Start Lamar Jackson or Jayden Daniels? 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 Jayden Daniels over Lamar Jackson

Lamar Jackson is listed out, so Jayden Daniels starts despite the lower projection.

Start

Jayden Daniels

QB · WAS · vs PHI

Market projects: 18.5; recent weeks avg
PHI D vs QB: 20.0; 9th most to QBs (2026)
Upside: High; 100 of 100 at QB
Snap share: 88%; Through Week 6

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 Jayden Daniels?

Yes, on the rest of the season. Jayden Daniels projects 180 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (18.0 a game over 10 games), Lamar Jackson 139 (15.4 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Jayden Daniels over Lamar Jackson. Lamar Jackson is listed out.

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Our Week 8 call

Start Jayden Daniels over Lamar Jackson in Week 8.

Lamar Jackson is listed out on the injury report, so this is not a close call: start Jayden Daniels. Drafters take Jayden Daniels at ADP 74 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 (8, 9, 8 and 10 market sources).

No Week 8 player market is posted for Jayden Daniels yet. His market-based projections were 17.8 and 19.2 points in Weeks 5 and 6, an average of 18.5, which stands in until his Week 8 market posts.

The market-based projection for Jayden Daniels is 0.4 touchdowns (3 market sources).

That puts Lamar Jackson 0.6 points ahead of Jayden Daniels on these 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.

Jayden Daniels and WAS host PHI on Sunday at 8:20 PM ET.

PHI allowed 20.0 fantasy points a game to QBs this season over 7 games, the 9th most in the league.

Quarterbacks threw for 248 yards and 1.6 touchdowns a game against PHI, with 0.4 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.

Jayden Daniels 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 6, Jayden Daniels played 88 percent of WAS snaps, dropped back 143 times and threw an average of 8.5 air yards per attempt.

Jayden Daniels, Week 1 against PHI: 70 of 70 snaps, 18 of 34 passes for 164 yards, 2 touchdowns and 0 interceptions, 5 carries for 31 yards.

Jayden Daniels, Week 2 against DAL: 39 of 71 snaps, 11 of 17 passes for 96 yards, 1 touchdown and 0 interceptions, 7 carries for 69 yards.

Jayden Daniels, Week 5 against NYG: 62 of 62 snaps, 17 of 25 passes for 199 yards, 0 touchdowns and 0 interceptions, 8 carries for 104 yards.

Jayden Daniels, Week 6 against SF: 67 of 67 snaps, 29 of 38 passes for 300 yards, 2 touchdowns and 0 interceptions, 3 carries for 11 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, Jayden Daniels played 7 games for WAS and scored 117.3 PPR points, 16.8 a game, finishing QB34.

He completed 114 of 188 passes for 1262 yards, 8 touchdowns and 3 interceptions, and ran 58 times for 278 yards and 2 touchdowns.

He was on the field for 91 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 Jayden Daniels?
Yes, on the rest of the season. Jayden Daniels projects 180 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (18.0 a game over 10 games), Lamar Jackson 139 (15.4 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Jayden Daniels over Lamar Jackson. Lamar Jackson is listed out.
Should I drop Jayden Daniels for Lamar Jackson?
No. Keep Jayden Daniels: he projects 180 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (18.0 a game over 10 games), Lamar Jackson 139 (15.4 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Jayden Daniels over Lamar Jackson. Lamar Jackson is listed out.