Fantasy Football ‘24: Waiver Wire, Week 7 edition

Welcome to the Fantasy Football Waiver Wire for Week 7! The NFL season is rolling along, and while multiple players either missed Week 6 or got hurt while playing this past week, a number of prominent players have either returned from injury or are slated to do so in the next couple of weeks. For the first time in a while, it feels like there are more choices for fantasy managers as we fill out starting lineups. Also, after back-to-back weeks with four teams on Bye, there are only two this week, and then none in Week 8. Then they restart in Week 9. Why is this the case? Good question. It’s the NFL, so somehow, it must have to do with money.

The Process: Each week, I try to identify the top Waiver Wire targets and evaluate the short- and long-term prospects of those players. I also do my best to reveal which players who are coming off a big week are fool’s gold. Finally, I look at streamers who might help you in a pinch (this is usually more important during Bye weeks). Note that I’m writing this column BEFORE the Week 6 Monday night game between the Jets and Bills.

Some players discussed won’t be available in your league. I try to list players who are available in more than 50% of leagues. But what does that even mean? A 10-team league with six bench spots will have a much larger Free Agent pool than a 14-team league with eight. Most leagues fall somewhere in between. This isn’t “one size fits all.” By way of example, I won’t list Tyrone Tracy, Jr., Tyler Allgeier, Antonio Gibson, Chase Brown, Josh Downs, or Cole Kmet this week, among others who almost certainly aren’t available in any of your leagues. Those players would all be priority adds, if available.

Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

WEEK 7 BYES: CHI, DAL

Week 7 Waiver Wire

Quarterback:

Drake Maye. I’ve touted Maye as a stash for the last few weeks, and he finally got his chance to play on Sunday. He’s going to make mistakes, he’s playing behind a bad line, and his receivers are unproven. That said, he threw for 265 yards and three TDs in his debut and showed off his live arm and his ability to escape the pocket and run. His team is bad, and will be trailing more often than not. Those are very good ingredients for some decent fantasy performances. The cherry on top is that you can stream him right away, if needed. He gets the Jaguars this week (in London), and they’ve allowed the most fantasy points per game to opposing quarterbacks. I love him as a pickup in Superflex.

Andy Dalton. The Panthers are also one of the worst teams in the NFL. See a pattern? In their case, they’ve got an OK offensive line, and some decent running backs and receivers. At some point maybe they’ll give Bryce Young another shot, but for now, Dalton is the guy, and we’ve already seen that he’s capable of spike weeks. Like Maye, you can start him if and when you need him, and you could do worse at QB2 in a Superflex.

Tua Tagovailoa. His roster percentage on Yahoo is listed at 44%, which surprised me. Maybe they don’t count teams that have him in an IR spot. Anyway, if the Tua manager in your league cut bait, he’s a decent stash as he’s eligible to return to action as early as Week 8. It’s unclear when he might return, and this offense is never going to look like the Greatest Show on Surf that we saw last year, but with the abundance of playmakers surrounding him, he could help you at some point.

More QB Streamers. If you’re stuck and need a Week 7 streamer, in addition to Maye, consider Justin Herbert (vs. ARI). He’ll likely be down some receivers, but it’s a tasty matchup (Jordan Love just lit up this defense for four TDs). If you’ve got a strong stomach you can also think about Daniel Jones (vs. PHI). He disappointed vs. the Bengals but was pretty good the week before, and should have Malik Nabers back, against a sub-par pass defense. Finally, Matt Stafford (vs. LV) is another you can consider, and he might get Puka Nacua back this week. See? Players are returning!

And finally, don’t give up hope, #DawgPound! I still think Jameis Winston is worth stashing if you have the space. How long can the Browns keep rolling out a quarterback whose team hasn’t scored more than 18 points in six tries (and counting)? I guess we’ll see. If you’re really stuck in a Superflex, Spencer Rattler looked Ok in his NFL debut, and should get a few more starts while Derek Carr heals.

Running Back

Alexander Mattison. The Raiders have the look and feel of a team slowly falling apart, and this wasn’t a particularly good offense to begin with. That said, we’re talking about fantasy football, where it’s usually hard to find RBs that you can plug in. I think Mattison is better than Zamir White and will continue to get meaningful snaps even when White returns.

Kamani Vidal. It’s always fun when a guy scores on his first NFL touch. Adrian Peterson did it in 2007, and so did Vidal on Sunday. The comparison probably ends there, but with Gus Edwards on IR, the 5th round pick from Troy should see some run as the backup to J.K. Dobbins. Given the injury history with Dobbins, and knowing how much the Chargers run it, Vidal is 100% worth a roster spot and there will be some competition to get him in most leagues.

