The Green Bay Packers will face the Jacksonville Jaguars 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 WR Christian Watson.
Is Christian Watson Playing in Week 8?
Christian Watson suffered a freak ankle injury in Week 4 that caused him to miss Week 5. However, head coach Matt LaFleur said Green Bay “dodged a bullet” with Watson’s injury, which was diagnosed as a medial sprain.
Watson has been limited in every practice since but played in Weeks 6 and 7. He was questionable for Week 6 but was removed from the Packers’ injury report leading into last week’s win over the Texans.
He was once again a limited participant on Wednesday and Thursday of this week. On Friday, the Packers officially removed Watson from their injury report. He’s good to go against the Jaguars.
We’ll continue to monitor the Packers’ 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 Christian Watson in Week 8?
I was optimistic about the short-term outlook for Watson this time last week when we got word that a shoulder injury had Dontayvion Wicks labeled as “week-to-week,” but apparently time works differently in Green Bay.
Not only did Wicks suit up, he was second in targets and receiving yards during the win over Houston, earning three times as many looks as Watson. I don’t think that’s sticky, but that’s the problem in this offense — nothing is sticky.
That’s great for the long-term outlook of the Packers, but it’s prohibitive in our circles, as no one on this explosive offense is a sure thing (WR1 Jayden Reed finished fifth on the team in receiving yards last week). The sheer presence of Wicks makes Watson nothing more than a DFS punt play, and even then, I’m not going to have exposure this weekend.
Jacksonville has allowed 12 receivers to reach double-digit PPR points, but only two of them had an aDOT north of 12 yards. Watson has yet to prove capable of winning with volume, making you reliant on a big play that is less likely to come in this spot than others. I don’t want to say it, but is he any different than Gabe Davis?
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.
Christian Watson’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 8
Watson is projected to score 10.1 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 2.6 receptions for 40.5 yards and 0.5 touchdowns.
Check out the free PFN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.
Christian Watson’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 WR PPR Rankings
1) A.J. Brown | PHI (vs. WAS)
2) Terry McLaurin | WAS (at PHI)
3) DeVonta Smith | PHI (vs. WAS)
4) Khalil Shakir | BUF (at KC)
5) Xavier Worthy | KC (vs. BUF)
6) Hollywood Brown | KC (vs. BUF)
7) DeAndre Hopkins | KC (vs. BUF)
8) Keon Coleman | BUF (at KC)
9) Dyami Brown | WAS (at PHI)
10) Mack Hollins | BUF (at KC)
11) Amari Cooper | BUF (at KC)
12) Curtis Samuel | BUF (at KC)
13) Olamide Zaccheaus | WAS (at PHI)
14) JuJu Smith-Schuster | KC (vs. BUF)
15) Jahan Dotson | PHI (vs. WAS)
16) Jamison Crowder | WAS (at PHI)
17) Luke McCaffrey | WAS (at PHI)
18) Justin Watson | KC (vs. BUF)
19) Johnny Wilson | PHI (vs. WAS)
20) Parris Campbell | PHI (vs. WAS)
21) Nikko Remigio | KC (vs. BUF)
22) Ainias Smith | PHI (vs. WAS)
Green Bay Packers at Jacksonville Jaguars Insights
Green Bay Packers
Team: The Packers have won three straight games and are seeking their first four-game win streak since December 2022.
QB: Jordan Love has thrown multiple TD in eight straight games. That’s the fourth-longest streak by a QB age 25 or younger, behind Patrick Mahomes (14), Brett Favre (12), and Dan Marino (10).
Offense: The Packers are explosive, but since 2022, they have ranked 23rd in red zone offense (54.2% this season, ranking 18th behind the Panthers, Titans, and Jets).
Defense: Green Bay is allowing the fourth-lowest third-down completion percentage (46.7%) and has yet to allow a third-down touchdown pass.
Fantasy: Josh Jacobs caught the first touchdown of his career on Sunday and now has at least four catches or 18 carries in all four games since Jordan Love returned.
Betting: The Packers beat the Rams 24-19 (closing total: 49.5) in Week 5, snapping a streak of six straight overs in Jordan Love road starts.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Team: This team returns from London to begin, without much question, their most difficult four-game straight of the season (vs. Packers, at Eagles, vs. Vikings, and at Lions).
QB: Trevor Lawrence has posted three straight passer ratings north of 90 on the heels of three straight under 90 (Jacksonville is 2-1 after an 0-4 start).
Offense: By EPA per game, this is the worst offense in the league (7.6% worse than the Panthers).
Defense: The Jaguars own the league’s worst red zone defense, allowing a touchdown on 78.3% of such drives.
Fantasy: Tank Bigsby has multiple rushing scores in two of his past three and at least 90 rushing yards in three of four. His role is trending toward that of a bellcow (Travis Etienne – hamstring), but with just one catch against his 67 carries this season is a ceiling capper.
Betting: In their three games before the London trip last season, the Jags were 1-2 ATS (average cover margin: -8.5 points). In their first three games back in the States, they went 3-0 ATS (average cover margin: +10.0 points).
