Two of the best teams in the NFL face off this week on Thursday Night Football. The Packers will be without their star wideout Davante Adams, and also Allen Lazard. The Cardinals have had arguably the best offense in the NFL this season. Let’s get into which players you should start for fantasy football, and which ones you should avoid on Thursday night.
Starts
Robert Tonyan
Both Davante Adams and Allen Lazard are ruled out due to COVID, and Marquez Valdes-Scantling hasn’t been designated to return from IR just yet. Aaron Rodgers has to throw the ball to someone and the one guy guaranteed to play is Robert Tonyan. Not your super efficient tight end from last year, but if needed he can still pack a punch. He can be viewed as a Low-end TE1 with upside this week.
A.J. Green
DeAndre Hopkins is expected to play even though he is dealing with a hamstring injury; AJ Green has really stepped into the WR2 role for this team. This leads me to believe that with Hopkins potentially being limited, Green could see a nice target share. He’s averaging five targets a game and has three scores on the year. My prediction is for him to score again with 4-5 receptions. Green is a low-end WR2 in Week 8.
James Conner
The Cardinals are firing on all cylinders, and this includes the running game. The Green Bay Packers are currently ranked 24th against the run, allowing almost five yards per carry. Scoring six times in his last five games, James Conner has been running the ball well and getting the goal line work necessary to be a relevant RB2 in fantasy football. Start Conner with confidence.
Sit
Chase Edmonds
Chase Edmonds has been a backend RB2 for most of the year, but the truth is his receiving work has dwindled over the last few weeks. He averaged 35 receiving yards the first four weeks of the season; Now he is averaging only 10 receiving yards over the last three games.
Edmonds has yet to find the endzone this season. In his first four games, Edmonds averaged nearly 15 points per game as the RB12 in fantasy football. Since then, he’s put up less than 7.5 points per week. He’s ranked as the RB40 over that span. He is not being utilized as much, and it could be a rough week if you need to start him. Edmonds is no more than a flex play this week.
Aaron Rodgers
You may not like this pick, but hear me out. The Cardinals are the third best defense against the pass, only allowing 201 yards per game. Aaron Rodgers is missing his top two receivers and is relying on bench players and practice squad guys outside of Randall Cobb. I would pivot off Aaron Rodgers if other options are available. I have him listed as a low-end QB1 this week, with a low ceiling. Go take a look at Mikey’s weekly waivers for some QB streamers.
