Box scores never tell the whole story, so which fantasy options are rising and falling heading into Week 8? If you want to completely dominate your league, consider Fantasy Consigliere for premium analytics and next-level advice for all your leagues, all year long.

 

Quarterback

 

Stock up: Mitchell Trubisky, CHI

The highest fantasy scorer over his past three games, Mitchell Trubisky has thrown for 334 yards per game with a 11:3 touchdown-interception ratio over than span, and the rushing production (8.0 fantasy points per game on the ground alone) has really boosted his fantasy stock. Remember, the second-year quarterback barely played in the preseason—which people didn’t want to acknowledge for whatever reason—but he’s looked extremely comfortable since a slow start. Looking ahead, Trubisky gets a great stretch to close out the season (v LAR, v GB, @ SF, @ MIN), including three potential shootouts.

 

Stock down: Derek Carr, OAK

I am not overly concerned about the trade of Amari Cooper when it comes to Derek Carr’s fantasy value, as Cooper was extremely inconsistent, and the move will give more playing time to Seth Roberts, who has shown excellent chemistry with his quarterback over the past four seasons. However, I’m definitely worried about the Raiders as a whole, and at this point, it looks like things could get worse before they get better after Carr had to defend himself from ridiculous speculative reports about the team losing faith in him for allegedly crying on the field. Unfortunately, I think the on-field product could be impacted based on players buying into social media, especially considering how this team fell apart last year (and still hasn’t recovered) from the national anthem controversy.

 

Running Back

 

Stock up: Marlon Mack, IND

If rushing for 89 yards on 12 attempts two weeks ago wasn’t enough for Marlon Mack to be picked up in your league, then a 21-touch, 159-yard, two-score effort should be enough to make him the consensus No. 1 waiver target before Week 8. Indianapolis is quietly building a powerful offensive line led by No. 6 overall pick Quenton Nelson, and Mack is the main beneficiary as an explosive runner that’s still just 22-years-old. Health is the main issue for Mack, but his stock is way up in both redraft and dynasty leagues.

 

Stock up: Nick Chubb, CLE

The stock report obviously comes out on Tuesday, and “Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down” comes out on Wednesday, so I didn’t really get a chance to discuss Nick Chubb last week following the trade of Carlos Hyde. I did rank him as an RB1 for his first shot at a featured role, though, and he didn’t disappoint with 80 yards and a score. I’d been holding onto the Georgia product all year with the hopes he would simply take over as the starter, but the trade was a dream scenario that makes Chubb a potential league-winner down the stretch.

 

Stock up: Kerryon Johnson, DET

I’d been holding onto Chubb because he’s an immense talent that I had as a top-20 prospect in the 2018 NFL Draft, and the same is true with Kerryon Johnson. Since handling just 13 carries over the first two games of the season, Johnson—who is now on pace for nearly 1,200 yards on the ground—has gone for rushing lines of 16/101, 9/55/1, 12/70, and 19/158. Detroit is going to keep LeGarrette Blount involved, but Kerryon’s rookie year is similar to David Johnson in that you know he’s going to be a star despite splitting time. As I’ve been advising since he was drafted, dynasty owners should aggressively target him while they can.

 

Stock down: Leonard Fournette, JAX

When Leonard Fournette gets healthy, he’s undoubtedly going to play and be featured, but when exactly will that be? The acquisition of Carlos Hyde suggests it could linger beyond the Week 9 bye, which would basically knock Fournette out until the fantasy playoffs. Those pushing for a spot in the postseason should see what kind of value they could get for the former first-round pick, though you should keep in mind that you don’t want him coming back to hurt you when playing for a championship.

 

Wide Receiver

 

Stock up: Jordy Nelson, OAK

The last time we saw Jordy Nelson and the Raiders, they were getting blown out in London as the 33-year-old was held to two receptions for six yards, but games across the pond often end up being an outlier. Before that, Nelson had combined for a 15/264/3 line over the three previous games, and he will now operate as the weekly No. 1 receiver with Amari Cooper in Dallas. Also, say what you want about Jon Gruden, but he’s a master at putting a game plan together, and Jordy will get to show he’s not finished in his 11th season. It’s not foolish to consider the former Packers standout a top-20 option.

 

Stock up: John Brown, BAL

Hopefully fantasy owners weren’t fading John Brown after a couple quiet games, as he exploded for his best performance of the year against the Saints with seven receptions, 134 yards, and a touchdown. Not only is he proving to be a difference-maker at full health, but “Smokey” also has arguably the easiest remaining schedule in the league (the most difficult matchups are against the Chargers and Browns in Week 16 and Week 17, respectively), so he’s an upside WR2 that absolutely needs to be added in the 29% of ESPN leagues that he’s somehow available in.

 

Stock down: Demaryius Thomas, DEN

Amari Cooper getting traded to the Cowboys will probably be a wash for his fantasy value, but in most cases, switching teams in the middle of a season will lead to a drop in production due to a lack of knowledge in the system and/or chemistry with the quarterback. It sounds like Demaryius Thomas could be the next receiver on the move, but even if he isn’t, I’ve been warning that Courtland Sutton is going to demand more snaps when the Broncos fall out of contention in the top-heavy AFC West, which would be a major drain on DT’s fantasy value.

 

Stock down: Marquez Valdes-Scantling, GB

In dynasty leagues, Marquez Valdes-Scantling has shown enough to get fantasy owners excited, but his time to make an impact in redraft leagues could be coming to a close with Randall Cobb and Geronimo Allison hopefully returning in Week 8. MVS brings some dynamic downfield ability to the table, but Mike McCarthy isn’t going to scale back the playing time of Cobb or Allison for a rookie that’s understandably making rookie mistakes, which we saw a couple weeks ago despite going over 100 yards on Monday Night Football.

 

Tight End

 

Stock up: Chris Herndon, NYJ

Chris Herndon was quiet to start the year, but he’s come alive over the past two games with lines of 2/56/1 and 4/42/1. The Miami product plays like a running back with the ball in his hands, and he has the size/physicality to develop into a big-time threat in the red zone. It’s asking a lot of a rookie tight end to become a consistent fantasy contributor, but at the very least, Herndon’s stock is climbing in dynasty leagues due to the connection he’s shown with Sam Darnold.

 

Stock down: Cameron Brate, TB

He was able to find the end zone in Jameis Winston’s first start, but any hope of Cameron Brate regaining weekly value this season has probably been dashed with O.J. Howard continuing to dominate targets at tight end for the Bucs. Now, Brate is nothing more than a touchdown-dependent, low-end TE2, and the time to sell high on him in dynasty leagues has probably passed.