Nov 2, 2026, 11:47 AM ET

New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel commented on whether wide receiver A.J. Brown (ankle, knee) will practice this week and said, "Yeah, we'll see. We'll see how he progresses," according to Evan Lazar of the team's official website. The news isn't entirely encouraging, as it appears to be a wait-and-see situation. Brown was scratched for Week 8 on Saturday with a knee injury, after missing four weeks with an ankle injury earlier in the season. Fantasy managers who have held onto Brown or traded for him will want to monitor his practice status this week as he heads into a crucial Week 9 tilt against the Green Bay Packers. If Brown can't go, Hunter Henry (foot) and DeMario Douglas will remain Drake Maye's top passing options.--Nicho Roessler
Source: Evan Lazar

Nov 1, 2026, 9:47 PM ET

New England Patriots wide receiver DeMario Douglas made the most of a low volume of targets in a 24-19 victory over the Miami Dolphins in Week 8. Douglas caught all three of his targets for 76 yards (25.3 yards per reception) and a touchdown on Sunday. Douglas' score came on a 48-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Drake Maye. Douglas finished behind fellow wide receiver Efton Chism III in targets (five) and receptions (five), but his 76 receiving yards led the Patriots against the Dolphins. Maye only threw 20 passes (16 completions) for 199 yards on the day, so none of New England's receivers saw a particularly high volume of targets. Through eight games, Douglas has recorded 26 receptions for 332 yards (12.8 yards per catch) and four touchdowns. He remains a bench stash or weekly streaming option.--Ryan O'Bleness
Source: NFL.com

Nov 1, 2026, 7:20 PM ET

New England Patriots tight end Hunter Henry (foot) has been ruled out for the remainder of Sunday's Week 8 matchup against the Miami Dolphins, according to Evan Lazar of Patriots.com. Henry initially exited during the second quarter after making a four-yard reception and was listed as questionable to return. The 31-year-old attempted to test his injured foot several times on the sideline but was unable to return to action. He finished with three receptions on three targets for 30 yards. Rookie Eli Raridon is New England's primary remaining tight end, with Cameron Latu and Tanner Arkin also available.--Bruno Mulé
Source: Evan Lazar

Nov 1, 2026, 5:29 PM ET

New England Patriots tight end Hunter Henry (foot) is questionable to return to Sunday's Week 8 matchup against the Miami Dolphins, according to Evan Lazar of Patriots.com. Henry caught both of his targets for 26 yards before exiting, including a 20-yard reception on New England's opening possession. Eli Raridon, Cameron Latu, and Tanner Arkin are the Patriots' remaining healthy tight ends. Raridon has recorded one reception for five yards on three targets in the contest. New England is also without wide receivers A.J. Brown (ankle/knee), Romeo Doubs (shoulder), and Mack Hollins (calf), who were unavailable entering Sunday's game.--Bruno Mulé
Source: Evan Lazar

Nov 1, 2026, 8:55 AM ET

New England Patriots wide receiver Mack Hollins (calf) is eligible to be designated to return from injured reserve ahead of Week 9, according to Mike Reiss of ESPN.com. The team can designate him to return as early as Monday, which would open his practice window without immediately bringing him back onto the 53-man roster. This process would allow him to practice with the team like usual, and then once the Patriots determine he's healthy enough to play, then they would officially activate him. New England won't rush Hollins back, but it sounds like he's just about ready to play. The veteran receiver traveled with the team to Chicago last week, and he could practice in the next few days, offering potential reinforcements for a very short-staffed Patriots receiving corps. New England has both Hollins and Romeo Doubs (shoulder) on IR, while A.J. Brown (knee) has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Dolphins and could be facing a multi-week absence. There's a real chance that Hollins returns and immediately slots in as the team's No. 1 receiver ahead of DeMario Douglas, Efton Chism III, and Kyle Williams. Across four games this season, Hollins has a respectable 15 catches for 209 yards, but he's still looking for his first touchdown of the 2026 campaign. If Brown misses Week 9 and Hollins plays, the latter would rank as a WR3/flex in 14+ team leagues.--Andersen Pickard
Source: Mike Reiss

