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John Laghezza's fantasy football RB/WR breakouts watch for Week 8 based on snap count risers/fallers in 2025. Whose usage and fantasy value is trending up or down?
The best fantasy advice I can give is to stay proactive rather than reactive, and the easiest way to achieve that is by being first to identify changes in playing time. When the dust settles, regardless of format or flavor, touches, targets, and opportunities rule the day.
Talent mostly be darned (especially at a position like RB), opportunities have always been the game's driving commodity. Players can't score fantasy points if they don't see the field. Then, of course, there's a matter of quality. Stay aware of players' touch per snap rates, so as not to fall into the trap of starting someone based on name only. I hate admitting how many times I'm guilty of it myself.
There's something so great about playing time analysis. The very same dishonest coordinators, coaches, and owners suddenly have no choice but to show their cards via player deployment once the whistle blows -- and that's where we come in. Every week, I'll be right here at RotoBaller, breaking down the weekend's most impactful changes in utilization and what it means to fantasy gamers going forward. As hard as it is to believe when you're losing, it's still anyone's game through seven weeks.
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Usage Bumps I'm Buying
Brashard Smith, RB, Kansas City Chiefs
Few teams give a better sense of the patience needed during an NFL season than Kansas City. Five weeks ago, the perennial championship contenders stood winless through two games in a renewed quest for answers. Injuries throughout the pass-catching room, combined with ambiguity in the backfield, left fantasy gamers without a single reliable flex player.
Fast forward to the present day, and Patrick Mahomes' Chiefs already reclaimed their usual spot as Super Bowl favorites.
Let me preface my excitement for rookie Brashard Smith's usage spike by saying yes, I know the bulk occurred in garbage time up five scores. However, Sunday's tilt versus Las Vegas marked the very first time Smith ran more routes than Kareem Hunt, making him the Chiefs' backfield target leader for the fourth week straight.
I'm not the first to make the reference, but when the Chiefs mentioned envisioning Smith's role similarly to Jerick McKinnon, they seemed to be telling the truth.
While I'm not calling for a true switch in the backfield without an injury to Isiah Pacheco, the first signs of a handcuff takeover may already be on the wall. Smith's ability in the pass game extends into earning work in the red zone, where he led all Chiefs RBs in snaps for the first time as well in Week 7.
We're still two weeks from Kansas City's bye, and I'm scooping up Smith wherever possible to get in front of a potential post-bye rookie bump — he's only rostered in ~6% of all leagues.
#Chiefs RB Brashard Smith’s catches from the Raiders game. #ChiefsKingdom pic.twitter.com/UDcUlmgBQs
— Nick Jacobs (@Jacobs71) October 20, 2025
Alec Pierce, WR - Indianapolis Colts
Fantasy football's such a funny game when it comes to priors, narratives, and how the two intertwine. Stop me when this starts making sense. A wide receiver on the NFL's top-scoring offense, who's more than doubled every other teammate's air yards per game (115.0), is available in roughly 90% of leagues worldwide.
Maybe there's an element of fatigue from past years, but that's an entirely different offense and quarterback we're talking about—malleability matters.
Especially after two Adonai Mitchell bone-headed mishaps cost Indy their only defeat of 2025, the pathway to full-time snaps has never been clearer for the former second-round speedster. Pierce immediately regained an every-down role returning from concussion protocol, going (5-98-0) for a WR21 finish against a reasonably difficult Chargers' secondary.
Even with Josh Downs (concussion) returning, Pierce will continue to project well based on implied game totals alone, especially compared to whatever other scraps are still available. Mix in the downtrend in offense leaguewide, and Pierce's long-TD archetype moves the needle even more. He's a pop for a +40-yard TD any given Sunday.
