Week 8 Preview: Brother Bowl, Bye-Week Blues

By Mel AIper, CTDB Analyst

We're now officially at the mid-way point. The Monkeys continue to lead the pack but the lead has narrowed somewhat the past two weeks. Gang Green is two games back at 9-5, and three teams are bunched at 8-6. At the bottom, LA Buffy has lost five straight and 2026 is quickly becoming a lost season for Buffy. Week 8 throws byes at Houston, New Orleans, the Giants and San Francisco, and Thursday morning’s waiver wire looked like a bus station. Christian McCaffrey, Brock Purdy, Nico Collins and Malik Nabers all get the week off, so the lineup you set this week matters more than the one you drafted. 

For this week match up - the headliner is Brother Bowl between brothers Josh and Eddie -- both with five wins apiece, playing for the right to say something at the next family dinner.

Matchup of the week: Custom J vs Crunch Bunch, the Brother Bowl

The Brother Bowl has been friendly to Custom J. Josh’s teams lead the series 4-2, and the last meeting wasn’t close: 139 to 81 in Week 6 last year. The home team has won three straight in the series, and Custom J is home again. This is the first of two meetings, and they play again in Week 12.

Both teams are 5-9, but they took different roads. Custom J, the roster the computer drafted, put up a league-best 153.6 last week behind Tony Pollard’s 35. That was only its second top-half week of the year. The Bunch has lost three straight and got nothing from its flex spot last week, because Kyle Monangai sat there and never played. He still hadn’t practiced as of Wednesday, and Chicago doesn’t play until Monday night.

The big question is at quarterback. Lamar Jackson practiced fully Wednesday for the first time since early October and is on track to play at Buffalo. As of Thursday morning, Josh is still running Kyler Murray, who has been fine, with Lamar on the bench. Ladd McConkey practiced fully but is still in the concussion protocol, and Devaughn Vele is on bye.

Eddie’s side has its own questions at receiver. Amon-Ra St. Brown sat Wednesday on a planned day off for his ankle, and A.J. Brown was limited. Jordan Love, who has scored 15 or more in all seven games, plays tonight against Carolina, with Joe Burrow and his 39.8 from last week on the bench. Eddie is sticking with the hot hand.

Pick: Custom J, if Lamar is back under center. The computer still has a little left in it. Good luck, Josh.

Chunky Monkeys vs A Squad Called Blitz

Coach Thien spent Thursday rebuilding a third of his lineup. Purdy, the kicker and the 49ers defense are all on bye. Overnight, Blitz picked up Jayden Daniels for $3 and dropped Sam Darnold. They also grabbed Chris Boswell at kicker and paid $10 for the Browns defense, which the Monkeys had dropped the day before. Daniels played for the Monkeys the last two seasons, and Battle Angel cut him last Saturday. Now his third team in this league gets him for a date with his old one.

Even without Purdy, Blitz has plenty: Bijan Robinson, Jonathan Taylor, CeeDee Lamb and Drake London, all keepers. The worry is form. They’ve won two straight, but at 107 and 112, a long way from the 170s they hung in Weeks 3 and 4.

The Monkeys lose Tyler Shough to the Saints’ bye, so Trevor Lawrence steps in. He scored 15 or more four games in a row before the Jaguars’ bye. Jaxon Smith-Njigba has caught at least five passes in every game. Rashee Rice practiced Wednesday for the first time since Week 4, but he’s still on the bench. Brock Bowers was limited again with his calf and is listed as questionable.

The Monkeys lead this Bay Area series 7-3.

Pick: Monkeys. Lawrence is back, and the Blitz quarterback just walked in the door.

City of Angels Masterminds vs Gang Green

These teams opened the season against each other in Week 1, and now Gang Green has the edge in the rematch. Gang Green leads the league in points, and Josh Allen is back from Buffalo’s bye. He’s averaging 32.3 points a game and has never scored under 19. The bye cost them both McCaffrey and George Kittle, so Blake Corum and Kyle Pitts are stepping in. Braelon Allen is starting at running back with an ankle, and DJ Moore, working back from a shoulder injury, is still on the bench.

