The Miami Dolphins will begin the Week 8 NFL action with a Thursday Night Football matchup against the Houston Texans. Unfortunately, they’ll be without multiple wide receivers with Kenny Stills and Albert Wilson sidelined. In turn, this makes for an interesting spot for the team’s offense and specifically fantasy football players.
While the Dolphins have three intriguing options to consider using in fantasy, the one who’s drawing major attention is Danny Amendola. The former New England Patriots wide receiver has posted his best games of the season over the past two weeks.
In the stretch, Amendola has hauled in 14-of-18 targets for 143 yards and one touchdown. It’s worth noting that both games featured Brock Osweiler as the team’s starting quarterback, and he’ll get the nod again in Week 8. The 32-year-old wideout has seen the most targets of any receiver with Osweiler at the helm, with the aforementioned Wilson second (12).
Let’s take a look at the start-sit debate for Amendola and break down if he’s worth using as a bye-week filler.
Key Stats and Danny Amendola’s Fantasy Outlook
I’ll break down the matchup and a few other key numbers for Amendola and the Dolphins ahead of Week 8. All information on fantasy points and statistics for defense vs. position are from ESPN.
- Houston Texans vs. wide receivers in 2018: 91 receptions, 1,029 yards, six touchdowns (No. 8 fewest fantasy points per game)
- Amendola has played 96 and 98 percent of the offensive snaps over the past two weeks, per Football Outsiders
- Amendola’s 18 targets from Osweiler are the most of any Dolphins player since the quarterback took over
It became apparent right out of the gate that Osweiler is going to look Amendola’s way early and often. The matchup with the Texans is no walk in the park, but the receiver’s projected targets and rapport with Osweiler leave him in strong consideration for fantasy owners.
Should You Start or Sit Danny Amendola?
The high volume of targets is incredibly appealing from a fantasy perspective, and as long as this duo is on the field together, good things should happen. The matchup also isn’t so daunting that it scares me away from using receivers on the Dolphins. One small area of concern for me is the fact that Texans coach Bill O’Brien knows Osweiler well from their terrible stretch together. In turn, he almost certainly knows how to shut down his former signal caller.
Even if that does prove to be the case, I think Amendola’s production and the comfort level Osweiler has with him keeps the wideout in play. Tack on the lack of healthy receivers on the Dolphins and the veteran is in the mix as a flex play in 12-team point-per-reception leagues and a WR3 or flex option in 14-team leagues or larger.
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Danny Amendola Fantasy: Should You Start or Sit the Dolphins WR in Week 8?