Panthers-Packers DFS Picks: Best Value Plays, NFL Week 8

The Panthers will look to bounce back from their worst loss of the season when they travel to Green Bay to face the Packers on Thursday Night Football. This NFC matchup opens Week 8 of the NFL season, with both teams arriving at the primetime spot after suffering their third loss of the year. Carolina will look to remain perfect in primetime this season, while Green Bay enters at 1-1 in their two nighttime appearances.

Here are the players worth targeting in your DFS lineups for Thursday night’s showdown. Be sure to check out our NFL betting trends page for data and odds on every game.

Carolina Panthers vs. Green Bay Packers DFS Picks

Pos	Player	Matchup	FPPG	Salary
MVP	👑 Josh Jacobs	CAR @ GB	20.1	$13,200
FLEX	Chuba Hubbard	CAR @ GB	19.0	$9,000
FLEX	Bryce Young	CAR @ GB	21.1	$9,600
FLEX	Jordan Love	CAR @ GB	20.3	$10,000
FLEX	John Metchie III	CAR @ GB	5.0	$3,400
FLEX	Ryan Fitzgerald	CAR @ GB	8.8	$4,800

👑 Josh Jacobs, GB/RB/MVP ($13,200)

Thursday night’s matchup carries the third-highest implied total of the week and should live up to the hype given the offensive firepower on both sides. Packers star RB Josh Jacobs made his highly anticipated season debut on Sunday and immediately made an impact in both the run and passing game. He finished with 11 carries for 36 yards, plus 5 receptions for 55 yards and a receiving TD. Jacobs adds a dimension to this offense that has been missing all season and should ramp up his production as he gets more games under his belt.

He posted those numbers despite playing just 54% of the Packers’ offensive snaps last week. His snap count should increase on Thursday, and he should have no trouble building on his Week 7 debut against a Panthers defense that enters Week 8 as the worst run defense in the NFL, allowing a league-high 153.2 rushing yards per game. RBs are averaging 5.2 yards per carry against Carolina, and the Buccaneers rushed for 246 yards and 3 TDs against them last week. Jacobs’ 7 targets in the passing game also point to a larger role going forward, though Matt LaFleur may lean even more heavily on the ground game against this defensive front on Thursday.

Chuba Hubbard, CAR/RB ($9,000)

The Panthers will look to match Jacobs and the Packers with strong running of their own, led by Hubbard. The veteran back has been solid all season but enters Thursday after one of his quieter outings — just 7 carries in a game Carolina fell well behind Tampa Bay, though he did contribute 4 receptions in the passing game. The Panthers should look to get their lead back closer to his season average of 16.0 carries per game, where he has been extremely effective at 4.8 yards per carry.

He faces a Packers defense that has been decent overall but not particularly strong against the run, ranking in the bottom half of the league at 115.0 rushing yards allowed per game with 9 rushing TDs conceded. Green Bay has given up the sixth-most fantasy points to RBs through seven weeks, and Hubbard’s volume should continue that trend on Thursday. Carolina’s lead back has played 78% of offensive snaps this season and should continue to see the bulk of the workload with fellow RB Jonathan Brooks still on IR. Look for Hubbard to bounce back from Sunday’s rough outing and add to his 6 TDs on the season.

Bryce Young, CAR/QB ($9,600)

Panthers QB Bryce Young is a prime bounce-back candidate, entering Thursday after his worst performance of the season. The former first overall pick finished Sunday’s loss with just 163 passing yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs, and a lost fumble. His three turnovers in that game surpassed the two he had thrown in the first five games combined, and his 163 air yards were nearly 100 below his per-game average. Even so, he still ranks second in the league with 276.0 passing yards per game, and his 12 passing TDs tie for fifth-most in the league. Young and his star WR duo of Tetairoa McMillan and Jalen Coker will look to put Sunday behind them, though they will need to do so against a solid Packers secondary.

Green Bay ranks ninth in passing yards allowed at 208.0 per game heading into Thursday. That said, Lions QB Jared Goff carved them up last week — 303 yards, 2 TDs, and a 119.7 passer rating. The Packers will look to clean that up on a short week, but may struggle against a 25-year-old in the middle of a genuine breakout. Carolina’s offense ranks sixth in PPG at 26.5, and Young will likely need to keep the throttle down given how much the defense has struggled to slow opposing offenses. With a high implied total, expect Young to pad his numbers in what should be a shootout.

Jordan Love, GB/QB ($10,000)

A big reason we can expect a high-volume day from Young is the need to keep pace with Packers QB Jordan Love, who has been outstanding through seven weeks. Green Bay’s franchise QB ranks second in the league with 1,958 passing yards and is tied for fourth with 13 TDs. He has put together three straight games of 270-plus passing yards, throwing 5 TDs and just 2 INTs in that span. With Jacobs back in the lineup, the team that has thrown at the highest rate in the league may scale back slightly, but Love should still have plenty of opportunities in a more balanced attack.

Despite Jayden Reed missing most of the season, the Packers’ WR group has stepped up collectively as a unit of rising stars. They will now face a banged-up Panthers secondary that Love and company should be able to exploit. Starting CBs Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson Sr. are both on IR, along with several other defensive front injuries. Love should have a clean pocket and a full array of weapons — a dangerous combination against a Carolina defense conceding nearly 28 PPG. Expect multiple TD performances from Love in this one.

John Metchie, CAR/WR ($3,400)

With such a top-heavy lineup, we need value on the back end, and Panthers WR John Metchie III is the perfect candidate. Carolina’s third receiver has benefited greatly from playing alongside McMillan and Coker, and Young has built a strong connection with the veteran wideout. He now has multiple receptions in four straight games, seeing 17 targets in that span. His 8.1% target share ranks third among WRs on the team, and he continues to produce with fellow WR Xavier Legette missing time with a knee injury.

Legette is out again, and Metchie will keep his role as the third option in this offense. His snap count has climbed steadily throughout the season, and he enters Thursday with a season-high 46% snap share from last week’s game against the Buccaneers. In a game that could force Young and the Panthers to throw frequently, look for Metchie to see a healthy share of targets while benefiting from the attention his star teammates attract. At just $3,400, he offers genuine low-risk, high-reward upside with a likely low ownership rate.

Ryan Fitzgerald, CAR/K ($4,800)

We close out Thursday’s lineup with Panthers K Ryan Fitzgerald. The 26-year-old has been perfect from FG range to open his sophomore season, converting all 11 attempts through six games. He is averaging just under 2 FGA per game and should see multiple looks in what projects to be a high-scoring affair. While Fitzgerald has struggled on extra points this season, we are backing the former FSU standout to break out of that slump and keep his FG rate perfect.

Even with the PAT struggles, Fitzgerald still leads his team with 45 points this season. His 90-plus percent extra point rate as a rookie suggests he should regress back toward the mean sooner rather than later. His 70.6% extra point percentage ranks last among qualifying kickers this season, though a game with this kind of point total should give him plenty of opportunities to start turning that number around. Fitzgerald should remain elite from long range and is well-positioned to bounce back on extra points Thursday night.

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