We’re headed into Week 8 of the 2024 NFL season, and we’re sure you are fully prepared for the loaded slate. But just in case you need some last-minute intel, our NFL analysts have you covered at the 11th hour.

First, analytics writer Seth Walder breaks down five stat trends that could be pivotal this weekend. Fantasy football writer Eric Moody runs through five players who are rostered in under 50% of ESPN fantasy football leagues as of Saturday and who could be picked up and started in a jam this weekend. That’s followed by NFL analyst Matt Bowen pointing to five potential surprises that could happen and NFL analyst Ben Solak picking one team on upset watch. Finally, insider Jeremy Fowler gives the latest buzz, rumors and news you might have missed.

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Stat trends | Fantasy sleepers
Potential surprises | Upset watch
Latest buzz

Walder: Five key stat trends that could determine Week 8 winners

Can Colts CB Samuel Womack III continue his hot streak against Tank Dell?

Womack, a corner who was waived by the 49ers before the season and claimed by the Colts, has emerged as an unexpected breakout. The 2022 fifth-round pick had just one start before this season, but he has now allowed 0.3 yards per coverage snap in Indianapolis. That’s the lowest by any outside corner with at least 100 coverage snaps, per NFL Next Gen Stats.

He’s doing it through a combination of target deterrence (his 13% target rate is below the 17% average) and solid coverage (allowing a minus-22% completion percentage over expectation, per NGS). His next test? The Texans, who beat the Colts in Week 1 without Womack playing a major role.

Dell will line up in front of Womack more than anyone else since the Colts cornerback plays primarily on the left side. Dell has 194 receiving yards on the season.

Can the Bears’ offense get the ground game going against Washington?

Chicago ranks 26th in offensive EPA per carry, but Sunday’s matchup presents an ample opportunity for the unit. Twenty-six percent of the Bears’ runs are duo plays — a concept that relies on double-teams against defensive linemen and the running back reading the linebacker. They execute those plays at the fifth-highest rate in the league, per ESPN/NFL Next Gen Stats tracking.

That looks ideal against the Commanders, who have allowed 5.1 yards per carry against duo runs this season. Players like the Giants’ Devin Singletary and the Cardinals’ James Conner ripped off big runs against them in the concept.

Will the Titans’ play-action resistance give them a chance against the Lions?

This could just be noise from a small 43-play sample, but the Titans have the best defense against play-action, in terms of EPA per play. From the tape, it looks like their linebackers in particular do a good job of not biting too hard against the fake.

That’s a great trait when facing the Lions, who run play-action 32% of the time — third-most in the NFL. Of course, this is complicated by the Titans trading linebacker Ernest Jones IV for Jerome Baker, but it’s still a good sign to counter one of Detroit’s pillars.

Can the Bucs survive without Chris Godwin and Mike Evans?

I’m pretty skeptical. Godwin was having his best season in years before dislocating his ankle Monday. In addition to accumulating 2.5 yards per route run, Godwin’s numbers in ESPN’s receiver scores were really strong in 2024, too. He recorded a 68 open score, 56 catch score and 64 after-the-catch score, setting a career-high in open score and his highest overall score since 2019. Evans, of course, is also a huge loss with his hamstring injury.

The dropoff to Trey Palmer, Jalen McMillan and Sterling Shepard looks precipitous. Only Palmer has been targeted enough to have a receiver score this season or last (32 overall score in 2023). McMillan has managed 0.7 yards per route run as a rookie, and Shepard is not much better at 0.8.

Certainly, their production numbers will increase since Godwin and Evans took so many targets. But those are ominous numbers for the Bucs — who play the Falcons Sunday — to overcome.

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Spears: Injuries to Evans, Godwin are ‘devastating’ for Buccaneers

Marcus Spears explains why the injuries to Mike Evans and Chris Godwin could be disastrous for the Buccaneers’ season.

Can a weak Chargers pass rush find its groove against Taliese Fuaga?

Fuaga started hot in the first few weeks and looked like a bargain for a Saints team that badly needed an offensive tackle. So much has changed since then. The rookie left tackle now ranks 64th out of 67 qualifying tackles in pass block win rate and had the lowest PBWR among tackles in last week’s loss to the Broncos.

Trevor Penning has held it down on the right side with a solid 89% pass block win rate (25th), but Fuaga is an issue. That’s good news for a Chargers pass rush that currently ranks 28th in pass rush win rate. Khalil Mack, Bud Dupree and Tuli Tuipulotu are all below average in pass rush win rate at edge, with the latter two in the bottom five. It remains to be seen if Joey Bosa can return from a hip injury this Sunday.

Moody: Five fantasy sleepers you need to pick up — and can start this week

Jalen McMillan, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (29.3% rostered)

Godwin and Evans averaged 15.8 targets per game prior to their injuries. McMillan is expected to help fill that gap. He was drafted in the third round of the 2024 draft to add depth to the Buccaneers’ wide receivers room. He has run the third-most routes for Tampa Bay behind Evans and Godwin.

McMillan can play all three receiver spots, and he lined up both outside and in the slot at Washington. He saw eight targets Monday and should see a similar workload against the Falcons.

Jalen Tolbert, WR, Dallas Cowboys (26.4% rostered)

With Brandin Cooks sidelined, Tolbert has stepped up as a key target in the Cowboys’ offense. The only player ahead of him in receiving yards (290) is CeeDee Lamb (467). Tolbert is tied with Jake Ferguson for the second-most targets on the team, too.

