind near 17 miles an hour, gusts around 24 and a 77% chance of rain. That takes a little off the deep passing in both games, so we'd shade down Michael Penix Jr., Baker Mayfield, Drake Maye and Malik Willis in tournaments. It doesn't move a running back, and it doesn't move a receiver who earns as many targets as Drake London. Indianapolis at Jacksonville has gusts in the low 20s, a smaller worry. Minnesota at Detroit and the Chargers at the Rams play indoors.

Kickoff forecasts for every game: NFL weather today

Pass Rush Mismatches

Pass rush	DL rank	Offensive line	OL rank	Line injuries
Detroit	7	Minnesota	30	None
Las Vegas	13	NY Jets	29	None
Pittsburgh	18	Cleveland	32	None
Minnesota	1	Detroit	7	None
LA Rams	21	LA Chargers	31	None
Indianapolis	29	Jacksonville	14	Anton Harrison (IR)
LA Chargers	11	LA Rams	1	None
Arizona	15	Dallas	3	None

Minnesota's line sits 30th in our ranks and has given up a sack on 9.9% of dropbacks, and Detroit's front is seventh. Aidan Hutchinson has 22 pressures and five sacks, and D.J. Wonnum has five more. At $2,700 the Lions are our DraftKings defense, and Kyler Murray could be running for his life.

Cleveland's line ranks dead last, and Browns quarterbacks have been sacked on 10.6% of dropbacks. T.J. Watt has 5.5 sacks. Pittsburgh's front is only 18th overall, but this is the spot that lifts it, and Deshaun Watson should take a beating. That's why the Steelers are our FanDuel defense.

The Chargers line is 31st, and Byron Young has 18 pressures and 4.5 sacks for a Rams front ranked 21st. That's the one real knock on Justin Herbert as a cheap quarterback: he has to get the ball out fast.

Elsewhere, the Jets line is 29th against Maxx Crosby, so the Raiders at $2,500 are a cheap tournament defense. Minnesota's front, first in our ranks, can rattle Jared Goff. Jacksonville, Dallas and the Rams should all keep their quarterbacks clean, so skip the Colts, Cardinals and Chargers defenses. Every line and front is on our [NFL OL vs DL matchups](/nfl-line-matchups) page.

Run Blocking Matchups

Run blocking	Run block rank	Run defense	Run D rank	RB YPC	RB YPC allowed
LA Rams	1	LA Chargers	16	5.0	4.2
Dallas	10	Arizona	27	4.1	4.3
Tennessee	16	Cincinnati	25	4.0	4.1
Cleveland	28	Pittsburgh	1	4.0	3.6

Los Angeles grades first in our run blocking ranks, and Rams backs average 5.0 yards a carry. The Chargers run defense is 16th and allows 4.2. Kyren Williams ($7,500) ran 16 times for 99 yards and a score in Week 7 and should get 13 or 14 carries, but Blake Corum keeps taking a piece of the work. That makes Kyren Williams a tournament back here.

Dallas is 10th in run blocking and draws an Arizona run defense ranked 27th, which allows 4.3 yards a carry to backs. Javonte Williams ($7,300) ran 25 times for 155 yards and a score in Week 7, and he should get about 18 carries. He barely catches passes, so we'd use him in GPPs and leave him out of cash.

Tennessee ranks 16th in run blocking, and Cincinnati's run defense is 25th and gives up 4.1 yards a carry to backs. Tony Pollard ($5,800) ran 25 times for 129 yards and three touchdowns in Week 7. Tennessee also has the lowest team total on the slate and he sees about two targets a game, so he's a touchdown-dependent dart.

Cleveland's run blocking ranks 28th, and Pittsburgh has the best run defense in our ranks, holding backs to 3.6 yards a carry. Quinshon Judkins ($5,500) ran 17 times for 96 yards and two scores in Week 7, but against this front he needs the end zone again to pay off. Keep him to tournaments.

CASH

QUARTERBACK

We split each position's DraftKings salary range into thirds. Quarterback: pay up $6,700 and above, mid tier $5,600 to $6,600, cheap under $5,600.

Josh Allen ($7,700 DK, $9,400 FD) - 27% projected cash ownership. He's our quarterback on both sites, even as the most expensive one on the slate. He also carries the top rushing line at the position, 35.5 yards, in Baltimore at Buffalo, the highest-total game. Buffalo had Week 7 off. Back in Week 5 he carried it 10 times for 121 yards and a score, and in Week 6 he went 23 of 33 for 255 yards and two touchdowns. He should throw about 30 times and run seven or eight times, and even his bad day is a strong score at the position. Swap one, at the bottom of cash, makes the case for paying him.

