Tue Oct 28th 2025

Week Eight Dynasty Takes

Dynasty News

Bad Football

• This was a bad Sunday of football. It was bad because six teams were on bye, leaving dynasty managers weak starting lineups. It was bad because more backup quarterbacks were forced to play. Seven of the twelve games on Sunday featured a backup quarterback, including the late surprise scratches of Lamar Jackson and Michael Penix. It was bad because eleven of the twelve games were double-digit wins. Fantasy points were still scored, but the games were far less enjoyable to watch this week.  It was bad because several high-powered offenses were stifled this week, making all of their fantasy studs into duds. The Falcons, 49ers, Buccaneers, and Cowboys each underperformed. It made watching games and following my teams less enjoyable than most Sundays, and many of my dynasty teams, along with NFL teams, were upset this week. Hopefully, this is the worst week of the season. At least we know there won't be any more six-team bye weeks for the rest of the season.

Right and Wrong

• Right On Tucker Kraft
  • Kraft blew up on Sunday night with 142 yards receiving and two touchdowns. He had the third-most run-after-catch yards (131) in history by a tight end since they began tracking that stat. His yards per catch and his run-after-catch stats last season were the primary signal to me that this would be his breakout year. Last season, I traded away Mark Andrews for Kraft. Andrews got hot to end the season, and it looked like a bad trade, but this year, it's no contest. After week two this season, I traded Romeo Doubs and RJ Harvey away for Travis Etienne and Tucker Kraft, and I could not be happier about it. I'll run Kraft and Tyler Warren out in my starting lineup every week. Finally, I drafted Kraft in my most recent dynasty start-up draft. That league is a tight-end premium league, and after Sunday night, Kraft is the 23rd-highest-scoring player in the entire league. I'm glad I put my chips in on Kraft before this season's breakout. He's now a top-tier tight end and is 5th in my tight-end dynasty rankings.
• Wrong On Kimani Vidal
  • Boy, was I wrong on Kimani Vidal. He appears to be this year's top find on the dynasty waiver wire. After Omarion Hampton was injured, I placed my FAAB money on Hasaan Haskins instead of Vidal. In my mind, that made sense since Haskins was active with the team all year while Vidal was on the Chargers' practice squad. I should have thought more about which player is the most dynamic, and that's clearly Vidal. After his first great game, I acquired him in a trade, but this week, I was still unsure about him and started Alvin Kamara ahead of him. He had more than 100 yards rushing and one touchdown for the second time in his three starts. I could have won my fantasy game had I started him. To my demise, I've been wrong on Vidal several times this season. 

Week One Injury Report

• Cam Skattebo
  • The worst part of the entire day was the Skettebo injury. He was one of my most drafted rookies and was an every-week starter in my lineups. His injury will kill some of my teams this season. His attitude and style won over dynasty managers and his teammates, who were all devastated at the sight of his gruesome injury. I'm sure he will not return this season, and I bet it will take more than a full year for him to recover from this injury and re-enter dynasty lineups. This injury was the hardest one for me to take this year so far. Tyrone Tracy will get a bump in his dynasty value again, as he'll have the lead role back for the Giants. Devin Singletary becomes a player to look for on the waiver wire this week, too. 
• Quinshon Judkins
  • As of this article, news just broke that Hampton is "week-to-week" with his shoulder injury. The Browns have a bye this week, so hopefully that will give him time to return as the Browns' starter in two weeks. If not, Dylan Sampson and Jerome Ford will split carries as they did at the beginning of the year. Hopefully, Judkins will bounce back quickly, though.

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Stock Up

Troy Franklin

• Franklin had the best fantasy day of his career on Sunday against the terrible Cowboys' defense. He caught two touchdowns after catching the first of his season last week. He's become Bo Nix's number two target behind Courtland Sutton, who only has two more targets than Franklin, who is averaging nearly seven targets per game. The Broncos still run a lot of different wide receiver packages, so he's getting under two-thirds of the total snaps. Still, when he's in there, Nix looks for him. He's now the 23rd highest scoring wide receiver this season, so his dynasty stock is rising.