Oct 31, 2026, 4:07 PM ET

The New England Patriots D/ST unit should be started in all fantasy leagues ahead of a very enticing Week 8 road matchup against the Miami Dolphins. The Patriots rank near the middle of the pack in fantasy scoring this season, and they're coming off a shaky loss against the Bears in which they allowed 405 yards with zero turnovers. However, the Bears and Dolphins are two very different teams, and New England should bounce back with a much softer matchup on Sunday afternoon. The Dolphins have allowed the third-most fantasy points per game to opposing D/ST units so far in 2026. Their eight turnovers isn't an outrageous number, and they rank near the middle of the league in terms of sacks allowed. However, the biggest issue for Miami has been a mere lack of production. They have scored just 98 points on offense this season, which is the second-lowest mark in the NFL. The Dolphins and Chargers are the only teams with fewer than 108 points this year. We expect that New England's defense will have no trouble limiting points and capitalizing on mistakes this Sunday, making them a must-start D/ST for fantasy purposes. The Patriots rank #4 among D/ST units in RotoBaller's latest fantasy football rankings for Week 8.--Andersen Pickard
Source: RotoBaller

Oct 31, 2026, 3:38 PM ET

New England Patriots wide receiver Efton Chism III is expected to take on a substantial role in Week 8 against the Miami Dolphins. With teammate A.J. Brown (knee) ruled out and both Mack Hollins (calf) and Romeo Doubs (shoulder) on injured reserve, Chism enters this weekend as the projected No. 2 wide receiver. He presumably finds himself ahead of Kyle Williams and behind DeMario Douglas in the pecking order, although he'll likely also operate behind tight end Hunter Henry. Still, being the No. 3 target on offense is enough to generate some fantasy appeal, especially for someone who is in such a strong offense like the Patriots and finds themselves playing against a weaker team like the Dolphins. Chism has just one catch over his last two games, but he has played at least 62% of the snaps in each of his last three contests. Presumably, his snap and target share will jump in Week 8, and we'd expect to see him on the field for at least 70% of the offensive plays. Looking specifically at the matchup, we do have some concerns about game script. Offenses have consistently run the ball against Miami this year because the Dolphins have been weak on both sides of the ball, so this may be a better spot for the Patriots' running backs than their receivers. With that said, Chism's recent volume (and projected increase in snaps) should continue to get him on the low-end WR3/flex radar in deeper 14+ team leagues.--Andersen Pickard
Source: RotoBaller

Oct 31, 2026, 1:18 PM ET

New England Patriots running back TreVeyon Henderson (illness) has been downgraded to out for Sunday's contest against the Miami Dolphins. The second-year running back out of Ohio State couldn't practice Thursday or Friday and didn't make enough progress to be cleared to play. This will mark Henderson's second missed game this season, as he couldn't suit up in Week 1 due to an ankle injury. When active, Henderson has typically been the clear No. 2 option behind Rhamondre Stevenson and has tallied double-digit PPR points in only one contest (Week 2). Over his last three contests, Henderson has averaged just 4.7 PPR points per game and taken just 4.7 attempts per contest. With Henderson out, managers should expect Stevenson to be given a massive workload this weekend and will carry high-end RB2 upside.--Andy Smith
Source: Cameron Wolfe

Oct 31, 2026, 1:14 PM ET

The New England Patriots have downgraded star wide receiver A.J. Brown (ankle/knee) to out for Sunday's contest against the Miami Dolphins. The top wideout entered the weekend with a questionable tag but hasn't made enough progress to suit up. During the week, Brown was first listed as a limited participant on Wednesday but was eventually downgraded to non-participation on Thursday and Friday. The 29-year-old suffered an ankle injury in the season opener and was later placed on IR but is now dealing with a new knee injury as well. While he returned in Week 6, he has been unproductive in his limited stint, catching just six passes for 75 yards (on 16 targets) over his last two games. While he remains out, managers should expect Drake Maye to lean heavily on Rhamondre Stevenson, with tight end Hunter Henry and DeMario Douglas operating as the top pass-catchers.--Andy Smith
Source: Cameron Wolfe

Oct 31, 2026, 12:48 PM ET

New England Patriots running back TreVeyon Henderson (illness) is listed as questionable for Week 8 against the Miami Dolphins, and he can be benched in most fantasy football leagues even if he plays. Henderson has been one of the biggest busts in fantasy football this season, ranking as the overall RB49 in PPR leagues. He has fewer than 5.0 PPR points in all but one of his games this season, surrendering the lead-back role to Rhamondre Stevenson and also ceding some work to third-string running back Corey Kiner. It's worth acknowledging that this week's matchup against the Dolphins is favorable; mostly because of game script, Miami has surrendered the seventh-most fantasy points to running backs in 2026. However, a massive portion of that production has come in the passing game, and Stevenson is a far more productive pass catcher than Henderson. Given Henderson's recent track record, we'd advise against starting him in fantasy football, despite New England being favored by seven points on the road.--Andersen Pickard
Source: RotoBaller

