Here’s a look at our waiver wire rankings, along with feedback from our experts, Dan Harris, Kyle Yates, Joe Pisapia, and Pat Fitzmaurice.
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Week 7 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Rankings
Q1. Who is your top waiver wire option of the week, and why?
It’s not a great waiver wire week, but the top option for me is D’Ernest Johnson. Kareem Hunt suffered a calf injury in Sunday’s game against the Cardinals and Nick Chubb missed the game with his own calf injury. The Browns now have a quick turnaround and play on Thursday so neither Hunt nor Chubb seems likely to be ready to play. Both Johnson and Demetric Felton should see touches in the Browns’ backfield, but Johnson is more likely to get the bulk of the work on the ground, while Felton acts as more of the pass-catcher. Baker Mayfield is banged up, the offensive line is banged up, and the Browns take on a likely embarrassed Denver team who will try to make a defensive statement, but the lead running back for Cleveland has immense value. Because that person is likely to be Johnson on Thursday, he’s my top pick-up.
– Dan Harris (@danharris80)
As of right now, D’Ernest Johnson gets the nod as my top waiver wire option for the week. With Nick Chubb battling a calf injury, there’s the possibility that he doesn’t make it back in time for the Thursday Night game against Denver. Even if he does, is he going to be receiving his full workload? Additionally, Kareem Hunt left last week’s game with what looked like a potentially major injury, so this opens up a role for Johnson in this offense. It’s not the best matchup against Denver this week, but Johnson could potentially either fill a valuable FLEX role for fantasy rosters that are struggling with bye weeks or he could end up being a mid-range/low-end RB2 play if Chubb is unable to go simply based on volume.
– Kyle Yates (@KyleYNFL)
Darnell Mooney offers the most short and long term appeal this week off the wire. After hauling in 5 of his 8 targets this week against Green Bay, Mooney also saw his first TD of the year. As the season goes on, Money and Fields will continue to grow together. This week’s matchup against a dreadful Tampa Bay Secondary is too good to pass up.
– Joe Pisapia (@JoePisapia17)
Unfortunately, we have six teams on bye this week and it’s not a great week for waiver wire shopping. There’s a case to be made that D’Ernest Johnson is the top option because he’s likely to be the Browns’ lead RB when they face the Broncos on Thursday . I’ll contend that Trey Lance should be the top target for QB-needy and bye-afflicted fantasy managers. It won’t always be pretty for the toolsy rookie as he learns to decipher NFL defenses, but much like Eagles QB Jalen Hurts, Lance can be a very effective fantasy quarterback even if he isn’t always an effective real-life quarterback. That’s the benefit of Konami Code quarterbacks. Lance is going to get rushing points every week. The passing numbers will be erratic, but the rushing numbers give Lance an appealing weekly floor AND ceiling.
– Pat Fitzmaurice (@Fitz_FF)
Q2. Which high-end waiver wire option for Week 7 was the most difficult to rank?
T.Y. Hilton came back into the lineup with a force this past week and torched the Texans for big gains repeatedly, which he has certainly been known to do throughout his career. While he could have value as a FLEX play moving forward, the fact that Hilton left last week’s game late with a leg injury makes it difficult to rank him until we get more information. We’ll have to wait and see what the diagnosis is and hopefully get some clarity before waivers run on Tuesday night.
– Kyle Yates (@KyleYNFL)
D’Ernest Johnson could be the lead back Thursday for the Browns if Nick Chubb returns, now that Hunt is expected to miss weeks. However, many still recall blowing a lot of FAB on Johnson last year under similar circumstances only to be severely disappointed in the return. I don’t love spending FAB on a quick fix player with a limited window of usefulness.
– Joe Pisapia (@JoePisapia17)
Kenyan Drake scored a pair of touchdowns in the Raiders’ first game post-Gruden, but Drake’s usage wasn’t really much different than it had been with Gruden commanding the offense. Drake played 21% of the Raiders’ offensive snaps in Week 6 and had six touches. Is he worth a dart throw? I tend to think not, but there’s always an unquenchable thirst for running backs once the bye weeks hit, so Drake is going to be a popular waiver target this week.
– Pat Fitzmaurice (@Fitz_FF)
Q3. For managers renting a D/ST in Week 7, what readily available option (under 40%) should they target?
The options certainly are not plentiful for week 7, so Miami stands out as the best available option going up against Atlanta. While Miami’s been gashed recently, they should get some key players back in their secondary for this next game and Atlanta hasn’t consistently put up big point totals. It’s a risk, but they’re the best available option with so many teams on bye.
– Kyle Yates (@KyleYNFL)
The Raiders are an intriguing play against a Philly offense that seems to be without an identity. They don’t run the ball at all, and that imbalance is taking its toll on Jalen Hurts ability to run the offense.
– Joe Pisapia (@JoePisapia17)
The New Orleans Saints have a high-quality defense and get a date with Geno Smith and the Seahawks in Week 6. I’ll have the Saints ranked as a top-three defense this week.
– Pat Fitzmaurice (@Fitz_FF)
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Notable Week 7 Waiver Wire FAB Recommendations (in %)
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Q4. Which Week 7 waiver wire option carries the biggest risk of being a waste of FAB dollars?
People are going to look at the final fantasy point totals for Kenyan Drake and assume that he's now consistently going to be a valuable high-end RB3 every week. While he scored two touchdowns, it's important to note that he only totaled six touches this past week. That type of volume is not going to lead to consistent fantasy production, so we need to adjust our expectations. He's worth adding - especially with so many teams on bye - but we shouldn't be throwing significant amounts of FAB his way.
- Kyle Yates (@KyleYNFL)
It has to be T.Y. Hilton. I'm sure many took a "wait and see approach" this week with Hilton. What they saw was Hilton catch all 4 of his targets for 80 yards. Now, he will be a very popular addition in many casual leagues. Hilton carries enormous injury risk though, so just understand that when setting your bids.
- Joe Pisapia (@JoePisapia17)
D'Ernest Johnson. Fantasy managers will bid aggressively for a running back likely to get at least 12-15 touches in Week 6. But Johnson is a former undrafted free agent who doesn't have an especially compelling prospect profile, the Broncos are going to be a tough matchup for him on Thursday, and Johnson's fantasy value doesn't figure to be long-lasting.
- Pat Fitzmaurice (@Fitz_FF)
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