The Worksheet, a comprehensive fantasy football preview by Rich Hribar, breaks down everything you need to know about the Week 8 matchup between the Falcons and Dolphins.
Find a breakdown of every Week 8 NFL game in our Worksheet Hub.
| Miami | Rank | @ | Atlanta | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7.5 | Spread | -7.5 | ||
| 18.5 | Implied Total | 26.0 | ||
| 20.0 | 25 | Points/Gm | 18.3 | 28 |
| 29.3 | 29 | Points All./Gm | 20.0 | 8 |
| 54.1 | 32 | Plays/Gm | 65.0 | 8 |
| 60.1 | 13 | Opp. Plays/Gm | 54.7 | 2 |
| 5.2 | 20 | Off. Yards/Play | 5.6 | 13 |
| 6 | 29 | Def. Yards/Play | 4.9 | 7 |
| 36.94% | 29 | Rush% | 45.90% | 11 |
| 63.06% | 4 | Pass% | 54.10% | 22 |
| 50.83% | 32 | Opp. Rush % | 47.87% | 27 |
| 49.17% | 1 | Opp. Pass % | 52.13% | 6 |
- Miami's -28.8 offensive EPA on Sunday was the second-worst mark for a team this season (the Bengals were -33.3 EPA on offense against the Vikings in Week 3) and the worst in a game under Mike McDaniel.
- The Falcons have scored 6 points off takeaways this season, 30th in the league.
- Opponents have scored 54 points off turnovers against Miami, the most in the league.
- Miami has allowed the most plays of 15-plus yards in the league (56).
- Atlanta games are averaging 38.3 combined points per game, 30th in the league.
- The Falcons have converted 44.4% (8 of 18) of red zone trips into touchdowns, which is 30th in the league.
- Miami has allowed opponents to score on a league-high 56.1% of their possessions.
- 24.1% of the drives against Atlanta have reached the red zone or scored prior, second best in the league.
- 54.6% of the drives against Miami have reached the red zone or scored prior, the highest rate in the league.
Trust = spike production for that player
Quarterback
Tua Tagovailoa: Tagovailoa set season lows in completion rate (52.2%), completed passes (12), and passing yardage (100) on Sunday to go along with 0 touchdown passes and 3 interceptions.
In what is shaping up to be a lost season, Tagovailoa is averaging 6.4 yards per pass attempt (24th) with a 4.9% interception rate (32nd).
Only Geno Smith (5%) and Jake Browning (6.5%) have a higher interception rate.
Tua has thrown for 205 yards or less in five of his seven starts.
That makes Tua challenging to trust as more than a back-end QB2 here as a huge underdog attached to a low team total.
Atlanta is allowing 9.2 passing points per game (second), 5.9 yards per pass attempt (2nd), and a 58.9% completion percentage (3rd).
The Falcons have allowed a league-low 155.7 passing yards per game with 180 yards passing or fewer in all six games.
They have had a lighter runout of opponents that includes Bryce Young, J.J. McCarthy, Marcus Mariota, and Mac Jones, but they have also faced Baker Mayfield and Josh Allen.
Kirk Cousins: Cousins is expected to start this Sunday as Michael Penix is dealing with a bone bruise on his knee.
Before the change at quarterback last season, Cousins was averaging 7.4 air yards per attempt (20th), throwing 35.1% of his passes 10 or more yards downfield (11th) and 9.7% of those attempts 20 or more yards downfield (24th).
Cousins threw 1 touchdown pass over his final five starts last season compared to 9 interceptions.
He also could not move.
He was dead last in using play-action passing (14.5%).
90.5% of his passing snaps came from shotgun (7th), and a league-high 95.8% came from the pocket.
He has limited mobility, but should be able to navigate the pocket better and push off his throwing foot a full year-plus past his Achilles injury.
He also gets a Miami pass defense that is 26th in passing points allowed per attempt (0.532).
Atlanta's ability to run the ball well, while Miami is lousy at stopping the run, could limit Cousins from a high-end ceiling, but he is a matchup-based QB2 and is a viable starter here in these game conditions.
Even though Miami is at the bottom end of passing points allowed when opponents throw, they face only 27.6 passes per game, the fifth fewest.
Atlanta has a 47.3% dropback rate playing with the lead, 26th in the league.
Running Back
To continue reading this article
and gain access to The Worksheet as well as all of Rich's regular fantasy content, click below to learn more about our Fantasy Package.
Learn More
More Week 8 Fantasy Breakdowns From The Worksheet:
| Matchup | Time |
|---|---|
| Vikings @ Chargers | Thursday Night Football |
| Dolphins @ Falcons | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Jets @ Bengals | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Browns @ Patriots | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Giants @ Eagles | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Bills @ Panthers | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Bears @ Ravens | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| 49ers @ Texans | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Bucs @ Saints | Sunday -- 4:05 p.m. ET |
| Cowboys @ Broncos | Sunday -- 4:25 p.m. ET |
| Titans @ Colts | Sunday -- 4:25 p.m. ET |
| Packers @ Steelers | Sunday Night Football |
| Commanders @ Chiefs | Monday Night Football |