Tank Bigsby

• Bigsby has taken the RB-2 role in Philadelphia. He stepped in after Saquon Barkley left the game with a mild injury and added to the Eagles' unstoppable run game by running for 104 yards on just nine carries. While Will Shipley had twice as many snaps as Bigsby, he only carried the ball three times. Bigsby looked so much better than Shipley. The Eagles have to take notice. Plus, the Eagles gave up too much in their trade with the Jaguars earlier this season not to have bigger plans for Bigsby. His special teams role has now moved into a full-time backup role on a team with an awesome but aging veteran ahead of him. Every primary backup running back is valuable on dynasty rosters. If Bigsby earns that role after his outstanding play this week, his stock will rise back up this season. 

Jaylen Waddle

• Dynasty managers have been waiting for a Waddle blow-up game, especially after Tyreek Hill was lost for the season, but the Dolphins' offense seemed unable to make it happen. He had a great game in one of the biggest upset wins of the week when Miami trounced the Falcons on their home field. Last week, I wrote about Tua Tagovailoa's possible demise, but he surprisingly bounced back this week with a solid game that allowed Waddle to shine. This is the year for Waddle to see his dynasty stock rise again as he gets all the attention in the Dolphins' passing game and has stayed healthy thus far, unlike most years. He's the 13th-highest-scoring wide receiver this season, and his stock is back on the rise after a few years of slow decline.

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Stock Down

Matthew Golden

• I've already sold my only share of Matthew Golden, and I have no regrets. Tucker Kraft and Romeo Doubs are the focal points of the Packers' passing game, and the rest of the receivers just mix and match as coach LaFleur likes.  Christian Watson was back this week, and Jayden Reed will be soon. There are just too many mouths to feed in Green Bay. I thought that once they finally drafted a receiver in the first round, they would target him like one, but half the fantasy season is over now, and it's obvious they won't.  His three catches for four yards Sunday night were such a disappointment. I've lost all hope for Golden.

Alvin Kamara

• Kamara has lost a step. Still, I thought this would be his one last time to shine now that this week the backfield would not be shared with Kendre Miller, who was injured and lost for the season last week. If he had a breakout game this week, the Saints could shop him in a trade even though he says he will not agree to one. Instead, he played his fewest snaps of the season (51%) and had his fewest carries of the season (6). The Saints made a change at quarterback in the second half, and I expect Tyler Shough to start for the rest of the season as the team tanks and earns the right to draft its quarterback of the future. Kamara can't produce in this environment, and he's showing signs of breaking down in his age-30 season. He was one of the greats in his prime, which lasted for years, but now, sadly, the writing is on the wall for him.

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Young Guns

RJ Harvey

• It seems like every week, a new running back is having his coming-out party. This week, it was Harvey's turn with three touchdowns on the day, including a beautiful forty-yard touchdown run. The Broncos are still hesitant to use him, giving him less than a third of the snaps each week, but it's nice to see what he can do if they were to use him more. I expect his workload to increase a little more as the season progresses, and hopefully, he can prove enough to the coaching staff to be their leading back next season. He's a hard player to start in dynasty lineups until he sees more playing time, but there is much reason for hope in a future leading role next year. Hopefully, the few good plays he made on Sunday will cause the coaching staff to give him more looks. 

Mason Taylor  

• Taylor was the top-targeted pass catcher for the Jets during Sunday's crazy come-from-behind win in Cincinnati. His touchdown catch was a fantasy high-point grab on a trick play thrown by Breece Hall. He's established himself as a streamable tight end in dynasty lineups, where the tight end position is a nightmare unless you have one of the five or six top-tier guys. If the Jets had a more consistent offense, Taylor could play much better. Still, he's earned a starting role in his rookie season and plays more than 80% of the snaps. It will be fun for his managers to watch him develop this season and try to become a reliable starter in lineups.

Jaylin Noel, Jayden Higgins, and Woody Marks

• The Texans had their best offensive showing in weeks on Sunday, and they did it on the back of their rookie receivers and running backs. Marks averaged 5.6 yards per carry on his eleven carries and 12.3 yards per catch on his four catches, netting 111 total yards from scrimmage. Noel caught five passes for 63 yards, and Higgins caught four passes for 34 yards and a touchdown. Nico Collins missed the game while in the concussion protocol, so this was the rookie class's, especially the receivers', first chance to prove themselves. Higgins played 83% of the snaps compared to Noel's 39%, but Noel had more targets and yards. He's the better playmaker in space, while Higgins is the better red-zone target, and that's precisely how they were used in the Texans' win over the 49ers. Marks is now a player worth starting in deeper leagues with several flex positions, and Higgins and Noel could be on their way there soon. I started Noel in one deep league this week and almost started him in another in anticipation of this opportunity. It was a modest game, but enough to excite me and his other dynasty managers.

