By: Matt Bradley @mattjbrad910
Top 12 Targets Leaders
| Player | Team | Week 8 Targets |
| T1. DeAndre Hopkins | Texans | 13 |
| T1. Auden Tate | Bengals | 13 |
| T3. D.J. Chark | Jaguars | 12 |
| T3. Mike Evans | Buccaneers | 12 |
| T3. Julio Jones | Falcons | 12 |
| T3. Latavius Murray | Saints | 12 |
| T7. Julian Edelman | Patriots | 11 |
| T7. Christian Kirk | Cardinals | 11 |
| T7. Curtis Samuel | Panthers | 11 |
| T7. Michael Thomas | Saints | 11 |
| T11. Keenan Allen | Chargers | 10 |
| T11. Saquon Barkley | Giants | 10 |
| T11. Cooper Kupp | Rams | 10 |
| T11. Jarvis Landry | Browns | 10 |
| T11. Golden Tate | Giants | 10 |
DeAndre Hopkins saw more down field targets with Will Fuller out. Hopkins is finally returning on his first round value. D.J. Chark target volume suggests that he isn’t just a touchdown dependent wide receiver. With target volume and touchdowns comes WR1 value. Mike Evans reminded fantasy owners that they can’t quit on him as he put up almost 200 yards receiving and two scores. Yes, his quarterback is Jamies, but Evans is still one the league’s best wide outs and his teammate Chris Godwin isn’t half bad either.
Julio Jones had a rough few weeks earlier this season, but like Evans, he also put up a big stat line on Sunday with 10 catches for 152 yards. After having 4 scores in weeks 1-3, Jones hasn’t found the end zone since and is due for positive scoring regression, but we’ve heard this story from Julio before. Curtis Samuel saw 11 targets, but only was able to bring in 4 for 46. Samuel might see a lot of volume for Carolina, but he has been very disappointing and unproductive with it.
Top 12 Touches Leaders
| Player | Team | Week 8 Touches |
| 1. David Montgomery | Bears | 31 |
| 2. Latavius Murray | Saints | 30 |
| 3. Dalvin Cook | Vikings | 28 |
| 4. Saquon Barkley | Giants | 27 |
| T5. James Conner | Steelers | 26 |
| T5. Leonard Fournette | Jaguars | 26 |
| 7. Jordan Howard | Eagles | 24 |
| T8. Nick Chubb | Browns | 21 |
| T8. Devonta Freeman | Falcons | 21 |
| T8. Sony Michel | Patriots | 21 |
| T8. Joe Mixon | Bengals | 21 |
| T12. Chris Carson | Seahawks | 20 |
| T12. Aaron Jones | Packers | 20 |
| T12. Marlon Mack | Colts | 20 |
Matt Nagy wasn’t kidding when he said that the Bears needed to run the ball, and that’s exactly what David Montgomery did in his breakout game. 135 yards on 23 carries and a score shows that Montgomery can thrive with a heavy workload. The Bears should give him exactly that in the coming weeks. Latavius Murray succeeded again in the lead role for the Saints in week 8. Murray pulled off 157 total yards on 30 touches and a score. It’s hard to gauge Murray’s value in fantasy when Kamara comes back as his role goes back to being a high end handcuff again. James Conner had 145 yards on the ground and found the end zone before leaving with an AC joint injury. Conner will be on the injury report watch all week to see if he’s available for next Sunday.
Jordan Howard had himself a decent day at the office with 111 total yards and a score. Howard saw more of a feature back work load as Miles Sanders only got 6 touches before leaving with a shoulder injury. Devonta Freeman ends up on the top touches list for week 8 as he had 13 carries and 8 receptions for 102 yards. Freeman had a small bright spot in a very disappointing season so far, just like the Falcons’ season as a whole. Another running back who’s been disappointing, but had a strong week is Joe Mixon. Mixon had 77 total yards and a touchdown, but is still on a very bad team that won’t be in a positive game script in many games this season, which isn’t good news for him.
