Volume is the lifeblood of fantasy football success. The Workload Report was created to help visualize the crucial snaps, targets, touches, air yards, and other advanced usage metrics that matter.
The Workload Report is broken into three distinct sections: opportunity, production, and results. The ultimate goal is to dive in and discover where these coveted fantasy points are coming from in Week 8 for every team.
Each week, we’ll highlight several categories, such as snaps, targets, volume, and air yards. Then, dive into which players showed up and why. At the bottom, I’ll give a few positional charts comparing underlying stats to current fantasy rankings to help uncover the best players to buy-lows and sell-high at each position.
In addition to the screenshots below, check out the full version of The Workload Report to dig into all the data yourself.
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DOWNLOAD: THE WORKLOAD REPORT – WEEK 8
(Sort by Team, How to Use, Team Totals, Player Rankings)
WEEK 8 FANTASY ALL-STARS
Dedicated to the players who break 25 PPR points each week.
Out-of-Body Experience: These performances are true outlier games, typically involving 3-4 touchdowns, double-digit receptions, 200 rushing/receiving yards, or combinations of all three. CeeDee Lamb, DeAndre Hopkins, and Gus Edwards were your “had to have it” guys of the week.
Just Another Week in the Life: These players had awesome performances this week. However, their scoring output wasn’t really that crazy relative to the rest of their season’s performances. AJ Brown, Christian McCaffrey, Alvin Kamara, Travis Etienne, and Tyreek Hill all had 25+ points and should have more in the future.
Seems like an Outlier: This type of performance doesn’t happen that often, but when you look at the box score, it just doesn’t make much sense. Trey McBride is kind of in this bucket, as it’s a bit too early to tell if he’s the next great tight end or just had a big outlier game. Jaylen Waddle also had one of his first big outputs of the year, so it will be fun to track whether he can keep that up.
SAVED BY THE ENDZONE
These players may have a high fantasy score, but most were due to TD “luck.”
Random Tight End of the Week: It seems like every single week, there are a handful of tight ends who show up in the boxscore for one catch, a few yards, and a TD. Putting too much weight into these performances is hard, so be weary if targeting them on the waiver wire. This week, Tommy Tremble and Simi Fehoko (who I’m not convinced is an actual WR) fit this description. You could also argue that Taysom Hill fits this build, but how many seasons do we need to watch this hybrid athlete have a couple of explosion games before we start buying into it? The guy is good at the game.
Don’t Fall in Love with the TDs: These players might have had a “get right” week in the fantasy football world. Generally speaking, they are good players that we want more production from. However, purely TDs only is not the production we want. Don’t yet chase the steam on JuJu Smith-Schuster, George Pickens, and Cam Akers.
A TOUCHDOWN AWAY FROM BREAKING THE SLATE
Had any of these guys hit paydirt, we may have been hearing a lot more about them this week.
On the Edge of Glory: These players had significant usage and production this week. However, they couldn’t get into the box for six more points. We should feel confident that they had a good performance without the touchdowns because each of them has an underlying stat or two that makes us excited. Cole Kmet (consistently high RACR), Garrett Wilson (will literally make this list every week, poor guy), Diontae Johnson (great showing back from injury), Stefon Diggs (slightly lower WOPR this week), Brandon Aiyuk (one of the most consistent players this season), and Saquon Barkley (rushing share up big this week) make the list in Week 8.
May Have Peaked: All things considered, these players had outstanding performances this week, even without scoring a TD. However, some of their underlying metrics are more concerning and should highlight that this performance may not indicate future success. KJ Osborn (high Rec% and RACR this week), Rachaad White (7 catches this week, only 12 in the last 4 weeks), Derrick Henry (only get high 60% of rushing production, needs to run efficiently) fit this category.
DOMINATING THE DOMINATOR RATING
(Rec. Yds + Rush Yds)/(Team Rec. Yds + Team Rush Yds) + TD Share + Air Yd Share (WR/TEs) > 40%
Skewed by TDs: Dominator Rating is a metric that measures your overall team share in rushing, receiving, and TDs scored. In weeks where a team only scores one touchdown, that player will have a 100% TD share, which will skew the DOM number slightly. Gus Edwards (rush share almost doubled this week) George Pickens & Romeo Doubs (low-scoring Steelers/Packers week), CeeDee Lamb (huge receiving share and TD share this week) all have some underlying stats that don’t fully support their “dominant” rating.
Taking the Bull by the Horns: These players busted onto the scene this week and fully overtook their respective backfield/receiving room. If this production continues, they should be a constant on the list each week. DeAndre Hopkins (has Will Levis unlocked the beast?) fits this build and could have some exciting weeks ahead.
Consistently Dominant: This is by far the category that should get you the most excited. These guys fall into two subcategories: either they didn’t see much change to their rushing/receiving share and finally scored some TDs, or they didn’t see much change to their DOM rating, and it’s still elite. Christian McCaffrey and Saquon Barkley really stand out this week.
AIR YARDS= FUTURE PRODUCTION
Who saw Air Yards > 35%, but fantasy share < 20% this week?
