Start Joe Burrow or Lamar Jackson? Week 8

Updated Oct 28, 2:42 AM 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 Joe Burrow over Lamar Jackson

Start

Joe Burrow

QB · CIN · vs TEN

Market projects: 22.9; fantasy pts
TEN D vs QB: 16.1; 11th fewest to QBs (2026)
Upside: Rising; 69 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 Joe Burrow?

Yes, on the rest of the season. Joe Burrow projects 171 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (17.1 a game over 10 games), Lamar Jackson 139 (15.4 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Joe Burrow over Lamar Jackson, 22.9 to 19.1 projected PPR points. Lamar Jackson is listed out.

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Our Week 8 call

Start Joe Burrow over Lamar Jackson in Week 8.

Lamar Jackson is listed out on the injury report, so this is not a close call: start Joe Burrow. Drafters take Joe Burrow at ADP 55 and Lamar Jackson at 57.

What the market projects

Player markets imply 22.9 fantasy points for Joe Burrow, with 80 percent of the markets a QB needs posted.

The market-based projection for Joe Burrow is 264 passing yards, 2-3 passing touchdowns and 0.1 rushing touchdowns (7, 8 and 11 market sources).

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).

That puts Joe Burrow 3.8 points ahead of Lamar Jackson on the market projections.

Week 8 matchups

Joe Burrow and CIN host TEN on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.

TEN allowed 16.1 fantasy points a game to QBs this season over 7 games, the 11th fewest in the league.

Quarterbacks threw for 246 yards and 0.9 touchdowns a game against TEN, with 0.7 interceptions a game.

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.

By points allowed to the position, Lamar Jackson has the softer matchup.

Injury status

Joe Burrow is not on the injury report.

Lamar Jackson is listed as out with a ankle injury.

Usage before Week 8

Through Week 7, Joe Burrow played 99 percent of CIN snaps, dropped back 236 times and threw an average of 7.2 air yards per attempt.

Joe Burrow, Week 3 against PIT: 57 of 57 snaps, 28 of 37 passes for 282 yards, 3 touchdowns and 0 interceptions, 2 carries for 13 yards.

Joe Burrow, Week 4 against JAX: 76 of 76 snaps, 39 of 54 passes for 428 yards, 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions, 3 carries for 6 yards.

Joe Burrow, Week 5 against MIA: 65 of 65 snaps, 23 of 32 passes for 190 yards, 4 touchdowns and 0 interceptions, 2 carries for 12 yards.

Joe Burrow, Week 7 against BAL: 50 of 53 snaps, 22 of 30 passes for 292 yards, 4 touchdowns and 0 interceptions, 2 carries for 12 yards.

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.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025, Joe Burrow played 8 games for CIN and scored 139.5 PPR points, 17.4 a game, finishing QB29.

He completed 173 of 259 passes for 1809 yards, 17 touchdowns and 5 interceptions, and ran 14 times for 41 yards and 0 touchdowns.

He was on the field for 86 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.

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.

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 Joe Burrow?
Yes, on the rest of the season. Joe Burrow projects 171 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (17.1 a game over 10 games), Lamar Jackson 139 (15.4 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Joe Burrow over Lamar Jackson, 22.9 to 19.1 projected PPR points. Lamar Jackson is listed out.
Should I drop Joe Burrow for Lamar Jackson?
No. Keep Joe Burrow: he projects 171 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (17.1 a game over 10 games), Lamar Jackson 139 (15.4 a game over 9 games). For Week 8 the call starts Joe Burrow over Lamar Jackson, 22.9 to 19.1 projected PPR points. Lamar Jackson is listed out.