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Who Should I Start for Week 8? Fantasy Football outlooks for Chig Okonkwo, Kyle Pitts Sr., Mason Taylor, Hunter Henry, Sam LaPorta, Dallas Goedert, T.J. Hockenson, Brenton Strange, Dalton Kincaid
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some of the most common Week 8 fantasy football lineup decisions involve players like Chig Okonkwo, Kyle Pitts Sr., Mason Taylor, Hunter Henry, Sam LaPorta, Dallas Goedert, T.J. Hockenson, Brenton Strange, and Dalton Kincaid. 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:
Hunter Henry, New England Patriots
New England Patriots tight end Hunter Henry did not find the end zone in the Thursday night loss to the Chicago Bears in Week 7, but he caught a season-high seven passes (on seven targets) for a season-high 71 yards, and he now has double-digit fantasy points in his last three games.
Before his seven-catch, 71-yard performance in Chicago last week, the 31-year-old veteran tight end had back-to-back games with touchdown receptions in wins over the Las Vegas Raiders and New York Jets. In half-PPR scoring, Henry ranks as the TE12 through seven weeks, catching 26 of his 31 targets for 296 yards and two touchdowns.
He is New England's clear TE1, although rookie tight end Eli Raridon has seen valuable red-zone targets as well in his first year in the NFL. Coming off three straight strong performances, Henry deserves more consideration as a TE streamer in fantasy football, and he will have a juicy matchup upcoming in Week 8 against the division-rival Miami Dolphins.
Henry is rostered in just over half of Yahoo leagues, so he should be widely available if fantasy managers are in a bind at the position due to bye weeks.
T.J. Hockenson, Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson was one of the few players on his team's offense to have a productive game in Week 7, recording four catches for 35 yards and a touchdown on five targets. The 29-year-old's overall numbers in 2026 don't leap off the page, as he's hauled in 27 receptions for 237 yards and two touchdowns on 32 targets across six games. However, Hockenson appears to be emerging as a favorite target of Vikings quarterback Kyler Murray. In the two games where both Hockenson and Murray have started and finished the contest on the field, Hockenson has logged 17 catches for 154 yards and a touchdown on 18 targets. The veteran tight end also has an extremely favorable matchup on paper in Week 8 against the Detroit Lions. For fantasy managers in need of tight end help, Hockenson profiles as a viable waiver wire solution.
Mason Taylor, New York Jets
New York Jets tight end Mason Taylor has taken on a much larger role offensively, and his two-touchdown performance from Week 7 has solidified him as a top waiver wire target going forward.
In recent weeks, the 22-year-old has overtaken rookie Kenyon Sadiq as the No. 1 tight end on the depth chart. He has 12 catches, 119 yards, and two touchdowns over his last three games, and he has played at least 55% of the snaps in each of those contests. As the Jets continue to find themselves in negative game script scenarios, opportunities will keep popping up for Taylor to command sizable target shares with impressive volume around the goal line.
He ranks as the overall TE7 in half-PPR scoring over the last three weeks, and he's a fringe top-15 tight end going forward in redraft leagues. Therein lies an opportunity for managers to add a potential fantasy starter off waivers, as Taylor remains available in more than 97% of leagues.
Brenton Strange, Jacksonville Jaguars
Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Brenton Strange got off to a quiet start to the 2026 season, recording just seven catches across his team's first three games. However, the 25-year-old began to emerge as a featured piece in the Jacksonville passing game before the Jaguars' Week 7 bye. Across three games from Weeks 4 through 6, Strange hauled in 19 receptions for 207 yards on 23 targets.
With Jaguars wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. potentially on his way out of Jacksonville ahead of the upcoming trade deadline, Strange could firmly cement himself as the number two option in the Jaguars' passing game alongside wideout Parker Washington. He profiles as a potential top-12 tight end option for fantasy managers in Week 8 and beyond.
Chig Okonkwo, Washington Commanders
Washington Commanders tight end Chig Okonkwo has largely been off fantasy radars so far in 2026, as he got off to a slow start to the season before missing time with a hamstring injury. However, the 27-year-old picked up his production in his final two outings before Washington's Week 7 bye, recording a combined 11 catches for 129 yards on 13 targets.
The Commanders will also be down a significant weapon for the remainder of the season, as they lost star wide receiver Terry McLaurin (knee) to a season-ending knee injury in Week 6. For fantasy managers in need of tight end help, Okonkwo profiles as an intriguing player to target on the waiver wire.
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 - Chig Okonkwo, Kyle Pitts, Mason Taylor, Hunter Henry, Sam LaPorta, Dallas Goedert, T.J. Hockenson, Brenton Strange, Dalton Kincaid. 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 Chig Okonkwo, Kyle Pitts, Mason Taylor, Hunter Henry, Sam LaPorta, Dallas Goedert, T.J. Hockenson, Brenton Strange, Dalton Kincaid.
More Fantasy Football Analysis
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