The Worksheet, a comprehensive fantasy football preview by Rich Hribar, breaks down everything you need to know about the Week 8 matchup between the Chargers and Saints.
Find a breakdown of every Week 8 NFL game in our Worksheet Hub.
| New Orleans | Rank | @ | LA Chargers | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7.5 | Spread | -7.5 | ||
| 16.25 | Implied Total | 23.75 | ||
| 25.3 | 11 | Points/Gm | 17.7 | 26 |
| 25.7 | 26 | Points All./Gm | 13.8 | 1 |
| 60.9 | 21 | Plays/Gm | 59.3 | 24 |
| 64.6 | 28 | Opp. Plays/Gm | 56.0 | 2 |
| 5.1 | 19 | Off. Yards/Play | 5.1 | 21 |
| 6.1 | 32 | Def. Yards/Play | 5.3 | 13 |
| 45.77% | 15 | Rush% | 49.16% | 7 |
| 54.23% | 18 | Pass% | 50.84% | 26 |
| 42.04% | 12 | Opp. Rush % | 42.86% | 16 |
| 57.96% | 21 | Opp. Pass % | 57.14% | 17 |
- New Orleans has 18 fewer plays of 20 or more yards than their opponents, the worst differential in the league.
- The Saints average 2.1 plays of 20 or more yards per game, the fewest in the NFL.
- New Orleans has converted 13.5% (5-of-37) of their third and long situations (needing 7 or more yards), 31st in the NFL.
- The Saints have a 52.1% success rate defending rushing plays, 31st in the league.
- The Chargers have a 52.0% dropback rate, 29th in the league.
- The Chargers are averaging 4.8 yards per play on early downs, 29th in the league.
- 58.4% of the Chargers' set of downs reach third down, the highest rate in the league.
- The Chargers are converting 42.5% of those third downs, 7th in the league.
Trust = spike production for that player
Quarterback
Justin Herbert: The Chargers have been forced to open things up the past two weeks with Herbert throwing 34 and 39 passes.
He is coming off a season-high 349 passing yards and 8.9 yards per pass attempt.
The downer is that he failed to throw a touchdown pass, which kept him at QB16 (14.8 points) last week.
Herbert has yet to have a QB1 scoring week, so he is still stuck as a QB2 for fantasy purposes.
That said, the Chargers had a season-high 67.2% dropback rate last week, which is encouraging. Their previous high was only 55.6%, so that was a significant change.
The run game has struggled, but that may not happen here.
The Saints are coming off a terrible run where they played three games in 11 days.
They have had a longer window to rest but also lost another starter on defense in Paulson Adebo.
Over their past three games, the Saints have allowed a 67.3% completion rate (25th) and 8.1 yards per pass attempt (27th) but still have only allowed 4 touchdown passes.
Saints QB: Derek Carr is expected to throw this week in an attempt to return this week or next.
Dennis Allen has stated that Spencer Rattler will start again if Carr cannot play this week,
Regardless of which quarterback we get, we are looking at a QB2.
Carr would appeal more as a floor-based option, while Rattler is only an option if necessary.
The Chargers are fourth in passing points allowed (9.9 per game) and are sixth in passing points allowed per attempt (0.333).
If we have another week of Rattler, he offers some ability with his legs.
He has rushed for 34 and 27 yards in the past two weeks while Bo Nix (61 yards) and Kyler Murray (64 yards) have produced through their legs against the Chargers the past two weeks.
Running Back
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More Week 8 Fantasy Breakdowns From The Worksheet:
| Matchup | Time |
|---|---|
| Vikings @ Rams -- FREE | Thursday Night Football |
| Eagles @ Bengals | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Ravens @ Browns | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Titans @ Lions | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Cardinals @ Dolphins | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Jets @ Patriots | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Falcons @ Bucs | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Packers @ Jaguars | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Colts @ Texans | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Saints @ Chargers | Sunday -- 4:05 p.m. ET |
| Bills @ Seahawks | Sunday -- 4:05 p.m. ET |
| Panthers @ Broncos | Sunday -- 4:25 p.m. ET |
| Chiefs @ Raiders | Sunday -- 4:25 p.m. ET |
| Bears @ Commanders | Sunday -- 4:25 p.m. ET |
| Cowboys @ 49ers | Sunday Night Football |
| Giants @ Steelers -- FREE | Monday Night Football |
