The New Orleans Saints will face the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 8. Here’s the latest fantasy football news and advice to help you with your lineups this week and moving forward, especially regarding RB Alvin Kamara.
Is Alvin Kamara Playing in Week 8?
Alvin Kamara (hand/rib) was limited at practice throughout the week. However, the New Orleans Saints removed the veteran running back from their injury report on Friday. Kamara is set to face the Chargers in Week 8.
Kamara told Matthew Paras of The New Orleans Times-Picayune that he’s been playing through a broken hand the last two games. He’s also still dealing with the broken ribs that he suffered in Week 3 against the Philadelphia Eagles.
In four outings since, Kamara racked up 74 touches for 273 yards from scrimmage and two rushing TDs, displaying that he remains productive on a week-to-week basis.
We’ll continue to monitor the Saints’ injury report. You can also visit and bookmark our NFL Injury Tracker and Fantasy News Tracker for the latest updates.
Should You Start or Sit Alvin Kamara in Week 8?
I got some pushback when I said it a few weeks ago when Kamara was still running hot, but the more time passes, the more I like it.
Isn’t Kamara just expensive Rachaad White but without a Bucky Irving behind him?
Kamara doesn’t have a 10+ yard carry (or a top 15 finish at the position) in three straight games. Over his past four, despite having a pair of rushing touchdowns, the majority (56.9%) of his points have come as a receiver because there simply is nowhere to go on the ground (0.98 yards per carry before contact) behind an iffy offensive line.
Does Kamara magically become efficient on the ground if Derek Carr is back in the mix? I’m skeptical; he doesn’t have a 20-yard run this season and picked up just 3.4 ypc in Carr’s most recent three starts.
Kamara is going to return viable fantasy production because of his role in the passing game, but the ceiling isn’t that of a top-10 option without much efficiency on the ground, and this isn’t the matchup for him to turn around his success rate on handoffs.
You’re playing Kamara, but you need to be aware that the 290-yard, five-touchdown version of him that we saw through two weeks is nothing more than a distant memory.
Are you looking for start/sit advice for other players in your lineup? Read our Week 8 Fantasy Start-Sit Advice Cheat Sheet for every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Alvin Kamara’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 8
Kamara is projected to score 14 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 12.5 rushing attempts for 48.5 yards and 0.3 touchdowns. It also includes 3.6 receptions for 27.4 yards and 0.1 touchdowns.
Check out the free PFN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.
Alvin Kamara’s Week 8 Fantasy Ranking
Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 11:45 PM ET on Saturday, January 25.
Conference Championship RB PPR Rankings
1) Saquon Barkley | PHI (vs. WAS)
2) James Cook | BUF (at KC)
3) Brian Robinson Jr. | WAS (at PHI)
4) Isiah Pacheco | KC (vs. BUF)
5) Kareem Hunt | KC (vs. BUF)
6) Austin Ekeler | WAS (at PHI)
7) Ray Davis | BUF (at KC)
8) Ty Johnson | BUF (at KC)
9) Samaje Perine | KC (vs. BUF)
10) Kenneth Gainwell | PHI (vs. WAS)
11) Jeremy McNichols | WAS (at PHI)
12) Will Shipley | PHI (vs. WAS)
13) Carson Steele | KC (vs. BUF)
14) Reggie Gilliam | BUF (at KC)
15) Chris Rodriguez Jr. | WAS (at PHI)
New Orleans Saints at Los Angeles Chargers Insights
New Orleans Saints
Team: The Saints have lost five straight since starting 2-0. They’re the first team since the 2015 Dallas Cowboys to lose at least five in a row after starting 2-0 (that Cowboys team fell to 2-7 after starting QB Tony Romo was injured in Week 2).
Team: The Saints have won the past 11 games played in Week 8, out-scoring opponents 361-227 (+12.2 PPG) during that run.
QB: In the first two weeks of this season, Derek Carr completed 61.5% of his deep passes with a 113.0 passer rating on such passes. His numbers since (45.4 passer rating and 35% complete) look more like Spencer Rattler than an MVP candidate.
Offense: All the passing game injuries have also killed the running game. Since Week 3, the Saints are averaging 3.1 yards per carry on running back carries, second-worst in the NFL. That includes the third-fewest yards before contact per carry (2.2).
Defense: The Saints have allowed 502 rush yards in the last two games, their most in a two-game span since 1980. For the first time since 2012, New Orleans has given up 200+ rush yards in consecutive games; the last team to allow 200+ rush yards in three straight games was the 2019 Jacksonville Jaguars.
Fantasy: Alvin Kamara has not had a 10-plus-yard carry in three straight games, and over his past four, despite having a pair of rushing touchdowns, the majority (56.9%) of his fantasy points have come as a receiver.
Betting: The Saints have seen 13 of their past 14 games played on extended rest go under the projected total (most recently, Week 5 at Chiefs, a 26-13 loss with a 43.5-point closing total).
Los Angeles Chargers
Team: The average NFL game this season has seen 44.8 points scored – not a single Chargers game has reached 40 points yet.
QB: On Monday night, Justin Herbert became the first QB since Ryan Tannehill (Week 2, 2021) to throw for 345 yards without a touchdown or interception.
Offense: JK Dobbins was the story of the first two weeks this season (27 carries for 266 yards, 9.9 yards per carry), but he has failed to average even 4.0 yards per carry in the four games since, checking in under 3.0 in three of those games.
Defense: Los Angeles allows a score on just 25% of drives this season, the lowest rate in the league and 13 percentage points better than the league average.
Fantasy: The Chargers are amongst the most run-centric offenses, and on Monday night, when they took to the air, the early passes weren’t exactly going to the players on fantasy rosters – Will Dissly and Simi Fehoko saw eight of Justin Herbert’s first 10 targets.
Betting: Seven of Justin Herbert’s last eight home starts have finished under the total, including each of the past four.
