Fantasy Football Week 8 Takeaways: Sam Howell, Will Levis Among Top-Scoring Quarterbacks | Position Lacks Consistency from Top-End Talents | Injuries Continue to Pile Up
One look at the top-scoring quarterbacks so far in week 8 exemplifies what makes fantasy football so much fun, yet so agonizing at the same time.
The top-scoring quarterback to this point is Washington Commanders’ Sam Howell. Scroll a bit further down the top scorers list and you see Tennessee Titans’ Will Levis, who was expected to split the quarterback duties with Malik Willis. Those two both outscored QBs like Patrick Mahomes, Justin Herbert and Tua Tagovailoa, just to name a few.
I wanted to take some time to address the position as a whole, one because the top-end talents haven’t been very consistent and two because there've been so many injuries at the position.
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Top Performers from Week 8
Let’s first take a look at some of the top fantasy quarterbacks from week 8, and briefly go into the best long-term options of the hardly-owned guys.
According to our charts, Howell is owned in just over 50% of leagues. He completed 39-of-52 passes for 397 yards and four touchdowns against the Philadelphia Eagles. He added 11 rushing yards on three attempts and was intercepted once.
Levis is being shown as owned in just 4% of leagues, which makes sense considering it was his first start. He also threw for four touchdowns, completing 19-of-29 passes for 238 yards. He wasn’t intercepted, and rushed for 11 yards on seven carries.
Arizona Cardinals’ Joshua Dobbs turned in another big scoring output in one of his last starts with the team. He’s owned in 21% of leagues, a number that will plummet when Kyler Murray returns. Dobbs completed 25-of-37 passes for 208 yards and two scores. He was picked off twice, but scored once on the ground - tallying 26 yards on six attempts overall - to help offset the negatives a bit.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Baker Mayfield also had a solid showing in a losing effort. He completed 25-of-42 passes for 237 yards and two touchdowns. He was not intercepted and added 19 rushing yards on three carries.
Of this quartet, Howell would be my favorite waiver wire addition, slightly ahead of Mayfield. Howell has been more consistent, and has the better chance of breakout games. After that I’d probably take a chance on Levis. Dobbs isn’t going to be the starter much longer, but he’s a decent streaming option if Murray doesn’t return for another week. These are going to be some of the best waiver wire guys and possible week 9 fantasy starters given all the injuries in the league, which we'll get to in a bit.
Best Fantasy Options are Inconsistent
The quarterbacks that are viewed as the best fantasy options have not lived up to the lofty expectations consistently.
Using FantasyPros top quarterbacks list, Buffalo Bills’ Josh Allen has been the top QB, but he’s had two weeks under 15 points. Eagles’ Jalen Hurts has been more consistent, and only has one week under 15 points. Kansas City Chiefs’ Mahomes is third for the season and just had his first contest under 15 points, and it was a real stinker at 7.6. Baltimore Ravens’ Lamar Jackson is fourth on the list and now has three games under 15 fantasy points after just 12 in week 8. Miami Dolphins’ Tagovailoa is next on the list, but already has three weeks under 15 fantasy points.
Don’t get me wrong, 15 fantasy points is still a pretty solid showing for a fantasy quarterback, but these guys are looked to as the best of the bunch, and each one has had at least one down game.
When I think of an elite fantasy quarterback, I want a season like Mahomes had in 2022. He had just one game in which he scored 15 or less fantasy points, and it came in week 18. Allen had two games under 15 fantasy points last season, while Hurts had one (week 18).
So unless these guys can all avoid another down game the rest of the season, this season simply looks like one in which the top-end quarterbacks are simply not as consistent as in past years.
Injuries Galore
The 2023 season has been brutal when it comes to quarterback injuries.
You had Murray coming into the season with an injury, and then New York Jets’ Aaron Rodgers was lost just a couple plays into the season.
Chicago Bears’ Justin Fields, Cleveland Browns’ Deshaun Watson, Indianapolis Colts’ Anthony Richardson, New York Giants’ Daniel Jones and Titans’ Ryan Tannehill are all big-name starters that have missed time with injuries.
Mayfield, Pittsburgh Steelers’ Kenny Pickett and Los Angeles Rams’ Matthew Stafford are also dinged up heading into week 9. The biggest addition to the quarterback injury list was Minnesota Vikings’ Kirk Cousins, who reportedly tore his Achilles, which would end his season.
A lot of backup quarterbacks have already played, and several more could start in the weeks to come.
You’ve probably had at least one of your fantasy teams lose a quarterback at some point this season. Thankfully, only Rodgers and Cousins’ injuries appear to be ones that will keep them out for the season.
You still might be forced to start a backup QB at some point this season. Even if you haven’t run into any injuries and have one of the better fantasy quarterbacks, several of those quarterback’s bye weeks have yet to happen, so you need to constantly be monitoring your backup situation. Guys like Howell, Mayfield and Levis aren't the names you want to see in your starting lineup, but you simply might not have any other options depending on your league structure.
