Start Rashod Bateman or Elic Ayomanor? Week 8

Updated Oct 27, 2:06 PM ET. Locks at kickoff, graded after. Week 9 answer posts Tuesday.

Start Rashod Bateman over Elic Ayomanor

Start

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

Sit

Elic Ayomanor

WR · TEN · at CIN

Market projects: 4.0; recent weeks avg
CIN D vs WR: 31.4; 15th most to WRs (2026)
Upside: Limited; 34 of 100 at WR
Snap share: 65%; Through Week 7
Target share: 11%; Through Week 7

Should I drop Elic Ayomanor for Rashod Bateman?

Yes, on the rest of the season. Rashod Bateman projects 41 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (4.6 a game over 9 games), Elic Ayomanor 35 (3.9 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Rashod Bateman over Elic Ayomanor.

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Our Week 8 call

Start Rashod Bateman over Elic Ayomanor in Week 8.

Market-based projections have Rashod Bateman at 4.4 points and Elic Ayomanor at 4.0, 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 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. No player market is posted for Elic Ayomanor this week yet, so his 4.0 is the average of his market-based projections in Weeks 5, 6 and 7 (3.8, 4.0 and 4.2); the call is rebuilt when his market posts.

What the market projects

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.

No Week 8 player market is posted for Elic Ayomanor yet. His market-based projections were 3.8, 4.0 and 4.2 points in Weeks 5, 6 and 7, an average of 4.0, which stands in until his Week 8 market posts.

That puts Rashod Bateman 0.4 points ahead of Elic Ayomanor on these projections.

Week 8 matchups

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.

Elic Ayomanor and TEN visit CIN on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.

CIN allowed 31.4 fantasy points a game to WRs this season over 6 games, the 15th most in the league.

Receivers caught passes for 138 yards and a touchdown a game against CIN.

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

Injury status

Rashod Bateman is not on the injury report.

Elic Ayomanor 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.

Through Week 7, Elic Ayomanor played 65 percent of TEN snaps, drew 11 percent of the targets, earned 16 percent of the air yards and had 14 percent of the red zone chances.

Elic Ayomanor, Week 4 against BAL: 40 of 64 snaps, 1 target and 1 catch for 22 yards.

Elic Ayomanor, Week 5 against HOU: 33 of 63 snaps, 2 targets and 1 catch for 17 yards.

Elic Ayomanor, Week 6 against IND: 28 of 46 snaps, 2 targets and 1 catch for 3 yards.

Elic Ayomanor, Week 7 against CLE: 56 of 63 snaps, 7 targets and 3 catches for 44 yards.

Their 2025 seasons

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.

In 2025, Elic Ayomanor played 16 games for TEN and scored 116.5 PPR points, 7.3 a game, finishing WR55.

He caught 41 of 89 targets for 515 yards and 4 touchdowns, with 8 red zone targets and 400 air yards.

He was on the field for 79 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 Elic Ayomanor for Rashod Bateman?
Yes, on the rest of the season. Rashod Bateman projects 41 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (4.6 a game over 9 games), Elic Ayomanor 35 (3.9 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Rashod Bateman over Elic Ayomanor.
Should I drop Rashod Bateman for Elic Ayomanor?
No. Keep Rashod Bateman: he projects 41 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (4.6 a game over 9 games), Elic Ayomanor 35 (3.9 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Rashod Bateman over Elic Ayomanor.