Each loss can start hurting quite a bit more as we move toward the second half of the fantasy regular season so every lineup decision you make is a big one. Whether you’re a fantasy veteran or someone new to the fun, it’s not always as easy as starting the highest ranked players. Every player has the chance of putting up a big game or a dud. Fortunately, our featured pundits below have highlighted names you may want to consider starting that are deeper down in the rankings, and which higher ranked players could disappoint.

Matchups can easily change the outcome when it comes to fantasy football so have a look to see which players you should take note of.

If you don’t see any of your players listed below, be sure to check out our Who Should I Start? tool. You can also import your team into My Playbook for instant advice specific to your team.

Q1. Give us a player outside of our top 100 Flex that represents a deep sleeper start and tell us why you think he has upside this week.

Bennie Fowler (WR – DEN): at SD
“Fowler has an opportunity to surprise in week 7 due to the absence of Emmanuel Sanders. Demaryius Thomas has been banged up and Fowler has enough size to compete, so if Semien is forced to press the ball downfield you may see a surprise week from Fowler, who briefly flashed for two touchdowns in week 1.”
– Andy Holloway (The Fantasy Footballers)

George Kittle (TE – SF): vs. DAL
“Kittle continues to see his role expand – 11-129-1 the last two weeks, on 17 targets – and now his college roommate is the new San Francisco quarterback. I expect Kittle to be fantasy relevant for the remainder of the season, not just Week 7 against Dallas.”
– Scott Pianowski (Yahoo! Sports)

Austin Hooper (TE – ATL): at NE
“If you hadn’t noticed, the Falcons have started to get Austin Hooper much more involved in the offense. He’s now seen 16 targets in their last two games, hauling in 12 of them for 98 yards. Most will assume that the squeaky wheel gets the grease with Julio Jones this week, but Bill Belichick refuses to let opposing No. 1 options beat him. Not just that, but the Patriots weakness this year has been to the tight end position, allowing a tight end touchdown in five of their six games, including what should have been two to Austin Seferian-Jenkins last week. Hooper is on the TE1 radar and can be played in a flex-spot this week.”
– Mike Tagliere (FantasyPros)

Sterling Shepard (WR – NYG): vs. SEA
“Now that Shepard is back healthy, he should become the No. 1 option in an injury-riddled New York Giants’ receiving corps. Shepard should lead New York in targets and receptions moving forward and while a matchup with the Seahawks’ talented secondary doesn’t seem ideal, Shepard takes almost 90% of his snaps from the slot, where he’ll be paired with Seattle slot corner Jeremy Lane, who is Pro Football Focus’ 93rd ranked cornerback.”
– Jody Smith (Gridiron Experts)

Q2. On the flip side, what player inside the top 40 Flex is likely to disappoint fantasy owners this week?

T.Y. Hilton (WR – IND): vs. JAC
“Not many fantasy teams will have the depth to sit T.Y. Hilton, but consider it anyway. Jacksonville’s secondary is a lockdown group – Jalen Ramsey could be DPOTY someday – and Indianapolis will try to keep this game reasonable by focusing on the ground attack.”
– Scott Pianowski (Yahoo! Sports)

Keenan Allen (WR – SD): vs. DEN
“Going against Chris Harris Jr. has got to be one of the worst feelings for a wide receiver, as he’s been lights out for the last two years, allowing just 517 yards in his coverage on 103 targets. For those counting at home, that’s just 5.02 yards per target, meaning a wide receiver would have to see 20 targets (on average) just to hit the 100-yard threshold against him. It’s likely why Keenan Allen finished with just 35 yards on 10 targets in their first matchup this season. He’s also banged up and extremely questionable for this game, so just fade him entirely.”
– Mike Tagliere (FantasyPros)

C.J. Anderson (RB – DEN): at SD
“Everything points to a must-start week for C.J. Anderson, but I’m concerned with the three-headed monster that has emerged in Denver between Anderson, Charles, and now Booker who has stolen a number of the 3rd down snaps. This unpredictable rotation has me hesitant to buy into the former 20 carry upside that Anderson represented early in the week. I think you’ll be disappointed despite the matchup.”
– Andy Holloway (The Fantasy Footballers)

Mike Evans (WR – TB): at BUF
“With the exception of a 77-yard touchdown where the safety bit on play-action, Buffalo’s cornerbacks have done a good job limiting opposing WR1’s. Mike Evans takes the majority of his snaps in both outside receiver spots, where he will face off with both of Buffalo’s outside cornerbacks, E.J. Gaines and Tre’Davious White, who grade out as Pro Football Focus’ 21st and 4th ranked cornerbacks, respectively. Evans was mostly shut down by Patrick Peterson last week before scoring after Peterson left the game, so we could see another situation where Evans is held mostly in check by Buffalo’s talented duo.”
– Jody Smith (Gridiron Experts)

Thank you to the experts for naming their sleeper starts and sits. Be sure to give them a follow on Twitter if you’re not already doing so and check out our latest podcast below for more great advice.

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