Start Brian Thomas Jr. or Rashod Bateman? Week 8

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

Start Brian Thomas Jr. over Rashod Bateman

Start

Brian Thomas Jr.

WR · JAX · vs IND

Market projects: 4.7; recent weeks avg
IND D vs WR: 29.0; 8th fewest to WRs (2026)
Upside: Limited; 31 of 100 at WR

Sit

Rashod Bateman

WR · BAL · at BUF

Market projects: 4.4; recent weeks avg
BUF D vs WR: 42.3; most to WRs (2026)
Upside: Rising; 71 of 100 at WR
Snap share: 70%; Through Week 7
Target share: 13%; Through Week 7

Should I drop Rashod Bateman for Brian Thomas Jr.?

Yes, on the rest of the season. Brian Thomas Jr. projects 67 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (6.7 a game over 10 games), Rashod Bateman 41 (4.6 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Brian Thomas Jr. over Rashod Bateman.

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Our Week 8 call

Start Brian Thomas Jr. over Rashod Bateman in Week 8.

Market-based projections have Brian Thomas Jr. at 4.7 points and Rashod Bateman at 4.4, a gap of 0.4. That is inside the noise of a single catch, so treat it as close to a coin flip. No player market is posted for Brian Thomas Jr. this week yet, so his 4.7 is the average of his market-based projections in Weeks 5 and 6 (5.1 and 4.4); the call is rebuilt when his market posts. No player market is posted for Rashod Bateman this week yet, so his 4.4 is the average of his market-based projections in Weeks 5, 6 and 7 (4.0, 4.7 and 4.5); the call is rebuilt when his market posts. Drafters take Brian Thomas Jr. at ADP 72 and Rashod Bateman at 175.

What the market projects

No Week 8 player market is posted for Brian Thomas Jr. yet. His market-based projections were 5.1 and 4.4 points in Weeks 5 and 6, an average of 4.7, which stands in until his Week 8 market posts.

No Week 8 player market is posted for Rashod Bateman yet. His market-based projections were 4.0, 4.7 and 4.5 points in Weeks 5, 6 and 7, an average of 4.4, which stands in until his Week 8 market posts.

That puts Brian Thomas Jr. 0.4 points ahead of Rashod Bateman on these projections.

Week 8 matchups

Brian Thomas Jr. and JAX host IND on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.

IND allowed 29.0 fantasy points a game to WRs this season over 7 games, the 8th fewest in the league.

Receivers caught passes for 142 yards and 0.7 touchdowns a game against IND.

Rashod Bateman 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.

By points allowed to the position, Rashod Bateman has the softer matchup.

Injury status

Brian Thomas Jr. is not on the injury report.

Rashod Bateman is not on the injury report.

Usage before Week 8

Through Week 7, Rashod Bateman played 70 percent of BAL snaps, drew 13 percent of the targets, earned 22 percent of the air yards and had 4 percent of the red zone chances.

Rashod Bateman, Week 4 against TEN: 30 of 64 snaps, 2 targets and 2 catches for 46 yards.

Rashod Bateman, Week 5 against ATL: 61 of 76 snaps, 6 targets and 5 catches for 62 yards.

Rashod Bateman, Week 6 against CLE: 17 of 57 snaps, 1 target and 0 catches for 0 yards.

Rashod Bateman, Week 7 against CIN: 49 of 67 snaps, 4 targets and 2 catches for 33 yards.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025, Brian Thomas Jr. played 14 games for JAX and scored 138.8 PPR points, 9.9 a game, finishing WR42.

He caught 48 of 91 targets for 707 yards and 2 touchdowns, with 6 red zone targets and 548 air yards.

He was on the field for 79 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.

Brian Thomas Jr., Week 18 of 2025 against TEN: 5 targets and 3 catches for 49 yards, 7.9 PPR points.

Brian Thomas Jr., Week 17 of 2025 against IND: 54 of 69 snaps, 7 targets and 4 catches for 39 yards, 7.9 PPR points.

Brian Thomas Jr., Week 16 of 2025 against DEN: 51 of 70 snaps, 3 targets and 2 catches for 18 yards, 3.8 PPR points.

In 2025, Rashod Bateman played 13 games for BAL and scored 55.4 PPR points, 4.3 a game, finishing WR102.

He caught 19 of 38 targets for 224 yards and 2 touchdowns, with 8 red zone targets and 185 air yards.

He was on the field for 69 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 Rashod Bateman for Brian Thomas Jr.?
Yes, on the rest of the season. Brian Thomas Jr. projects 67 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (6.7 a game over 10 games), Rashod Bateman 41 (4.6 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Brian Thomas Jr. over Rashod Bateman.
Should I drop Brian Thomas Jr. for Rashod Bateman?
No. Keep Brian Thomas Jr.: he projects 67 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (6.7 a game over 10 games), Rashod Bateman 41 (4.6 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Brian Thomas Jr. over Rashod Bateman.