The Worksheet, a fantasy football overview by Rich Hribar, breaking down everything you need to know for the Week 8 Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles Sunday Night Football game.
| Dallas | Rank | @ | Philadelphia | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 | Spread | -3.5 | ||
| 20 | Implied Total | 23.5 | ||
| 25.1 | 19 | Points/Gm | 23.3 | 23 |
| 34.7 | 32 | Points All./Gm | 28 | 22 |
| 73 | 1 | Plays/Gm | 67.7 | 7 |
| 67.9 | 28 | Opp. Plays/Gm | 66.6 | 25 |
| 35.0% | 30 | Rush% | 35.2% | 29 |
| 65.0% | 3 | Pass% | 64.8% | 4 |
| 50.7% | 32 | Opp. Rush % | 43.8% | 23 |
| 49.3% | 1 | Opp. Pass % | 56.2% | 10 |
- The Cowboys are the last remaining team that has not yet covered the point spread (0-7).
- Philadelphia is 0-4 ATS the spread as a favorite this season.
- Dallas has turned the ball over on 20.5% of their possessions, ahead of only New England (25.0%).
- The Cowboys have forced a turnover on just 4.1% of their opponent's drives, the lowest rate in the league.
- The Cowboys are last in the league in rushing yardage gained on explosive runs (10 or more yards) at 207 and percentage of rushing yardage gained on those runs (29.3%).
- Dallas is allowing 4.9 carries of 10 or more yards per game defensively, the most in the league.
- The Eagles are averaging a league-worst 3.4 yards per play on first down rushing attempts.
- Dallas is allowing 5.4 yards per first down rushing play, 30th in the league.
- The Cowboys have allowed a league-high nine offensive touchdowns from outside of the red zone.
Trust = spike production for that player
Bust = down-week production for that player’s standards
Quarterback
Carson Wentz (TRUST): It has not always been pretty, but Wentz keeps getting there for fantasy. He has scored 20 or more points in four of his past five games with at least 17 points in all five. Coming off season-highs in yards per attempt (8.3 Y/A) and passing yards (359), Wentz draws a Dallas defense that is 29th in passing points allowed per attempt (.58). We have also backdoored a Konami Wentz season due to all of the Philadelphia injuries, with only Kyler Murray, Cam Newton, and Lamar Jackson averaging more rushing points per game than Wentz (6.9).
Ben DiNucci: The seventh-round pick from James Madison is getting the nod on Sunday night with Andy Dalton in concussion protocol. The former Pitt transfer came in for three drives to close Week 7, completing 2-of-3 passes for 32 yards and taking three sacks behind the patchwork Dallas offensive line. The Eagles are 10th in the league in pressure rate (24.1%) and third in the league in sacks (24) while they are just 27th in blitz rate (21.9%), so they are getting home with their front and can challenge Dallas, who at least may be getting Zack Martin back to the lineup this week. The Eagles are no defense to run and hide from, ranking 13th in yards per pass attempt (7.2 Y/A) and 18th in passing points allowed per game (16.3), but DiNucci is only an option for 2QB formats and single-game DFS.
Running Back
Ezekiel Elliott: Elliott has been the RB18 (12.0 points) and RB39 (6.1 points) in the two games post-Prescott portion of 2020. After 20 touches in each of the first five games this season, Elliott accrued just 13 touches last week for 51 yards. Elliott has now rushed for 54 yards or fewer in four of the past five games.
Catching just 1-of-2 targets for six yards, Elliott has run a pass route on 50.9% and 53.1% of the Dallas dropbacks the past two games after 67.5% through five games. In the two games that Dallas has had fewer than 45 dropbacks, Elliott has received lines of 1-14 and 1-6. He will need that receiving work this week as the Eagles are allowing 3.4 yards per carry to opposing backs (third) while also allowing just 7.3 receiving points per game to backfields (sixth).
Elliott should improve on his 13 touches from a week ago, but entering Sunday night with Dallas on their third quarterback, subpar offensive line play, tough rushing matchup, and as a road underdog, the deck is certainly stacked against anticipating a ceiling rebound for Elliott here. He is a RB1 by default, but not a top-five option.
Boston Scott (TRUST): Scott played 56 snaps (69.1%) in Week 7 filling in for Miles Sanders while Corey Clement played just 18 snaps and Jason Huntley just eight. Scott ran 25 pass routes (52.1% of dropbacks), turning 15 touches into 92 yards and a receiving score. Dallas is a run defense we have circled every week. They are allowing 21.4 rushing points per game (31st) and 5.0 yards per carry (29th) to opposing backs. Over the past two weeks, Dallas has allowed season-high rushing performances to Antonio Gibson and Kenyan Drake while they have allowed a top-15 scoring running back in five of seven games.
