Week 8 winners and losers: Burrow, Higgins, Chase steal the show; Falcons falter

Week 8 of the 2026 fantasy football season featured huge games by three Cincinnati Bengals — Joe Burrow, Tee Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase — as well as massive days by Bhayshul Tuten and Brock Bowers. Meanwhile, Bijan Robinson, Ashton Jeanty and Jonathan Taylor all underperformed Sunday.

So, who were the big winners and losers around the league? Matt Bowen and Tristan H. Cockcroft offer their analysis.

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Ranking winners | Ranking losers
Biggest injuries and what’s next

Ranking fantasy winners of Week 8

1. Joe Burrow, QB; Tee Higgins, WR; Ja’Marr Chase, WR, Cincinnati Bengals

Burrow scored a season-high 39.48 points in the OT win over Tennessee (despite throwing three interceptions), finishing with 462 yards passing and five touchdowns, plus he rushed for 10 yards and another score. Higgins also had a season-best day, posting 37.5 points and catching 11 of 12 targets for 155 yards and two touchdowns. And Chase’s 31.1 points were his highest total of the season, too. Big-time numbers for a Bengals offense that must be pass-heavy given its lack of rushing efficiency. With a Week 9 matchup in Atlanta, Burrow will remain a high-end QB1 while both Chase and Higgins are WR1 options. — Bowen

Tuten dropped a season-high 29.9 points on the Colts’ defense, rushing for 104 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries. He also had two receptions for 55 yards and another score. Tuten has now posted 24 or more points in back-to-back games, with multiple touchdowns in each. The arrow is pointing up on Tuten, who is seeing steady volume (16 or more touches in five straight games). Tuten should be locked in as an upper-tier RB2 for the Week 9 matchup versus the Ravens’ defense Thursday night. — Bowen

Even with chatter increasing surrounding the Raiders’ timetable to give 2026 No. 1 draft pick Fernando Mendoza starts, Cousins continues to perform, both for his NFL and fantasy teams. Cousins’ 28.18 fantasy points are a season high and his fifth game out of eight with 20-plus, while Bowers’ 28.2 points are also his season best. The two are showing excellent chemistry, and Bowers now has 123.7 fantasy points for the season, the fifth most scored by any tight end through his first six games. (Note that that’s his and not the team’s first six, as he missed the Raiders’ first two because of a knee injury.) Bowers would be universally regarded as fantasy’s No. 1 tight end if not for the threat of a quarterback change to Mendoza at some point, but it hardly looks imminent after the team’s 38-33 win. Cousins, meanwhile, remains a superflex option for as long as he holds the job. — Cockcroft

Seizing upon an expanded opportunity (see injuries below), Allgeier scored a career-high 36.1 fantasy points. While much of it came thanks to two plays — a 63-yard touchdown run in the third quarter and a 52-yard run in the fourth — they were rather significant. Allgeier reestablished that he’s the Cardinals’ best-suited running back to serve as Jeremiyah Love‘s primary backup, which could be relevant in Week 9 against the Seattle Seahawks should Love’s injury cost him additional time. Certainly Allgeier is a must-have insurance policy for Love’s managers, and a fantasy RB2/flex option anytime he’s called upon to start. — Cockcroft

With Tyjae Spears (knee) sidelined for the past two games, Pollard has gone off statistically, scoring 28.7 fantasy points in Week 8 after totaling 36.5 the week before. With little else of note on the Titans’ running back depth chart (Michael Carter, Nicholas Singleton), Pollard has played at least 75% of the offensive snaps with at least a 75% rushing share in each of those games. The bye week could afford Spears enough time to heal for the team’s Week 10 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, but Pollard has demonstrated his start-worthiness, both in the real and fantasy games. — Cockcroft

Wilson made some big plays late in the Cardinals’ OT win over the Cowboys, scoring a season-best 26.8 points, catching eight of a team-high 15 targets for 111 yards and adding 17 yards on a rushing attempt. Wilson and backup quarterback Gardner Minshew II, who relieved starter Jacoby Brissett, took advantage of the positive matchup versus the Dallas defense. However, for a matchup against a Seahawks defense that ranks No.1 versus wide receivers coming up in Week 9, Wilson can be played as a WR2/Flex. — Bowen

The brutal rain/weather in Tampa really impacted the game plan in the win over the Falcons, as the Bucs became the first team since the 1974 Bills to win without completing a pass. However, Irving is still running the ball at a really high rate. He finished with 21 points in this one, rushing 27 times for 170 yards and a touchdown. Irving now has 21 or more points — and at least one touchdown — in three of his last four games. I expect the run game to stay at the top on the call sheet for the Week 9 game at Chicago, as managers can play Irving there as a lower-tier RB1. — Bowen

