Start Zay Flowers or A.J. Brown? Week 8

Updated Oct 27, 11:56 AM ET. Locks at kickoff, graded after. Week 9 answer posts Tuesday.

Brown projects lower, 13.7 to 14.1, and still gets the call because it also weighs where drafters take each player: ADP 17 for Brown, 24 for Flowers.

Start

A.J. Brown

WR · NE · at MIA

Market projects: 13.7; recent weeks avg
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

Zay Flowers

WR · BAL · at BUF

Market projects: 14.1; recent weeks avg
BUF D vs WR: 42.3; most to WRs (2026)
Upside: High; 97 of 100 at WR
Snap share: 65%; Through Week 7
Target share: 31%; Through Week 7

Should I drop A.J. Brown for Zay Flowers?

Yes, on the rest of the season. Zay Flowers projects 131 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (14.6 a game over 9 games), A.J. Brown 85 (9.4 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts A.J. Brown over Zay Flowers. So make the move after his Week 8 game.

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Our Week 8 call

Start A.J. Brown over Zay Flowers in Week 8.

Market-based projections have A.J. Brown at 13.7 points and Zay Flowers at 14.1, a gap of 0.4. That is inside the noise of a single catch, so treat it as close to a coin flip. A.J. Brown still gets the call because it also weighs where drafters take each player, ADP 17 against 24, and that outweighs a gap this size. No player market is posted for A.J. Brown this week yet, so his 13.7 is the average of his market-based projections in Weeks 6 and 7 (11.8 and 15.5); the call is rebuilt when his market posts. No player market is posted for Zay Flowers this week yet, so his 14.1 is the average of his market-based projections in Weeks 5, 6 and 7 (14.6, 13.4 and 14.2); the call is rebuilt when his market posts.

What the market projects

No Week 8 player market is posted for Zay Flowers yet. His market-based projections were 14.6, 13.5 and 14.2 points in Weeks 5, 6 and 7, an average of 14.1, which stands in until his Week 8 market posts.

The market-based projection for Zay Flowers is 0-1 touchdowns (7 market sources).

No Week 8 player market is posted for A.J. Brown yet. His market-based projections were 11.8 and 15.5 points in Weeks 6 and 7, an average of 13.7, which stands in until his Week 8 market posts.

The market-based projection for A.J. Brown is 0-1 touchdowns (7 market sources).

That puts Zay Flowers 0.4 points ahead of A.J. Brown on these projections.

Week 8 matchups

Zay Flowers and BAL visit BUF on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.

BUF allowed 42.3 fantasy points a game to WRs this season over 6 games, the most in the league.

Receivers caught passes for 174 yards and 1.8 touchdowns a game against BUF.

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.

By points allowed to the position, Zay Flowers has the softer matchup.

Injury status

Zay Flowers is not on the injury report.

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

Usage before Week 8

Through Week 7, Zay Flowers played 65 percent of BAL snaps, drew 31 percent of the targets, earned 33 percent of the air yards and had 12 percent of the red zone chances.

Zay Flowers, Week 4 against TEN: 47 of 64 snaps, 10 targets and 8 catches for 118 yards, 1 touchdown.

Zay Flowers, Week 5 against ATL: 62 of 76 snaps, 1 carry for 13 yards, 9 targets and 8 catches for 53 yards.

Zay Flowers, Week 6 against CLE: 50 of 57 snaps, 1 carry for 1 yards, 11 targets and 6 catches for 66 yards.

Zay Flowers, Week 7 against CIN: 57 of 67 snaps, 11 targets and 8 catches for 137 yards, 1 touchdown.

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.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025, Zay Flowers played 17 games for BAL and scored 243.3 PPR points, 14.3 a game, finishing WR7.

He caught 86 of 118 targets for 1211 yards and 5 touchdowns, with 10 red zone targets and 753 air yards.

He was on the field for 86 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.

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.

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 A.J. Brown for Zay Flowers?
Yes, on the rest of the season. Zay Flowers projects 131 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (14.6 a game over 9 games), A.J. Brown 85 (9.4 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts A.J. Brown over Zay Flowers. So make the move after his Week 8 game.
Should I drop Zay Flowers for A.J. Brown?
No. Keep Zay Flowers: he projects 131 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (14.6 a game over 9 games), A.J. Brown 85 (9.4 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts A.J. Brown over Zay Flowers.