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Old-Man Strength

Justin Herbert

• Herbert had the best game of the season since week one on Thursday night. He had three touchdown passes for the second week in a row, and he's running the ball more than he ever has before, giving dynasty managers those sweet sneaky points. He ran for 62 yards Thursday night and is averaging 31 rushing yards per game. He has the fifth-most rushing yards by a quarterback this season so far. I geeked out and watched the Thursday night game with Amazon Prime Vision for the first time, and it was a blast to watch Herbert play quarterback and see the field from his perspective. He's such a quick processor, and his arm is one of the best. He started dynasty managers like me off with a big lead on Thursday night and looked awesome doing it.

James Cook

• Cook blew up on Sunday, rushing for the most yards (216) by a Bills running back since O.J. Simpson. The coaching staff was criticized over the last few weeks for limiting Cook's touches. I guess they took the criticism to heart and decided to feed Cook this week. What do you know? It worked! His two touchdowns were from 64 and 21 yards out, where he left the defenders in the dust. He's an excellent running back who is playing the best football of his career right now. The Bills were right to give him a new contract, and he will pay them back handsomely if they make him a focal point of the offense. Cook has scored more than 20 fantasy points in five of the seven weeks. He may have had two down weeks in a row, but coming off the bye, Cook and the Bills have corrected course.

Dallas Goedert

• Goedert has played in seven games this season, and he has scored seven touchdowns, including two on Sunday. He's already scored more touchdowns this season than he has in any of his seven seasons in the NFL. The Eagles have made him a focal point of the passing game in the red zone. Six of his seven touchdowns have come in the red zone, and five of seven from the 6-yard line or closer. At a position that can be a touchdown-or-bust kind of position, Goedert is scoring a lot. He's always had the physical ability to produce like this, but he was never made the focal point of the offense in the red zone. Now he is, and it's resulting in the best year of his career so far.

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Waiver Watch

Samaje Perine

• I was surprised to see that Perine is still available in several of my dynasty leagues. Tahj Brooks is nowhere close to edging him out of the RB-2 spot in Cincinnati, and Perine has been sharing the load with Chase Brown more over the last few weeks.  His touches have increased each of the last three weeks from six to seven to nine this week, when he ran for 94 yards and a touchdown.  Every RB-2 should be rostered in dynasty leagues. He's the player I'll aim to add in every league this week for depth and the one-injury-away running back that we need on dynasty rosters.

Devin Singletary

• Singletary is a savvy veteran who will now see an increased role in New York since Skattebo's season is over. He's worth adding in every dynasty league now, too. Tyrone Tracy will assume the leading role, but Singletary is the next man up if Tracy gets injured, as he already was once this season.

Tyler Johnson

• I'd only look to add Johnson in the deepest of leagues, but he was the Jets' most targeted receiver on Sunday with Garrett Wilson injured. I can't believe Johnson never became a reliable starter in the NFL after being so dominant in college. He's bounced around the league for years, but this is the most playing time he's ever seen as a starter. Injuries to Wilson and Allan Lazard opened the door for him, so it will be fun to see what he can do with it while the door is open.

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Dynasty Trades

Drake London <=======> 2026 1st round pick and 2027 1st round pick

• I made a bold move, giving up two first-round picks to acquire Drake London in this league. Two years ago, I began to rebuild my team in this league. Now I am loaded with young players and tied atop the league with a 6-1 record. My only weakness is my WR-2 position since I lost Malik Nabers. I'm strong and young enough at every position that I was willing to give up two future first-round picks to make my starting lineup one of the toughest in the league. I gave up a lot, but I am confident I can compete this year and the years to come with this starting lineup.
• Ha! I wrote this on Saturday, before London was declared inactive and before Skattebo and Judkins were injured. I'm still content with the trade for the long-term value to my team, but my chances of a championship run this season were significantly diminished on Sunday.
• • Quarterbacks: Daniel Jones, Kyler Murray, Jaxson Dart
  • Running Backs: Ashton Jeanty, Quinshon Judkins, Cam Skattebo, Travis Etienne, Jaylen Warren
  • Wide Receivers: Malike Nabers, Jaxson Smith-Nijgba, Drake London, Deebo Samuel, Jakobi Meyers, Wan'Dale Robinson
  •  Tight Ends: Tyler Warren, Tucker Kraft

