Start Lamar Jackson or Drake Maye? Week 8

Updated Oct 28, 2:31 AM ET. Locks at kickoff, graded after. Week 9 answer posts Tuesday.

Latest

Oct 24, 4:13 PM ET: Lamar Jackson: Questionable to Out (Ankle, Sprain) (Sleeper injury feed)
Oct 21, 4:54 PM ET: Ravens' Lamar Jackson returns to practice but status remains unclear vs. Bengals (ESPN)

Start Drake Maye over Lamar Jackson

Lamar Jackson is listed out, so Drake Maye starts despite the lower projection.

Start

Drake Maye

QB · NE · at MIA

Market projects: 18.4; fantasy pts
MIA D vs QB: 20.3; 7th most to QBs (2026)
Upside: High; 88 of 100 at QB
Snap share: 97%; Through Week 7

Sit

Lamar Jackson

QB · BAL · at BUF · Out

Market projects: 19.1; fantasy pts
BUF D vs QB: 22.3; 4th most to QBs (2026)
Snap share: 88%; Through Week 4

Should I drop Lamar Jackson for Drake Maye?

Yes, on the rest of the season. Drake Maye projects 167 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (18.5 a game over 9 games), Lamar Jackson 139 (15.4 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Drake Maye over Lamar Jackson. Lamar Jackson is listed out.

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Our Week 8 call

Start Drake Maye over Lamar Jackson in Week 8.

Lamar Jackson is listed out on the injury report, so this is not a close call: start Drake Maye. Drafters take Drake Maye at ADP 50 and Lamar Jackson at 57.

What the market projects

Player markets imply 19.1 fantasy points for Lamar Jackson, with 100 percent of the markets a QB needs posted.

The market-based projection for Lamar Jackson is 237 passing yards, 1-2 passing touchdowns, 26 rushing yards and 0.3 rushing touchdowns (9, 10, 9 and 10 market sources).

Player markets imply 18.5 fantasy points for Drake Maye, with 100 percent of the markets a QB needs posted.

The market-based projection for Drake Maye is 233 passing yards, 1-2 passing touchdowns, 25 rushing yards and 0.3 rushing touchdowns (5, 6, 5 and 9 market sources).

That puts Lamar Jackson 0.7 points ahead of Drake Maye on the market projections.

Week 8 matchups

Lamar Jackson and BAL visit BUF on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.

BUF allowed 22.3 fantasy points a game to QBs this season over 6 games, the 4th most in the league.

Quarterbacks threw for 299 yards and 2-3 touchdowns a game against BUF, with 0.5 interceptions a game.

Drake Maye and NE visit MIA on Sunday at 4:25 PM ET.

MIA allowed 20.3 fantasy points a game to QBs this season over 6 games, the 7th most in the league.

Quarterbacks threw for 236 yards and 2.3 touchdowns a game against MIA, with 0.7 interceptions a game.

By points allowed to the position, Lamar Jackson has the softer matchup.

Injury status

Lamar Jackson is listed as out with a ankle injury.

Drake Maye is not on the injury report.

Usage before Week 8

Through Week 4, Lamar Jackson played 88 percent of BAL snaps, dropped back 111 times and threw an average of 10.4 air yards per attempt.

Lamar Jackson, Week 1 against IND: 68 of 68 snaps, 17 of 24 passes for 324 yards, 1 touchdown and 0 interceptions, 4 carries for 43 yards.

Lamar Jackson, Week 2 against NO: 58 of 58 snaps, 21 of 30 passes for 235 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception, 4 carries for 34 yards.

Lamar Jackson, Week 3 against DAL: 64 of 64 snaps, 15 of 20 passes for 186 yards, 2 touchdowns and 0 interceptions, 6 carries for 50 yards.

Lamar Jackson, Week 4 against TEN: 33 of 64 snaps, 15 of 20 passes for 222 yards, 2 touchdowns and 0 interceptions, 2 carries for 20 yards.

Through Week 7, Drake Maye played 97 percent of NE snaps, dropped back 249 times and threw an average of 9.1 air yards per attempt.

Drake Maye, Week 4 against BUF: 76 of 76 snaps, 22 of 37 passes for 269 yards, 3 touchdowns and 1 interception, 6 carries for 56 yards.

Drake Maye, Week 5 against LV: 75 of 75 snaps, 26 of 34 passes for 374 yards, 4 touchdowns and 0 interceptions, 4 carries for 29 yards.

Drake Maye, Week 6 against NYJ: 68 of 68 snaps, 18 of 32 passes for 235 yards, 3 touchdowns and 0 interceptions, 3 carries for 25 yards.

Drake Maye, Week 7 against CHI: 54 of 54 snaps, 24 of 30 passes for 321 yards, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception, 4 carries for 26 yards.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025, Lamar Jackson played 13 games for BAL and scored 221.9 PPR points, 17.1 a game, finishing QB20.

He completed 192 of 302 passes for 2549 yards, 21 touchdowns and 7 interceptions, and ran 67 times for 349 yards and 2 touchdowns.

He was on the field for 92 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.

In 2025, Drake Maye played 17 games for NE and scored 360.0 PPR points, 21.2 a game, finishing QB2.

He completed 354 of 492 passes for 4394 yards, 31 touchdowns and 8 interceptions, and ran 103 times for 450 yards and 4 touchdowns.

He was on the field for 97 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 Lamar Jackson for Drake Maye?
Yes, on the rest of the season. Drake Maye projects 167 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (18.5 a game over 9 games), Lamar Jackson 139 (15.4 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Drake Maye over Lamar Jackson. Lamar Jackson is listed out.
Should I drop Drake Maye for Lamar Jackson?
No. Keep Drake Maye: he projects 167 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (18.5 a game over 9 games), Lamar Jackson 139 (15.4 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Drake Maye over Lamar Jackson. Lamar Jackson is listed out.