Start Lamar Jackson or Jared Goff? Week 8

Updated Oct 27, 11:56 PM 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 Jared Goff over Lamar Jackson

Lamar Jackson is listed out, so Jared Goff starts despite the lower projection.

Start

Jared Goff

QB · DET · vs MIN

Market projects: 18.4; fantasy pts
MIN D vs QB: 8.8; fewest to QBs (2026)
Upside: Limited; 22 of 100 at QB
Snap share: 99%; 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 Jared Goff?

Yes, on the rest of the season. Jared Goff projects 167 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (16.7 a game over 10 games), Lamar Jackson 139 (15.4 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Jared Goff over Lamar Jackson. Lamar Jackson is listed out.

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Our Week 8 call

Start Jared Goff over Lamar Jackson in Week 8.

Lamar Jackson is listed out on the injury report, so this is not a close call: start Jared Goff. Drafters take Jared Goff at ADP 106 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 18.4 fantasy points for Jared Goff, with 80 percent of the markets a QB needs posted.

The market-based projection for Jared Goff is 264 passing yards, 1-2 passing touchdowns and 0.1 rushing touchdowns (12, 14 and 13 market sources).

That puts Lamar Jackson 0.7 points ahead of Jared Goff 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.

Jared Goff and DET host MIN on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.

MIN allowed 8.8 fantasy points a game to QBs this season over 6 games, the fewest in the league.

Quarterbacks threw for 181 yards and 0-1 touchdowns a game against MIN, with 1.2 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.

Jared Goff 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, Jared Goff played 99 percent of DET snaps, dropped back 240 times and threw an average of 7.9 air yards per attempt.

Jared Goff, Week 3 against NYJ: 65 of 65 snaps, 25 of 32 passes for 269 yards, 2 touchdowns and 0 interceptions, 2 carries for 8 yards.

Jared Goff, Week 4 against CAR: 71 of 71 snaps, 32 of 52 passes for 412 yards, 1 touchdown and 0 interceptions.

Jared Goff, Week 5 against ARI: 63 of 66 snaps, 19 of 30 passes for 271 yards, 3 touchdowns and 0 interceptions, 1 carry for 1 yards.

Jared Goff, Week 7 against GB: 68 of 68 snaps, 22 of 32 passes for 303 yards, 2 touchdowns and 0 interceptions, 1 carry for 0 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, Jared Goff played 17 games for DET and scored 305.1 PPR points, 17.9 a game, finishing QB9.

He completed 393 of 578 passes for 4564 yards, 34 touchdowns and 8 interceptions, and ran 19 times for 45 yards and 0 touchdowns.

He was on the field for 98 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 Jared Goff?
Yes, on the rest of the season. Jared Goff projects 167 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (16.7 a game over 10 games), Lamar Jackson 139 (15.4 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Jared Goff over Lamar Jackson. Lamar Jackson is listed out.
Should I drop Jared Goff for Lamar Jackson?
No. Keep Jared Goff: he projects 167 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (16.7 a game over 10 games), Lamar Jackson 139 (15.4 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Jared Goff over Lamar Jackson. Lamar Jackson is listed out.