2025 Week 8 Fantasy Football Rankings: TE, K, DEF

https://www.nbcsports.com/fantasy/football/news/2025-week-8-fantasy-football-rankings-te-k-def

Travis Kelce fights for targets with Rashee Rice, Cade Otton hopes he can pick up the Bucs’ pass-catching slack, and Mason Taylor waits to find out just who will be throwing passes for the jets against the Bengals.

Other positions: Quarterback | Running Back | Receiver

Week 8 Tight Ends

1	Tyler Warren	IND	vs. TEN
2	Jake Ferguson	DAL	at DEN
3	George Kittle	SF	at HOU
4	Tucker Kraft	GB	at PIT
5	Dallas Goedert	PHI	vs. NYG
6	Dalton Kincaid	BUF	at CAR
7	Oronde Gadsden II	LAC	vs. MIN
8	T.J. Hockenson	MIN	at LAC
9	Travis Kelce	KC	vs. WAS
10	Harold Fannin Jr.	CLE	at NE
11	Kyle Pitts	ATL	vs. MIA
12	Zach Ertz	WAS	at KC
13	Evan Engram	DEN	vs. DAL
14	Mason Taylor	NYJ	at CIN
15	Mark Andrews	BAL	vs. CHI
16	Hunter Henry	NE	vs. CLE
17	Cade Otton	TB	at NO
18	Isaiah Likely	BAL	vs. CHI
19	Dalton Schultz	HOU	vs. SF
20	Juwan Johnson	NO	vs. TB
21	Theo Johnson	NYG	at PHI
22	Colston Loveland	CHI	at BAL
23	Noah Fant	CIN	vs. NYJ
24	Jonnu Smith	PIT	vs. GB
25	Pat Freiermuth	PIT	vs. GB
26	Gunnar Helm	TEN	at IND
27	Taysom Hill	NO	vs. TB
28	Darnell Washington	PIT	vs. GB
29	Chig Okonkwo	TEN	at IND
30	Dawson Knox	BUF	at CAR
31	Ja’Tavion Sanders	CAR	vs. BUF
32	Tommy Tremble	CAR	vs. BUF
33	Daniel Bellinger	NYG	at PHI

TE Notes: Although it was immensely frustrating, you could argue there was no more fitting George Kittle return than him coming back for a Week 7 air ball against the Falcons. Apparently just getting into shape via NBC’s Mike Tirico, Kittle survived his conditioning test without further injury. The Texans are an awful Week 8 matchup, but fantasy managers can at least count on a catch or five this time around. … Oronde Gadsden II — fact, fiction, or something even stranger? I discussed it at greater length on Monday, but the short of it: Gadsden’s 164-yard outburst didn’t come out of nowhere. He was hyped over the summer and already percolating heading into Week 7. Recent specifics — Quentin Johnston’s injury and the collapse of the Chargers’ running game — have made both his floor and ceiling easier to attain, but this is a player who shouldn’t be going anywhere for the long haul even if his status as the fourth man on the Chargers’ targets ladder will make him boom/bust on a weekly basis.

With the Browns abandoning the pass in wet-and-windy conditions against the non-competitive Dolphins in Week 7, Harold Fannin Jr. remained glued to the floor. He will have much better odds of reaching the ceiling against a Patriots defense serving up 8.0 yards per attempt and the ninth most overall passing yards. … Evan Engram’s snap percentage has been on a steady upward climb, along with his actual production. Week 7 was the first time he was on the field for more than 50 percent of the plays. It is looking more and more like Engram’s slow start was injury-related. He has yet to hint at ceiling, but perhaps that will finally arrive for Week 8 courtesy of the Cowboys’ cellar-dwelling defense. … Mason Taylor predictably came back down to earth as soon as he started garnering a little fantasy hype, but he remains the tight end position’s 14th most targeted player. He now gets a Week 8 passing upgrade via Tyrod Taylor (we think). No one has ceiling in this Jets offense. Taylor does provide enough floor to get in the low-end TE1 mix.

Mark Andrews sank further into the abyss during Lamar Jackson’s absence. Isaiah Likely, meanwhile, hopefully got healthier. L-Jax is back for Week 8, but it is unclear what kind of tight end targets he will be bringing along with him. I wouldn’t be surprised to see further Andrews fall-off accompanied by some actual Likely production. … Cade Otton has proven to only be a “break glass in case of targets emergency” option for the Bucs. Well, the emergency is here and Otton has 15 looks over the past two weeks and 24 over the past month. With Mike Evans back on the shelf, Otton will remain in the TE2 mix. … Dalton Schultz continues to pick the lowest-hanging TE2 fruit. With this offense amongst the most dysfunctional in the league, Schultz’s easy-button looks should remain a weekly feature until further notice. … Pat Freiermuth respawned for 5/111/2 in Week 7, but there has been zero indication Green Bay plans to cut down its three-TE rotation. Freiermuth has a low floor, and despite what Week 7 would lead you to believe, an even lower ceiling.

Week 8 Kickers

1	Brandon Aubrey	DAL	at DEN
2	Chase McLaughlin	TB	at NO
3	Tyler Loop	BAL	vs. CHI
4	Cameron Dicker	LAC	vs. MIN
5	Harrison Butker	KC	vs. WAS
6	Eddy Pineiro	SF	at HOU
7	Wil Lutz	DEN	vs. DAL
8	Will Reichard	MIN	at LAC
9	Matt Prater	BUF	at CAR
10	Michael Badgley	IND	vs. TEN
11	Chris Boswell	PIT	vs. GB
12	Ka’imi Fairbairn	HOU	vs. SF
13	Evan McPherson	CIN	vs. NYJ
14	Jake Elliott	PHI	vs. NYG
15	Jake Moody	CHI	at BAL
16	Parker Romo	ATL	vs. MIA
17	Andy Borregales	NE	vs. CLE
18	Lucas Havrisik	GB	at PIT
19	Graham Gano	NYG	at PHI
20	Blake Grupe	NO	vs. TB
21	Matt Gay	WAS	at KC
22	Ryan Fitzgerald	CAR	vs. BUF
23	Nick Folk	NYJ	at CIN
24	Andre Szmyt	CLE	at NE
25	Riley Patterson	MIA	at ATL
26	Joey Slye	TEN	at IND

Week 8 Defense/Special Teams

1	Indianapolis Colts	vs. TEN
2	New England Patriots	vs. CLE
3	Buffalo Bills	at CAR
4	Atlanta Falcons	vs. MIA
5	Kansas City Chiefs	vs. WAS
6	San Francisco 49ers	at HOU
7	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	at NO
8	Houston Texans	vs. SF
9	Philadelphia Eagles	vs. NYG
10	Green Bay Packers	at PIT
11	Cleveland Browns	at NE
12	Cincinnati Bengals	vs. NYJ
13	Denver Broncos	vs. DAL
14	Los Angeles Chargers	vs. MIN
15	Pittsburgh Steelers	vs. GB
16	Dallas Cowboys	at DEN
17	Baltimore Ravens	vs. CHI
18	New York Jets	at CIN
19	New Orleans Saints	vs. TB
20	Minnesota Vikings	at LAC
21	Chicago Bears	at BAL
22	New York Giants	at PHI
23	Miami Dolphins	at ATL
24	Washington Commanders	at KC
25	Carolina Panthers	vs. BUF
26	Tennessee Titans	at IND