Darnell Washington · Michael Mayer · 2026 week 8

Darnell Washington or Michael Mayer?

Wondering who you should start this week — Darnell Washington or Michael Mayer? The start/sit call and the numbers behind it are below, plus who wins a straight-up trade. Rebuilt nightly.

Start Michael Mayer — barelyThis one is a coin flip — the projections are within 1.4 points. The matchup leans Michael Mayer (NYJ allow the 27th-most TE points), but you can defend either call.

Player	Wk 8	Proj (PPR)	Matchup	Form L3	Trade value	Status
Darnell Washington	vs CLE	6.2	17th	7.7	–	healthy
Michael Mayer START	@ NYJ	7.6	27th · tough	8	115	healthy

TEs vs CLE recently: Mason Taylor 2.4 pts (W5) · Josh Cuevas 10.4 pts (W6) · Gunnar Helm 2.4 pts (W7).

TEs vs NYJ recently: Harold Fannin Jr. 0.4 pts (W5) · Hunter Henry 10.8 pts (W6) · Greg Dulcich 8.6 pts (W7).

🎓 The coach's read

Michael Mayer projects 1.4 points higher in PPR.
Darnell Washington faces CLE, 17th most generous to TEs.
Michael Mayer faces NYJ, 27th most generous to TEs.

Who wins a straight-up trade?

Michael Mayer carries the higher trade value — 115 against 0. In a one-for-one, the side receiving Michael Mayer gets the most.

Open in Start/Sit (any scoring) Open in the Trade Analyzer

More TE decisions

Darnell Washington or Evan Engram?Darnell Washington or Gunnar Helm?Darnell Washington or Noah Fant?Michael Mayer or Mark Andrews?Michael Mayer or Pat Freiermuth?Michael Mayer or Tyler Higbee?

All numbers are the 2026 season, refreshed nightly.