Dak Prescott ($6,300 DK, $8,000 FD) - 14% projected cash ownership. Nobody has a higher passing yardage line than his 278.5, and Dallas has the top team total on the slate. He went 15 of 27 for 212 yards and three touchdowns in Week 7 after throwing 54 times in Week 6. He should throw about 34 times behind a line that has allowed a sack on 2.5% of dropbacks. He won't add much on the ground. Still, if Josh Allen's price scares you, Prescott is where we'd go.

Jacoby Brissett ($5,700 DK, $7,100 FD) - 5% projected cash ownership. Nobody on the slate should throw more, about 37 times, and he threw 48 times for 272 yards in Week 7. Arizona is nearly a touchdown underdog in the fastest game on the board, so the volume is safe. His big days need passing touchdowns, though, and we like him more in tournaments.

Justin Herbert ($5,000 DK, $6,800 FD) - 4% projected cash ownership. The books set his rushing line at 23.5 yards, and he ran 17 times for 120 yards across Weeks 4 to 6 before the Chargers' bye. He should throw about 31 times and run about five, and the Rams are favored, so he should be throwing late. The legs give him a floor most cheap quarterbacks don't have. The problem is the 31st-ranked line in front of him. If you need $2,700 for the rest of your build, he's the way down.

Baltimore's passing line sits on Lamar Jackson at four books, but he's questionable with his ankle after missing the last three games. We aren't taking a Ravens quarterback into cash until Sunday settles it.

RUNNING BACK

Pay up $7,700 and above, mid tier $5,900 to $7,600, cheap under $5,900.

Jahmyr Gibbs ($9,500 DK, $9,300 FD) - 61% projected cash ownership. We're building around him. He ran 29 times for 116 yards and caught five passes in Week 7, and the books have him at 21.5 carries, the highest carry line on the slate. He should get about 22 carries and six targets. No back on the slate has a safer floor. Leaving him out of a 50/50 means betting against six in ten of your opponents, and we'd rather play him.

Bijan Robinson ($8,500 DK, $8,800 FD) - 31% projected cash ownership. We like him if you can fit him. He ran 20 times for 63 yards and caught all five of his targets for 59 more in Week 7. Expect about 18 carries and five targets. Brian Robinson is questionable with a hamstring injury, and if he's out, Bijan Robinson's carries climb toward 21. The catches give him a real floor. Fitting him beside Gibbs and Josh Allen takes too much salary.

Chase Brown ($6,300 DK, $7,100 FD) - 7% projected cash ownership. Our favorite second back. Cincinnati has the second-highest team total on the slate at 28.6, and he should get about 14 carries and five targets. He caught all 11 of his targets in Week 4 and four of five in Week 7. The running has been ugly, 39 yards on 11 carries last week, but the catches hold up his floor and the touchdown chances are there. The field is light on him, and we're happy to be heavier.

Bhayshul Tuten ($5,900 DK, $6,900 FD) - 5% projected cash ownership. We'd happily play him. He ran 22 times in Week 5, then caught four passes for 48 yards and two scores in Week 6 before Jacksonville's bye. He should get about 16 carries and two or three targets, and the Jaguars are favored by more than a touchdown with a 27.7 team total. He and Chase Brown are the two best running back values on the slate.

Rhamondre Stevenson ($5,600 DK, $6,500 FD) - 4% projected cash ownership. He's a nice cheap fit. He ran only six times in Week 7 but caught all five of his targets for 93 yards and a touchdown. He should get about 12 carries and three targets, and TreVeyon Henderson is questionable with an illness. If Henderson sits, that's closer to 15 carries, and the Miami wind doesn't touch a back's day.

Ollie Gordon II ($5,700 DK, $6,400 FD) - 24% projected cash ownership. The popular back we're skipping. He ran 25 times for 103 yards and a score in Week 7 and should get about 15 carries. Miami's 18.9 team total sits third from the bottom, and he draws about two targets, so he needs a touchdown to matter. Stevenson, on the New England side, is our pick at that price.

WIDE RECEIVER

Pay up $6,800 and above, mid tier $4,900 to $6,700, cheap under $4,900.

