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Who Should I Start for Week 8? Fantasy Football outlooks for Xavier Legette, Michael Pittman, Tyler Allgeier, Tyjae Spears, Tony Pollard, Josh Downs, Sterling Shepard, Kenneth Gainwell, Derrick Henry, Kareem Hunt
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some of the most common Week 8 fantasy football lineup decisions involve players like Xavier Legette, Michael Pittman Jr., Tyler Allgeier, Tyjae Spears, Tony Pollard, Josh Downs, Sterling Shepard, Kenneth Gainwell, Derrick Henry, Kareem Hunt. 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 2025 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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Fantasy Football Matchup 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:
Josh Downs, WR, Indianapolis Colts
Indianapolis Colts head coach Shane Steichen said that wide receiver Josh Downs (head) remains in the league's concussion protocol, but he will practice on Wednesday, according to Jake Arthur of Locked on Colts. Downs suffered a concussion in Week 6 and was unable to suit up in Sunday's victory over the Los Angeles Chargers. He appears to be making progress through the league's protocols for head injuries, and his return to practice on Wednesday is a good sign.
Downs will most likely be limited in Wednesday's practice, though, and he will need to gain clearance from an independent neurologist later in the week to play in Week 8 against the division-rival Tennessee Titans. When healthy, Downs has served as the team's WR2 behind Michael Pittman Jr. If Downs can play this Sunday, it would make Alec Pierce less attractive as a flex play after his big performance against the Bolts.
Sterling Shepard, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
With Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans (collarbone) suffering a broken clavicle in Week 7, which will likely land him on Injured Reserve, Bucs wideout Sterling Shepard appears to be in line for a significant long-term role in the team's offense. With Chris Godwin (leg) also currently sidelined, Shepard looks like Tampa Bay's WR2 alongside Emeka Egbuka.
The 32-year-old Shepard hauled in seven catches for 25 yards on seven targets in Tampa Bay's Week 7 loss to the Detroit Lions, giving him 26 catches for 267 yards and a touchdown on 34 targets so far this season. Shepard is not an explosive downfield player, which limits his ceiling. Still, he's proven to be a trusted target of Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield and should be rostered in fantasy leagues with 12 or more teams.
Tony Pollard, RB, Tennessee Titans
After a 31-13 loss to the Patriots, in which the team had only 12 rushing attempts, Tennessee Titans OC Nick Holz told reporters, "You want to be able to run the ball a little more." Six of the team's carries went to Tony Pollard, who converted them into only 18 yards but salvaged his fantasy day with six catches for an additional 43 yards. Unfortunately, the Titans are unlikely to experience a sudden influx of positive game scripts.
Through seven weeks, they've run a total of 11 offensive plays while holding a lead. Pollard can still be started because of his reliable work in the passing game, but playing mostly from behind, along with a slowly increasing workload from Tyjae Spears, is not a recipe for a second-half fantasy boon.
Xavier Legette, WR, Carolina Panthers
Carolina Panthers second-year wide receiver Xavier Legette is coming off the best game of his career, having caught nine passes for 92 yards and a score in a win over the Jets. With Bryce Young leaving the game in the third quarter with a high ankle sprain, three of those catches came from backup Andy Dalton, accounting for 54 yards on a 57% target share.
It's obviously not much of a sample size and could have been skewed by the fact that rookie Tetairoa McMillan drew the attention of the Jets' top corner Sauce Gardner, but Legette and Dalton have shown a connection in the past. In an uninspiring waiver week, while six teams are on bye, Legette should be added wherever he's available and can be considered for a flex start against the Bills.
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 - Xavier Legette, Michael Pittman, Tyler Allgeier, Tyjae Spears, Tony Pollard, Josh Downs, Sterling Shepard, Kenneth Gainwell, Derrick Henry, Kareem Hunt. 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 (2025)? 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 Xavier Legette, Michael Pittman, Tyler Allgeier, Tyjae Spears, Tony Pollard, Josh Downs, Sterling Shepard, Kenneth Gainwell, Derrick Henry, Kareem Hunt:
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