This is arguably the most impactful section each week, and I try to spend the most time parsing through the numbers. There are three different buckets that we can separate these players into:
Ready to Explode: In this bucket, I want to look for players who have seen a solid WOPR to start the year, but whose RACR has not been efficient. If the opportunity share holds, the efficiency should bubble up and create a big week. Keenan Allen, George Pickens, and DK Metcalf fit this category.
Need More Volume: These guys see a prominent Air Yard Share, and their RACR is relatively high. However, their number of Air Yards is lower relative to other players. In other words, if more volume comes, more big games should be in store for Darius Slayton, Darren Waller, DJ Chark, and Tee Higgins.
Potentially Smoke & Mirrors: All of these guys have some sort of red flag. Either their WOPR isn’t very high, meaning they have just seen a couple of long bombs (“Prayer Yards), or they’ve never really consistently shown signs of an efficient RACR in the past, so there’s no sense trying to hold out hope this year. Nico Collins (has been running really hot in RACR) and Chris Olave (RACR just not good all year) headline the more cautious part of this list.
RECEIVING ALPHA DOGS
Anything above a 0.8 WOPR is considered ‘ELITE.‘
With half the season under our belt, we can start to make some headway in this category. For Weighted Opportunity Rating (WOPR), we want to compare this to Receiving Air Conversion Rate (RACR) to parse how well players perform from an efficiency standpoint.
One-Week Wonders: These players posted an above-normal WOPR this week and have some underlying stats that could give us pause when assuming they will continue with this role for the rest of the season. CeeDee Lamb (doesn’t have the consistent floor, even though he does have the ceiling) and Trey McBride (insane WOPR for a TE) fit the mold in this category.
On the Rise: These players have all seen an increase in WOPR, and their RACR also tracked up as similar or better efficiency with the added volume. If this continues, this is the exact cohort of players we want to try and pounce on early. Garrett Wilson (for the seventh week in a row, get this man a QB), Calvin Ridley, and George Kittle are worth monitoring for the next few weeks.
Elite, Elite, Elite: These players have a history of posting WOPR above 0.8, so they are no strangers to this list. Along with big opportunity weeks, these guys have underlying stats that skew very positive, so it’s an extra vote of confidence to see them appear in this category. DK Metcalf, Keenan Allen, Amari Cooper, Ja’Marr Chase (sun-running WOPR and RACR this year), and Brandon Aiyuk fit the bill from Week 8.
RUSHING WORKHORSES
Which players commanded more than 65% of their team’s rushing yards?
Stranglehold on RB Opportunities: This is seemingly a rare species in today’s NFL, a bell-cow running back. When we find one, we want to study and track it for multiple weeks. At the running back position, one of the easiest things to consistently bet on is volume, and it’s hard to deny that these guys have it. In Week 8, Joe Mixon and Derrick Henry are the only players who fit this description. Is the bell-cow RB dead?
Separating within the Backfield: These players have seen their rushing and snap share ticked up. It’s not yet hitting those elite marks each week, but this week’s performance was a significant step in the right direction. Brian Robinson and Isiah Pacheco should keep separating.
SNEAKY PASS-CATCHERS
Non-WRs who saw a hefty receiving share this week.
Low Usage, High Involvement: While the snap counts for these players aren’t at very elite levels, their consistent involvement in the rushing/passing game on the field indicates that they have a defined role in the offense. We want to focus on the receiving role since receptions are more fruitful than rushes. Trey McBride and Rachaad White are both trending in the positive direction after slow starts to the year.
Nothing New for these TEs: Since this list comprises non-receivers, there are typically a lot of tight ends. The players in this category make the list more often than not and should be counted on as those true Alpha-TEs who aren’t just TD-dependent to score fantasy points. George Kittle, Cole Kmet, Evan Engram, and TJ Hockenson fit the mold in Week 8.
RUNNING BACK USAGE TO LOOK OUT FOR
These RBs are all seeing decreases in their USG rating.
A Thorn in Their Side: It’s hard to say flat-out that these guys are no longer RB1s due to one low usage week, but their performance is indicative that either the coaching tendencies, their backfield teammates, or both are going to be prohibitive for their fantasy domination this year. Dameon Pierce must shake off that thorn and break free.
Losing their Grip on RB1 Status: A low snap share and a low usage rate generally combine for a pretty bad RB fantasy performance. That’s precisely what happened to these guys this week. It’s essential to monitor their usage moving forward or potentially cut ties now and get them off your team. Kenneth Walker III (Maybe injury, Zach Charbonnet) and Miles Sanders could both be getting outplayed in their own backfields.
PLAYER RANKINGS: BUY LOW, SELL HIGH
The statistics and metrics included within The Workload Report have proven to be highly correlated to fantasy points scored. Ideally, we also want high fantasy performers to be high Workload Report performers. These are the types of players we can put all of our faith in starting each week.
However, if players perform well in fantasy but not on the Workload Report, that may signify that they are “running hot” (read: extremely efficient) and may be a good target to sell high.
On the flip side, if players are performing well in the Workload Report, but it hasn’t shown up in the fantasy stats yet, they are a great buy-low candidate to bet on in future weeks.