Puka Nacua ($8,600 DK, $9,100 FD) - 52% projected cash ownership. We want him if the money's there. No receiver on the slate has a bigger target share than his 30.6%, and the Rams look for him on almost half their air yards, 45.3%. You're paying for volume, since he's caught 286 of the 301 air yards thrown his way the last three weeks. He should see about 11 targets. Half the field will have him, so if the salary is there after Gibbs and Josh Allen, play him.

Drake London ($7,000 DK, $7,700 FD) - 43% projected cash ownership. He's in our cash builds. Three straight games with 10 or more targets, and we expect nine or ten again. No receiver at $6,000 or more is a better value. Atlanta sends 46.2% of its air yards his way and he's left 88 of them on the field, so there's upside on top of the floor. Atlanta at Tampa Bay could also play faster than its 44.9 total suggests.

DK Metcalf ($5,400 DK, $6,600 FD) - 12% projected cash ownership. We like him a lot at this price. He caught 11 of 15 for 93 yards in Week 6, and Pittsburgh still throws him almost half its air yards, 47.2%, and we expect seven or eight targets. He has 82 unrealized air yards, with the weekly detail at the bottom of this piece. Cleveland's 18.3 team total keeps the game modest, so he stays a want.

Keenan Allen ($4,500 DK, $5,800 FD) - 5% projected cash ownership. He's the cheap receiver we'd start with. Don't let three targets in Week 7 scare you off, because he caught eight of 11 for 82 yards the week before. Expect about six. It's a catch-and-run role, 20.0% of the Colts' air yards and 158 of 193 turned into yards, and Indianapolis should be throwing with Jacksonville favored by more than a touchdown.

Kendrick Bourne ($3,900 DK, $5,400 FD) - 5% projected cash ownership. No receiver on the slate is a better value. He drew eight targets in Week 5 and eight in Week 6, and five or six is the expectation here, more if Michael Wilson sits with his ribs. He works short, with just 13.9% of Arizona's air yards, so you're buying catches. The fastest game on the slate helps, roughly four extra plays over a normal game.

TIGHT END

Pay up $5,900 and above, mid tier $4,200 to $5,800, cheap under $4,200.

Trey McBride ($7,400 DK, $7,300 FD) - 42% projected cash ownership. He caught 10 of 13 for 111 yards and a score in Week 7. He's Arizona's volume guy, 230 receiving yards on 209 air yards over three weeks, and his 27.5% target share goes up if Michael Wilson sits. We love the role. The second swap explains why we still punt the position.

Hunter Henry ($4,300 DK, $5,200 FD) - 4% projected cash ownership. Seven catches on seven targets for 71 yards last week, and touchdowns in Week 5 and Week 6. It's all short stuff, though, only 7.9% of New England's air yards, and he should see about five targets. We'd still take one of the two cheaper tight ends below him.

Brenton Strange ($4,000 DK, $5,100 FD) - 13% projected cash ownership. Our tight end. He went 7 for 8 in Week 4, 7 for 8 again in Week 5 and 5 for 7 in Week 6 before Jacksonville's bye. Expect about six targets in a game where Jacksonville has the fourth-highest team total on the slate. He gets 18.4% of the Jaguars' air yards and turns nearly all of it into yards, and $4,000 is cheap for a tight end who catches almost everything thrown his way.

Mark Andrews ($3,400 DK, $5,200 FD) - 7% projected cash ownership. He's the cheaper punt if Strange doesn't fit. He caught three of four with Tyler Huntley throwing in Week 7 and should see about five targets in the highest-total game on the slate. He gets only 12.9% of Baltimore's air yards, and the quarterback question there adds some risk.

DEFENSE

Pay up $3,400 and above, mid tier $2,900 to $3,300, cheap under $2,900.

Cincinnati ($3,800 DK, $4,800 FD) - 7% projected cash ownership. Tennessee has the lowest team total on the slate at 17.6, and the Bengals front ranks third against a Titans line ranked 19th. Boye Mafe has 4.5 sacks. On FanDuel we'd happily spend up for the Bengals.

Pittsburgh ($3,300 DK, $4,900 FD) - 12% projected cash ownership. Cleveland has the worst line in our ranks and the second-lowest team total at 18.3. It's the best defense on the board for the price, and it's our FanDuel defense. On DraftKings we'd save the $600.

Detroit ($2,700 DK, $3,400 FD) - 4% projected cash ownership. Our DraftKings defense. Minnesota's line ranks 30th and has given up a sack on 9.9% of dropbacks, and Detroit is favored at home. That's a real pass rush at a punt price.

