One Thing We Learned From Each Week 8 Game on Sunday: Tucker Kraft, Tyrone Tracy and More

Jonathan Taylor is on another level right now. The MVP talk is beginning and to be a running back and enter the conversation, domination is needed. The Colts running back is doing that. For the fourth time in eight games, Taylor had three TDs in a game. Taylor made it look easy with 153 yards on 12 carries and two scores and caught two passes for 21 yards with a TD in the Colts 38-14 win over the Titans.

After James Cook took the rushing lead in the early games, Taylor took it right back in the first quarter. Taylor leads the league in carries (143), rushing yards (850), total yards (1,056) and total touchdowns (14). He is averaging 5.9 yards per carry and doesn’t have lower than 86 scrimmage yards in any game this season. He has at least one TD in six of eight games.

Taylor and Cook weren't the only running backs with strong performances, either. Let's break down everything on a game-by-game basis.

Jets 39, Bengals 38

Jets owner Woody Johnson took a shot at Justin Fields this week, saying, “If we can just complete a pass, it would look good.” Fields was likely going to be benched before Tyrod Taylor couldn’t play due to a knee injury. Fields did more than complete one pass and did it without his best receiver, Garrett Wilson. Fields went 21 of 32 for 244 yards with a TD and rushed for 31 yards on 11 carries to lead the Jets to their first win of the year. As long as Fields doesn’t play an elite defense, he can be a solid fantasy QB, especially if he runs more. Breece Hall has been good this season and had no TDs to show for it until Sunday. Not only did Hall rush for 133 yards on 18 carries with two TDs and catch two passes for 14 yards, but he also threw the winning TD pass to Mason Taylor.

Eagles 38, Giants 20

Saquon Barkley didn’t have one game with 100 scrimmage yards and didn’t have a run longer than 17 yards through the first seven games. He finally did against the Giants with a 65-yard run and rushed for 150 yards on 14 carries with a TD and caught four passes for 24 yards with a TD. Barkley left the game late with a groin injury, but wasn’t concerned. The Eagles have a bye next week. Tank Bigsby had nine carries for 104 yards and appears to be the handcuff.

Dolphins 34, Falcons 10

The Falcons hadn’t allowed a quarterback to pass for 200 yards this season. Tua Tagovailoa was the first quarterback to top 200 yards passing against the Falcons this season after being held below 200 yards in four of seven games. Tagovailoa passed for 205 yards with four TDs. Tagovailoa had one TD and six INTs over the previous two games. Jaylen Waddle bounced back from a bad week with five catches for 99 yards with a TD and is a high-end WR2. He’s always excelled with Tyreek Hill out.

Broncos 44, Cowboys 22

Start everyone against the Cowboys. The defense looks clueless and leaves receivers wide open. We finally saw a big game from RJ Harvey with two rushing TDs and a receiving TD. Still, he only had eight touches for 51 yards. J.K. Dobbins has done nothing to lose touches, finishing with 15 carries for 111 yards and catching two passes for 11 yards. It’s still difficult to count on Harvey and while he looks good, the volume isn’t enough to start him. Troy Franklin took advantage of the matchup with six catches for 89 yards with two TDs and led the team with eight targets.

Patriots 32, Browns 13

TreVeyon Henderson actually touched the football and got carries early in the game. He looked good, yet still only played 22% of the snaps compared to 72% for Rhamondre Stevenson. Henderson had 10 carries for 75 yards, but had no targets and lost a fumble late in the game. He’s only the third running back to top 52 yards rushing against the Browns this season. The other two were Jahmyr Gibbs and De’Von Achane. Stevenson had 14 carries for 34 yards and caught a 15-yard pass. It’s a step in the right direction for Henderson, but let's hope he isn’t penalized for the fumble.

Texans 26, 49ers15

Nico Collins and Christian Kirk were out for the Texans and all eyes were on the rookie wide receivers. Jayden Higgins had four catches for 34 yards with a TD on eight targets and Jaylin Noel had five catches for 63 yards on six targets and made plays when given a chance. Nine different players received a target. The Texans have been reluctant to unleash the rookie duo and it’s difficult to count on them yet, especially when Collins and Kirk return.

