Week 8 RB Rankings: Get Ready for Another Jonathan Taylor Explosion
Matthew Freedman has released his favorite fantasy football running back plays for Week 8, including another big game for Jonathan Taylor.
It's Week 8. Apple cider. Pumpkins. Fallen leaves.
An NFL-high six teams on bye.
As Thomas Paine once wrote almost 250 years ago: "These are the times that try fantasy football managers' souls."
Let's get into the Week 8 RB edition of Freedman's Favorites, where I highlight guys I'm upgrading because of …
- Favorable betting factors and situational spots
- Advantageous defensive matchups (perhaps aided by injury)
- Increased usage expectations (again, maybe aided by injury)
For process notes regarding this series, my Week 8 fantasy rankings, and my weekly projections, see the end of this piece. Also, check out the rest of my favorite Week 8 fantasy football plays.
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Week 8 Running Backs Rankings
Jonathan Taylor to Run All Over Titans Again in Week 8
Twice in his career Jonathan Taylor has faced the Titans with DC Dennard Wilson.
Here's how he's done.
- Week 16, 2024: 218 yards, 3 TDs | 29 carries
- Week 3, 2025: 118 yards, 3 TDs | 17 carries, 4 targets
I could probably just end the blurb there, but I'll do the full thing.
Taylor has been awesome this year: He's the only RB with four top-five positional finishes (per our Fantasy Life Scoring Matrix).
As Ian Hartitz noted in his early Week 8 rankings piece, Taylor is essentially this year's Saquon Barkley, and that's evidenced by the betting market: Right now, Taylor is the favorite to win 2025 OPOY (+100, DK).
No one will confuse Taylor for an elite pass catcher, but this year he has career-best marks with 3.3 receptions and 26.4 receiving yards per game, and those numbers aren't a fluke: Taylor has developed into a true three-down player. For the season, he's tied with Christian McCaffrey as the No. 1 RB in snap share (85%).
Given his full-time workload and the fact that the Colts are massive 14-point home favorites, I expect Taylor once again to run all over the Titans, who are No. 2 in largest fantasy boost allowed to RBs (+7.4).
On top of that, the Titans DL could be without starters DT Jeffery Simmons (hamstring) and EDGE Arden Key (thigh).
D'Andre Swift to Continue His Post-Bye Onslaught in Week 8
I mentioned D'Andre Swift in last week's piece, and then he had 138 yards and a TD, so I'm bringing him back for an encore.
Last year, Swift had a career-best 1,345 yards from scrimmage in his first campaign with the team … but the Bears still seemed desirous this offseason to bring in someone to push him in the backfield. Alas, they didn't.
I mean, they drafted Kyle Monangai in Round 7, and last week he did flash with 94 yards and a TD on 13 carries and 3 targets.
So it's not as if Swift has a stranglehold on the backfield.
At the same time, Swift has 313 yards and 2 TDs on 33 carries and four targets since the Week 5 bye, so he doesn't appear to be in any danger of losing his role, and for the season he's pacing for a another career-best year with 585 yards and 4 TDs in six games.
As for this week, I think Swift is in a somewhat sneaky spot as a road dog against the Ravens.
Is it great that the Bears are underdogs? No. But Swift is a game-script-independent player thanks to his three-down ability. The Ravens with QB Lamar Jackson have historically been overvalued anyway: Road dogs against Jackson are 28-22-1 ATS (7.7% ROI, per Action Network).
The Ravens are No. 2 in most fantasy points allowed to RBs (26.5), and their DL will be without starters DTs Nnamdi Madubuike (neck, IR) and Broderick Washington (ankle, IR) and EDGE Tavius Robinson (foot).
Rhamondre Stevenson Will Dominate Backfield in Week 8
Like Swift, Rhamondre Stevenson got some shine in last week's piece, but he too had a big game—88 yards, 1 TD—so he's also getting repeat attention.
No. 3 RB Antonio Gibson (knee, IR) suffered a season-ending injury in Week 5. In the two games since then, here's Stevenson's usage (per our Fantasy Life Utilization Report).
- Snaps: 74%
- Rush Share: 62%
- Route Rate: 61%
- Short Down & Distance: 64%
- Goal-Line Rush Share: 100%
- Long Down & Distance: 78%
- Two-Minute Snap Rate: 60%
Here's what all that means: Stevenson is the No. 1 RB for the Patriots.