The Swaps

First, quarterback. Josh Allen and Keenan Allen cost $12,200. Justin Herbert and Zay Flowers cost the same $12,200. The Josh Allen side comes out more than a point ahead and has the higher floor, because his legs give him a score most quarterbacks can't reach. Herbert runs too, but he plays behind the 31st-ranked line, and Flowers carries his own quarterback question in Baltimore. Take Josh Allen and Keenan Allen.

Second, tight end. Trey McBride and Kendrick Bourne cost $11,300. Brenton Strange and Drake London cost $11,000. The Strange side scores a bit more for $300 less, and it has the higher floor too. McBride has the best role at the position, but at $7,400 he costs you London, and London is the surer bet for targets. Punt with Strange and keep London. On FanDuel the gap between McBride and Strange is only $2,200, so McBride is easier to justify there.

GPP

Duplication

Arizona at Dallas should run about 126 plays, close to four more than an average game and the most on the slate ([NFL pace of play](/nfl-pace)). The field will get there through Dak Prescott ($6,300 DK, $8,000 FD, 12% projected GPP ownership), CeeDee Lamb ($8,100 DK, $8,900 FD, 19% projected GPP ownership) with Trey McBride ($7,400 DK, $7,300 FD, 24% projected GPP ownership) coming back the other way. Lamb and McBride cost a lot, and big salaries usually end up more popular than our numbers say, so expect both to come in higher. We'd build it from the Arizona side. Jacoby Brissett ($5,700 DK, $7,100 FD, 7% projected GPP ownership) should throw about 37 times as Arizona chases a seven-point spread. Pair him with Michael Wilson ($6,200 DK, $6,200 FD, 8% projected GPP ownership), who gets 26.8% of Arizona's air yards, and Kendrick Bourne ($3,900 DK, $5,400 FD, 7% projected GPP ownership). That's a quarterback and a pair of his own pass catchers. If Wilson sits with his ribs, slide McBride into his spot and let Bourne's bigger target share carry the other slot. For the bring-back, George Pickens ($6,600 DK, $7,800 FD, 7% projected GPP ownership) is a cheaper way into Dallas than Lamb if his shoulder clears, and he gets 28.3% of the Cowboys' air yards. This needs Arizona throwing into the fourth quarter, and in a 52.9 total that's the likely script.

Uncertainty

Baltimore's passing line sits on Lamar Jackson ($6,800 DK, $8,500 FD, 9% projected GPP ownership) at four books, but his ankle has kept him out since Week 4 and he's questionable again. He completed 15 of 20 passes in both Week 3 and Week 4, threw four touchdowns across those games, and ran six times for 50 yards in Week 3. The game has the highest total on the slate and should land about a play above average. If he's active, a crowd that hasn't seen him in a month will be slow to come back. Stack him with Zay Flowers ($7,200 DK, $8,000 FD, 17% projected GPP ownership), who caught eight of 11 for 137 yards and a score in Week 7 and gets 31.7% of Baltimore's air yards, and Mark Andrews ($3,400 DK, $5,200 FD, 9% projected GPP ownership). Run it back with Khalil Shakir ($5,600 DK, $5,700 FD, 3% projected GPP ownership), whose target share goes from 16.2% to 20.4% if DJ Moore sits, and you'll have a game stack almost nobody else does. If Jackson can't go, skip Baltimore entirely.

Late Swap

The afternoon slate is the Chargers at the Rams at 4:05, with Kansas City at Denver and New England at Miami at 4:25. Puka Nacua ($8,600 DK, $9,100 FD, 30% projected GPP ownership) makes the Rams game the crowded one. New England at Miami should run fewer plays than any other game and has the worst wind, so leave Ollie Gordon II ($5,700 DK, $6,400 FD, 16% projected GPP ownership) to the field. Our pivot is Kansas City at Denver. The total is only 40.5, but expect a play or so more than an average game, and both offenses can move quicker than that total implies. Bo Nix ($5,100 DK, $7,100 FD, 3% projected GPP ownership) ran seven times for 73 yards and a score in Week 7 and threw for 222 more, and Denver's fourth-ranked line faces a Kansas City pass rush ranked 31st. He runs enough that one receiver is plenty, so pair him with Courtland Sutton ($4,700 DK, $5,700 FD, 3% projected GPP ownership), who gets 23.9% of Denver's air yards and moves up to a 20.8% target share if Jaylen Waddle sits. Denver posts Waddle's status before the late games kick off, so you can swap him in or out. Xavier Worthy ($4,900 DK, $6,100 FD, 5% projected GPP ownership) brings it back from the Chiefs side, with a 23.3% target share if Rashee Rice sits. Use this one when your early games went badly and you need to make up ground.