Ravens 30, Bears 16

Lamar Jackson missed another game with a hamstring injury and the hope is he could return on Thursday against the Dolphins. Tyler Huntley filled in well and allowed Derrick Henry to provide a good day. Henry rushed for 71 yards on 21 carries with two TDs.

Bills 40, Panthers 9

The Bills offense struggled in the last two games before the bye. The simple solution: feed James Cook. The running back rushed for 216 yards on 19 carries with two TDs. The domination limited Josh Allen to 163 passing yards with a TD, but he came through on the ground with seven rushing yards and two TDs.

Buccaneers 23, Saints 3

The Buccaneers offense looked terrible for the second straight week. Some of the injuries are catching up to them. Baker Mayfield struggled with 152 passing yards and no touchdowns. The offense averaged 3.8 yards per play and the defense won the game with four turnovers and a TD.

Packers 35, Steelers 25

Tucker Kraft is becoming one of the more reliable tight ends, especially with his volume increasing. Kraft had been reliant on TDs in the first few games, with three scores on 18 catches in the first five games. Over the last two games, Kraft has had 19 targets. He had a career game with seven catches for 143 yards with two TDs on nine targets on Sunday night. Kraft had 131 yards after the catch. Christian Watson made his season debut coming off a torn ACL and impressed with four catches for 85 yards and Matthew Golden disappointed again with three catches for four yards on three targets. Ten different players caught a pass for Green Bay.

Ronis Bonus

What the hell are the Panthers doing with their backfield? It’s clear that Rico Dowdle is the better runner right now. Sure, Chuba Hubbard has a big contract, but isn’t the goal to win games? Hubbard played 59% of the snaps, and Dowdle was at 34%. Hubbard had 12 carries for 34 yards with a TD and had one target. Dowdle rushed for 54 yards on eight carries and didn’t have a target. Hubbard is averaging 3.6 yards per carry, while Dowdle is at 5.7. Seems obvious to me.
There are always games that don’t make sense or a player’s stat line that doesn’t make sense. Bijan Robinson was the player this week with nine carries for 25 yards and three catches for 23 yards. The Dolphins came in allowing the third most fantasy points to running backs per game and Robinson had at least 92 scrimmage yards in every game before this dud. The Dolphins loaded the box with Kirk Cousins starting in place of Michael Penix, and Drake London was out with a hip injury.
The appeal of Chase Brown was the massive volume and having the backfield to himself. That’s not the case anymore with Samaje Perine cutting into the workload. Brown played 53% of the snaps compared to 43% for Perine. Brown has looked better with Joe Flacco under center and rushed for 73 yards on 12 carries with a TD and caught all three passes for 32 yards with a TD. Perine rushed for 94 yards with a TD and had one target. Brown has 23 carries for 181 yards in the last two games.
Don’t start Browns wide receivers. Only the tight ends and running backs are catching passes from Dillon Gabriel. Jerry Jeudy had no catches on two targets and Isaiah Bond had no receptions on four targets.
It’s going to be difficult to sit Drake Maye against anyone. Maye took six sacks, including five by Myles Garrett and still had a good game in a tough matchup. Maye passed for 282 yards, three TDs, one INT and rushed for 50 yards on seven carries.
The Giants finally had some excitement and positive energy for the first time in a long time with Jaxson Dart and Cam Skattebo. Unfortunately, Skattebo suffered a dislocated ankle and had surgery Sunday night. Skattebo was looking like one of the best picks in drafts and scored another TD. Tyrone Tracy will be the lead back and should be added where available.
As expected, George Kittle scored on National Tight End Day and cashed at +185. Christian McCaffrey had his worst game of the season with 11 touches for 68 yards. The 49ers ran 44 plays compared to 75 for the Texans.
Alvin Kamara isn’t the same player, and he’s not getting the volume. Kamara sat late and appeared to hurt his ankle in the game. Kamara had eight touches for 45 yards. Kamara played 52% of the snaps and Devin Neal played 45% of the snaps and had no carries with three targets.