With the Byepocalypse behind us and buried six feet under, the 2025 fantasy season lurches ever closer to its frightful finale. The tension is rising like a zombie from the grave in the Dynasty Nerds App League, and the true contenders are (wooden) staking their claims. Others are less fortunate, coming face-to-face with the Grimm truth of missing the playoffs… or worse! The looming spectre of the Nerd Herd vote could boo-t them from the league for good.*
Like siblings fighting over the last chocolate bar, chaos continues to reign in the NFL. Unexpected heroes rise, star players dim, and every weekend seems to bring another shocking twist to the landscape of football, both in real life and fantasy. Let’s slowly creep into the Week 9 storylines…
Oh, and Happy Halloween!
*Editor’s Note: It’s pain—real, not wooden—staking to leave these jokes untouched.
NFL Week 8 Recap | Headlines
Daniel Jones and the Indianapolis Colts moved to a league-best 7-1 by rolling over the Tennessee Titans. Jonathan Taylor continued his MVP candidacy with 3 total touchdowns, including an 80-yard run.
The Houston Texans snapped a skid with a win at home over the San Francisco 49ers. C.J. Stroud threw for a season-high 318 passing yards and two TDs in a game where Nico Collins did not play due to injury. In his place, rookies Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel earned 14 targets, showing what the Texans passing offense may look like sooner than later.
(Click here) See all the Week 8 Highlights
The Dallas Cowboys’ defense was just what the doctor ordered in curing the woes of the Denver Broncos offense. Denver dominated Dallas 44 – 24 with 4 passing touchdowns from Bo Nix. RJ Harvey scored twice on the ground and once through the air.
Speaking of offenses, the Dolphins and Jets both earned surprising wins, scoring 34 and 39 points at the expense of the Falcons and Bengals. Jaylen Waddle continued his re-awakening post-Tyreek with 5 receptions, 99 yards, and a touchdown, while Breece Hall also awoke from his scoring slumber. Hall rushed for 133 yards and scored 2 touchdowns.
On Sunday Night Football, Jordan Love and his Green Bay Packers took it to Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers, winning 35 – 25, dashing Rodgers’ hopes for revenge. Love outdueled Rodgers on the night, throwing for 360 yards and 3 touchdowns.
To wrap up the week, Kansas City crushed an undermanned Washington squad 28 – 7. Patrick Mahomes continued his outstanding season, throwing for 3 touchdowns and just shy of 300 yards. Rashee Rice appears to be fully back, going for 9 catches, 93 yards, and a touchdown in the rout.
Big Performances
- In a season where Jonathan Taylor is running away with running back accolades, let’s not overlook the season James Cook is having. Just a few months ago, dynasty managers were hesitant to commit to Cook given his contract holdout. Fast forward to the end of October, and Cook is second in the NFL behind Taylor with 753 yards rushing and 7 touchdowns. He is the RB5 by average in PPR leagues through 8 games.
- Drake Maye, have yourself a day. He threw another 3 touchdowns in a dominant win over the Cleveland Browns. Maye has thrown 15 touchdowns to just 3 interceptions this season, and he is the QB5 by average. Let’s list the only four quarterbacks ahead of him, shall we? Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen, and Jalen Hurts. Quite the company!
- Troy Franklin was mint on Sunday, lighting up the Cowboys’ porous secondary with 6 receptions for 89 yards and 2 touchdowns. Franklin may not be the most consistent receiver from week to week, but when he hits, he hits big. If the Broncos’ offense can find its stride, Franklin may become a more dependable fantasy option down the stretch.
- And of course, we can’t forget to celebrate National Tight End Day by giving some love to Tucker Kraft. Kraft was like an open bottle of Heinz ketchup in the hands of a toddler, making a mess of the Steeler defense. Kraft had 7 receptions for 143 yards and 2 touchdowns, vaulting him to TE1 overall. Not mentioned here: former TE1 Jake Ferguson, who left the holiday party early and alone, having scored nothing at all.
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Notable Injuries & Status Watch
- Lamar Jackson is back! Or, he practiced in full but didn’t play in the game? I don’t know. It’s all very confusing. We need Allen Iverson to comment on this one.
- A.J. Brown missed the Eagles’ clash with the Giants, and there are rumors swirling of a possible trade. On the other side of the ball, pour one out for Cam Skattebo who will miss the rest of the season with a dislocated ankle. Do yourself a favor and don’t watch the replay.
- As with Skattebo, other notable running backs are starting to feel the wear and tear of the season. After a breakout game, Saquon Barkley left with a groin injury, while Quinshon Judkins was ruled out with a shoulder injury.