Building It

Don't hang a whole entry set on one passer. Brissett, Lamar Jackson, Nix and Josh Allen can all post a big number, so cap each between 20% and 30% of entries and keep any single defense near 20%. Eleven games gives you room to vary, and randomness around 30% stops the optimizer from handing you near-identical rosters. The clearest split between the crowd and our read is at running back. Gordon is far more popular than a back with two targets and a low team total should be, and Chase Brown ($6,300 DK, $7,100 FD, 10% projected GPP ownership), in the second-highest team total, is the back we'd be heavier on than the field.

CHEAP WR

These are main-slate receivers who cost under $5,000 on DraftKings or no more than $6,000 on FanDuel and should see at least five targets. It isn't the whole cheap tier. Kendrick Bourne and Keenan Allen fit too, and both are covered in cash.

DraftKings & FanDuel

Wan'Dale Robinson ($4,200 DK, $5,100 FD) - 6% projected GPP ownership. Six targets for seven yards in Week 7 kept his price down, and the targets were real. Tennessee is an 11-point underdog, so expect six or seven looks, and if Carnell Tate sits with his shoulder his target share jumps from 19.0% to 25.9%. He gets 18.3% of the Titans' air yards.

KC Concepcion ($4,700 DK, $5,800 FD) - 7% projected GPP ownership. He just caught eight of 10 for 129 yards. Cleveland trails a lot, he gets 21.0% of the Browns' air yards, and about six targets is the expectation. T.J. Watt coming off the edge could cut his day short.

Germie Bernard ($4,900 DK, $5,000 FD) - 7% projected GPP ownership. At $5,000 on FanDuel he's an easy fit. He caught 11 of 12 for 87 yards and a score in Week 6, and he should see about six targets. He's already turned 117 air yards into 194 receiving yards, 22.7% of Pittsburgh's air yards, so you're buying targets.

DeMario Douglas ($4,400 DK, $5,100 FD) - 5% projected GPP ownership. If A.J. Brown sits with his knee, Douglas becomes New England's lead receiver at a 23.2% target share. He caught seven of eight for 86 yards and a score in Week 6, and his short work, 19.8% of the Patriots' air yards, suits a windy afternoon in Miami. Figure about five targets either way.

FanDuel Only (over $5,000 on DraftKings)

Khalil Shakir ($5,600 DK, $5,700 FD) - 3% projected GPP ownership. He caught seven of eight for 82 yards in Week 4 and all three of his targets for 80 in Week 5. Short routes, 13.7% of Buffalo's air yards, about five targets, in the highest-total game on the slate. If DJ Moore sits, he climbs to a 20.4% target share.

Denzel Boston ($5,200 DK, $5,600 FD) - 5% projected GPP ownership. Cleveland throws him 39.3% of its air yards, and he's left 227 of them on the field since Week 5, one of Wednesday's unrealized names. Expect about six targets. The Pittsburgh pass rush is the risk, but at $5,600 on FanDuel the deep looks are cheap.

Unrealized Air Yards

Add up how far downfield a receiver was targeted, subtract the yards he caught, and you get his unrealized total. CeeDee Lamb, Denzel Boston and A.J. Brown topped Wednesday's list, so here are the next two clean names.

Michael Wilson, Cardinals: 146 unrealized. Week 5: seven targets, 101 air yards, 30 receiving yards. Week 6: seven targets, 86 air yards, 32 receiving yards. Week 7: eight targets, 76 air yards, 55 receiving yards. Each of the three games left yards on the field, and Arizona should be throwing from behind again. His ribs are the risk.

DK Metcalf, Steelers: 82 unrealized. Call him our positive regression candidate. Week 5: four targets, 15 air yards, 12 receiving yards. Week 6: 15 targets, 118 air yards, 93 receiving yards. Week 7: six targets, 110 air yards, 56 receiving yards. Most of the gap is Week 7. He's the cheaper of the two at $5,400, and he gets 47.2% of Pittsburgh's air yards.

RANKINGS

Tools used for this slate

Every number in this playbook comes off the free BankrollSZN tools: this week's NFL DFS projections, the free NFL lineup optimizer, and the live NFL odds and totals.