Welcome to Week 7!
With zero 30-point half-PPR performance this past week, there’s a chance you looked at your fantasy lineup on Sunday night with contempt. Even though the Texans and Jaguars kicked off the weekend with a 65-point London outing, no one had a truly monster week for fantasy. And if you started Cam Skattebo who got 0 carries… my condolences. And if you’re like me, maybe you picked up Najee Harris right before kickoff just to watch him get cut by the Giants on Tuesday… That’s fantasy football for you!
We’re onto Week 7 though where we see the Bills, Chargers, Commanders, and Jaguars head to bye, so QBs (Jayden Daniels, Josh Allen, Trevor Lawrence) will be a priority in the streaming pecking order. We’ve had quite a few rookie WRs break out the last couple of games: Germie Bernard has strung together 2 impressive performances for the Steelers, and Omar Cooper Jr. had 103 yards and a touchdown against the Patriots. I’m watching the latter carefully this week, but he’s not firmly in my lineups until I see it again.
We kick things off with a TNF banger between Chicago and New England before 5 divisional games and an intriguing contest between Kansas City and Seattle on SNF. Perhaps the most interesting game of the week is at Allegiant Stadium where the 2-4 Rams will try to get right against the Raiders who just took the Bills to the wire. And the certified shootout of the week should come in Detroit where defense is optional. Jahmyr Gibbs managers lick their chops at another juicy matchup against Green Bay, a team that has not defended the run well at all.
As always, if you need any trade advice or bespoke start/sit decisions, my full weekly rankings, rest-of-season rankings, and trade calculator are available on grankfantasyfootball.com.
P.S. — the below rankings in my newsletter are half-PPR by default. The website will always have my full PPR and standard scoring rankings as well.
View Full RankingsWeek 7 Rankings
QB:
Favorite Plays: C.J. Stroud may have been a waiver wire add this week, but that shouldn’t stop you from slotting him into your starting lineup against the Giants. Stroud has scored 22+ fantasy points in 3 straight contests, and the run game isn’t getting better any time soon in Houston. You can also play either QB in the Detroit vs. Green Bay game pretty confidently. That matchup has a 53.5-point O/U and should yield a ton of yards for both quarterbacks.
Leave on the Bench: I wouldn’t be tempted by the AZ matchup for Bo Nix. He’s given you 7 and 4 fantasy points in his last 2 starts and just isn’t throwing the ball down the field anywhere near enough to pay off for fantasy. There should be better options on the waiver wire until he proves otherwise. Patrick Mahomes is also a bench for me right now. 0 passing TDs and an interception in the Chargers game is proof they don’t really need him to score a ton or utilize his legs that often now that Kenneth Walker is in town.
Sleepers: Kyler Murray is a streaming option this week with the Vikings playing the Colts, a team giving up the 10th most fantasy points to the QB position. I’m also willing to start Aaron Rodgers against the Saints in Paris. Unlike the Chiefs who don’t need to throw the ball as often around the goal line, the Steelers are almost exclusively scoring touchdowns through the air, and Germie Bernard is emerging as an added weapon for Rodgers.
RB:
Favorite Plays: Breece Hall coming off the injury should go right back into lineups with Miami as the opponent (the team giving up the 2nd most points to fantasy RBs). If Hall somehow misses again, Allen is a perfectly suitable spot start, as he’s been in past contests. Chuba Hubbard is emerging as a top 15 RB rest-of-season and can be played in just about any matchup, but I like him a lot against the Buccaneers. I also think Josh Jacobs (who’s expected to make his 2026 debut on Sunday) should have a good game against Detroit, even if he’s technically easing back into playing.
Leave on the Bench: Anyone in the Seattle backfield is going to be hard for me to start, assuming Zach Charbonnet makes his return against the Chiefs. It’s a touch matchup, and I want to see how Mike Macdonald utilizes Charbonnet, Wilson, and Holani — I’m expecting a full-blown committee. I’d also try to avoid starting Patriots’ running backs right now. Corey Kiner’s involvement against New York makes me wonder if TreVeyon Hendeson and Rhamondre Stevenson get squeezed out even further and this becomes a three-man show. If you have to start one, roll with Rhamondre.
Sleepers: Dare I call him a sleeper at this point, but Ollie Gordon can be confidently played against the Jets. It seems clear he’s the lead back in Miami, and while TD opportunities will be limited, he can volume his way to 10-15 half-PPR points. J.K. Dobbins and RJ Harvey are both in play against Arizona this week. Even though I won’t start Bo Nix, the conservative nature of Sean Payton’s offense lends itself to plenty of rush attempts and short yardage throws, so both guys can expect plenty of touches this week.
