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It's been another wild week of NFL action, and we're back as always with our Monday Night Football matchups analysis article for the Raiders vs. Lions. Week 8 is just about over -- we've had plenty of fantasy football action filled with huge performances, old and new players emerging, and another week with lots of injuries around the league. Hopefully, you're on the verge of winning your matchups (or already have), and have some FAAB dollars left for waivers this week.
Below you will find our matchups analysis for the Monday Night Football game between the Las Vegas Raiders vs. Detroit Lions. Hopefully, it will be an exciting game that adds to a week filled with plenty of booms, busts, and injuries.
Read our fantasy football breakdowns for these games -- the recommended starts, sits, and matchups we love heading into the Week 8 matchup. Good luck RotoBallers!
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Las Vegas Raiders at Detroit Lions
Spread: Lions -8.0
Implied Total: Raiders (19) vs. Lions (27)
Pace: Raiders (18th) vs. Lions (28th)
Raiders Off. DVOA: -8.9% Pass (28th), -30.5% Rush (32nd)
Lions Off. DVOA: 29.9% Pass (7th), 2.3% Rush (8th)
Raiders Def. DVOA: 10.8% Pass (21st), 2.1% Rush (28th)
Lions Def. DVOA: -1.9% Pass (9th), -19.0% Rush (8th)
Matchups We Love
Amon-Ra St. Brown (WR, DET)
Sometimes when things go horrifically wrong, you just have to toss that performance in the garbage and move on. That's what you can expect the Lions to do after last week. They got pummeled by the Ravens, but it's their first bad loss of the year, so there's no reason to panic. Fortunately, the hole they dug forced them to throw the ball 53 times, including 19 to St. Brown, who caught 13 balls for 103 yards.
The combination of the passing volume and Marvin Jones Jr. playing zero snaps allowed Jameson Williams to hit a season-high 44% snaps and earn six targets. Sadly, he caught zero of those passes, including a drop in the end zone. The team has officially parted ways with Jones Jr., enabling Williams to grow his role if he can perform. He and Josh Reynolds are flex options with Williams having the potential for a long touchdown.
Just keep an eye on his status and Brown was a late addition to the injury report on Sunday with an illness.
Jahmyr Gibbs and Craig Reynolds (RB, DET)
Gibbs finally had his coming out party, thanks in large part to repeated checkdowns from Jared Goff. He finished with nine receptions for 58 yards, plus he ran the ball 11 times for 68 yards and a score.
David Montgomery has has been ruled out, so we'll get another week of Gibbs likely featured and in the top 12.
Sam LaPorta (TE, DET)
LaPorta had a good game with six catches for 52 yards but took a bit of a backseat to St. Brown and Gibbs. That said, he's back in the top five against the Raiders.
Jared Goff (QB, DET)
As we mentioned, it's a game Goff will want to forget. He'll be happy to be back on home soil where he thrives. Goff is averaging 16.3 fantasy points per game on the road compared to 27.46 at home. Some of that can be attributed to the matchups, but it's clear he plays better at Ford Field. He moves into the streaming conversation in what should be a home victory.
Other Matchups
Davante Adams and Jakobi Meyers (WR, LV)
When you have Brian Hoyer and Aidan O'Connell splitting time at quarterback, you know it's going to be a bad day. Hoyer's been a competent backup in the past, but he wasn't getting the job done and they were down big, so they pulled him out along with many of the other starters.
Davante Adams saw the first four targets of the game, catching three passes on the first drive. Unfortunately, it began to fade as the game went on, resulting in seven receptions for 57 yards. It's not as if Jakobi Meyers was tearing it up either, but he hauled in a nine-yard touchdown with under two minutes to go that saved his day.
Thankfully for the offense, Jimmy Garoppolo is back at practice and on track to suit up on Monday. His presence elevates these two into the top 24 in spite of a difficult matchup.
Josh Jacobs (RB, LV)
It's understandable that Jacobs saw just 11 carries because they were down for the whole game, but to only earn four targets and catch one is rough. Detroit has been hard to run on, so you can forecast around three yards per carry as his average. It'll come down to how many touches he receives and his target share. With Garoppolo back, they should be more successful on offense, keeping Jacobs in the top 20 due to volume.
Michael Mayer (TE, LV)
Just as Mayer was attempting to break out, he was stifled by their quarterback play and game flow. It's wise to give him a pass for last week and hit the reset button against the Lions, who have given up the highest number of fantasy points to tight ends this season. He rejoins the streamers.
Notable Injuries
David Montgomery (ribs) - OUT
Amon-Ra St. Brown (illness) - Questionable
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