The Worksheet, a comprehensive fantasy football preview by Rich Hribar, breaks down everything you need to know about the Week 8 matchup between the Falcons and Bucs.
Find a breakdown of every Week 8 NFL game in our Worksheet Hub.
| Atlanta | Rank | @ | Tampa Bay | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| -2.5 | Spread | 2.5 | ||
| 24.25 | Implied Total | 21.75 | ||
| 23.3 | 15 | Points/Gm | 29.9 | 4 |
| 24.1 | 22 | Points All./Gm | 26.0 | 28 |
| 62.1 | 16 | Plays/Gm | 62.7 | 15 |
| 63.6 | 24 | Opp. Plays/Gm | 65.7 | 29 |
| 6 | 7 | Off. Yards/Play | 6.1 | 5 |
| 5.3 | 14 | Def. Yards/Play | 5.9 | 28 |
| 40.92% | 24 | Rush% | 42.14% | 20 |
| 59.08% | 9 | Pass% | 57.86% | 13 |
| 49.44% | 25 | Opp. Rush % | 37.83% | 4 |
| 50.56% | 8 | Opp. Pass % | 62.17% | 29 |
- Atlanta has led for 20.8% of their offensive snaps, the lowest rate for a team with a winning record.
- Atlanta has gone three-and-out on only 9.9% of their drives, the lowest rate in the league.
- Tampa Bay is fourth at 14.3%.
- Atlanta has allowed 4.9 scoring plays per game, tied for 29th in the league.
- The Falcons are 31st in success rate defending passing plays (51.6%).
- Atlanta has allowed 2.42 points per drive on defense, 27th in the league.
- 41.5% of the drives against Tampa Bay reach the red zone or score prior, ahead of only the Panthers (46.8%) and Cardinals (50.9%).
- 23.9% of Tampa Bay's plays have gained 10 or more yards, second in the NFL.
- 22.8% of Atlanta's plays have gained 10 or more yards, 5th in the league.
Trust = spike production for that player
Quarterback
Baker Mayfield: Mayfield ended Monday night throwing for 370 yards and 3 touchdowns, but it cost everything.
Tampa Bay will be without Chris Godwin for the rest of the season and without Mike Evans for multiple weeks.
To this point, Mayfield has been a top-seven scorer in every game but one, but now he is going to be without his star receivers.
We have seen what the loss of Nico Collins did to C.J. Stroud over the past two weeks, and he still has Tank Dell and Stefon Diggs.
Patrick Mahomes without Rashee Rice.
Matthew Stafford without Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua.
Mayfield has only had 41 dropbacks since the start of last season with both Godwin and Evans off the field at the same time.
He was 21-of-38 (55.3%) on those plays for 4.3 yards per pass attempt.
We must approach Mayfield as a QB2 with trepidation and see if Liam Coen and this group of remaining skill players can contribute enough to keep Mayfield’s floor usable.
Kirk Cousins: Since these teams last met two weeks ago, Cousins has been QB20 (12.5 points) and QB24 (7.2 points).
He has only two weeks higher than QB20 on the season.
Mobility has been a huge factor, as Cousins has struggled when pressured.
When kept clean, Cousins is 11th in rating (106.9), completing 70.9% of his passes with 8 touchdowns and 1 interception.
When pressured, Cousins is 24th in rating (57.2), completing 58.4% of his passes with 2 touchdowns and 6 interceptions.
When Tampa Bay did not pressure Cousins in the first matchup, Cousins was 32-of-43 for 368 yards and 3 touchdowns.
Of course, Cousins threw for a franchise-record 509 yards and 4 touchdowns when these teams played in Week 5.
I doubt we will encounter that type of game environment again, given all of the losses on the Tampa Bay side and Atlanta's favored status in this game.
Cousins had 58 pass attempts in that one and has 65 attempts since.
That said, this is a favorable matchup for Cousins as a QB2 if Tampa Bay does not completely no-show.
The Buccaneers are 29th in passing points allowed (15.7 per game).
They have allowed a QB1 scorer in four of their past five games with the exception of Spencer Rattler.
Running Back
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More Week 8 Fantasy Breakdowns From The Worksheet:
| Matchup | Time |
|---|---|
| Vikings @ Rams -- FREE | Thursday Night Football |
| Eagles @ Bengals | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Ravens @ Browns | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Titans @ Lions | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Cardinals @ Dolphins | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Jets @ Patriots | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Falcons @ Bucs | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Packers @ Jaguars | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Colts @ Texans | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Saints @ Chargers | Sunday -- 4:05 p.m. ET |
| Bills @ Seahawks | Sunday -- 4:05 p.m. ET |
| Panthers @ Broncos | Sunday -- 4:25 p.m. ET |
| Chiefs @ Raiders | Sunday -- 4:25 p.m. ET |
| Bears @ Commanders | Sunday -- 4:25 p.m. ET |
| Cowboys @ 49ers | Sunday Night Football |
| Giants @ Steelers -- FREE | Monday Night Football |
