Fantasy Football Week 8 Kicker and D/ST Streamers: Which Vulnerable Teams are Worth Attacking?

Bye weeks make it tougher to fill out your fantasy lineup, but we aren't feeling the hurt too much when it comes to kickers and defenses this week. It's appealing to go after New Orleans' defense, but the Texans, Giants, and 49ers don't offer a lot in terms of matchups for these positions. The bigger issue is that we have fewer options to choose from, squeezing us to lesser choices in some instances.

Let's look at two kickers and two D/ST groups that have good matchups in Week 8 and are widely available in fantasy leagues. Most stats are from NFL.com, and fantasy points and rankings are from FantasyPros.

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Kicker

Jake Elliott, Philadelphia Eagles @ Washington Commanders

Philadelphia's offensive upside is significantly lower than what we've seen over the past decade or so. Not only are the Eagles a little short on playmakers due to injuries and holding less top-line talent due to trading A.J. Brown, but Jalen Hurts is also out for the season, leaving the Eagles short everywhere. Even the offensive line hasn't escaped it.

Last week was a good matchup against Dallas, but the Eagles weren't able to take advantage, scoring just 21 points and not getting their kicker a field goal attempt. Elliott has made all his kicks this season, but that only includes five field goals and none over their past two games. There's a low floor here.

The matchup is even better this week, though, as the Commanders have allowed the second-most points per game, just one fewer per game than the last-place Cardinals. There's not a much better outlook for any team than facing Washington.

Elliott is still a low-level streamer, but if you are in a deep league and find yourself without an option later in the week, he could at least get the chance at a few more kicks in this one. You can probably find a better option also.

Jason Sanders, New York Jets vs. Las Vegas Raiders

Well, that three-game winning streak to start the season seems like a long time ago, as Las Vegas has lost four straight since then. They were tough matchups against the Chiefs, Patriots, Bills, and Rams, and the Raiders stayed close against Kansas City and Buffalo, but they lost by a combined 42 points in the other two games, and moral victories don't count.

The defense has been a major issue, as the Raiders have allowed the fourth-most points per game. They haven't held an opponent under 30 points since Week 3 against New Orleans, when the Saints scored 27. Given what we've seen, it's not really impressive that they kept the Dolphins to 13 points and the Chargers to 14 to open the season.

Sanders has made 13-of-15 field goals and 10-of-11 extra points, making at least one FG in every game. The Jets have scored the sixth-fewest points per game, but they did better in two games against weaker defenses, scoring 24 against the Lions in Week 3 and 25 last week against Miami.

This is another case of a lower-level streamer, but this is about the matchup, not the players in question. While you can probably find a more reliable option, those in deeper leagues can do much worse than going after the Raiders with Sanders here.

Defense/Special Teams

Cincinnati Bengals vs. Tennessee Titans

The Bengals were also listed here three weeks back when they played the Dolphins, and they were a popular fantasy streamer that week. They held down Miami pretty well before giving up two touchdowns in the final seven minutes, ending up with a 31-24 victory.

The matchup in this one is even better, as the Titans have scored the second-fewest points per game. Tennessee scored 26 and 24 points over the past two weeks, but before that, they hadn't gone over 20 points in any game. You might think that's a trend emerging, but I'm skeptical.

Tennessee's offense is averaging the fewest yards per game by nearly 20 yards, and they are second worst in passing yards (and seventh worst in rushing yards). Their better games the past two weeks came against the Colts, who are not very good defensively, and the Browns, who have been better but also had times in which they've struggled on D (like when the Jaguars scored 34 points in Week 1).

Cam Ward doesn't turn it over a ton or take many sacks, but this is more about the floor than the ceiling. The Titans aren't going to score a lot of points very often, and the point-scoring defensive plays are more of a bonus. I'm looking to go after Tennessee often with fantasy defenses.

Washington Commanders vs. Philadelphia Eagles

We just talked about targeting Washington's defense, so why should we consider trusting them in fantasy lineups? Well, let's just say this is a low-level streaming option for deep leagues. Some of our other best targets, like the Chargers and Dolphins, are playing teams that are owned in more fantasy leagues, so we have to look a little deeper for streamers.

As we talked about above, Philadelphia is way down. Hurts being out is the biggest deal, but Saquon Barkley missed a few games before returning on Monday, DeVonta Smith and Dontayvion Wicks were both out in Week 7, and backup running back Dameon Pierce left the game and didn't return, continuing the rash of injuries in Philly's backfield.

The Eagles have scored the fourth-fewest points per game. It was an issue even with Hurts in the lineup, as Philadelphia hasn't scored more than 24 points in any game and was held to 21 or fewer in five of seven.

McKee hasn't been good in his two games in relief of Hurts, averaging just 5.3 yards per pass attempt. He has thrown one interception and taken five sacks, not big numbers, but the chance for turnovers seems likely with a backup player who hasn't been on the field a lot.

I don't want to trust Washington's D/ST; we talked above about how bad they've been. With the matchup in their favor, though, it at least makes the Commanders a team that can be considered a streamer if you find yourself without an option late in the week. We'll likely be attacking the Eagles more as the season goes on.