Fantasy football advice, Week 8: who to start/sit for Philadelphia Eagles vs. Dallas Cowboys

Welcome to bye week hell. With six teams on bye, fantasy owners are left in a bind for Week 8, as the options to keep lineups across the spectrum competitive have dwindled. It would be nice to reassure fantasy owners that it only gets better going forward, except Week 9 will have six more teams taking their bye weeks. Fun times.

In the meantime, fantasy owners can look at each game to see who can be a capable fill-in while their studs are sidelined, starting with the Eagles and Cowboys.

Ezekiel Elliott owners are not reading this post to get advice on whether to put him into lineups. Now that that’s settled, Dez Bryant can be addressed. Bryant is supposedly “ready to break out” after being sidelined for an extended period due to injury for a second straight season. Though Bryant draws a much improved Eagles defense, his upside remains worth gambling on.

The Eagles have the NFL’s fifth-ranked pass defense, and fantasy wealth may not trickle down throughout the Cowboys’ lineup as much as it had in previous weeks. Though Jason Witten would do fine in a bye-heavy week at the shallow tight end position, the likes of Terrance Williams and Cole Beasley would be hard to bet on. They can be considered risky flex options at best.

Dak Prescott has been unquestionably impressive, but against an Eagles defense that allows an average of just 204 passing yards per game, Prescott is not on the streaming radar.

Jordan Matthews has been quiet over the past two weeks, but back-to-back matchups against Josh Norman and a punishing Vikings defense will do that. Though Dallas’ secondary has been a capable one with Morris Claiborne having a career year, Matthews could be in for smoother sailing on Sunday night. Matthews boasts WR2 upside, and Zach Ertz deserves streaming consideration against a Cowboys defense that is allowing the fifth most fantasy points per game to opposing tight ends.

The Eagles’ backfield remains a mess due to Doug Pederson’s committee approach. With the Cowboys allowing the third fewest fantasy points to opposing running backs, Ryan Mathews, Darren Sproles and Wendell Smallwood can remain on benches. Carson Wentz owners should also consider alternatives for streaming purposes in Week 8 against the clock-chewing Cowboys.