Who To Start, Sit, And Scoop Up For Your Week 7 Fantasy Football Lineup

It’s now or never time. Maybe you’re finally getting healthy, you have Brady back and you muscled through Golden Tate’s awfulness. Things could be looking up, or things could be looking way down for your fantasy team. That doesn’t mean you’re out. The waiver wire has options, there are some sweet matchups to be played, and now more than ever we have a clear picture of what’s going on in this first half of the fantasy season. It’s probably best to listen to the Red Dead Redemption soundtrack, bite down on a toothpick and head out into the dust where your fantasy fate awaits.

This week’s BYEs: Carolina, Dallas.

Start of the Week

DeMarco Murray: The Colts have been run over almost every week, and just had a defensive performance that allowed 178 total yards and 2 TDs to Lamar Miller. Demarco Murray is coming off one of his weakest performances of the season at 21 rushes for 65 yards and a TD (no catches for the first time this year), but the Titans are feeding him the ball. They will feed him the ball even more against the Colts, and those that play him will score points, glorious points.

Start/Sit

QUARTERBACK STARTS

Marcus Mariota: We now know that we can trust him to pick on bad defenses, so this week should be fine for Mariota if you have him in a deep or 2 QB league. Not only is Mariota not throwing interceptions (2 in the last 3 weeks), but he’s tallied 6 TDs in that time. Now he’s facing the 5th-worst pass defense in the league, and will probably get you a decent chunk of rushing yards as well. He ran 7 times for 64 yards against Cleveland.

Brian Hoyer: The only QB with more fantasy points than Matt Ryan over the last three weeks is Brian Hoyer, who can’t win NFL football games, but can throw for 300 yards as if it’s his destiny. Now Hoyer is playing a Green Bay squad trying to find their identity on defense, and is giving up the 6th-worst in the league 8.3 yards per pass. It’s the Bears, it’s the Packers. It’s a Thursday Night Football showdown that will probably devolve into garbage time madness!

Just… WTF.

Matt Ryan: Somehow Ryan has played decently (actually quite well) on the road against Denver and Seattle, two of the best defenses in the league. Now, he heads home to face the Chargers in what should be a silly, Atlanta Falcons shootout. If Ryan can throw for 335 yards and 3 TDs in Seattle, what is he going to do against 25th-ranked San Diego?

QUARTERBACK SITS

Alex Smith: The chic pick to put up points against Oakland failed to do anything special yet again. Smith isn’t all bad, and the Saints matchup is enticing especially if they have to throw to catch up, but will they? Perhaps they’ll lean on their RB stable to keep the crowd out of it? Perhaps you don’t need to use Smith in anything less than a 14-team league considering only Cam Newton and Dak Prescott are out this week on BYE. There are other options. Don’t get cute. If you want to play him over say, an Aaron Rodgers or something and he does well, more power to you.

Carson Palmer: Bruce Arians said Palmer’s late-Monday night hamstring injury was a non-issue, but his relatively weak play was. Now he’s playing Seattle, the second-best pass defense in the league, at home. Palmer’s mobility could be an issue, and there are better options out there. You probably have a Carr, Dalton, or Eli Manning to play over him in Week 7. It’s not worth the risk. Hopefully, Palmer and the whole Cardinals WR corps gets better in Week 8. They made strides against the Jets, but 213 yards and a TD is a far cry from his 2015 campaign.

Ben Roethlisberger/Landry Jones: There are reports that Big Ben might not even miss a game after tearing his meniscus on Sunday, but it’s probably best to not pull the trigger on Landry Jones, who played admirably last year when Ben missed 2 games last season. Yes, Jones threw for 379 yards and 3 TDs in a game last season, yes he’s possibly even better after honing his craft, but Week 8 is a BYE, and there’s no reason to be hasty here.

RUNNING BACK STARTS

James White: It finally happened — James White finally had the game we expected him to have with Brady in the lineup and the offense clicking. He has 12 catches in the two games Brady’s played in, and last season he averaged over 5 catches per game with Dion Lewis out. Play him now, before Lewis comes back (possibly Week 10). Obviously, this is for PPR leagues only.

This feels good. It’s going to continue to feel good. The best part? He’s only 50 percent owned. Why didn’t you have him two weeks ago?

Let’s watch one more mmmm.