Isaac Guerendo. There are a lot of unknowns here. Will Jordan Mason miss time with his shoulder injury? Will Christian McCaffrey be back any time soon? Guerendo rumbled for 99 yards after Mason left the game on Thursday night but that was against a weak and shorthanded Seattle run defense, and a lot of it came on one final carry that he broke open. Still, we’ve seen over the years that there’s immense value in running back touches in this offense, so he’s definitely worth a pickup and if you’re already invested in this backfield, I’d overspend to add him.

Sean Tucker. Guess who led all players in yards from scrimmage in Week 6 (pending Monday night)? It’s this second-year guy, who had all of three touches on the season before Sunday (and only 17 his entire rookie season). With Rachaad White a Sunday scratch, Tucker got his chance in a share with Bucky Irving and he put up almost 200 yards from scrimmage and scored two TDs in a game where neither team played much defense. He got 38% of the snaps, and I don’t see this fluky performance repeating any time soon. I also can’t ignore the massive stat line.

Ray Davis. As of the time I finished this article James Cook was still listed as questionable for Monday night. So pay attention to how the running back touches divvy up for the Bills, and how much Cook plays, if at all.

Others: Here are some more RBs that I think are worth adding, or stashing, for varying reasons: Ty Chandler (and keep an eye on Aaron Jones’s status as the week progresses) D’Onta Foreman and Pierre Strong (Jerome Ford injured his hamstring on Sunday and Nick Chubb may still be at least a week ot two away), D’Ernest Johnson, Tyler Goodson, Braelon Allen, and Jaylen Wright.

Photo by David Eulitt/Getty Images

Wide Receiver

Keenan Allen. Here’s another solid player who has returned from injury and could be a decent contributor over the second half of the season. He popped for two TDs on Sunday and should have value as Caleb Williams continues to improve. The Bears are on Bye in Week 7, so he’s not someone you can plug in immediately.

Demario Douglas. It’s hard to overstate how bad the New England passing game was with Jacoby Brissett under center. He couldn’t’ push the ball downfield, and defenses were aware of that. With Drake Maye running the show, Pop Douglas is worthy of Flex consideration. He’s the default No. 1 wide receiver in New England, was targeted nine times in three of the last four games, and had a productive stat line in Week 6. For all the reasons Maye is appealing as an add, so is Douglas. If you miss out on Douglas, I think Ja’Lynn Polk eventually will emerge as the next best WR option on that team, but as of now he’s just a “wait-and-see” stash.

Romeo Doubs. Here’s the deal with the Packers: It’s a great offense to invest in for fantasy. Jordan Love throws for a lot of yards and multiple TDs every week, but outside of Jayden Reed, everyone else is a bit of a boom/bust option. Tucker Kraft scored twice in Week 5, and barely saw the ball in Week 6. Doubs was suspended for Week 5, and returned and scored twice in Week 6. Christian Watson got hurt early in Week 4, and Dontayvion Wicks scored twice. Watson was expected to miss his second straight game this past week, but he came back and caught a long TD pass. You get the idea. Sure, add Doubs, but know what you’re getting.

Jalen Tolbert. Tolbert is off this week, but don’t forget about him. The Cowboys can’t run the ball, and Brandin Cooks is on IR. Tolbert only saw five targets on Sunday, but I think you’ll be able to rely on him as a Flex after Dallas’s Bye week.

Two more WRs who I think should be added right now are JuJu Smith-Schuster (who probably got gobbled up in a lot of leagues after his 130-yard game last week) and Michael Wilson, and especially with Marvin Harrison, Jr. in the concussion protocol.

Others to consider for WR depth: Tre Tucker, Allen Lazard, Xavier Legette, Noah Brown, Rashod Bateman, and Keon Coleman.

Tight End

This is a tough position. It’s hard enough to find 12-14 starters when everyone is healthy and not on Bye. Finding worthy adds from the tight end waiver wire is like figuring out where the toothpaste is at Costco. But if you need help at TE, consider:

Hunter Henry. With Maye taking over, Henry is another player whose stock rises. He scored in Week 6, and I think you’ll see Maye look his way for safer short and intermediate throws, and in the red zone.

Cade Otton. I list him every week. It’s a very good offense, and he’s good for the occasional 75-yard game or TD, but will also give you weeks without much production. That’s the tight end vibe these days. He caught a TD pass in Week 6.

Tyler Conklin. This is your weekly reminder that like Otton, he’s another decent, low-ceiling option at a position that’s barren.

Zach Ertz. Nothing exciting here either, but he has a decent floor, on a good offense.

PK and D/ST Streamers, Week 7 (ranked outside the Top-12 for the season):

PK: C. Dicker (@ARI), M. Gay (vs. MIA), C. Little (vs. NE in London), B. Grupe (vs. DEN).

D/ST: IND (vs. MIA), LAR (v. LV), CIN (@CLE)

That’s all I’ve got. Good luck with your waiver claims!

***This column appears each Monday right here at Big Blue View. Each Thursday, my weekly fantasy preview with my rides, fades and sleepers (start/sit) appears here, and on Fridays you can find my weekly Giants prop bets of the week, also right here. ***