Fantasy football: Who should you drop before Week 8? You can rebound Bengals RB Zach Moss

We’re halfway through the 2024 fantasy regular season and there are some lucky fantasy managers looking at their full rosters, putting together their lineups, preparing for another win and starting their day.

These people are evil. Purest, darkest evil. Like Darth Vader giving a baby seal a nasty kick.

For most of us, however, the week starts very differently. Whether you win or lose the week before, there are holes in the squad that need to be filled. Sometimes these holes are due to injury – keyword: Chris Godwin managers nod solemnly. But sometimes there’s a whirlwind of shit that sucks the essence out of your fantasy team. There are players in the squad who just can’t make it.

Can these disappointing players bounce back and become valuable fantasy assets? Yes – it seems I only have to mention one thing in this article. But those rebounds aren’t guaranteed, and if you play in a league with a short bench and there’s a hot waiver asset out there (e.g. San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jauan Jennings – again. Life is a circle.) , you must be able to free up a spot.

The following running backs and wide receivers have reached the point where they can no longer be started. And if they’re just clogging up bench space, it’s time for pink slip.

(Listed percentages from Yahoo!)

8TH WEEK DROPS

WR Courtland Sutton, Denver (69% on roster – eliminable in flat leagues)

Might as well come out swinging.

For Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton and quarterback Bo Nix, the first seven games have been up and down. And as Nix told reporters, it’s important that both quarterback and receiver do their best on the other side of the pitch -Understand Catch equation.

“If there’s anything I can do to help them, I’m definitely always here for them, but I definitely think it’s a work in progress and all of us – all 11 on offense – have things we can improve on ,” Nix said. “Sometimes you see a drop on national television, but you didn’t see the inaccurate throw, or you didn’t see someone who might have blown the play. So sometimes it gets made bigger than it is.”

However, last week was the breaking point for fantasy managers. Not only did Sutton not make a catch in Denver’s blowout win over the New Orleans Saints, he wasn’t targeted. Not once. Throughout the game. It’s Sutton’s third all-time clunker this season – and he’s reportedly the team’s No. 1 receiver. There has been renewed talk that Sutton could be traded, but that isn’t particularly likely since the Broncos are over .500. A trade would also be the only way for Sutton to get anything resembling consistent fantasy value.

RB Zack Moss, Cincinnati (81% in the squad – eligible for elimination in all leagues)

Cincinnati’s backfield has been a thorn in the side of prognosticators since the summer. For every fantasy analyst who was convinced Zack Moss would be the leader, another was just as firmly behind Chase Brown. And as is becoming increasingly common in today’s NFL, we got a little of both.

However, the further we get into the season, the more the pendulum swings towards Brown. Through the first three games of the season, Brown totaled 14 carries. Since then, he has had 15 runs in two of the four games and a total of 52 in the same period. During those four games, Moss has carried the ball 36 times, and his season average is a hefty 3.3 yards per pass.

Brown is averaging 5.0 yards per tote, and while the number of snaps last week were relatively close (31-27 in Brown’s favor), Brown received almost twice as many touches. Moss’ ability to provide pass protection is the only thing keeping him on the field right now. And last time I checked, there are no fantasy points for blocking.

WR Jerry Jeudy, Cleveland (48% on roster – eligible for all leagues)

The trade that sent Amari Cooper to the Buffalo Bills was great for Cooper, but Jeudy told reporters that he also planned to take advantage of the opportunity to be “the guy” at wide receiver in Cleveland.

“I think I was always ready,” Jeudy said. “I was always a guy who always got the ball until I came into the league a few years ago. I always think I’m ready. Now they’ve given me the chance to really develop and now it’s time to take advantage of that chance.”

That’s a rarity – it usually is when I mention a man in this column. To me, he’s dead. But Jeudy’s roster share has been virtually unchanged since I wrote about him in Week 6, and I can’t stand that. I mean, I understand why — with Cooper gone, Jeudy is theoretically the new No. 1 wide receiver in Cleveland. But that doesn’t matter. Not when he catches one pass per game and isn’t targeted until the fourth quarter.

RB Devin Singletary, New York Giants (80% in the squad – eliminable in flat leagues)

Apparently New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll likes to call veteran running back Devin Singletary “Motor” because vroom. Singletary recently missed time with a groin injury, and while rookie Tyrone Tracy shined in Singletary’s absence, Daboll assured reporters before last week’s loss to the Eagles that Singletary was still an important part of New York’s offense.

“He did a good job, so he will get a lot of playing time,” said Daboll. “Motor, we’ll see how the game goes and how it ends. But Motor will play, Tracy will play, (running back Eric) Gray will play. We’re going to use all three of these people.”

Considering how poorly the game went, you’d think Singletary’s receptions and blocks would have gotten him on the field. But Tracy overtook and overtook the veteran. The reality is that Tracy deserved more work during Singletary’s absence. Tracy was more explosive. He showed good receiving skills. And the workload will likely continue to shift in his direction as another Giants season comes to a close.

WR JuJu Smith Schuster, Kansas City (43% on roster – eligible for all leagues)

In the long-ago days of Week 5, Smith-Schuster was a star for the Chiefs, catching seven passes for 130 yards against the Saints. That breakout made Smith-Schuster a very popular waiver prospect, and he told reporters it was great to be back in Kansas City.

“It’s pretty cool to get the band back together,” Smith-Schuster said. “Man, I’m telling you, there’s no place like this. What we have here is something special. It’s unreal.”

Since that game, there has been a bye week and then an injury early in last week’s win over the San Francisco 49ers that has already ruled Smith-Schuster out for Week 8 against the Raiders.

It’s Sammy Watkins again. A few years ago, Watkins opened a season in Kansas City with a huge game. In 2019, he caught nine passes for 185 yards and three touchdowns. The following year there were seven grabs for 82 yards and a score. Then Watkins would disappear from the fantasy landscape for weeks, if not the entire season.

Smith-Schuster pulls a Sammy Watkins.

(Photo by Zach Moss by Matt Kelley/Getty Images)

Gary Davenport is a two-time Fantasy Sports Writers Association Football Writer of the Year. Shout out to him on X at @IDPSharks