The Masterminds have lost two straight and averaged 98 over that stretch. Coach Marcus finally has his best running backs back together. James Cook returns from the bye, and Breece Hall was limited Wednesday but is trending toward a return from the quad injury he suffered in Week 3. Alvin Kamara is on the Saints’ bye, so Cook, Hall and Ashton Jeanty make up the whole backfield. Dak Prescott has scored 15 or more in all seven games. Tyler Warren is in the lineup even though he’s questionable with a groin injury.

Gang Green went 7-4 against the Masterminds from 2021 through last season, though the Masterminds won both meetings in 2025.

Pick: Gang Green. Josh Allen is the best player on the field.

Philadelphia Phreaks vs Battle Angel

The home team has won this series six straight times, and the Phreaks are at home. Then there’s the Phreaks’ own pattern: win, loss, win, loss, win, loss, win. If it holds, they’re due for a loss.

GM Ping’s problem is his backfield. Saquon Barkley missed Wednesday’s walkthrough with hamstring and back issues, and Jahmyr Gibbs sat with a shoulder injury nobody had mentioned before. Both are keepers, and both are starting. Barkley plays Sunday night, which at least gives Ping the latest call in the league. Kirk Cousins keeps the ship steady, with seven straight games of 15 or more, and Puka Nacua should see plenty of targets with Davante Adams out.

Battle Angel is hot: two straight wins and 140 last week against the Monkeys. GM Will loses Chris Olave to the bye, and George Pickens was limited with a new hamstring injury on top of his shoulder. The Williams trio is all starting: Javonte, Kyren and Jameson. Bryce Young and Josh Jacobs play tonight.

Pick: Battle Angel. The home streak is cute, but Ping’s two best running backs are both in doubt.

Jail Yard Boyz vs LA Buffy

The Boyz have scored 194, 146 and 142 over the last three weeks, the best run of any team in the league. This week, though, they’re missing Nabers, Woody Marks and Isaiah Likely to byes, and the injury list is long. Ja’Marr Chase sat Wednesday with an ankle injury but is expected to play. Jaylen Waddle didn’t practice Wednesday or Thursday and is on the bench. Aaron Jones Sr. is starting at flex with a knee that kept him out Wednesday. Drake Maye has scored 32 or more in four straight games, so GM Victor’s offense still starts in the right place.

GM Roger has lost five straight, and the byes took Cam Skattebo, Collins and kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn. He swapped in Tyler Bass at kicker. Matthew Stafford has scored at least 23 in three straight games, but Buffy is starting three questionable players: DeVonta Smith, Jeremiyah Love and Tyler Allgeier.

The series is tied 6-6, and Buffy won the last meeting.

Pick: Boyz. Maye is too hot to pick against.

Transactions

The Wednesday run was quiet. Only four teams made claims, and they spent $14 total. The Masterminds paid the most, $10 for Emanuel Wilson, whom the Monkeys had cut a week earlier. Marcus dropped Tyrone Tracy Jr., also on bye, to make room. That reads like insurance on Hall’s quad.

Custom J handled the bye-week spots: Cam Little at kicker for $2 in place of Dominic Zvada, and the Commanders defense for $2. To make room, Josh dropped Josh Downs, who reportedly asked Indianapolis for a trade the same day. Buffy got Bass for free, and the Monkeys swapped the Browns defense for the Patriots’.

Then came Thursday, when Blitz had the busiest morning in the league: Daniels, Boswell and the Browns defense, $16 in all, to fill three bye-week holes.

This Week’s Pot 

This week’s prize goes to the highest-scoring losing team. The Boyz would have won it last week with 142. Watch the loser of Monkeys vs Blitz, the two deepest lineups on the board this week. Set your lineups. A good loss pays this week.