He has a tough matchup against the Browns, who are No. 2 in defensive rush EPA (-0.214, per RBs Don't Matter), but the Patriots are seven-point home favorites, and even if Stevenson has a poor yardage performance, he still will have multi-TD upside, as we witnessed in Week 5 against the Bills (27 yards, 2 TDs).
With what we've seen out of Stevenson over the past two games, and with the number of RBs on bye, I'd be comfortable starting him in Guillotine Leagues™️.
The Checkdown
De'Von Achane (Dolphins) at Falcons: The Dolphins are spiraling into full-blown dysfunction, but Achane is still doing his thing with 683 yards and 6 TDs on 89 carries, 43 targets and a 92 Utilization Score in seven games. The Falcons are No. 31 in defensive rush SR (46.8%) and could be without starters EDGE Jalon Walker (groin) and LB Divine Deablo (forearm).
J.K. Dobbins (Broncos) vs. Cowboys: On an average week, the ceiling for Dobbins isn't high, but he has either 80+ yards or a TD in every game but one—and this isn't an average week because of his matchup. The Cowboys are No. 32 in defensive rush SR (49.5%), and NT Kenny Clark (elbow) is uncertain to play. I still have the Broncos as a five-star bet in our Fantasy Life NFL Game Model.
Jaylen Warren (Steelers) vs. Packers: Warren has just 1 TD on the season, but since the Week 5 bye he has 221 yards on 27 carries and 7 targets in two games. Eventually, the TDs will come. For the Packers, DT Devonte Wyatt (knee) and EDGE Lukas Van Ness (foot) might be unavailable.
Jordan Mason (Vikings) at Chargers: The Vikings have designated RB Aaron Jones (hamstring, IR) to return from IR, but that doesn't mean he's a certainty to play on a short week after not practicing for over a month. If he's out, Mason will be a solid option against the Chargers, who are No. 30 in defensive rush DVOA (4.5%, per FTN).
Brashard Smith (Chiefs) vs. Commanders: Smith got 81 yards on 14 carries and 5 targets last week in a 31-0 win, and he could enjoy similar garbage-time production and usage this week with the Chiefs being 10.5-point home favorites. Given how uninspiring veterans Isiah Pacheco and Kareem Hunt have been, the Day 3 rookie is worth a speculative add.
Notes for my Week 8 RB Rankings
Byes: This week, the Lions, Raiders, Rams, Cardinals, Seahawks and Jaguars are on bye.
Injuries: Since I write Freedman's Favorites on Tuesday, I have incomplete injury information. After I submit this article, any updated thoughts I have regarding injuries will manifest in my rankings and projections. For our quick fantasy thoughts every day, subscribe to the Fantasy Life newsletter.
Schedule: This season, I have the following rankings and projections schedule.
- Tue AM: Publish rankings and projections
- Thu AM: Refresh rankings and projections
- Thu PM: Make necessary TNF rankings changes
- Sat PM: Update rankings and projections
- Sun AM: Revise rankings
- Sun PM: Finalize rankings based on news prior to 1 p.m. ET kickoff
Accuracy: I'm a six-time top-20 ranker in accuracy and a long-time profitable player prop better.
Scoring: All fantasy points are half-PPR scoring unless otherwise stated.
Cohesion: My positional breakdowns are published separately, but I think of them as comprising one whole, so check out the rest of my favorite Week 8 fantasy football plays (via my Fantasy Life author page).
Abbreviations: Here are some abbreviations I might have used in the piece.
- Fantasy Points per Game (FPPG)
- Against the Spread (ATS)
- Over/Under (O/U)
- Team Total (TT)
- Moneyline (ML)
- Return on Investment (ROI)
- Adjusted Yards per Attempt (AY/A)
- Expected Points Added (EPA)
- Success Rate (SR)
- Completion Percentage Over Expected (CPOE)
- Defense-Adjusted Value Over Average (DVOA)
- AirYAC (Air Yards + Yards After Catch)
- Weighted Opportunity Rating (WOPR)
- Average Depth of Target (aDOT)
- Short Down and Distance (SDD)
- Long Down and Distance (LDD)
