Week 7 saw plenty of good and bad fantasy performances, especially with some unexpected names rising to the top of fantasy leaderboards due to six teams on Bye. Most notably, D’Onta Foreman (RB – Bears) took advantage of the Bears’ offensive injuries, ripping off three touchdowns and over 100 scrimmage yards to lead Chicago to a 30-12 win over the Las Vegas Raiders, finishing as the overall RB1.
Lamar Jackson (QB – Ravens) and Patrick Mahomes (QB – Chiefs) returned immense value for fantasy managers, as each managed 33.8 fantasy points, combining for eight total touchdowns and each recording at least 357 passing yards in wins over Detroit and the Los Angeles Chargers. Travis Kelce (TE – Chiefs) benefitted greatly from Mahomes’ four-touchdown, 424 passing yards outing, hauling in 12 receptions for 179 yards and a touchdown to blow away the rest of the fantasy tight end landscape. Even Gardner Minshew (QB – Colts), who has played volatile under center for Indianapolis, wound up as the overall QB3 due to throwing for over 300 yards and two touchdowns, while adding two rushing touchdowns, operating the RPO effectively against the Browns’ top-tier defense.
For as many studs that we saw produce for their fantasy managers in Week 7, there were a lot of duds from prominent players as well. These included Josh Jacobs (RB – Raiders), Austin Ekeler (RB – Chargers), and Cooper Kupp (WR – Rams), all of whom finished close to or outside of the top-36 at their respective positions.
NFL fantasy analyst Matt MacKay is here to provide his latest analysis on Week 7 studs and duds using half-PPR scoring to help identify whether these players are trending up, down, or had outlier finishes to properly prepare for future matchups.
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Studs
Lamar Jackson (QB – Ravens)
Right from the jump, Lamar Jackson signified he was locked in, ready to shred one of the league’s best defenses in a marquee matchup. Jackson recorded over 300 passing yards for the first time this season, while also throwing three touchdowns for the first time as well, racking up fantasy production through the air with relative ease. He also used his legs and mobility to score a rushing touchdown, his fifth of the season, carrying nine times for 36 yards. Jackson is a bonafide top-five fantasy quarterback rest of season, whose floor was shown against Pittsburgh, which is notoriously his worst matchup to overcome.
D’Onta Foreman (RB – Bears)
Chicago’s game plan with Tyson Bagent (QB – Bears) under center was to hand the ball off to D’onta Foreman, stepping into the RB1 role due to a depleted Bears backfield. Foreman rose to the occasion, scoring three total touchdowns, accounting for all three trips to the end zone for Chicago against a porous Raiders run defense. Foreman should be viewed as a mid-range RB2 as long as he retains the lead back role, landing another solid matchup against the Chargers in Week 8.
Jahmyr Gibbs (RB – Lions)
We finally saw rookie Jahmyr Gibbs find his way into the end zone in garbage time against Baltimore, ripping off an impressive run showcasing his speed and elusiveness on the way to his first career touchdown. Gibbs handled 11 carries for 68 yards, but the exciting part was watching Jared Goff (QB – Lions) pepper him with targets, which resulted in nine receptions for 58 yards on ten passes. As long as David Montgomery (RB – Lions) is out of the picture, Gibbs can be plugged into lineups as a high-end RB2, especially in a top-five fantasy matchup against Las Vegas in Week 8.
A.J. Brown (WR – Eagles)
A.J. Brown just set a historic mark in the NFL for a wide receiver, finishing with 10 receptions for 137 yards and a touchdown in a statement win over Miami on Sunday Night Football. Brown started quietly this season, but now, he’s recorded five consecutive games with at least 127 receiving yards and eight receptions, making him an undisputed WR1 for the rest of the fantasy football season. He’s only scored four touchdowns, so if these continue to tick up, fantasy managers will rejoice about the immense production he’s capable of recording in fantasy lineups, vying for the overall WR1 spot after outplaying Tyreek Hill (WR – Dolphins) head-to-head in Week 7.