WR:
Favorite Plays: I think A.J. Brown has a really good week against Chicago in primetime. He caught just 3 of 10 targets, shaking off the inevitable rust, but we know he’s a better receiver than that, and with Romeo Doubs on IR, he’ll keep getting the looks. JJ McCarthy starting against Houston makes me a bit nervous, but I’d still easily start Malik Nabers this week. McCarthy got him the ball early and often in the 4th quarter against the Saints, and I think this is a matchup where New York is throwing a ton, yet again.
Leave on the Bench: Josh Downs is incredibly hard to trust right now, and if you had to start a Colts WR, I’d be much more willing to give Keenan Allen (11, 9, and 9 targets in his last 3 contests) a shot. I like the Omar Cooper Jr. bench stash but want to give him 1 more week before I call him a flex option. This is a low O/U game against Miami, and it’s possible there’s not a lot of fantasy points to go around on either side of the ball.
Sleepers: Tre Tucker is once again a sleeper in a home matchup against the Rams, a defense we thought would be elite but surprisingly has been fine to target for fantasy. I would not be surprised if Kirk Cousins keeps that game close and airs it out yet again. Demario Douglas against Chicago is also not a bad play at all — he’s gone for 20.5 and 16.1 half-PPR points in his last 2 contests on 49% and 59% of snaps. With Doubs now on IR, I expect him to emerge into NE’s WR2 role.
TE:
Favorite Plays: The Lions are giving up the most fantasy points to TEs this year, so even though Tucker Kraft didn’t get super involved against Dallas, he should be started again this week. I also like Colston Loveland against New England and think his semi “breakout” performance against Atlanta is a sign of better days ahead. Juwan Johnson is also a fine play against Pittsburgh even though he had a goose egg against the Giants. I think that was a fluke outcome, and the TE position isn’t that deep for pivot options.
Leave on the Bench: Even though he’s my TE9 this week, I understand if you want to let Harold Fannin Jr. ride the bench until he earns it again. 2 receptions in the last 2 games combined is rough, but he has as much upside as most guys you’d find off waivers. And while I really liked Dallas Goedert’s outlook with Jalen Hurts, the QB situation with Tanner McKee puts me more in “wait and see” mode.
Sleepers: Michael Mayer went for 13 points against the Bills and has delivered double digit fantasy performances 3 times this year. I think there are worse options if you’re in need of a stream. I’d also consider Pat Freiermuth in play again due to target consolidation in Pittsburgh despite the down week for Freiermuth against Tampa Bay.
G-RANK Game of the Week for Fantasy
The Dallas / Green Bay game didn’t deliver fireworks quite like I thought, as Dak Prescott and the Cowboys offense continue to struggle. But moving on to Week 7, don’t sleep on the Thursday Night Football matchup. The New England Patriots at the Chicago Bears is a game between 2 incredibly high-powered offenses, and Drake Maye has been the QB1, QB1, and QB3 the last 3 weeks after looking useless to start the year. I think the Patriots go on the road and win this game, but I expect it to be one where the 2 teams trade blows and deliver week-winning fantasy performances. Caleb Williams didn’t miss a beat in his first week back. I’m locking A.J. Brown back into my lineups too despite the drops last week, and I think he breaks out for the first time as a Patriot.
G-RANK Weekly Sleeper Pick
Germie Bernard for the win! The Steelers’ rookie WR came through with a massive 11 receptions, 87 yards, and 1 touchdown to beat the Buccaneers. He’s a weekly WR2 option moving forward, and if you picked him up off waivers… major kudos. I’m going to roll deep on this one and take Konata Mumpfield as my sleeper pick for week 7. He steps into the assumed WR2 role for the Rams after Davanate Adams went down with a hamstring injury, and the last time he logged significant snaps (73% in Week 3), he went off for 93 yards and a score on 8 targets against the Broncos. There’s a real chance Sean McVay replaces Adams with a ton of TE usage, but I also think Mumpfield has the skillset to provide a decent pivot option for fantasy managers on a very good offense.
Thanks for reading this week! G-RANK has you covered for full top 200 rankings (half-PPR, full-PPR, standard) for this week and the rest-of-season. Be sure to also leverage the start / sit tool, trade calculator, and more for decisions specific to your league!
View Full RankingsFollow @gRankFantasy on Twitter for more!
Talk soon,
G-RANK Fantasy Football
grankfantasyfootball.com
