Fantasy Football Target Trends for Week 8
Welcome to the target trends article for Week 8! As we continue to navigate injuries and bye weeks in the heart of the NFL season, target trends become more important than ever. Let’s start, as usual, by checking in on the overall target landscape in the league.
Target Trends
Puka Nacua retains the overall target lead with 82 on the season. His 11.7 targets/game put him on pace for 199 on the season, which would blow away the current rookie record of 167 by Terry Glenn. On a per-game basis, however, Ja’Marr Chase and his 12.2 targets/game leads the way,
T.J. Hockenson and Travis Kelce each have 59 targets to lead all tight ends. Kelce’s total is more impressive when considering that he missed Week 1. Evan Engram checks in third, with 51 targets through seven games played.
Josh Jacobs and Alvin Kamara are tied for the total target lead at running back with 39 a piece. Kamara, however, has played in two fewer games. His 9.8 targets/game put him on pace for 137 in just 14 games, while Jacobs is on pace for just 95 targets in 17 games.
I’ll continue to lead off this article with season-long target leaders, but for now, let’s check out this week’s target trends heading into Week 8.
Amon-Ra St. Brown: 19 targets, 13 rec
Jahmyr Gibbs: 10 targets, 9 rec
Jameson Williams: 6 targets, 0 rec
After missing Week 5, St. Brown has set career-highs in targets in back-to-back weeks and combined for 34 targets over the last two games. A good chunk of those targets came in garbage time, but they all count the same for fantasy football. Meanwhile, Gibbs saw double-digit targets for the first time in his career. The rookie RB has seen at least a 19% target share in three of his last four healthy games. As for Williams, he ran fewer routes than Josh Reynolds and Antoine Green, but his six targets doubled his career high.
Tyreek Hill: 15 targets, 11 rec
Hill’s target domination in the Miami offense continues. His 33% target share trails only Puka Nacua this season. He’s on pace for 180 targets, which would top the career-high of 170 he set in his first season with Miami last year. He’s also on pace for over 2,100 receiving yards, which would set a new NFL record.
A.J. Brown: 15 targets, 10 rec
Brown is also on pace to break some personal records. He’s averaging 10.7 targets/game, which puts him on pace for 182 on the season. That’s significantly higher than the career-high he set last year with 145. His 33% target share is tied for the second-highest in the league, while DeVonta Smith is next on the Eagles with a 22% share.
Chris Olave: 15 targets, 7 rec
Alvin Kamara: 14 targets, 12 rec
Olave leads the Saints with 68 targets on the season, more than halfway to the 119 that went his way as a rookie. He’s seen double-digit targets in five of seven games this season. When Derek Carr isn’t targeting Olave, he’s likely checking it down to Kamara. The running back has a 26.5% target share and has seen 14 targets in two of his four games played.
Travis Kelce: 13 targets, 12 rec
Kelce continues to be the most reliable tight end in football. Even considering he missed a game in Week 1, he’s on pace for 157 targets on the season. That’s five more than the career-high of 152 he set last year. Not bad for a 34-year-old tight end in his eleventh season.
Jakobi Meyers: 13 targets, 7 rec
Davante Adams: 12 targets, 7 rec
After just nine combined targets over the previous two weeks, it appears Adams got the squeaky wheel treatment in Week 7. He was still out-targeted by teammate Jakobi Meyers, who has been targeted 10+ times in four of seven games this season. Adams (30.1%), Meyers (26.3%), and Josh Jacobs (16.5%) have combined for a 72.9% target share on the season.
T.J. Hockenson: 12 targets, 11 rec
Jordan Addison: 10 targets, 9 rec
Hockenson led the way in targets Monday night, but Addison was the star of the game for Minnesota. The rookie broke out with the first double-digit target performance of his career. He turned those targets into 123 yards in two touchdowns to finish as the WR1 on the week. Hockenson and Addison should each continue to soak up targets while Justin Jefferson is out.
David Njoku: 9 targets, 5 rec
Njoku racked up a season-high nine targets in Week 7 against the Colts. He’s only earned a 15.3% target share on the season, though he’s been over 20% in two of the last three weeks. The target share is difficult to trust with Njoku in Cleveland, but at least we know he can put up big target games occasionally.
Calvin Ridley: 4 targets, 1 rec
Ridley stormed out of the gates with 11 targets in Week 1, but he hasn’t topped eight in a game since. He is averaging just 6.2 targets/game from Week 2 on. Teammates Christian Kirk (8.7) and Evan Engram (7.7) are each out-targeting him over that span.
Josh Jacobs: 4 targets, 1 rec
The four targets to Jacobs were a season-low for the positional target leader. One of those targets looked like it would turn into his first career receiving touchdown. Instead, the near-amazing grab was ruled incomplete upon review, and Jacobs remains scoreless through the air in the NFL.
Austin Ekeler: 2 targets, 1 rec
Ekeler was targeted a season-low two times in just his third game of the year. He led all running backs with 127 targets last year but is averaging just 4.3 targets/game this season. He may still be dealing with a lingering ankle injury, but regardless, he isn’t getting the usage through the air that his fantasy managers are used to.
Comments
No actionable information. Regurgitation from any other feed from days ago. Be different and useful. Are you only going to speak to brand new fantasy players?