Ranking fantasy losers of Week 8

The weather — and really poor quarterback play from Michael Penix Jr. — limited the opportunities for the top skill players on the Atlanta offense. Robinson scored 7.6 points as he rushed 19 times for 76 yards, and he didn’t record a reception. London caught one of six targets for 8 yards (1.8 points), and Pitts brought in two of five for 6 yards (2.6 points). This group will look to rebound next week in the home matchup versus the Bengals. — Bowen

2. Ashton Jeanty, RB, Las Vegas Raiders

The Raiders went in an unexpected direction at running back in Week 8, giving Mike Washington Jr. the start as well as 25 rushing attempts and 63% of the offensive snaps to usual starter Jeanty’s two and 37%. The reasons for Jeanty’s in-game benching are unclear, but Washington’s usage — both this week and in earlier games — signals his importance as an insurance policy. That said, it seems likely that Jeanty will resume his starter’s role in Week 9 against the San Francisco 49ers, being that Washington averaged only 3.3 yards per carry and was stuffed at the line six times, while Jeanty provided the Raiders some utility in the receiving game (3 catches, 64 yards). Keep tabs on the practice-week news, but Jeanty should be a high-end RB2 for Week 9. — Cockcroft

His fantasy managers are — and should be — rooting for a trade ahead of the Nov. 10 deadline, as the team’s weak supporting cast hampered his production significantly. Taylor’s 6.7 fantasy points represented his fewest in any of his prior 28 non-Week 18 games. Rumors continue to swirl that Taylor might move, but if he’s stuck in Indianapolis, Daniel Jones‘ struggles and the trades past and upcoming that’ll deplete the roster will make it tough to trust Taylor as a true fantasy RB1. He would face a favorable matchup in the Dallas Cowboys in Week 9 if he stays put (for now, at least). — Cockcroft

Williams saw heavy usage in the run game versus Arizona (24 carries), and he had scoring opportunities (three goal-to-go attempts). However, Williams finished with only 56 yards on the ground and he didn’t cash-in on those attempts near the end zone (season-low 6.7 points). Williams is going to see rushing volume in this Dallas offense, but with limited numbers as a pass catcher, he needs to score touchdowns. He’ll look to bounce back in Week 9 at Indianapolis. —Bowen

Started in 76.5% of ESPN leagues (14th-most among wide receivers), Washington saw a season-low two targets and scored only 3.6 fantasy points — the second time in four games that he was held beneath five. Chalk this one up as bad luck with the game script, as his Jaguars were up, 28-0, by halftime, and barely needed to pass all game. Washington’s 16 routes run were his fewest all year, and yet they led the team. We’ll see if that’s how Thursday’s Week 9 game in Baltimore plays out since the Ravens are dealing with multiple quarterback injuries, but Washington should remain a WR2/3 for that game. — Cockcroft

The Vikings defense ranks in the top 5 versus quarterbacks and wide receivers, and we saw that impact on Sunday with both Goff and St. Brown. Goff’s 9.04 points were a season-low, as he threw for 176 yards, a touchdown and his first interception of the season. St. Brown (12.6 points) did catch seven of eight targets, but he was limited to 46 yards receiving, along with a touchdown grab that was reversed, plus he had one rushing attempt for 10 yards. Goff and St. Brown get the Dolphins up next in Week 9. — Bowen

Injury impact

Lamar Jackson, QB, and Tyler Huntley, QB, Baltimore Ravens

What we know: Jackson injured his thumb on his first passing attempt of the day, and he was immediately assisted to the locker room by the team training staff. Jackson was quickly ruled out of the game. Huntley, who relieved Jackson, went down later in the first quarter with a toe injury, forcing the team to give the ball to their No. 3 emergency quarterback — undrafted rookie Joe Fagnano.

What’s next: After the game, the Ravens announced that Jackson would need surgery on this thumb, and he would be placed on IR. Huntley is expected to have an MRI on his toe this week as well. Given these updates, Fagnano could be in-line to make his first pro start this Thursday night versus the Jaguars, which will downgrade the Ravens offense. — Bowen

Jeremiyah Love and Bam Knight, RBs, Arizona Cardinals

What we know: Both Love and Knight were injured in the game’s first half, and neither was able to return. Love injured his ankle on a three-yard run late in the first quarter, while Knight suffered a concussion in the second quarter. In their absences, Allgeier had a career-best day (see above).

What’s next: Love might be more likely than Knight to return in time for Week 9, considering the difficulty in clearing the NFL’s concussion protocol, but Love has missed time with ankle issues already this year and might also be questionable throughout the practice week. Make sure Allgeier is rostered in every fantasy league. — Cockcroft

DJ Moore, WR, Buffalo Bills

What we know: After scoring 16.6 fantasy points in Week 8, his best single-game output since Week 1, Moore suffered a knee injury late in the contest.

What’s next: Moore indicated afterwards that the injury wasn’t serious, though his prior absences this season demand that his status be closely tracked throughout the practice week. He’d be facing one of the toughest matchups in the Minnesota Vikings in Week 9, so it might be best to find a one-week alternative anyway. — Cockcroft