Should I drop Ja'Marr Chase for Jaxon Smith-Njigba?

Not on these numbers alone. Ja'Marr Chase projects 181 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (18.1 a game over 10 games) and Jaxon Smith-Njigba 179 (19.9 a game over 9 games), too close to separate, so the roster spot decides it. For Week 8 the call starts Jaxon Smith-Njigba over Ja'Marr Chase.

Start Jaxon Smith-Njigba or Ja'Marr Chase? Week 8

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

Start Jaxon Smith-Njigba over Ja'Marr Chase

Start

Jaxon Smith-Njigba

WR · SEA · vs CHI

Market projects: 21.6; fantasy pts
CHI D vs WR: 29.2; 10th fewest to WRs (2026)
Upside: High; 95 of 100 at WR
Snap share: 83%; Through Week 7
Target share: 36%; Through Week 7

Sit

Ja'Marr Chase

WR · CIN · vs TEN

Market projects: 18.8; recent weeks avg
TEN D vs WR: 35.8; 8th most to WRs (2026)
Upside: High; 98 of 100 at WR
Snap share: 77%; Through Week 7
Target share: 21%; Through Week 7

Should I drop Jaxon Smith-Njigba for Ja'Marr Chase?

Not on these numbers alone. Jaxon Smith-Njigba projects 179 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (19.9 a game over 9 games) and Ja'Marr Chase 181 (18.1 a game over 10 games), too close to separate, so the roster spot decides it. For Week 8 the call starts Jaxon Smith-Njigba over Ja'Marr Chase.

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Our Week 8 call

Start Jaxon Smith-Njigba over Ja'Marr Chase in Week 8.

Market-based projections have Jaxon Smith-Njigba at 21.6 points and Ja'Marr Chase at 18.8, a gap of 2.7. No player market is posted for Ja'Marr Chase this week yet, so his 18.8 is the average of his market-based projections in Weeks 5 and 7 (18.4 and 19.3); the call is rebuilt when his market posts. Drafters take Jaxon Smith-Njigba at ADP 5 and Ja'Marr Chase at 4.

What the market projects

Player markets imply 21.6 fantasy points for Jaxon Smith-Njigba, with 100 percent of the markets a WR needs posted.

The market-based projection for Jaxon Smith-Njigba is 100 receiving yards, 7-8 receptions and 0.7 touchdowns (9, 7 and 8 market sources).

No Week 8 player market is posted for Ja'Marr Chase yet. His market-based projections were 18.4 and 19.3 points in Weeks 5 and 7, an average of 18.8, which stands in until his Week 8 market posts.

The market-based projection for Ja'Marr Chase is 0.7 touchdowns (7 market sources).

That puts Jaxon Smith-Njigba 2.7 points ahead of Ja'Marr Chase on these projections.

Week 8 matchups

Jaxon Smith-Njigba and SEA host CHI on Monday at 8:15 PM ET.

CHI allowed 29.2 fantasy points a game to WRs this season over 7 games, the 10th fewest in the league.

Receivers caught passes for 149 yards and 0.9 touchdowns a game against CHI.

Ja'Marr Chase and CIN host TEN on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.

TEN allowed 35.8 fantasy points a game to WRs this season over 7 games, the 8th most in the league.

Receivers caught passes for 176 yards and 0.6 touchdowns a game against TEN.

By points allowed to the position, Ja'Marr Chase has the softer matchup.

Injury status

Jaxon Smith-Njigba is not on the injury report.

Ja'Marr Chase is not on the injury report.

Usage before Week 8

Through Week 7, Jaxon Smith-Njigba played 83 percent of SEA snaps, drew 36 percent of the targets, earned 51 percent of the air yards and had 19 percent of the red zone chances.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Week 4 against LAC: 53 of 60 snaps, 6 targets and 5 catches for 76 yards.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Week 5 against SF: 53 of 63 snaps, 1 carry for 16 yards, 8 targets and 5 catches for 102 yards, 1 touchdown.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Week 6 against DEN: 78 of 85 snaps, 16 targets and 12 catches for 134 yards.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Week 7 against KC: 53 of 69 snaps, 2 carries for 13 yards, 12 targets and 9 catches for 150 yards, 1 touchdown.

Through Week 7, Ja'Marr Chase played 77 percent of CIN snaps, drew 21 percent of the targets, earned 26 percent of the air yards and had 14 percent of the red zone chances.

Ja'Marr Chase, Week 3 against PIT: 57 of 57 snaps, 12 targets and 9 catches for 98 yards, 1 touchdown.

Ja'Marr Chase, Week 4 against JAX: 15 of 76 snaps, 3 targets and 3 catches for 27 yards.

Ja'Marr Chase, Week 5 against MIA: 58 of 65 snaps, 10 targets and 6 catches for 77 yards, 1 touchdown.

Ja'Marr Chase, Week 7 against BAL: 46 of 53 snaps, 7 targets and 5 catches for 62 yards, 1 touchdown.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025, Jaxon Smith-Njigba played 17 games for SEA and scored 359.9 PPR points, 21.2 a game, finishing WR2.

He caught 119 of 163 targets for 1793 yards and 10 touchdowns, with 17 red zone targets and 1265 air yards.

He was on the field for 78 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.

In 2025, Ja'Marr Chase played 16 games for CIN and scored 313.6 PPR points, 19.6 a game, finishing WR4.

He caught 125 of 185 targets for 1412 yards and 8 touchdowns, with 21 red zone targets and 772 air yards.

He was on the field for 94 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 Jaxon Smith-Njigba for Ja'Marr Chase?
Not on these numbers alone. Jaxon Smith-Njigba projects 179 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (19.9 a game over 9 games) and Ja'Marr Chase 181 (18.1 a game over 10 games), too close to separate, so the roster spot decides it. For Week 8 the call starts Jaxon Smith-Njigba over Ja'Marr Chase.
Should I drop Ja'Marr Chase for Jaxon Smith-Njigba?
Not on these numbers alone. Ja'Marr Chase projects 181 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (18.1 a game over 10 games) and Jaxon Smith-Njigba 179 (19.9 a game over 9 games), too close to separate, so the roster spot decides it. For Week 8 the call starts Jaxon Smith-Njigba over Ja'Marr Chase.