Oct 31, 2026, 12:35 PM ET

New England Patriots wide receiver DeMario Douglas could step up as the No. 1 target for quarterback Drake Maye in Week 8 against the Miami Dolphins. Teammate A.J. Brown (knee) is technically listed as questionable, but it was previously reported that he's dealing with a serious knee injury that will sideline him for several weeks, so we'd be surprised to see him play on Sunday. With Brown likely out, and receiver Mack Hollins (calf) and Romeo Doubs (shoulder) both on injured reserve, Douglas has an opportunity to emerge as the No. 1 receiver ahead of Kyle Williams and Efton Chism III. The 25-year-old had already been trending up lately with 17 targets, 14 catches, 174 yards, and three touchdowns over his last three games. The only red flag with Douglas this week is the matchup. Miami has allowed the third-fewest fantasy points to wide receivers in 2026, likely due to the fact that teams have been in a very positive game script environment against them and opt to run the football. A similar trend could persist this Sunday with the Patriots favored by seven points, but we'd still trust Douglas as a high-end fantasy WR3 in his expanded role.--Andersen Pickard
Source: RotoBaller

Oct 31, 2026, 12:20 PM ET

New England Patriots wide receiver A.J. Brown (knee) is listed as questionable for Week 8 against the Miami Dolphins, and while he's a must-start receiver in 12+ team leagues if active, he certainly has a lower floor in fantasy football. In two games since returning from an ankle injury, Brown has 16 targets but just six catches and 75 yards. These are very underwhelming results from the 29-year-old, who represented the biggest offseason acquisition for the Patriots. Now, not only is he coming off back-to-back poor box scores, but he is also dealing with a significant knee injury that complicates his outlook. He is questionable for Week 8 after missing practice on Friday, and even if he does play on Sunday, he'll be less than 100%. If Brown is active, he's still worth starting in 12+ team leagues. He does have a lower floor, but he should also benefit from being the undisputed No. 1 target, especially with Romeo Doubs (shoulder) and Mack Hollins (calf) sidelined. With that being said, managers might have better and more reliable options on their bench in leagues with 10 teams or fewer, especially because of the risk that Brown plays a limited snap count. On the other hand, if Brown isn't able to play this week, we'd see wide receiver DeMario Douglas and tight end Hunter Henry step into significantly larger roles.--Andersen Pickard
Source: RotoBaller

Oct 31, 2026, 12:10 PM ET

New England Patriots tight end Eli Raridon may be the No. 2 option on the depth chart behind Hunter Henry, but there's still an opportunity for him to carve out fantasy value in Week 8 against the Miami Dolphins. Raridon has played more than 50% of the snaps in every game he's been healthy for this season, and he has double-digit PPR points in three of his last four contests. In addition to his solid snap share and increased volume lately, Raridon could benefit from a depleted receiver room this week. Raridon and fellow tight end Hunter Henry are both headed for larger roles with A.J. Brown (knee) unlikely to play and Romeo Doubs (shoulder) and Mack Hollins (calf) both on injured reserve. Plus, a favorable matchup awaits Raridon, as the Dolphins have allowed the fourth-most touchdowns and fourth-most fantasy points to tight ends in 2026. The rookie currently ranks as the TE29 in RotoBaller's Week 8 fantasy rankings, but he has clear top-18 upside.--Andersen Pickard
Source: RotoBaller

Oct 31, 2026, 12:07 PM ET

New England Patriots tight end Hunter Henry has turned a corner in recent weeks, and he finds himself in an incredible spot for Week 8 against the Miami Dolphins. A combination of several factors points to Henry being a borderline must-start TE1 on Sunday. First of all, Henry has been trending up lately with 19 catches, 225 yards, and two touchdowns over his last four games. He has double-digit PPR points in each of those four contests. Additionally, Henry should handle more targets with A.J. Brown (knee) unlikely to play. Brown had 16 targets over the last two weeks, and with Mack Hollins (calf) and Romeo Doubs (shoulder) both on injured reserve, plenty of those vacated targets should be distributed to Henry. Finally, the 31-year-old is heading into a very favorable matchup. So far this year, Miami has allowed the fourth-most touchdowns and the fourth-most fantasy points to tight ends. Between his intriguing outlook and bye weeks impacting the tight end position league-wide, Henry is firmly entrenched as an intriguing TE1 option in fantasy football this week.--Andersen Pickard
Source: RotoBaller