The Cowboys face the 49ers in Week 8, and San Francisco allows the third-most yards per reception to wide receivers, making this a great opportunity for Tolbert.

Rashod Bateman, WR, Baltimore Ravens (17.7% rostered)

Zay Flowers suffered an ankle injury in the second quarter of the Ravens’ Week 7 win over the Bucs. Bateman stepped up, finishing with four targets and 22.1 fantasy points. And he has scored 12-plus fantasy points in four of his past five games.

If Flowers is out or limited, Bateman should see plenty of targets against the Browns.

Ricky Pearsall, WR, San Francisco 49ers (14.1% rostered)

Brandon Aiyuk is out for the season due to a knee injury, Deebo Samuel Sr. is recovering from pneumonia and Jauan Jennings is out with a hip injury. Pearsall, who made his season debut last week, becomes an immediate beneficiary.

As the No. 31 overall pick of April’s NFL draft, he’s set to take on a significant role moving forward. Also, the Cowboys’ defense allows the ninth-most receiving yards per game to wide receivers.

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Schefter: 49ers’ Brandon Aiyuk out for season with torn ACL

Adam Schefter reports on 49ers WR Brandon Ayiuk being officially ruled out for the season after tearing his right ACL in Week 7 vs. the Chiefs.

Jameis Winston, QB, Cleveland Browns (2.1% rostered)

Browns coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed Wednesday that Winston will start against Baltimore’s defense, which has given up the third-most fantasy points per game to quarterbacks. With Jerry Jeudy and David Njoku as his targets, Winston has a chance to shine, even with a less-than-stellar supporting cast.

The last time he started was with the Saints in 2022, where he averaged 286 passing yards per game over three starts. For managers in superflex formats, he makes a solid QB2 option.

Bowen: Don’t be surprised if …

Tyreek Hill records over 100 receiving yards

With Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa slated to return Sunday, Hill has upside versus the Cardinals. He has averaged 112.4 receiving yards per game in 2023, and he caught seven of 12 targets for 130 yards in his only full game with Tagovailoa this season.

I expect this to be a volume weekend for Hill. Arizona’s defense is allowing 7.9 yards per attempt, which is tied with the Panthers for the most in the league.

T.J. Watt logs two sacks against Giants

The Giants allowed eight sacks in the Week 7 loss to the Eagles, and I don’t think they can hold up consistently on the edges against Watt. Through seven games, Watt has 4.5 sacks and 11 pressures. Look for those numbers to jump Monday night.

Kyle Pitts catches a touchdown pass vs. the Bucs

Pitts caught his only touchdown of the season back in Week 1, but his role has increased over the past three games. During that stretch, Pitts has caught 17 of 22 targets, and the matchup works here on middle-of-the-field concepts.

In Week 5 against Tampa Bay, Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins went 25-of-31 for 321 yards on throws inside the numbers. Pitts can cash in here on a red zone heave.

Javonte Williams rushes for over 100 yards vs. the Panthers

Williams posted some of the best numbers of his career in the Week 7 win over the Saints, logging 88 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries. He looked explosive on the tape, specifically in moving downhill with the ball. He gets another prime matchup Sunday against Carolina’s defense, which is allowing a league-high 162.1 rushing yards per game.

Trent McDuffie intercepts Gardner Minshew

Minshew has thrown multiple interceptions in each of his past two games, and his eight total picks are tied for most in the league. He’s not getting any favors this Sunday against Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, who can muddy Minshew’s looks with post-snap movement and pressure. I expect McDuffie to capitalize and grab his first interception of the season.

Solak: Favorite upset pick for Week 8

Philadelphia Eagles (+2.5) at Cincinnati Bengals

The 4-2 Eagles aren’t the juggernaut they used to be, but they have a lot of firepower on offense with A.J. Brown through the air and Saquon Barkley on the ground. The defense, which was slow to start the season, has feasted recently on bad offenses in Cleveland and New York.

Now the Eagles get the Bengals, who are scary through the air but missing both starting tackles due to injury. I expect a lot of points in this one, but the Eagles’ pass rush can win if they get the Bengals on a clear passing script.

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Why Tyler Fulghum is taking the over in Bengals-Eagles

Tyler Fulghum shares why he’s siding with the over in a potential high-scoring matchup between the Eagles and Bengals.

Fowler: What I’m hearing as we near kickoff

Cowboys running back Dalvin Cook‘s chances are better than ever to make his season debut Sunday night against San Francisco. A team source said Cook was “getting closer” after this week’s practices. There’s no firm determination yet on his availability — Dallas will decide Saturday whether to elevate him from the practice squad — but Cook is ready for his chance and had a productive practice week. Dallas ranks last in rushing offense (77.2 yards per game).

The expectation is receiver DeAndre Hopkins will make his Chiefs debut Sunday but could have a small menu of plays. That has been Kansas City’s precedent on receiver trades. In 2022, Kadarius Toney logged nine snaps in his debut post-trade from the Giants. In 2023, Mecole Hardman played 11 snaps after his trade from the Jets. So the Raiders are preparing for him, but they are also preparing for Travis Kelce and Xavier Worthy as primary options this week. Perhaps that could change with the flow of the game. And there’s little doubt Patrick Mahomes will try to find Hopkins in space at least once. The Chiefs have worked to get Hopkins up to speed with a heavy practice workload.