Start Tony Pollard or J.K. Dobbins? Week 8

Updated Oct 27, 5:56 PM ET. Locks at kickoff, graded after. Week 9 answer posts Tuesday.

Start Tony Pollard over J.K. Dobbins

Start

Tony Pollard

RB · TEN · at CIN

Market projects: 15.4; fantasy pts
CIN D vs RB: 17.9; 4th fewest to RBs (2026)
Upside: High; 92 of 100 at RB
Snap share: 58%; Through Week 7
Target share: 8%; Through Week 7

Sit

J.K. Dobbins

RB · DEN · vs KC

Market projects: 7.3; fantasy pts
KC D vs RB: 19.5; 9th fewest to RBs (2026)
Upside: Limited; 9 of 100 at RB
Snap share: 41%; Through Week 7
Target share: 5%; Through Week 7

Should I drop J.K. Dobbins for Tony Pollard?

Yes, on the rest of the season. Tony Pollard projects 90 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (10.0 a game over 9 games), J.K. Dobbins 83 (9.2 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Tony Pollard over J.K. Dobbins, 15.4 to 7.3 projected PPR points.

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Our Week 8 call

Start Tony Pollard over J.K. Dobbins in Week 8.

Market-based projections have Tony Pollard at 15.4 points and J.K. Dobbins at 7.3, a gap of 8.1. Both numbers are scaled up from a partial market: not every stat the position needs is posted yet, so the rest is estimated from what is. Drafters take Tony Pollard at ADP 68 and J.K. Dobbins at 90. Market coverage on Tony Pollard is 70 percent of what his position needs, so the market side of this carries proportionally less weight.

What the market projects

Player markets imply 7.3 fantasy points for J.K. Dobbins, with 70 percent of the markets a RB needs posted.

The market-based projection for J.K. Dobbins is 26 rushing yards and 0.4 touchdowns (8 and 9 market sources).

Player markets imply 15.4 fantasy points for Tony Pollard, with 70 percent of the markets a RB needs posted.

The market-based projection for Tony Pollard is 0.6 touchdowns (7 market sources).

That puts Tony Pollard 8.1 points ahead of J.K. Dobbins on the market projections.

Week 8 matchups

J.K. Dobbins and DEN host KC on Sunday at 4:25 PM ET.

KC allowed 19.5 fantasy points a game to RBs this season over 6 games, the 9th fewest in the league.

Running backs ran for 72 yards and 0.7 touchdowns a game against KC and caught passes for 37 more yards.

Tony Pollard and TEN visit CIN on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.

CIN allowed 17.9 fantasy points a game to RBs this season over 6 games, the 4th fewest in the league.

Running backs ran for 81 yards and 0-1 touchdowns a game against CIN and caught passes for 32 more yards.

By points allowed to the position, J.K. Dobbins has the softer matchup.

Injury status

J.K. Dobbins is not on the injury report.

Tony Pollard is not on the injury report.

Usage before Week 8

Through Week 7, J.K. Dobbins played 41 percent of DEN snaps, took 52 percent of the carries, drew 5 percent of the targets and had 27 percent of the red zone chances.

J.K. Dobbins, Week 4 against SF: 21 of 65 snaps, 11 carries for 40 yards, 2 targets and 2 catches for 12 yards.

J.K. Dobbins, Week 5 against LAC: 32 of 62 snaps, 18 carries for 68 yards, 2 targets and 2 catches for 6 yards, 1 touchdown.

J.K. Dobbins, Week 6 against SEA: 31 of 60 snaps, 17 carries for 41 yards, 3 targets and 3 catches for 5 yards, 1 touchdown.

J.K. Dobbins, Week 7 against ARI: 14 of 61 snaps, 6 carries for 23 yards, 0 targets and 0 catches for 0 yards, 1 touchdown.

Through Week 7, Tony Pollard played 58 percent of TEN snaps, took 70 percent of the carries, drew 8 percent of the targets and had 41 percent of the red zone chances.

Tony Pollard, Week 4 against BAL: 34 of 64 snaps, 16 carries for 48 yards, 4 targets and 2 catches for 2 yards, 1 touchdown.

Tony Pollard, Week 5 against HOU: 30 of 63 snaps, 14 carries for 52 yards, 1 target and 0 catches for 0 yards.

Tony Pollard, Week 6 against IND: 35 of 46 snaps, 19 carries for 76 yards, 1 target and 0 catches for 0 yards.

Tony Pollard, Week 7 against CLE: 47 of 63 snaps, 25 carries for 129 yards, 3 targets and 3 catches for 26 yards, 3 touchdowns.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025, J.K. Dobbins played 10 games for DEN and scored 115.9 PPR points, 11.6 a game, finishing RB43.

He ran 153 times for 772 yards and 4 touchdowns, and caught 11 of 14 targets for 37 yards.

He was on the field for 51 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.

In 2025, Tony Pollard played 17 games for TEN and scored 185.8 PPR points, 10.9 a game, finishing RB23.

He ran 242 times for 1082 yards and 5 touchdowns, and caught 33 of 41 targets for 206 yards.

He was on the field for 62 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 J.K. Dobbins for Tony Pollard?
Yes, on the rest of the season. Tony Pollard projects 90 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (10.0 a game over 9 games), J.K. Dobbins 83 (9.2 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Tony Pollard over J.K. Dobbins, 15.4 to 7.3 projected PPR points.
Should I drop Tony Pollard for J.K. Dobbins?
No. Keep Tony Pollard: he projects 90 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (10.0 a game over 9 games), J.K. Dobbins 83 (9.2 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Tony Pollard over J.K. Dobbins, 15.4 to 7.3 projected PPR points.

Should I drop J.K. Dobbins?Should I drop Tony Pollard?