NFL Fantasy Football Waiver Wire, Week 8: It Might Be Tarvaris Time

This post is sponsored by Head & Shoulders

The clavicle injury to Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo may have some fantasy owners reeling this fine Tuesday morning. His backup, Jon Kitna, may not be the best quarterback to target on the Week 8 fantasy football waiver wire, however. That quarterback might be backing up a certain No. 4 that wears purple.

Add, Or Consider Adding

Vikings QB Tarvaris Jackson. In case you didn't even spend four seconds on ESPN Monday night, Brett Favre has been diagnosed with two separate fractures in his left ankle. He's in a walking boot, and the general - albeit early - feeling is that he won't be able to play in Week 8, when Minnesota travels to New England. That could leave the door open for Tarvaris Jackson, an explosive player in his own right, to lead Minnesota's loaded offense against a very susceptible Patriots defense. Don't count Favre out yet - he's all about the heroic efforts, after all - but if he doesn't play, Jackson is dangerously close to a must-start.

Buccaneers RB LeGarrette Blount. The undrafted rookie out of Oregon is coming off of an excellent performance in Week 7, when he gained 72 yards on just 11 rushes in a Bucs victory over St. Louis. Cadillac Williams is injury-prone, so if Buccaneers coaches are smart, they'll begin using the effective Blount a bit more to keep Cadillac fresh. When that happens, Blount will be in line for 12-18 touches per game, including goal line work. That will make him a nice spot start for the rest of the season.

Chargers WR Patrick Crayton. With Malcom Floyd out of the lineup, Crayton has had two excellent performances in back-to-back weeks, totaling 13 receptions for 199 yards in those contests. Floyd doesn't appear ready to return to the lineup, and even if Legedu Naanee does, Crayton will still be in line for plenty of targets in San Diego's pass-happy, efficient offense. There's not a lot of upside here, but you'll get solid production so long as Floyd remains sidelined.

Packers TE Andrew Quarless. Even though his Week 7 touchdown shouldn't have counted - he was clearly out of bounds - Quarless is a solid add this week, with good upside. The rookie out of Penn State will be in a personnel rotation replacing the injured Jermichael Finley. Quarless' length and athleticism make him a better receiving threat than Donald Lee, and while we don't expect consistency, Quarless could put up some nice numbers on occasion as the Packers push for the playoffs.

Drop, Or Consider Dropping

49ers QB Alex Smith. Maybe you were one of those owners that saw Smith struggling early in the season, but saw San Francisco's schedule and the presence of Vernon Davis and Michael Crabtree as reasons to hold out hope that Smith could turn it around. If you're one of those owners, that dream is officially dead. Not only has he continued to flounder against poor competition, but he now has an injury to his left shoulder that could sideline him for the foreseeable future. Move on. It's well past time.

Broncos RB Laurence Maroney. Upon his trade to Denver, playing in place of the injured Knowshon Moreno, Maroney got a good amount of work early on, carrying 12 times - including some red zone work - in his first game as a Bronco. Since that game, in which he was very ineffective, Maroney's playing time has dwindled severely. Now Moreno is healthy and putting up good numbers, and Maroney did not see a single touch in Denver's embarrassing loss to Oakland. Moreno is ready to assume a full rushing workload, so go ahead and cut Maroney - and get rid of Correll Buckhalter, too, while you're at it.

Panthers WR Brandon LaFell. A third-round pick out of LSU, most experts expected LaFell to start and complement Steve Smith in Carolina. LaFell, however, has been a disappointment to start his career, catching just 11 passes through Carolina's first six games. He also appears poised to lose looks to fellow rookie David Gettis, who had eight catches, 125 yards and two touchdowns in Week 7, and has better chemistry with Matt Moore than does LaFell.

Seahawks TE John Carlson. Seattle's offense is getting more conservative by the week, and surprisingly, that hasn't helped matters for Carlson, a third-year pro that had seven touchdowns in 2009. Carlson has just four catches for 39 yards in the Seahawks' last three games, and just one touchdown this season. Meanwhile, Matt Hasselbeck is getting good production out of his young receiving corps. Carlson is not a big enough factor in this offense to make him fantasy-worthy.