- Did you draft Tyler Shough in your rookie drafts in hopes that he’d get some run this season? You’re in luck! Spencer Rattler was benched in favor of Shough this week, although the results were less than inspiring. The Saints are one of the many teams watching college football closely these next few months to see who may be available to them in the upcoming NFL Draft.
3 Up & 3 Down: Which Dynasty Assets Are Producing And Who Is Letting You Down?
Rising:
- Jonathan Taylor – With three-TD games becoming routine, his dynasty stock is clearly climbing. This year’s MVP?
- C.J. Stroud – After another standout game, is Stroud’s value bouncing back? Since Week 4, he’s QB9, averaging over 20 points per game.
- Oronde Gadsden – The rookie followed up his 7-164-1 line against the Colts last week with another 5 catches for 77 yards and a touchdown this week against the Vikings. Rookie tight ends ruled the week. Gadsden, Harold Fannin Jr., Mason Taylor, and Gunnar Helm all finished in the top twelve. Happy National Tight End Day, rooks!
Falling:
- A.J. Brown – First the dud performances, then the drama, and now the hamstring issue? Red flags all around The Linc.
- Chuba Hubbard – Remember when Chuba Hubbard was being drafted in the sixth round of startup drafts? That was fun. Hubbard hasn’t had more than 10 PPR points in a game since Week 2. His inefficient day (34 yards on 12 attempts) was saved by a touchdown this week, but it’s clear he’s taking the backseat to Rico Dowdle.
- Alvin Kamara and Mike Evans—respect to both fantasy legends—but it looks like their time in the sun has come to an end. Thanks for the many dynasty championships, gentlemen.
DNA League Trivia | Before being drafted to the New York Jets, Nick Mangold snapped to which future Heisman Trophy winning QB while playing at Ohio State?
Standings | Nerds App League Snapshot
Current Standings:
Playoff Line
Dynasty Rankings (from Nerds App):
Not pictured – 11. John Hammersmith 12. Doc Mitchell
Contender Rankings (from Nerds App):
Not picture – 11. Taylor Christianson 12. John Hammersmith
Week 8 Highlights
- The King Takes His Throne | After a convincing win over Nick Piovano, Rich Dotson finds himself all alone atop the standings. At 13-3, things may look good at first glance, but with injuries to Saquon Barkley, Quinshon Judkins, and Drake London, Rich’s seat at the top may be a bit warm.
- The Tanking Trio Taylor Christianson, Matt Cooper, and John Hammersmith seem to be in the driver’s seat for the bottom three positions. Each lost this week in convincing fashion. Who among them is the most confident to not be voted out of the DNA League?
- A Fall From Glory | Garret Price’s team laid an egg this week, and to add injury to insult, he lost Cam Skattebo. Without his roster’s heart and soul, can Garret maintain his once-hot start?
Matchup of the Week | Mychal Warno vs Jared Wackerly
Final Score: 172.42 to 171.03
Jared Wackerly’s team is the Little Dynasty Engine That Could. It just finds a way to win week after week. With big performances from New York Jets running back Isaiah Davis and the Titans’ Chimere Dike, Jared eeked out a victory over Mychal. Both teams find themselves at 8 and 8, right in the middle of the pack as the fifth and sixth seeds.
Mychal can take solace in knowing there’s nothing he could have done better, having set a perfect lineup this week. Unfortunately, we don’t give fantasy points for lineup efficiency. A few weeks ago, I was writing about Jared’s team being in the bottom three. Can he keep it up while starting unheralded and unproven players?
Weekly Awards | Nerds App League Honors
MVP of the Week
Keith Ensminger. That’s right, me! What good is being the commissioner and the author of this week’s recap article if you can’t take a moment to brag a bit? I was the top scorer for the week and had the biggest blowout. The injuries and bye weeks are taking their toll on everyone’s lineup, but despite losing both Jayden Daniels and Bryce Young, I have the roster depth at quarterback to still start two, Bo Nix and Cam Ward. My recent trade where I flipped Brian Thomas, Jr. into Jordan Addison and Jaylen Waddle has also paid dividends in a stretch where every starter matters.
Overachiever
Let’s hear it for Peter Monahan, who took down Garret Price this week. Sure, Peter’s lineup flopped, including a goose egg from Quentin Johnston and less than five points from Bijan Robinson. On the bright side, Garret’s lineup flopped even worse! Sometimes in this game, it’s better to be lucky than good.
Underachiever
Jake Ferguson.
Really, man? Zero points in a game with almost 800 yards of offense and almost 70 combined points? On National Tight End Day? You were this year’s chosen one! Apologies to all those who started Ferguson and lost this week.