Wide Receiver
Travis Fulgham: Over the past four weeks, Fulgham is tied for fifth in targets (36) among all wideouts and fifth in air yards (432), catching 23 passes for 347 yards and three touchdowns. Even with the potential return of Jalen Reagor this week, Fulgham is locked into the X position for the Eagles at this juncture. Dallas is 28th in points allowed to opposing WR1 options (18.8 points) allowing lead wideouts to average 4.9 receptions for 87.4 yards per game with four touchdowns. It is another week to keep riding Fulgham as a WR2.
Jalen Reagor: Reagor had the cast removed from his hand after suffering a broken thumb and has a shot to play this week. With DeSean Jackson going down again last week, Reagor will slide into his position when active. Prior to injury, Reagor had posted games of 1-55-0 (four targets) and 4-41-0 (four targets) on a robust 18.8 yard average depth of target. Dallas has allowed 22 completions of 20-plus yards (25th) and league-high seven touchdown passes on throws over 15 yards downfield. Reagor is a matchup-based, upside FLEX in seasonal leagues and an intriguing single-game DFS option.
Greg Ward: Ward has 42 receiving yards or fewer in every game but one and his only scoring weeks inside of the top-50 scorers at his position have come in games in which he has found the end zone. You can always chase a score versus a Dallas defense that is tied for the most touchdowns allowed to opposing wideouts (12), but Ward is a touchdown-dependent FLEX.
Amari Cooper: Cooper has been a safe floor fantasy option over the volatile WR2 label he has carried over his career. Cooper has double-digit points in every game but one but also just two WR1 scoring weeks. DiNucci only attempted three passes last week, but two went in Cooper’s direction, including a 32-yard gain. This is no easy spot for Cooper, though.
The Eagles are allowing a league-low 8.7 points per game to opposing WR1 options as Darius Slay has allowed fewer than 50 yards in his coverage in every game but one. Cooper was not 100%, but the last time he squared off with Slay, he caught just 3-of-6 targets for 38 yards in his coverage. Cooper has 16 more targets than the next closest Cowboy and DiNucci may not care who is on him, but Cooper has the feel of a floor-based WR3/WR4 option more than a ceiling option.
CeeDee Lamb: Lamb was blanked last week on five targets as we are forced to question the stability of all of our Dallas fantasy options moving forward. Especially in games where we do not get 50-plus dropbacks to divvy out targets. That was always going to a question with Lamb, who has been elevated by the team volume. Lamb is 12th among all wideouts in targets (56), but his 18.5% team target share is 34th at the position.
That said, last week was the first game in which Lamb did not have five receptions and there is no guarantee Mike McCarthy reins anything in, even with DiNucci. Lamb has newfound volatility given the offensive climate and unknown quarterback play element, leaving him as a WR3 option.
Michael Gallup: With Gallup, we know what we have regardless of quarterback play or matchups. He is the fourth option in the passing game that has had a 13.0% target share in just one game all season. Gallup has three or fewer receptions in five of seven games. Unless Gallup connects on a long ball, he is a WR5 fantasy option while The Eagles are allowing just 2.6 completions per game of 20-plus yards, second to only the Ravens (2.5).
Tight End
Dalton Schultz: Schultz has just seven catches for 63 yards the past three games on 12 total targets (11.0%). The Eagles have allowed 6.1 receptions per game to opposing tight ends (29th) and six touchdowns to the position, but only George Kittle has cleared 54 yards in a game against them. Schultz has more single-game DFS appeal than streaming seasonal appeal at this stage.
Dallas Goedert: Goedert is expected to be activated for Sunday Night after missing the past four weeks with a foot injury. In two games with Zach Ertz either out or leaving early a year ago, Goedert posted lines of 9-91-1 (12 targets) and 4-65-0 (10 targets). Goedert may not be at full snaps, but walks right back into being a top-10 tight end option. Philadelphia has targeted their tight ends 31% of the time, fifth in the league. Dallas has allowed the TE13 or higher in five of their seven games this season, with the exceptions being Arizona and the Rams back in Week 1.
More Week 8 Fantasy breakdowns from The Worksheet:
ATL at CAR | TEN at CIN | NYJ at KC | PIT at BAL | LAR at MIA | MIN at GB | NE at BUF | LVR at CLE | IND at DET | LAC at DEN | NO at CHI | SF at SEA | DAL at PHI | TB at NYG