Who Should I Start for Fantasy Football Week 8? Antonio Williams, Omar Cooper, Xavier Worthy, Elijah Mitchell, Ja'Kobi Lane, Ryan Flournoy, Kalif Raymond, Kimani Vidal, Dylan Sampson

October 29, 2026

Who Should I Start for Week 8? Fantasy Football outlooks for Antonio Williams, Omar Cooper Jr., Xavier Worthy, Elijah Mitchell, Ja'Kobi Lane, Ryan Flournoy, Kalif Raymond, Kimani Vidal, Dylan Sampson.

Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some of the most common Week 8 fantasy football lineup decisions involve players like Antonio Williams, Omar Cooper Jr., Xavier Worthy, Elijah Mitchell, Ja'Kobi Lane, Ryan Flournoy, Kalif Raymond, Kimani Vidal, and Dylan Sampson. However, don't worry; we are here to help you make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 8. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 8 of the 2026 NFL season. Our free Who Should I Start? tool will help make your fantasy football lineup decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to start... all free! Get your winning lineups set, and make the right decisions.

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Week 8 Fantasy Football Outlooks

Below are some fantasy football outlooks written by our NFL team here at RotoBaller, bringing you their fantasy football analysis and advice on which players to consider starting in Week 8:

Elijah Mitchell, Philadelphia Eagles

Philadelphia Eagles running back Elijah Mitchell signed with the team's practice squad just over a week ago and made his team debut against the Cowboys. He seems to be in position for a much larger role this week if Saquon Barkley (back, hamstring) is unable to play through his multiple injury issues.

With Dameon Pierce (undisclosed) landing on the injured reserve along with Tank Bigsby, Will Shipley, and Carson Steele, the Eagles will be very short-handed in the backfield if Barkley is not able to carry the full workload. The team resigned Jaydon Blue to the active roster as well, but Mitchell is a much more established option and is expected to be the lead back.

Mitchell appeared in 27 games for the 49ers across three seasons from 2021 through 2023, totaling 1,523 rushing yards and nine touchdowns on 327 carries, but he had not gotten a carry or a target since the end of the 2023 season until last Sunday.

He had three carries for 11 yards and three catches for 23 yards against Dallas in his return. Mitchell will have instant fantasy relevance if he is in a big role against the Commanders on Sunday Night Football this week, so watch Barkley's status closely in practice this week.

Antonio Williams, Washington Commanders

Washington Commanders wide receiver Antonio Williams has played at least 67% of the offensive snaps in three consecutive games after failing to reach 50% in any of his first three appearances. He caught three of four targets for 50 yards against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 6, for season totals of 18 receptions for 205 yards and one touchdown on 26 targets, though he has drawn just seven targets over his past two games.

The rookie is positioned for a larger role following Terry McLaurin's (knee) season-ending injury, with head coach Dan Quinn identifying him as someone who should receive more targets.

That planned increase gives him legitimate breakout potential, so he is worth adding in 10-team PPR leagues and deeper, with WR3/flex upside if the targets materialize against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 8. Quinn said Williams could see greater volume without necessarily assuming McLaurin's outside receiving responsibilities, while Stefon Diggs' workload is expected to remain relatively unchanged.

Omar Cooper Jr., New York Jets

New York Jets wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr. is a must-add waiver target who warrants a claim in 10-team and deeper leagues and offers immediate WR3/flex appeal against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 8, having produced 218 receiving yards and two touchdowns in two games since returning from an ankle injury.

The rookie caught all five targets for 115 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 28-25 loss to the Miami Dolphins, highlighted by explosive gains of 52 and 60 yards. Those two receptions accounted for 112 of his 115 yards, demonstrating his big-play ability while raising some questions about the sustainability of his production on limited targets.

Cooper also caught six of seven targets for 103 yards and a touchdown against the New England Patriots in Week 6. Garrett Wilson, Mason Taylor, and Adonai Mitchell remain involved in New York's passing attack, but Cooper has quickly established himself as another dangerous receiving option for Geno Smith.

Dylan Sampson, Cleveland Browns

Cleveland Browns running back Dylan Sampson made his return to the field during the Week 7 matchup against the Tennessee Titans. He made his return after missing the last five games due to a knee injury. Sampson rushed the ball six times for 45 yards and hauled in all three of his targets for 32 additional yards in the win over the Titans.

The 22-year-old is clearly the No. 2 back in Cleveland, but he has shown that he can be a solid contributor when healthy. The expectation is that his role will continue to grow as long as he keeps playing like this every week. Sampson is looking like an interesting stash option in 12-team formats ahead of the Week 8 matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Who Should I Start Tool

You can also see the Who Should I Start tool here.

Week 8 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Antonio Williams, Omar Cooper Jr., Xavier Worthy, Elijah Mitchell, Ja'Kobi Lane, Ryan Flournoy, Kalif Raymond, Kimani Vidal, Dylan Sampson. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 8.

Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player name. In the second box, search for the second player name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.

Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed that our 'Who Should I Start?' tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, stats, projections, strength of schedule, players news, and enhanced search results with data to compare with a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!

How It Works. Each week our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.

Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do, is to select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circle), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.

Popular Week 8 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 8 (2026)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.

Popular Week 8 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons

Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Week 8 for Antonio Williams, Omar Cooper Jr., Xavier Worthy, Elijah Mitchell, Ja'Kobi Lane, Ryan Flournoy, Kalif Raymond, Kimani Vidal, Dylan Sampson.