Start A.J. Brown or Khalil Shakir? Week 8

Updated Oct 27, 5:51 PM ET. Locks at kickoff, graded after. Week 9 answer posts Tuesday.

Start A.J. Brown over Khalil Shakir

Start

A.J. Brown

WR · NE · at MIA

Market projects: 13.2; fantasy pts
MIA D vs WR: 23.8; 3rd fewest to WRs (2026)
Upside: Rising; 70 of 100 at WR
Snap share: 68%; Through Week 7
Target share: 22%; Through Week 7

Sit

Khalil Shakir

WR · BUF · vs BAL

Market projects: 9.6; fantasy pts
BAL D vs WR: 35.8; 7th most to WRs (2026)
Upside: High; 93 of 100 at WR
Snap share: 63%; Through Week 6
Target share: 20%; Through Week 6

Should I drop Khalil Shakir for A.J. Brown?

Yes, on the rest of the season. A.J. Brown projects 119 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (13.2 a game over 9 games), Khalil Shakir 96 (9.6 a game over 10 games). For Week 8 the call starts A.J. Brown over Khalil Shakir, 13.2 to 9.6 projected PPR points.

Parlae may earn a commission from price links.

A.J. Brown rookie cards Khalil Shakir rookie cards

Make this call for your own roster

Sync your league and My Team sets this week's lineup for your actual roster, spot by spot. Free, no account.

Sync my league

Sleeper ESPN Yahoo

Or get it by email

Tuesday 7am ET: one email with what moved on the board and who is worth a claim.

Free. One a week, one tap to stop.

Our Week 8 call

Start A.J. Brown over Khalil Shakir in Week 8.

Market-based projections have A.J. Brown at 13.2 points and Khalil Shakir at 9.6, a gap of 3.6. Drafters take A.J. Brown at ADP 17 and Khalil Shakir at 103.

What the market projects

Player markets imply 13.2 fantasy points for A.J. Brown, with 100 percent of the markets a WR needs posted.

The market-based projection for A.J. Brown is 55 receiving yards, 4-5 receptions and 0-1 touchdowns (4, 3 and 8 market sources).

Player markets imply 9.6 fantasy points for Khalil Shakir, with 100 percent of the markets a WR needs posted.

The market-based projection for Khalil Shakir is 39 receiving yards, 3-4 receptions and 0.4 touchdowns (7, 5 and 8 market sources).

That puts A.J. Brown 3.6 points ahead of Khalil Shakir on the market projections.

Week 8 matchups

A.J. Brown and NE visit MIA on Sunday at 4:25 PM ET.

MIA allowed 23.8 fantasy points a game to WRs this season over 6 games, the 3rd fewest in the league.

Receivers caught passes for 116 yards and 0-1 touchdowns a game against MIA.

Khalil Shakir and BUF host BAL on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.

BAL allowed 35.8 fantasy points a game to WRs this season over 7 games, the 7th most in the league.

Receivers caught passes for 182 yards and 0.6 touchdowns a game against BAL.

By points allowed to the position, Khalil Shakir has the softer matchup.

Injury status

A.J. Brown is not on the injury report.

Khalil Shakir is not on the injury report.

Usage before Week 8

Through Week 7, A.J. Brown played 68 percent of NE snaps, drew 22 percent of the targets, earned 35 percent of the air yards and had 15 percent of the red zone chances.

A.J. Brown, Week 1 against SEA: 31 of 71 snaps, 4 targets and 3 catches for 26 yards.

A.J. Brown, Week 6 against NYJ: 52 of 68 snaps, 10 targets and 3 catches for 27 yards.

A.J. Brown, Week 7 against CHI: 49 of 54 snaps, 6 targets and 3 catches for 48 yards.

Through Week 6, Khalil Shakir played 63 percent of BUF snaps, drew 20 percent of the targets, earned 13 percent of the air yards and had 11 percent of the red zone chances.

Khalil Shakir, Week 3 against LAC: 48 of 66 snaps, 3 targets and 1 catch for 6 yards.

Khalil Shakir, Week 4 against NE: 45 of 59 snaps, 8 targets and 7 catches for 82 yards.

Khalil Shakir, Week 5 against LAR: 44 of 64 snaps, 3 targets and 3 catches for 80 yards.

Khalil Shakir, Week 6 against LV: 41 of 68 snaps, 6 targets and 4 catches for 34 yards, 1 touchdown.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025, A.J. Brown played 15 games for PHI and scored 220.3 PPR points, 14.7 a game, finishing WR11.

He caught 78 of 121 targets for 1003 yards and 7 touchdowns, with 12 red zone targets and 735 air yards.

He was on the field for 91 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.

In 2025, Khalil Shakir played 16 games for BUF and scored 166.4 PPR points, 10.4 a game, finishing WR36.

He caught 72 of 95 targets for 719 yards and 4 touchdowns, with 13 red zone targets and 178 air yards.

He was on the field for 60 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.

Their other Week 8 calls

Locks at kickoff, graded after. When the start/sit engine grades week 8, the call and the result appear on the public record, wrong ones included.

Drop or keep

Should I drop Khalil Shakir for A.J. Brown?
Yes, on the rest of the season. A.J. Brown projects 119 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (13.2 a game over 9 games), Khalil Shakir 96 (9.6 a game over 10 games). For Week 8 the call starts A.J. Brown over Khalil Shakir, 13.2 to 9.6 projected PPR points.
Should I drop A.J. Brown for Khalil Shakir?
No. Keep A.J. Brown: he projects 119 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (13.2 a game over 9 games), Khalil Shakir 96 (9.6 a game over 10 games). For Week 8 the call starts A.J. Brown over Khalil Shakir, 13.2 to 9.6 projected PPR points.

Should I drop Khalil Shakir?