Jordan Addison, Derrick Henry <=======> Troy Franklin, Tez Johnson, and a 2026 1st round pick

• A team in this league posted to the group chat that he was ready to rebuild. I promptly sent him this trade offer to strengthen my team as I try to defend my championship form from last year. Jordan Addison's value is worth a first-round pick by himself, especially since I know my pick will be at the back of the first round. Derrick Henry can strengthen my running back room, which is anchored by Jonathan Taylor and Saquon Barkley. I believe the Ravens will get hot again for the rest of the season as Lamar Jackson returns to the starting lineup and the banged-up Ravens team gets healthy, fighting to compete for a playoff spot and a chance to win the weak AFC Central division. 

Bo Nix, Courtland Sutton <=======> Caleb Williams, DeMario Douglas, and a 2026 1st round pick

• In another league, I've grown tired of Caleb Williams, so I decided to trade him for the Nix-Sutton stack. I had Nix ranked three spots ahead of Williams in my dynasty rankings, so that part of the trade is pretty even. Sutton's value is likely more like a second-round pick, but I was willing to pay up a bit to get the stack as I make a run for the playoffs. My team is one of the strongest in the league, but I have battled injuries over the last few weeks.  Now that CeeDee Lamb and Emeka Egbuka are healthy again, and Puka Nacua is likely to return next week, Sutton will give me incredible depth in a league where we can start up to six receivers. The team I traded with gave up its first-round pick earlier in the season, and now that it has the worst record in the league, they were eager to get a first-round pick back. It was a good trade for his team as well. 

Andy Dalton, Keenan Allen, Zach Ertz <=======> Bhayshul Tuten and 2027 2nd and 3rd round picks

• In a superflex tight end-premium league where I started a massive rebuild, I traded away Dalton, Allen, and Ertz for Tuten and two 2027 picks. I tried to get a first-round pick in the trade, but had to settle for a second and third-round pick. I've never been a believer in Tuten, but he's worth taking a chance on in a rebuild. I now have two picks in every round in 2026, and in 2027, I have two first-round picks, three second and third-round picks, and two fourth and fifth-round picks. What makes this league unique is that our rookie draft is an auction, so draft picks equate to a certain amount of money. That means all of these future picks can accumulate money, allowing me to buy multiple rookies with first-round value. It's complicated, I know, but it will be fun to have a lot of money in our rookie auction draft for the next two years, and I am still not done trading players for picks!

Tee Higgins <=======> Jerry Jeudy and 2026 2nd, 3rd, and 4th round picks

• The same team that I gave a first-round pick to in the previous trade, sold Higgins to get back Jeudy and three future picks. Both teams accomplished their goals, one to rebuild and the other to compete. Higgins is far better than Jeudy, especially beyond this year, but the three picks more than even out this trade. This was the week that a few teams in this league, including myself, decided whether they needed to rebuild or compete. Several competing teams added players for their playoff run, including me. Now, the competition at the top has gotten a lot tougher. The following trade was another such trade in this league.

JK Dobbins <=======> Adonai Mitchell and a 2026 2nd round pick

• As I wrote last week, Mitchell's dynasty stock has fallen further than ever before, making him almost droppable in dynasty leagues. Dobbins' days are numbered, given his age and injury history, but he's worth a second-round pick. The team that acquired Dobbins is in the middle of the pack but wanted to add a piece to help in a playoff run, and the team that acquired Mitchell and the pick decided it was time to sell off older assets. It was a good trade for both teams.

Aaron Rodgers, Josh Jacobs <=======> 2026 1st and 2nd round pick

• This was yet another contender-rebuilder trade that took place in this same league. Rodgers may be in his last year, but he can help a competing team in this superflex league during his playoff run, and Jacobs will help his team for years to come. The price is right in this trade. He paid a hefty price for Rodgers and Jacobs, but he made his team significantly stronger for his playoff run for the future. The rebuilding team will be pleased to receive the picks as they begin rebuilding.

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