JONES TO PIERCE FOR 48 YARDS
INDvsLAC on CBS/Paramount+https://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/lKekUynemx
— NFL (@NFL) October 19, 2025
Kyle Monangai, RB - Chicago Bears
Winners of four straight approaching Halloween with over 100 points scored in the process, suddenly the arrow's pointing straight up in the Windy City. Ben Johnson's prophecy certainly appears much closer to being fulfilled than I thought after giving up 52 points in Detroit to drop to 0-2. Notice, however, that despite hanging back-to-back RB6 finishes, starter D'Andre Swift commanded only 51.6% of the backfield snaps in that time frame.
Never known for massive efficiency metrics, those numbers will likely regress to career norms.
It's not just Monangai being established as a potential RB1 if Swift's ever unavailable — his chops in the passing game and toughness at the goal-line keep him on a short list of flex-worthy backups in case of emergency. It's hard not to be encouraged when the Bears went to the seventh-round rookie in a big goal-to-go spot last weekend.
Kyle Monangai scores his first NFL TD!
NOvsCHI on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/tlabBDz5Mb
— NFL (@NFL) October 19, 2025
Noteworthy Usage Downturn
No one player's really sticking out enough to warrant sole focus, so let me pivot to macros and some pattern recognition instead. I love using these honorable mention lists below as watch lists for trend changes in either direction. Take a good look at both and think about the commonalities. To me, there's one solid through-line — it's a young man's game, and we're right at the point in the season when it starts to show.
Remove any opportunities forced through attrition, and the vast majority of workload shifts favor the youth.
As far as running backs go, get away from touchdown-dependent veterans like Hunt or Michael Carter as fast as you can. I'd much rather roster the second fiddle on a plus-offense like Blake Corum or Jaydon Blue — who could at least theoretically become a player we're actually excited to start. Both Hunt and Carter have already failed to outshine replacement-level competition. It's not happening when it matters most.
In the wide receiver department, I'm doing my best once again to avoid players only seeing the field out of desperation — especially on dysfunctional offenses. At this point, I don't care what any of the Jets' or Titans' target shares look like under such top-down toxicity. If I'm making one exception, however, it's for Las Vegas' Dont'e Thornton Jr., hoping Geno Smith can't possibly be this bad for much longer.
The Raiders shouldn't stink this horribly on offense. At the end of the day, they might, but my jury's still out. Jakobi Meyers (knee) coincidentally landed on the injury just as he went public with discontent heading into the bye. Whoops. In the event he's dealt over the bye, there's a decent chunk of expected points up for grabs.
Thornton's made some nice plays on film this year with a great speed-size combination — he posted a 4.3 second 40-yard dash time at 6'5", 205 lbs. No other player with as many targets (19) as Thornton has fewer than nine receptions to his five. Positive regression's coming for a conversion rate that low.
Geno Smith to Dont'e Thornton Jr. for the @raiders TD!
Watch on NFL Network
Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/Y7ighsyaaQ— NFL (@NFL) August 24, 2025
Honorable Mentions - Flex Usage On The Rise
- Arian Smith, WR, NYJ
- Blake Corum, RB, LAR
- Chimere Dike, WR, TEN
- Devin Neal, RB, NO
- Emanuel Wilson, RB, GB
- Isaiah Bond, WR, CLE
- Isaiah Davis, RB, NYJ
- Jayden Higgins, WR, HOU
- Jaydon Blue, RB, DAL
- Jaylin Noel, WR, HOU
- Lil'Jordan Humphrey, WR, NYG
- Malik Washington, WR, MIA
- Parker Washington, WR, JAX
- Tez Johnson, WR, TB
- Xavier Hutchinson, WR, HOU
Honorable Mentions - Flex Usage Trending Down
- Adonai Mitchell, WR, IND
- Dontayvion Wicks, WR, GB
- Kameron Johnson, WR, TB
- Kareem Hunt, RB, KC
- Michael Carter, RB, ARI
- Olamide Zaccheaus, WR, CHI
- Rico Dowdle, RB, CAR
- Tre' Harris, WR, LAC
- TreVeyon Henderson, RB, NE
- Zay Jones, WR, ARI
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