TJ Horgan | Sun, Oct 16th 2022, 7:45pm EDT

Fantasy Football Week 7 Early Wavier Wire Targets (2022)

Don’t you love how predictable this game is?

As everyone expected: Bailey Zappe torched the Browns’ defense, the Jets beat the Packers by three scores, The Mitch Trubisky-led Steelers beat the Buccaneers, the Falcons crushed the 49ers, and Kyle Pitts scored on American soil.

Ah, fantasy football.

Here are some names that stood out as viable waiver claims after today’s early slate of games.

Running Backs

Deon Jackson and Phillip Lindsay (RB – IND): 23%, 5% rostered

This really boils down to playing the Colts’ running back atop their depth chart, given the plethora of injuries. There’s a pretty clear pecking order of Jonathan Taylor, Nyheim Hines, Deon Jackson, and Phillip Lindsay. If Taylor and Hines are out again, snag and start Jackson. If all three are out, it’s time to roll out Lindsay.

Mark Ingram (RB – NO): 13% rostered

I’m really only prioritizing adding Ingram if you have Alvin Kamara. Ingram appears to be the direct backup with a touch of weekly involvement at the moment. If Kamara goes down, you’ll be glad you have Ingram.

Caleb Huntley (RB – ATL): 6% rostered

If you’re in a deep league or really thin at RB, I’d snag Huntley and pray for a touchdown. He’s leading a timeshare in Atlanta with Tyler Allgeier at the moment. Huntley is a bruising bowling ball of a running back who doesn’t provide a ton of pass-catching upside, but Atlanta has proven they trust him in goal-to-go situations.

Wide Receivers

Wan’Dale Robinson (WR – NYG): 6% rostered

The 2022 second-round pick reminded everyone why the Giants invested in him despite their seemingly loaded receiving corps. Robinson caught a touchdown early, and that’s all I needed to see to make him waiver-wire-worthy this week. The Giants’ newfound offensive momentum can only do good things for Robinson. With how injured their aforementioned group of receivers is, I wouldn’t be shocked if the Giants start feeding their rookie.

Tyquan Thornton (WR – NE): 1% rostered

Thornton ran a blazing sub-4.3 40-yard dash en route to his selection by the Patriots in the second round of this year’s draft. He’s dealt with some injuries but unleashed some tantalizing potential today. In the Patriots’ offense, any receiver can become fantasy-relevant on any given week. It seems as though there’s no rhyme or reason. Thornton, however, should have some staying power because of both his draft stock and ability to run the football, as evidenced by his three carries for 16 yards and a touchdown today. Now that Kendrick Bourne is injured, there should be even more opportunities for Thornton to win a starting job.

Tight Ends

Mike Gesicki (TE – MIA): 41% rostered

I guess Mike Gesicki is back? It seems as though everyone who can possibly touch the football in Miami is injured, so as long as that remains the situation, I’d gladly start Gesicki.

Robert Tonyan (TE – GB): 27% rostered

Tonyan surprised every fantasy football manager in the world today, as he provided value without scoring a touchdown. He caught 10 of 12 targets for 90 yards. With Randall Cobb sidelined now, Tonyan is a trusted receiving option for Aaron Rodgers.

Daniel Bellinger (TE – NYG): 2% rostered

This is for TE-premium or deep league players. Bellinger is the starting TE for a banged-up Giants team. His ceiling isn’t super high, but he’s averaging four targets a game in the last four weeks. That’s something, I guess.

Quarterbacks

Matt Ryan (QB – IND): 13% rostered

Throwing Matt Ryan in your starting lineups is about as close to fantasy Russian Roulette as it gets. However, he threw for nearly 400 yards and three touchdowns today. Granted, it was against Jacksonville, but their defense isn’t as bad as it has been in years past. If Michael Pittman is healthy, I’m fine starting Matty Ice in a pinch.

Marcus Mariota (QB – ATL): 15% rostered

I absolutely love Mariota’s next two games. He’s got the Bengals and Panthers. With an undeniable rushing baseline, I love this addition and consider him to start some games for you if you’re not rocking a studly QB.

Kickers

Cade York (K – CLE): 18% rostered

Cleveland’s offensive woes continued today, but that only helped the rookie’s fantasy value. York has been perfect at kicking field goals in five of six games this year. I’m loving his opportunities in the coming weeks against division rivals.

Jason Sanders (K – MIA): 5% rostered

Sanders is widely available, and with the Dolphins’ quarterback room thoroughly banged up, he should be in line for some more solid usage assuming Tua Tagovailoa misses week seven. Even if Tua plays, you could do worse than Sanders at home against Pittsburgh.

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