Welcome to NFL Week 8 Hot Takes! This week, we have a ton of teams on bye, six to be exact. So there will be a lot of fantasy players on our benches and most likely some low-scoring matchups in leagues this week. Let’s see who will be our heroes in week eight of the 2025 NFL Season, coming up next.
Hot Take #1
Ravens Bury the Bears
The Baltimore Ravens are currently in a year from hell. This is certainly not the start that they hoped they would have. The Ravens currently have the worst ‘vibes’ in the NFL with their 1-5 start. The Chicago Bears are riding high with a 4-2 start and currently have some of the better ‘vibes’ of the season so far. Ben Johnson has looked as advertised after the scary 0-2 start to the year.
The Ravens are coming out of the bye, which should have been a time for them to be able to start anew. Not only that, but their MVP quarterback, Lamar Jackson, should play this week. He has missed the last 2.5 games with a hamstring injury. The Ravens are certainly better than their record indicates. Their early-season schedule has losses to the Bills, Lions, and Chiefs. Some of those games were close and could have gone the other way. The last two games, they lost without a doubt because of Cooper Rush being the QB.
Lamar is back; that is all that they need to become a contender again. They should and will make an effort to; their organization has too much pride to lay down. As for the Bears, their four game winning streak will come to an end. The Bears are definitely much better than a year ago and well-coached. They are not a wagon of a squad, but certainly good enough to back the 4-2 record. This game comes off as a change in each team’s mojo. It is the NFL, and the motto, “any given Sunday,” rings true every single week. This will be one of those examples. Regression to the mean, as they call it.
Hot Take #2
TNF Chargers & Vikings: Game of the Year
This Thursday Night Football Matchup strikes me as the Los Angeles Chargers and Minnesota Vikings square off. I feel like this could be one of those all-time fantasy matchups we think about for the next couple of years. Whether it is the uniforms or fantasy performers all over the place like Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and Ladd McConkey, it is shaping up to be a good one.
Jordan Addison has been tremendous since his return in week 4 in London against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Averaging over 8 opportunities per game and shaping up to be Carson Wentz’s favorite target. Wentz is questionable for Thursday, but should be good to go. Now, Addison has looked like a one, but we cannot forget about Justin Jefferson, the consensus best WR in the league over the last 3 years.
Jefferson has had a slower start to the year than everyone would have liked, but he always puts up consistent numbers. He has only had one touchdown, unfortunately for his fantasy owners, but that will come with time. The Vikings are primed to have a passing game Sunday that will help carve through the inconsistent Chargers defense, which gave up almost 40 points to the Indianapolis Colts.
The Vikings’ running game has been solid too, with Jordan Mason being the lead back since veteran Aaron Jones landed himself on IR after a week two matchup against the Atlanta Falcons. Mason will be primed to get 13-17 touches, as he has all year.
The Los Angeles Chargers have been on an aerial blitzkreig since both of their starting running backs (Najee Harris and Omarion Hampton) ended up on IR. Justin Herbert threw for 420 yards in his comeback attempt last Sunday against the Colts. The Wide Receivers are also benefiting from the increase in passing. Their Targets have increased dramatically in the past two games: McConkey (24), Quentin Johnston (6) (One Game), and Keenean Allen (21). This has been a dramatic turn of events from the beginning of the year, where it felt like the Chargers were not going to throw the ball to their extremely talented wide receivers.
Now I know that Brian Flores is an extremely good defensive coordinator, but I worry about his ability to cover the passing game. The Philadelphia Eagles exposed that cornerback group last week, and it does not get any easier this week with the Chargers’ wide receivers being one of the best rooms in the league as well.
Hot Take #3
Browns Win Two Straight
The Cleveland Browns take on the red-hot New England Patriots this week, and it is actually one of the most exciting matchups of the week, in my opinion. I am very interested to see what Patriots QB Drake Maye will do against this Cleveland Browns defense. This defense is legitimate. They’re coming off a three-interception performance by Tua Tagovailoa. Drake Maye could be in for a rough outing if they get out to a slow start. The issue with the Browns is their offense. They cannot rely on star rookie Quinshon Judkins to get them 3 touchdowns every single week. It is just not a reliable strategy.
QB Dillon Gabriel has looked okay for only having a few starts under their belt, but the second straight win for the Cleveland Browns once again falls on the defense to hold them. That is the formula. If they can hold Drake Maye down, then get Judkins rolling, they are in for a W. I think that Maye and the Patriots will be baffled by this championship-caliber Cleveland D and have a short detour on their way to a playoff spot this season.
