Inside: Winning streaks, remaining schedules and the Patriots' brilliance, plus our fantasy expert Jake Ciely joins to help us prep for Week 8.

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As former Jets coach Herm Edwards explained to us all in 2002, the best part of sports is that "you play to win the game."

No NFL teams have done more winning over the past month than the Patriots or Broncos, both now 5-2 amid four-win streaks. They sit second and third, respectively, in the AFC, though New England projects to finish well ahead of Denver, per the Simulator:

The Bears are also on a four-win streak of their own, while the Colts and Panthers (!!) each ride three-win streaks into Week 8. Are these teams truly ascending, or has their schedule just been easy?

Herm told the truth, and all wins are great. Fans are right to feel good. However, let's grade the legitimacy of those winning streaks:

New England's 23-20 road win over the Bills was the lone especially impressive victory in this run. The other three came against the Panthers, Saints and Titans, though the Patriots get a bump due to how convincingly they won two of those. Expect them to make it five after hosting the Browns in Week 8.

Similar to the Patriots, Denver impressed in a 21-17 win against the Eagles. Otherwise, the Broncos narrowly beat the Jets and Giants after beating up on the pre-Flacco Bengals. Their comeback against the Giants was shockingly impressive, but would a true contender have needed it? At home? We'll see how they fare against the Cowboys' red-hot offense on Sunday.

Chicago beat those Cowboys, but wins against the Raiders (by one), Commanders (by one) and Saints won't impress anyone, especially for a Bears team that is 0-2 in its own division. A tough game looms against the post-bye Ravens, who hope to have Lamar Jackson back.

Their three-win streak has come against the Raiders, Cardinals and injury-plagued Chargers, though Indy might be 7-0, had self-inflicted mistakes not resulted in a 27-20 loss to the Rams. Still, it's an underwhelming group of wins. With the Titans next week, they should make it four straight.

One-score wins over the Dolphins, Cowboys and Jets? Certainly better than losing! Especially for a team that'd won seven total games over the past two seasons. Carolina's streak jumps to an A if they win against the Bills and Packers, their next two opponents. Can Andy Dalton do it?

Downer alert: None of those streaks is mind-blowing, and unfortunately for fans getting used to winning, almost all of those teams' remaining schedules rank among the league's toughest, when calculated based on opponent Super Bowl odds. New England is the one exception:

It took Drake Maye just 19 starts to break a franchise record that Tom Brady had set in his 128th career regular season game, and Mike Vrabel needed seven weeks to best 2023's four-win finale by his former coach, Bill Belichick.

As you saw above, our Playoff Simulator sees the Pats finishing second in the AFC. Here's some background:

In Week 7, Maye completed 91.3 percent of his passes, topping Brady's regular season record of 88.5, set in Week 16 of the 2009 season.

In that game, Brady was 13-of-13 when targeting Wes Welker, while Randy Moss caught 4-of-5 targets for three touchdowns. Maye? He relied on a cobbled-together cast of Stefon Diggs, Kayshon Boutte, Hunter Henry and Mack Hollins.

Maye is a big reason why New England has jumped from No. 23 in our pre-training camp Power Rankings to No. 11 in Week 8's version, and our Patriots beat reporter, Chad Graff, gave an early case for Maye's MVP candidacy.

Is Maye the No. 1 factor in their success? There's competition from Vrabel, who has almost immediately vaulted the Patriots to legitimate contender status. ("It starts with our coach," said wide receiver DeMario Douglas in that article. He was with New England in Belichick's final season and Jerod Mayo's disastrous 2024.)

As Mike Sando noted in his Pick Six column, the Patriots are one of two teams (Kansas City being the other) that rank among the NFL's top 10 in EPA per play on both offense and defense.

A proven coach and star quarterback make this team feel a lot like 2024's breakout team: the Commanders. Add the league's third-easiest remaining schedule, and the Patriots' floor might be 12-5, which would match Washington's record last season.

Can they top the Commanders' conference championship appearance, though? We'll have to wait until January.

Over to our resident fantasy expert, who shares his Week 8 waiver targets.

With six teams on bye in Week 8 (the Lions, Raiders, Rams, Cardinals, Seahawks and Jaguars), at least seven startable running backs are out of action.

Who are the top three backs to add for Week 8?

1. Kyle Monangai, Bears. After posting season highs in touches, yards, fantasy points and his split of backfield touches, Monangai is clearly growing into the David Montgomery role. While he won't be a weekly RB2, he can return RB3 value most weeks ... especially during this week's bye-mapocalation. (It's so absurd, I'm combining three words -- stop the madness, NFL!)

2. Woody Marks, Texans. When Houston is in neutral game scripts (i.e. not losing), Marks and Nick Chubb will see a near-50/50 split. Marks has more upside, given the Texans are often trailing on the scoreboard, which adds passing-game value for the better receiving back ... though that same Texans offense will limit his ceiling.

3. Tyjae Spears, Titans. He continues to eat into Tony Pollard's workload since returning from injury, and saw 100 percent of the third-down touches in Week 7. Facing a tough Patriots run defense, Spears had just five carries (which he took for 22 yards), but had eight targets in two games, increasing his PPR upside.

If you need wide receiver help:

Christian Watson, Packers. Dontayvion Wicks aggravated his injury, and Matthew Golden still didn't run a full-time load of routes. Watson, who is returning from injury, may take time to get fully incorporated, but there is a good chance he's a top-two option for the Packers when ready.

Tez Johnson, Buccaneers. With Mike Evans done for the year and Chris Godwin's health unknown, Johnson steps into a top-two role ... at least for one week. League-wide, Johnson has top-30 upside while Godwin is out, and even if/when Godwin returns, Johnson would still be a boom/bust WR5.

My No. 1 RB add wasn't mentioned here, since he's on a bye. That and more in my Week 8 Waiver Wire column. Back to you, Jacob.

I went 6-1 across my seven leagues in Week 7, and am planning for similar success this week. To do that, I'll need my waiver claims to succeed for:

TE Oronde Gadsden II, Chargers. A shorter Darren Waller, Gadsden has similar upside to the former Raiders star, who finished as the TE3 and TE2 in 2019 and 2020, respectively.

Gadsden, son of the former Dolphins receiver of the same name, finished with seven receptions for 164 yards and a touchdown as L.A. played catchup in the second half of their loss to the Colts.

He's a perfect fit in the Chargers offense, offering a blend of tackle-breaking ability and route running that was on display in Week 7. Here, Gadsden was held before the catch, yet still secured the ball and ran for another 30 yards:

With his route share increasing each week to a season-high 78.7 percent in Week 7, per Fantasy Points Data, Gadsden is my no-brainer top target, especially since I've lost Trey McBride to the bye in most leagues.

📈 Optimism in Dallas? Our Cowboys beat reporter, Jon Machota, details the story behind their best defensive performance of the season.

📉 Commanders? There's a good chance Washington falls to 3-7 or 4-6 after games against the Chiefs, Seahawks and Lions. "The Athletic Football Show" dissected whether their season is slipping away.

📈 D'Andre Swift? He finally looks like the talent that had him as the consensus top back in the 2020 rookie class. In Ted Nguyen's Week 7 film review, he explains how Swift's made a sixth-year leap.

🚫 Next RGIII? Jayden Daniels' mother wants people to "stop manifesting" Robert Griffin III on her son. Mike Jones explains why, despite his latest injury, this Washington QB is on a different path.

How legit are these win streaks? Plus: Patriots are back, Week 8 fantasy prep