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Week 8 of the fantasy football season is upon us, and if you had anyone going on your teams in the Los Angeles Rams 30-20 victory over the Minnesota Vikings on Thursday Night Football, your week may have already gotten off to a solid start. However, it's the games that are played on Sunday that will almost certainly determine whether you win or lose this week.
Setting the correct lineup is crucial to winning on a weekly basis, and injuries unfortunately play a role in determining how your lineup ends up looking. There are several big injuries that need to be monitored over the next 24 hours, so let's check out who those players are and see what their statuses are ahead of some big Week 8 matchups.
Jayden Daniels, WAS, QB – Questionable (Rib)
Jayden Daniels was forced out of the Washington Commanders 40-7 win over the Carolina Panthers in the first quarter with a rib injury, and while the Panthers showed no signs of being able to beat the Commanders, the team would ideally have Daniels on the field in Week 8 against the Chicago Bears. However, it doesn't seem like he has a great shot of suiting up for this one.
While Daniels was a limited participant in Friday's practice, he didn't go at all on Wednesday and Thursday. The Commanders are giving Daniels as much time as possible to get healthy for this one, but unless he takes a big step forward over the next 24 hours, fantasy football managers are likely going to have to find another quarterback to start in Week 8.
Deebo Samuel Sr. (WR – Questionable, Illness), Jauan Jennings (WR – Out, Hip), George Kittle (TE – Questionable, Foot)
The San Francisco 49ers may just be the most banged up team in the NFL currently. Christian McCaffrey hasn't played a snap all season, and Brandon Aiyuk is set to miss the rest of the season after he tore his ACL and MCL in the team's Week 7 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. Jauan Jennings has already been ruled out for their Week 8 clash with the Dallas Cowboys due to a hip injury, and there's a chance both Deebo Samuel and George Kittle won't play either.
Samuel has been dealing with an illness over the past week or so that limited him to just four snaps against the Chiefs, while Kittle suffered a foot sprain in the loss. As of right now, it seems more likely that Kittle will end up suiting up, but both he and Samuel have trended upwards throughout the week, and with the Niners already being so short handed, fantasy football managers should be looking for both of these guys to play, and potentially put up some big numbers against the Cowboys struggling defense.
DK Metcalf, SEA, WR – Doubtful (Knee)
While DK Metcalf put together a strong bounce back outing in Week 7 against the Atlanta Falcons, he suffered a minor MCL sprain late in the game that prevented him from practicing throughout the week. Despite that, Metcalf hasn't officially been ruled out, although his doubtful designation makes it clear his chances of suiting up in Week 8 against the Buffalo Bills isn't great.
If Metcalf can't play, that means Tyler Lockett and Jaxon Smith-Njigba will be in line for more targets, so if you have them stashed on your bench, they could be a solid replacement here. It will be worth making sure Metcalf isn't playing when the final injury report comes out, but it isn't looking good when it comes to his chances of playing in Week 8.
Tyreek Hill, MIA, WR – Questionable (Foot)
The Miami Dolphins and their fans were pumped to see that star quarterback Tua Tagovailoa would be returning to action this week, but some concern arose when their top wide receiver in Tyreek Hill popped up on the injury report with a foot injury on Friday. Hill is labeled as questionable for the game, but it seems like he is still tracking towards playing.
Head coach Mike McDaniel didn't seem too concerned with Hill's injury, so assuming he can play, he'd be a prime candidate to start after four brutal weeks of play without Tagovailoa under center. A prime matchup against the Arizona Cardinals is on the slate in Week 8, so Hill's fantasy football managers will be hoping he can gut out this injury and take the field in this one.
Zay Flowers, BAL, WR – Questionable (Ankle)
It's been a season full of highs and lows for Zay Flowers, who caught just one pass for 11 yards in the Baltimore Ravens Week 7 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Along the way, he picked up an ankle injury that he managed to battle through, but it has put his status for Week 8 in serious jeopardy.
Flowers returned to practice on Friday after not taking the field at all on Wednesday and Thursday, and it seems like he's a true game-time decision for Week 8 against the Cleveland Browns. The talented second-year wide receiver is a borderline FLEX option if he can suit up, but with the Browns being such a mess, the Ravens may just opt to let him rest this week in hopes of not further aggravating this injury.
Tee Higgins, CIN, WR – Questionable (Quadriceps)
Just when it looks like Tee Higgins is finally putting together some consistently strong outings, he suffers a quadriceps injury in practice on Friday that has thrown his Week 8 status for fantasy football managers up in the air. Higgins already has missed two games this season, and in a pivotal game against the Philadelphia Eagles, the Cincinnati Bengals can't really afford to be without him.
It seems like Higgins has a 50-50 shot of playing, and if he can't go, Ja'Marr Chase and Andrei Iosivas will be in line for bigger roles. Higgins has been on a bit of a roll as of late, so fantasy football managers would be hard pressed to have to leave him on the bench, but they may have no other choice if he ends up getting ruled out.
Diontae Johnson, CAR, WR – Out (Ribs)
Diontae Johnson didn't practice at all leading up to the Carolina Panthers Week 8 clash against the Denver Broncos, and while he said he believed he'd be able to play, the team ended up ruling him out for the game on Friday. As a result, trade rumors surrounding Johnson have begun to fly, and he could very well have played his final snap for the Panthers.
Johnson's value was set to take a hit anyways with Bryce Young getting the start in Week 8 over Andy Dalton after the latter was involved in a car accident earlier in the week, so starting him may have been a risky proposition had he been healthy. Instead, he's been ruled out, and it would be best to find an option to replace him from another team, rather than throwing Xavier Legette, who is set to be Young's top wide receiver in Week 8, into the fire.
Travis Etienne Jr., JAX, RB – Questionable (Hamstring)
Travis Etienne Jr. has struggled with poor play and injuries to start the 2024 campaign, and he may very well be in the process of losing his starting job to Tank Bigsby, who has been far more productive than him on a per carry basis so far this year. Etienne didn't play in Week 7 due to a hamstring injury, and he is questionable again with the same injury ahead of this contest.
Head coach Doug Pederson has labeled Etienne a game-time decision, but even then, given his poor play and inconsistent role, it may be best to avoid him entirely in Week 8. If you have no other options, though, it will be worth looping back around to check the Jaguars final injury report before they take the field against the Green Bay Packers.
Dallas Goedert, PHI, TE – Out (Hamstring)
Dallas Goedert's strong start to the 2024 campaign came to a screeching halt in Week 6 when he suffered a hamstring injury early in the team's win against the Cleveland Browns. The ailment forced him to miss the team's Week 7 contest against the New York Giants, but the hope was he could return in Week 8.
That didn't end up materializing, as Goedert failed to practice at all throughout the week, and ended up getting ruled out on Friday. With Goedert out, Grant Calcaterra will be in line to get the start at tight end, but there are likely better options available to fill in for him on the waiver wire that you can find if you are in a pinch.
Bucky Irving, TB, RB – Questionable (Toe)
Another running back room that has been in turmoil early on in the season is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, with Bucky Irving and Sean Tucker both looking to be more effective options than Rachaad White early on in the season. With White healthy in Week 7, though, he scored two touchdowns, while Irving scored one himself, so it seems like they are the top duo leading the way for the time being.
Irving is dealing with a toe injury ahead of this matchup, but head coach Todd Bowles said that he will likely end up playing. With Chris Godwin and Mike Evans both out, the Buccaneers will likely lean heavily on their running backs moving forward, so if Irving can play, he should be in line for a decent amount of touches against the Atlanta Falcons.
