Who To Start And Sit In Week 7 Of Fantasy Football

Week 7 is upon us, which means we have enough sample size relative to a full season to better understand players and team strengths. (Admittedly it’s still not a great sample size in relative statistical terms, but we only have 16 NFL games in a season per team.) Decisions get hard as guys have risen to new roles and people are unable to give up on the brand names they bought at the draft. If you’re still in that group, it’s time for a reality check or your season will be gone before you know it.

Now that you’ve acquired your new talent, it’s time to get your lineup in order. Below is a list of guys I’m focused on for one reason or another this week. They’re especially important in daily fantasy sports leagues like DraftKings. If you’re curious about guys you don’t see listed here, you can always find me on Twitter (@MrT_BroBible) to ask questions, but remember to mention league specifics like PPR. You can always ask about trades as well.

You Know Who You Should Start?

Carson Palmer (QB – Arizona)
It took a bit for Palmer to wake up his shoulder, but now he’s back at full force and slinging away. He’s got a great stable of receivers and it showed to the tune of 250 yards and two touchdowns. Now he gets the Raiders’ defense, who has allowed at least two touchdowns to opposing quarterbacks in home games. This is exactly the explosive Cardinals’ passing game we were expecting to see this season and this week will be another boon to their stock.

Branden Oliver (RB – San Diego)
We had Oliver in this space last week and he didn’t disappoint. His window of use is short, so make sure you get the best out of him while you can since you likely spent a decent amount of waiver dollars or priority on him. The Chiefs haven’t allowed a rushing touchdown this year, but they’re 28th in the league at yards per carry allowed with 4.8. Oliver should be able to do damage.

Justin Forsett (RB – Baltimore)
Only a few weeks ago we were wondering what the situation would be in the Ravens’ backfield. Now it looks like Forsett has somehow wrestled the opportunity out of everyone’s hands to the tune of double-digit fantasy points in three straight weeks. He’s good for 10-15 touches a game and those touches will count this week against the most porous defense for fantasy running backs. The Falcons are giving up 27.5 points a game to fantasy RBs, so Forsett should see plenty of success here.

Golden Tate (WR – Detroit)
Tate was excelling this year in part because of Calvin Johnson’s presence, so owners were worried when Tate bottomed out last week in Calvin’s absence. Tate will rebound this week against one of the worst pass defenses in the league and show that last week’s situation was more of a blip on the radar. Johnson is still out, but the Saints have continually been gashed, especially for touchdowns, by opposing wide receivers. Tate will get things going again on Sunday.

Cecil Shorts III (WR – Jacksonville)
Last week was the first week Jacksonville had all their WRs and Shorts led the way with 10 catches. That helped answer the question of who would rise to the top in the Jaguars’ receiving situation. As the Jags will likely trail in all their games this year, Shorts will see a lot of garbage time output. The Browns aren’t a great defensive secondary after T.J. Ward to the Broncos and seeing that Joe Haden has become overrated.

Jordan Cameron (TE – Cleveland)
Cameron’s owners were very disappointed with their boy earlier in the season because his shoulder injury held him down. Last week he showed what he can do when healthy as he put together two long catches, including a big touchdown. He will continue to show his worth this week ,as the Jaguars having allowed touchdowns to tight ends in four of six games and 57 yards more in the same amount of opportunities.

You Know Who You Should Sit?

Drew Brees (QB – New Orleans)
Something has been slightly off for Brees all year and things won’t get much better with Jimmy Graham out of the lineup for a few weeks. It gets worse when you realize he’s facing the Lions this week, who have held opposing fantasy quarterbacks to the lowest fantasy points per game of any team in the league. It’s not the Lions’ defense we’ve been used to historically.

Bishop Sankey (RB – Tennessee)
It took until Week 6 but Sankey finally got the lion’s share of carries in a game. His 18 carries against Jacksonville is a sign of things to come, but he won’t see success with his touches this week. The Redskins are really good against the run, having only allowed one rushing touchdown this year and keeping RBs under 100 rushing yards in 4 of 6 games. Their secondary is so bad that teams attack the weakness, which means the Titans will be airing it out on Sunday and Sankey won’t be successful.

Jerick McKinnon (RB – Minnesota)
The best athlete at the position league-wide finally got burn last week with 11 carries and 16 touches. McKinnon out-snapped Matt Asiata by a wide margin. For some silly reason, Minnesota said this week that they want to get Asiata more involved (possibly because McKinnon still isn’t a good pass-blocker) and that McKinnon’s snaps will be reduced. Add in that the Bills aren’t the toughest defense for fantasy RBs and Jerick should be on your bench this week.

Brian Quick (WR – St. Louis)
Last week was the first week Richard Sherman moved around the field at cornerback. It was likely due in part to the injury of his partner Bryon Maxwell with Seattle realizing they needed to put Sherman on the other team’s best receiver. Sherman should follow Quick around this week because the Rams have no talent anywhere else at the receiving core, which means Quick won’t produce much if at all for you against the Seahawks.

Michael Crabtree (WR – San Francisco)
Maybe it’s the foot issue that Crabtree is nursing or maybe it’s the depth at receiver for San Francisco, but Crabtree isn’t getting things done in his contract year. He hasn’t had 100 yards receiving in a game yet with 82 as his high and two-thirds of his games he’s producing 49 yards or less. Now he’ll be shadowed by one of the best corners in the game in Aquib Talib and will continue to disappoint his owners.

Vernon Davis (TE – San Francisco)
Not only is Davis not deserving of a fat new contract, but he’s not deserving of the contract he currently owns. He’s now 30 years old and clearly not as dominant as he once was. He’s been really disappointing this year having not topped 44 yards in the game he’s played and only scoring touchdowns in one of those four. You can’t start Davis until he shows you something because the 49ers have too many other guys to make plays with the ball.