Rico Dowdle start or sit: Week 8 fantasy football advice

The Carolina Panthers have a winning record! At 4-3, they sit only one game back of the Buccaneers who lead the NFC South at 5-2. Running back Rico Dowdle has been a key part of winning three games in a row, but we saw his usage cut last week when Chuba Hubbard returned from his injury.

This week the Panthers host a much better team than they’ve faced recently, as they take on the Buffalo Bills as 7-point home underdogs. The Bills can be beaten on the ground, and Carolina will look to both Dowdle and Hubbard to get going this week.

Below, we’ll go over Rico Dowdle’s outlook in fantasy football for Week 8.

Last week Hubbard got the start against the Jets and the two backs alternated drives. The good news for Dowdle backers is that he put up better numbers, which may not give him more playing time, but it sure won’t hurt his playing time. This is a similar situation to Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet in Seattle, but it doesn’t look like one back will be the preferred goal line back. It’s a situation that ultimately hurts both backs for fantasy, but it also keeps both as startable in the majority of leagues.

Last week the Panthers were able to run the ball plenty, as the Jets couldn’t score a touchdown to save their life. This week won’t be the same, as the Bills should be able to get a lead, but they also rank fourth-worst in allowing fantasy points to running backs. Add in the condensed player pool due to bye weeks, and both are realtively good starts this week.

Start.

Start.