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Manager Spotlight | Interview With Nick Piovano | @dynastystump
Q: Tell us a bit about yourself. Where are you from and how long have you been with Dynasty Nerds?
A: I’m from Long Hill, New Jersey. I’ve been with Dynasty Nerds since 2020 when I was brought in to turn my “SleeperSheet” Google Sheet product into web and mobile apps.
Q: Like myself, you’re a New York Jets fan. Big win this week, finally! Thoughts on the team?
A: Finally a win! I know we “should” root for losses at this point, but needed to see Glenn get one and really didn’t want to be the first 0-17 team. I like that we saw some fight and good offensive play calling, but it was Cincinnati so we’ll see how the first few games post bye look. Regardless, this season is over so just want something to build on next season.
Q: How did you originally get into fantasy football?
A: Growing up in NJ with a diehard Raider fan dad, I was lucky to have NFL Sunday Ticket and Red Zone from the time they each launched. Having every NFL game at my fingertips and a love of browsing ESPN and other sports websites, it was just a matter of time before I found fantasy football and introduced it to my friends when I was around 10 years old.
Q: You’re one of our hard-working guys behind the scenes, making and maintaining the Nerds App. What’s that like?
A: It’s a lot of fun. I love delivering exciting and fun products for our customers. I’m able to speak directly to our customers every few weeks which is awesome and allows us to gather insights that drive our product roadmap. We’ve got a great team and I’ll shout out Bryan (Arendt), our lead developer, who’s not in this league but makes much of what we do possible.
Q: How do you feel about your chances in this league?
A: Eh, not great. Think I’ve been a bit lucky record-wise to start the season. Feel like a middle of the pack team at best.
Q: Do you have anything to say to the Nerd Herd or any trash to talk to your opponents this week? Anything at all you would like to say, this is your forum.
A: Check out our brand new Data Hub feature in the Dynasty Nerds app and web! Use code data-hub for access to our advanced NFL data at 20% off.
Trade of the Week
We actually didn’t have any trades this week in the DNA League, so I’m going to revisit one of my trades from last week. I moved Brian Thomas, Jr. to John Hammersmith for Jaylen Waddle and Jordan Addison.
With so many savvy and motivated managers in the DNA League, not to mention our large starting lineup requirement, depth is crucial to success. I needed to split one piece into two pieces, but who? And for what? Brian Thomas, Jr. has underachieved this season, but he still holds a lot of value.
With my trade, I moved the WR41 (Thomas) in PPR scoring for the WR24 (Waddle) and the WR8 (Addison.) Hard to be upset about that, especially given this week’s Travis Hunter breakout. Despite his fantastic rookie season, will Thomas take a back seat to Hunter and all that the Jags’ invested in him?
Bottom line – generally, you’ll likely be advised that the best trading strategy is to package two players to get one player of a higher value. Well, not always. There’s a time and a place for everything, and don’t be afraid to zig when others have zagged. Trendy names don’t score fantasy points.
Elimination Watch | Bottom 3 in the Danger Zone
The Danger Zone:
- Taylor Christianson – awful roster but an awful lot of draft picks in 2026 and 2027. If he’s not saved, someone else is going to have a lot of fun rebuilding this team.
- Matt Cooper – has some aging pieces that need to be moved (Aaron Rodgers, Zach Ertz) but can he find any takers? Could be facing the daunting reality of rostering only one startable QB going into next season in J.J. McCarthy.
- John Hammersmith – he has the quarterbacks (Love, Dart, and Tua) and the receivers (Nabers, BTJ) to be a threat next season with the right draft picks. Can he hold on until then?
Looking Ahead | Week 9 Preview
- Keith Ensminger (me!) takes on Jared Wackerly. At 7-9, a win against Jared’s 8-8 could put me into playoff contention.
- Bad news for the other 8 – 8 teams, as Mychal Warno gets the free space victory that is a matchup against Taylor Christianson’s squad.
- Can Doc Mitchell and Garret Price stay within breathing room of Rich Doston? Each of them is heavily favored in their respective matchups.
- In the NFL, Sunday’s late window brings us the annual drama of a Kansas City Chiefs matchup against the Buffalo Bills. Meanwhile, the early window sees the Vikings traveling to Detroit to play the Lions. How will J.J.McCarthy look in his return to action?
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Trivia Answer | The QB was Troy Smith. Mangold’s leadership and football IQ were instrumental in helping Smith capture the 2006 Heisman with the Buckeyes. (click to return)
Rest in Peace, Nick Mangold. 1984 – 2025.