Spencer Ware: Ware is healthy, has his coach’s trust and can run as well as catch. For now, Jamaal Charles is a change of pace back that will allow Ware to have a breather, and that’s fine. There’s no need for the Chiefs to rush back Charles, so lean on Ware for at least one more week against the Saints defense. The guy was responsible for 163 yards of Chiefs offense and touched the ball 26 times. You want that against the Saints, because this offense doesn’t really change even if they’re down, which they might not be at home.

Jacquizz Rodgers: Doug Martin still isn’t practicing, and Quizz saw 35 touches against Carolina before the BYE in Week 5. It would be shocking to see him get 35 again, but the Bucs have a decimated backfield and Rodgers is serviceable between the tackles and catching the ball. Now he faces the 49ers who are simply a different defense without Navorro Bowman. This is a solid option if he’s available on your waiver wire.

RUNNING BACK SITS

Jamaal Charles: He was saved by the TD, and is clearly getting worked back into the rotation. He touched the ball 11 times, and has more value in PPR leagues for now. He may score again, but it’s not worth the risk. See the above start: Ware, Spencer.

And who wants to depend on this Chiefs offense?

Matt Forte: The glory days of Weeks 1 and 2 are long gone. Let’s put it this way: in the last 4 games, Forte has rushed the ball 50 times. In the first 2 weeks, he rushed the ball 52 times. Powell is drastically cutting into his catches, and Fitzpatrick’s proclivity for turnovers is putting the Jets in holes that 30-year-old injured running backs can’t get them out of no matter what. Even in PPR leagues, he’s failed to score double-digit points in the last month.

All Oakland RBs: It’s unknown if Latavius Murray will be able to make it back in Week 7 (turf toe), but even if he didn’t, the DeAndre Washington/Jalen Richard Connection is unpredictable and simply not bearing fruit. Richard caught 2 balls for 5 yards and rushed it 4 times for 8 yards, while Washington rushed it just 10 times for 49 yards. There is no guy in this RB corps, just a group of dudes who will equal one mediocre RB when all the stats are added up.

WIDE RECEIVER STARTS

Michael Thomas: It’s Thomas, not Brandin Cooks, that has led the Saints in targets and receiving over the last three weeks. He’s scored a TD in the last 3 games, and is emerging as the dependable Cooks compliment with Willie Snead looking like he’s still nursing injuries. There are a lot of mouths to feed in New Orleans, and Road Brees™ is not the same as Home Brees™ but even a trip to KC should prove fruitful for Thomas. That’s what averaging over 8 targets a game will get you.

Allen Robinson: It seems like Bortles and Allen Robinson haven’t been on the same page in forever, but they should be able to get back on track against an Oakland pass defense that’s giving up 312 YPG. We saw the Bears, led by Cameron Meredith (???) carve up the Jacksonville secondary, so you can surely picture Michael Crabtree and Amari Cooper doing damage. This will force Bortles to chuck the ball and chuck it good. Robinson saw 21 targets in weeks 4 and 5 before seeing only 6 against the Bears, but this should be a get right game.

Pierre Garcon: With Jordan Reed out, Garcon has become the No. 1 target of Kirk Cousins. In fact, it was trending that way even with Reed playing. Garcon has only seen less than 7 targets twice this season (6 and 5) and saw 11 targets against Philly on Sunday. Washington is heading to Detroit, where they’ve had trouble covering the clear No. 1 receiver. This could be a fruitful day for a cheap DFS option. Monitor Reed’s concussion protocol, however.

WIDE RECEIVER SITS

Kendall Wright: This is for the desperate owner who has a perfect storm of BYE weeks — let’s wait on Wright. That 100-catch season is still in the back of many a waiver surfer’s mind, but Wright only played 22 snaps on Sunday, despite seeing 9 targets from Marcus Mariota (a 37.5 percent target share).

Michael Floyd: No. First off, Palmer’s hamstring injury is a non-issue. Second, Floyd is clearly the third receiver. Jaron Brown was hurt, and that may bump Floyd up a notch, but this whole passing offense looks off. I’ve already dropped him twice, and I will not go back. AriYellingFloydEntourage.wav. The worst part about Michael Floyd is the touchdown he scored against the lowly, lowly Jets.

