Week 8 may be the halfway point of the NFL season, but it beckons crunch time in the fantasy season. It’s time to cut bait on early-season stashed pieces and start taking some chances. Fear not, we’re here to aid in those key roster decisions.
Defensive linemen
DE Calais Campbell, Baltimore Ravens
Campbell is owned in about half of leagues polled, but he needs to be owned in every, single, IDP league. Yes, he started slowly. However, he had three sacks against the Philadelphia Eagles before the bye week. The most important factor, though? The team acquired stud DE Yannick Ngakoue to line up on the other side. That will open ample lanes to rush the passer, and Campbell could be an absolute monster the rest of the season. Pick him up, trade for him, whatever you have to do!
DE Romeo Okwara, Detroit Lions
The fifth-year man may have turned a corner in his somewhat quiet career. Two sacks last week gave him at least one QB takedown in three of the last four games. He’s among the top 10 DEs in fantasy (depending on scoring system) over the last five weeks. That includes a bye week. Pick him up to see if this is in fact his coming of age.
Linebackers
OLB A.J. Klein, Buffalo Bills
The 29-year-old veteran was solid to start the season with five tackles in each of the first two games before going into the tank in his next two. He’s playing his best football right now with 13 total tackles, a forced fumble and a half-sack in the last two games combined. He’s a back-end ‘backer to use right now.
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OLB Malik Reed, Denver Broncos
The second-year man has disrupted offenses with two sacks in each of the past two games. He has only 22 total tackles on the year, which we’d like to see more of, but his schedule is pretty favorable. He’ll face the Los Angeles Chargers, Atlanta Falcons, Las Vegas Raiders and Miami Dolphins over the next month.
OLB Alex Singleton, Philadelphia Eagles
The Montana State product has been racking up tackles the last two weeks with 15 combined. He has the Dallas Cowboys this week before the bye, and the New York Giants and Cleveland Browns afterwards. So this could be a nice window to eat.
Defensive backs
SS Kamren Curl, Washington Football Team
Washington, and fantasy owners alike, lost star SS Landon Collins (Achilles) for the season in Week 7. Curl, a seventh-round rookie, is expected to inherit Collins’ spot in the lineup. He had 76 tackles as a junior at Arkansas last year and could be a tackle compiler the rest of the way.
SS Rayshawn Jenkins, Los Angeles Chargers
The fourth-year man is emerging as a fierce presence on the field, and it’s starting to show up in fantasy. He has had at least eight tackles in three of the last four games. He has a good matchup against the Denver Broncos as he looks to continue his hot streak.