Start James Cook III or Bucky Irving? Week 8

Updated Oct 28, 8:16 PM ET. Locks at kickoff, graded after. Week 9 answer posts Tuesday.

Start James Cook III over Bucky Irving

Start

James Cook III

RB · BUF · vs BAL

Market projects: 16.6; fantasy pts
BAL D vs RB: 18.5; 5th fewest to RBs (2026)
Upside: High; 86 of 100 at RB

Sit

Bucky Irving

RB · TB · vs ATL

Market projects: 15.9; fantasy pts
ATL D vs RB: 24.6; 8th most to RBs (2026)
Upside: High; 93 of 100 at RB
Snap share: 64%; Through Week 7
Target share: 12%; Through Week 7

Should I drop Bucky Irving for James Cook III?

Yes, on the rest of the season. James Cook III projects 162 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (16.2 a game over 10 games), Bucky Irving 113 (12.6 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts James Cook III over Bucky Irving, 16.6 to 15.9 projected PPR points.

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Our Week 8 call

Start James Cook III over Bucky Irving in Week 8.

Market-based projections have James Cook III at 16.6 points and Bucky Irving at 15.9, a gap of 0.8. That is inside the noise of a single catch, so treat it as close to a coin flip. Drafters take James Cook III at ADP 9 and Bucky Irving at 45.

What the market projects

Player markets imply 16.6 fantasy points for James Cook III, with 100 percent of the markets a RB needs posted.

The market-based projection for James Cook III is 87 rushing yards, 10 receiving yards, 1-2 receptions and 0.9 touchdowns (13, 12, 12 and 13 market sources).

Player markets imply 15.9 fantasy points for Bucky Irving, with 100 percent of the markets a RB needs posted.

The market-based projection for Bucky Irving is 71 rushing yards, 15 receiving yards, 2-3 receptions and 0.8 touchdowns (10, 10, 8 and 12 market sources).

That puts James Cook III 0.8 points ahead of Bucky Irving on the market projections.

Week 8 matchups

James Cook III and BUF host BAL on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.

BAL allowed 18.5 fantasy points a game to RBs this season over 7 games, the 5th fewest in the league.

Running backs ran for 77 yards and 0.9 touchdowns a game against BAL and caught passes for 15 more yards.

Bucky Irving and TB host ATL on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.

ATL allowed 24.6 fantasy points a game to RBs this season over 7 games, the 8th most in the league.

Running backs ran for 82 yards and a touchdown a game against ATL and caught passes for 39 more yards.

By points allowed to the position, Bucky Irving has the softer matchup.

Injury status

James Cook III is not on the injury report.

Bucky Irving is not on the injury report.

Usage before Week 8

Through Week 7, Bucky Irving played 64 percent of TB snaps, took 59 percent of the carries, drew 12 percent of the targets and had 40 percent of the red zone chances.

Bucky Irving, Week 4 against GB: 37 of 64 snaps, 16 carries for 61 yards, 0 targets and 0 catches for 0 yards.

Bucky Irving, Week 5 against DAL: 39 of 72 snaps, 21 carries for 165 yards, 3 targets and 2 catches for 10 yards, 2 touchdowns.

Bucky Irving, Week 6 against PIT: 63 of 74 snaps, 19 carries for 46 yards, 3 targets and 2 catches for 3 yards.

Bucky Irving, Week 7 against CAR: 37 of 63 snaps, 24 carries for 106 yards, 2 targets and 1 catch for 4 yards, 2 touchdowns.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025, James Cook III played 17 games for BUF and scored 302.2 PPR points, 17.8 a game, finishing RB6.

He ran 309 times for 1621 yards and 12 touchdowns, and caught 33 of 40 targets for 291 yards.

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

James Cook III, Week 18 of 2025 against NYJ: 2 carries for 15 yards, 0 targets and 0 catches for 0 yards, 1.5 PPR points.

James Cook III, Week 17 of 2025 against PHI: 39 of 76 snaps, 20 carries for 74 yards, 4 targets and 1 catch for 3 yards, 8.7 PPR points.

James Cook III, Week 16 of 2025 against CLE: 28 of 50 snaps, 16 carries for 117 yards, 2 targets and 1 catch for 17 yards, 2 touchdowns, 26.4 PPR points.

In 2025, Bucky Irving played 10 games for TB and scored 138.5 PPR points, 13.9 a game, finishing RB34.

He ran 173 times for 588 yards and 1 touchdown, and caught 30 of 35 targets for 277 yards.

He was on the field for 62 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 Bucky Irving for James Cook III?
Yes, on the rest of the season. James Cook III projects 162 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (16.2 a game over 10 games), Bucky Irving 113 (12.6 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts James Cook III over Bucky Irving, 16.6 to 15.9 projected PPR points.
Should I drop James Cook III for Bucky Irving?
No. Keep James Cook III: he projects 162 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (16.2 a game over 10 games), Bucky Irving 113 (12.6 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts James Cook III over Bucky Irving, 16.6 to 15.9 projected PPR points.