Puka Nacua (WR – Rams)
The expected demise of Puka Nacua has not occurred, as the rookie wideout bounced back from a down week to finish as the overall WR4 in fantasy despite losing to Pittsburgh at SoFi Stadium in Week 7. Nacua was Matthew Stafford’s (QB – Rams) preferred target in a plus-matchup against the Steelers, earning 12 targets and hauling in eight of them for 154 yards. He didn’t even need a touchdown to get to this benchmark, so until further notice, Nacua remains a must-start and a fringe WR1 prospect for the rest of the season, but he’ll climb even higher in fantasy football rankings if he manages to produce these numbers against Dallas in Week 8.
Travis Kelce (TE – Chiefs)
We touched on Travis Kelce’s dominant performance in the intro, as he balled out on National Tight End day, scoring a touchdown and moving the chains as Mahomes’ favorite target in a top-heavy Chiefs offense. Kelce has nine to 12 receptions in three consecutive games, after missing Week 1 and starting slow against Jacksonville in Week 2. Fantasy managers who used first or second-round draft capital on Kelce should feel fantastic about their roster, as he’s showing no signs of slowing this frenzied pace.
Duds
Austin Ekeler (RB – Chargers)
Fantasy managers who opted to draft Austin Ekeler in the second round of fantasy drafts must be kicking themselves through seven weeks. Even when the Chargers scored a rushing touchdown against the Chiefs in Week 7, Ekeler’s second game back from injury, it was Joshua Kelley (RB – Chargers) who logged a big touchdown run in a game that Los Angeles never felt competitive in. Ekeler has gone 1.9 YPC and 3.2 YPC since coming back, although these have been against the Cowboys and Chiefs, so brighter days should be ahead. For now, Ekeler is a mid-range RB2 with low-end RB1 upside, as he continues handling 14 carries, although his targets have gone way down with OC Kellen Moore in town.
Cooper Kupp (WR – Rams)
Pittsburgh smothered Cooper Kupp in Week 7, eliminating Stafford’s favorite target, holding him to two receptions for 29 yards on seven targets. Tutu Atwell (WR – Rams) jumped in front of Kupp to steal a potential touchdown, while Kupp caught a two-point conversion to raise his floor slightly to 5.9 fantasy points despite playing in a plus-matchup. This was more about the Steelers’ game plan eliminating Kupp, which saw Puka Nacua dominate instead, but Kupp should bounce back in the upcoming weeks, but it’ll be tough in Week 8 on the road in Dallas. Still, Kupp is a WR1 that has to be locked into lineups, although this low floor is new, so fantasy managers will want to keep a close eye on Kupp moving forward.
Michael Mayer (TE – Raiders)
The hype surrounding Michael Mayer quickly died against Chicago in Week 7. The rookie tight end was ninth on the Raiders for fantasy points at 2.3 in a good matchup against a bad Bears defense. Austin Hooper (TE – Raiders) managed to finish higher than Mayer, while only Jakobi Meyers (WR – Raiders) recorded double-digit fantasy production. The Raiders offense needs Jimmy Garoppolo (QB – Raiders) or Aidan O’Connell (QB – Raiders) over journeyman Brian Hoyer (QB – Raiders), who simply looks unfit for the role of QB1. Mayer is a stash candidate for now, but he can also be cut to waivers in favor of other streaming options.
Jared Goff (QB – Lions)
The party ended for Detroit on the road against Baltimore in Week 7. Jared Goff was pressured constantly, which led to his worst outing of the fantasy football season, although he did manage to preserve some value late, recording 284 passing yards on a whopping 53 pass attempts. Goff doesn’t have the highest floor but he is a capable ball carrier in the red zone against bad run defenses, which is what he’s presented with against the Raiders in Week 8 in prime time back home at Ford Field. The Raiders aren’t the best matchup for fantasy quarterbacks, but Goff plays much better at home, so he can be plugged into lineups as a fringe QB1. Even if fantasy managers opt to bench Goff, he needs to remain rostered due to his situation on a good offense.
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Matthew MacKay is a featured writer for FantasyPros. For more from Matthew, check out his archive and follow him @Matt_MacKay_.