Brandon Marshall: Ryan Fitzpatrick has been confirmed as the Week 7 starter, but he has to have a short leash. And if he’s pulled, what will Geno Smith do with Marshall? All of this is so ugly. Marshall had 3 catches for 70 yards against the Cardinals (Patrick Peterson covered him on the outside) on 6 targets, his lowest total of the season. Now he faces the Ravens, and is trending down. You probably have to play him if you got him, but would you play Cameron Meredith over him in Week 7? I would.

TIGHT END STARTS

Charles Clay: With Sammy Watkins out, Tyrod Taylor is utilizing his big man all over the field. Clay was solid for stretches last season, now he’s seen 19 targets in his last three games and is back on the radar for the jilted Gary Barnidge or Coby Fleener owner. He had 5/52 on Sunday, and is locked-in for a TD against Miami.

Jimmy Graham: It’s time. For the third week in a row, Jimmy Graham has dominated Seahawks targets, and now you must play him. Graham had 6 catches for 89 yards on 9 targets — a 25 percent target share. Arizona is one of the best in the league against the TE, and one of the best defenses in general, but the TE position is scarce, and full of nightmares. Position scarcity alone dictates this play.

Jack Doyle: It looks like Dwayne Allen is going to miss a week or two with a sprained ankle, which means this is the famed “Jack Doyle Show!” Actually, no one really knows what that means quite yet, but it’s clear that Doyle can catch the ball and Luck feels comfortable throwing it his way.

Andrew Luck is also finding the middle of the field better than he has in years.

TIGHT END SITS

Coby Fleener: He went off for 6/74/1 and even had a rushing TD (group hug, Mark Ingram owners) which means the fantasy football gods will shy away from him next week. You can depend on Fleener being undependable. In Week 4, before the BYE, he had 3 catches for 19 yards. In Week 3 he had 7/109/1. Week 2? He grabbed 2 balls for 29 yards.

Antonio Gates: This is the Hunter Henry show now. The changing of the guard we expected to happen with Ladarius Green has gone to Hunter, who finished as the top Chargers receiver against Denver, catching 6 balls for 83 yards and a TD. Gates had 2 for 19. Gates was second in targets for Rivers and co. but he’s looking old and slow.

When you don’t pick up Hunter Henry on the Waiver Wire:

Zach Ertz: What a disappointment. Seemingly healthy, Ertz simply hasn’t been looked at by Carson Wentz. He had 1 catch for 22 yards against Washington on Sunday, and only had 3 targets. He’s droppable. He proved that when he didn’t score a TD against Detroit last week. He has Minnesota and Dallas next and you don’t want a piece of that.

Waiver Wire

SF WR Torrey Smith: Kaepernick throws the ball. He doesn’t always throw the ball well, but Kaepernick throws the ball deep. Torrey Smith is a fast runner, and will catch a few deep balls. He’s as boom or bust as it gets. Be prepared for that.

CHI WR Cameron Meredith: Alshon Jeffery has yet to be the leading target-getter in Chicago all season, and in Week 6 his 13 targets were still somehow not a team-high. Cameron Meredith, 100 percent embedded as Kevin White’s replacement, got 15 targets. 15! Brian Hoyer loves this guy, so ride it for as long as you can.

MIA RB Jay Ajayi: You should probably already have him as a handcuff to Arian Foster, and you probably shouldn’t feel comfortable playing him against the Bills in Week 7, even with 25 carries against the Steelers. Just grab him and hold on for a playoff push.

NE RB Dion Lewis: He’s technically able to come off the PUP list and practice this week, but after having a second knee surgery just before the season, it’s likely the Patriots will keep him sidelined until after their BYE in Week 10. They don’t need to rush him back (despite being a hell of a player) with James White an admirable fill-in. Let’s not forget his 2015 start:

BUF WR Robert Woods: Tyrod Taylor doesn’t throw much, but he only has limited options downfield, and Woods is bound to get work. He had 5/44/1 against San Francisco, and that could be a dependable stat line beyond the TD. He’s a WR 3/4 in a PPR leagues.

CLE WR/QB/RB/COACH/General Manager Terrelle Pryor: For whatever reason, Pryor is barely owned in half of leagues. This must be rectified. If you have the stomach to play a Browns player, it should be him. You never know where he’s going to be scoring you points, but they will come.