The NFL schedule is moving along into Week 8 and now that the fantasy football season is heating up, some of the best sleeper options going forward are emerging and some names includes Zac Stacy, Jacquizz Rodgers, Bilal Powell, Eddie Royal, Kyle Rudolph as well as Brandon Gibson and Ben Tate.
If Arian Foster stays injured, Tate is a great option to have as a free agent handcuff and another running back option is Jacquizz Rodgers, as Steven Jackson has been injured all season and he came through in the passing game on Sunday in the win over the Bucs. Rodgers has nearly 200 yards rushing this season and while he only had 16 yards on eight carries in the game, he showed why he is valuable in PPR leagues and others, as he had eight catches for 46 yards and two touchdowns and he could continue being a factor in the passing game this season with Roddy White and Julio Jones injured.
Zac Stacy was productive for another week after having 53 rushing yards and 34 receiving yards on four catches on Sunday and he finished the day with 21 touches against the Panthers in the loss to the Rams. If Sam Bradford is out for the season, the running game will be more of a priority and that could mean bigger numbers for Stacy going forward, as he has emerged as the best running option this season. He has nearly 90 total yards and also had a touchdown in the game and while the team plays the Seahawks in Week 8, he could get some major touches.
The Jets did a good job of running the ball on Sunday and while Bilal Powell was not a major part of it, he should be going forward despite getting just three carries and gaining six yards in the game. He has made an impressive 15 catches for 137 yards this season and while he has rushed for 366 yards, he could continue to be a solid option in deeper leagues, especially with a better matchup next week and with the Jets winning, they should continue feeding the rock to the running backs.
Eddie Royal continued his solid season with four catches for 69 yards and a touchdown and after having five touchdowns to start the season, he has been quote over his last four, but now it appears that Rivers will be looking his way more and more. Royal has a nose for the endzone this season and that is huge for fantasy owners. He is trending in the right direction heading into Week 8 and while he had just three catches over the past two weeks heading into the Jags game, he beat that total on Sunday.
Kyle Rudolph has been solid all season and DeAndre Hopkins also had a solid day on Sunday and are good options to pick up going forward. Josh Gordon did not have a good day, but owners should not be discouraged as he was coming off a 126 yard game after making two catches for 21 yards Sunday. In other fantasy news, the Patriots are glad to have Rob Gronkowski back and he had 17 targets for a career high and added eight catches for 114 yards.