Top 12 Targets Leaders that may still be available in your leagues
| Player | Team | Week 8 Targets |
| 1. Auden Tate | Bengals | 11 |
| T2. Tyler Eifert | Bengals | 9 |
| T2. Russell Gage | Falcons | 9 |
| T4. Danny Amendola | Lions | 8 |
| T4. Noah Fant | Broncos | 8 |
| T4. DeVante Parker | Dolphins | 8 |
| T4. Josh Reynolds | Rams | 8 |
| T8. Cole Beasley | Bills | 7 |
| T8. Chris Conley | Jaguars | 7 |
| T8. Alex Erickson | Bengals | 7 |
| T8. Diontae Johnson | Steelers | 7 |
| T8. Jonnu Smith | Titans | 7 |
| T8. Preston Williams | Dolphins | 7 |
Auden Tate and Tyler Eifert top the list of target leaders on waivers in week 8. Both benefit from playing on a team that’s always down late in games and balls keep coming their way. For Tate, it’s the third straight game of 65 yards. Eifert finished with 6 catches and 74 yards making this his first game of the season with more than 30 yards receiving. Eifert can remain on waivers.
Russell Gage’s value saw an up-tick as Sanu was traded. Gage ended up with 7 catches and 58 yards before heading into the BYE week. Parker may have emerged as the guy to own in Miami. No fantasy team should have to own a Dolphin player except in deep leagues. Josh Reynolds took advantage of the opportunity that opened when Brandin Cooks left with a concussion. Finishing with 73 yards and a score, Reynolds could be a very popular add, but he’s still on a struggling Rams offense that has been disappointing outside of Cooper Kupp.
Top 12 Touches Leaders that may still be available in your leagues
| Player | Team | Week 8 Touches |
| 1. Alexander Mattison | Vikings | 15 |
| 2. Mark Walton | Dolphins | 14 |
| 3. Darrell Henderson | Rams | 13 |
| T4. Tra Carson | Lions | 12 |
| T4. Ronald Jones II | Buccaneers | 12 |
| 6. Raheem Mostert | 49ers | 9 |
| T7. Danny Amendola | Lions | 8 |
| T7. Rashaad Penny | Seahawks | 8 |
| T9. Russell Gage | Falcons | 7 |
| T9. Nyheim Hines | Colts | 7 |
| T11. Ryquell Armstead | Jaguars | 6 |
| T11. Tyler Eifert | Bengals | 6 |
| T11. Alex Erickson | Bengals | 6 |
| T11. Darren Fells | Texans | 6 |
| T11. DeVante Parker | Dolphins | 6 |
| T11. Jonnu Smith | Titans | 6 |
| T11. DeAndre Washington | Raiders | 6 |
Please go and get Alexander Mattison before it’s too late. Mattison might not have week to week value, but if anything were to happen to Dalvin Cook, he will be a league winner. Christmas came early for Mark Walton this year as Kenyan Drake was traded to the Cardinals. Walton is in line to get the Dolphins work load, but will share some of it with Kalen Ballage. Darrell Henderson shared the workload with Todd Gurley on Sunday, but no one expected it to be close to a 50/50 split. With Malcolm Brown coming back soon, this back field gets uglier and if there was an odd man out, it would be Henderson.
Tra Carson was a candidate for the “replace Kerryon Johnson” job opening in Detroit. He did get 12 carries, but only had 34 yards to show for it. He can stay on waivers. Ronald Jones will forever be in a timeshare with Peyton Barber. It seems that Tampa Bay doesn’t trust either with a full workload. Raheem Mostert had a great week in the 49ers blow out win with 60 yards rushing and a score. Unfortunately for Mostert, the game script was a best case scenario and Mostert is third in line for work. It’ll be hard to rely on Mostert week to week, but he’s someone to keep an eye especially with Coleman and Breida’s injury history.
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