- Start Jared Goff: In two of their three road games this season, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers allowed Michael Penix Jr. to score 24 points in Week 1 and Sam Darnold to score 28 points in Week 5. Goff should be able to similarly take advantage.
- Sit Sam Darnold: The Houston Texans have allowed by far the fewest points per game to the quarterback position (9.4) in 2025 while allowing just three passing touchdowns all season long.
- Unlock your edge with PFF+: Access Premium Stats, dominate fantasy with in-season tools and projections and make smarter bets with the new PFF Player Prop Tool.
Estimated Reading Time: 6minutes
Are you struggling to set your Week 7 fantasy lineups? Maybe I can help… Below you can find my top fire (boom) and ice (bust) players at each position for Week 6. I also include my sleeper of the week at each position in case you are in a deeper league or in need of a replacement for an ice player.
Don’t miss my Fire & Ice chart at the bottom of this page. There, I have listed out all of my fire, good, sleeper and ice plays for Week 7 of the 2025 fantasy football season.
Quarterbacks
Fire QB Start of the Week: Jared Goff (vs. TB)
Jared Goff only has one huge fantasy performance so far this season (Week 2 at home against the Chicago Bears), but his second is coming this Monday night against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In two of their three road games this season, the Buccaneers allowed Michael Penix Jr. to score 24 points in Week 1 and Sam Darnold to score 28 points in Week 5. The Buccaneers have a top-notch run defense, which should force the Lions to pass more often in an effort to keep up with Baker Mayfield on the other side. This game has the second-highest over/under of the week at 52.5 points, and the Lions are 5.5-point favorites at home, giving them a 29 implied point total in Week 7.
Sleeper QB of the Week: C.J. Stroud (at SEA)
The Houston Texans‘ offense had come alive in its last two games before the Week 6 bye. Stroud has six passing touchdowns, zero interceptions and 47 fantasy points over his previous two games combined. Baker Mayfield (26.7 points) and Trevor Lawrence (19.2) both had good fantasy games in their matchup against the Seahawks over the last two weeks. Seattle’s secondary is managing several injuries between Devon Witherspoon, Riq Woolen and Julian Love, who are all questionable to play in Week 7. Stroud can thrive in this matchup as long as the Texans’ offensive line doesn’t ruin it all.
Ice QB Start of the Week: Sam Darnold (vs. HOU)
Sam Darnold followed up a great Week 5 performance with a solid game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, finishing with 20 fantasy points in Week 6. However, he is still averaging just 16.9 fantasy points per game on the season, and he gets a very tough matchup this Monday night.
The Houston Texans have allowed by far the fewest points per game to the quarterback position (9.4) in 2025 while allowing just three passing touchdowns all season long. Only one quarterback has scored more than 13 fantasy points against the Texans this season. Shut-down cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. will likely shadow Jaxon Smith-Njigba throughout this game. If Njigba struggles, Darnold is in a lot of trouble, as he has made up nearly 45% of his passing yards in 2025.
Running Backs
Fire RB Start of the Week: Quinshon Judkins (vs. MIA)
Quinshon Judkins had the first bad game of his career in Week 6 in Pittsburgh, finishing with just 3.6 fantasy points on 12 carries for just 36 yards. However, he was looking like an absolute stud in the three games prior. He should get back on track in a fantastic matchup at home against the Miami Dolphins.
The Dolphins have allowed the most rushing yards to running backs this season while allowing 5.6 yards per carry. Over the last two weeks, Rico Dowdle scored 32.4 points and Kimani Vidal scored 22.8 points against the Dolphins. Rhamondre Stevenson and James Cook also had 20-plus fantasy point performances against the Dolphins earlier this season. Judkins has top-five upside in Week 7.
Sleeper RB of the Week: Isiah Pacheco (vs. LV)
After splitting snaps nearly 50-50 with Kareem Hunt and averaging just 7.8 carries per game from Weeks 1-5, Isiah Pacheco was on the field for 77% of the Kansas City Chiefs‘ snaps and led the team with a season-high 12 carries in Week 6. More importantly, the Chiefs began to utilize Pacheco in the red zone last week. Pacheco was on the field for nine red-zone snaps and was given four red-zone carries in Week 6, after seeing just three total red-zone carries from Weeks 1-5 combined.
If the Chiefs continue to give Pacheco chances in the red zone in Week 7, he will have an excellent opportunity to score his first rushing touchdown of the season. The Las Vegas Raiders have allowed the third-most rushing touchdowns to running backs in 2025. Over the last 3 weeks, running backs have scored six rushing touchdowns against the Raiders.
Ice RB Start of the Week: Travis Etienne (vs. LAR)
The Rams have allowed the third fewest fantasy points per game to the running back position this season. Zero touchdowns rushing allowed to RBs, and just one receiving touchdown allowed. They have done this while facing some of the best running backs in the league this season, such as Christian McCaffrey, Jonathan Taylor, Derrick Henry and Saquon Barkley.
After a strong start to the 2025 season, Etienne has fallen off over the last two weeks. From Weeks 1-4, Etienne was averaging over six yards per carry, 106.5 scrimmage yards per game and 16.7 fantasy points per game, but from Weeks 5-6, he is gaining just 3.2 yards per carry, 56.5 scrimmage yards per game and has scored just 8.8 and 9.5 fantasy points over the last two weeks.
Wide Receivers
Fire WR Start of the Week: Mike Evans (at DET)
Mike Evans had at least eight targets in each of his three games this season. He has yet to have a typical Evans monster performance this year, but it could come in his first game back from injury. His three games played in 2025 were all tough matchups — he faced the Falcons’ No. 1 pass defense, and then two of the best corners in the league: Derek Stingley Jr. and Sauce Gardner.
With Emeka Egbuka and Chris Godwin expected to both be sidelined this week, Evans will be a necessity to have a big game if the Buccaneers want any chance to keep up with the Lions’ high-power offense. The Lions have allowed the sixth most fantasy points per game, third most yards per reception and tied for second-most receiving touchdowns to wide receivers this season. They’re also banged up in the secondary, with cornerbacks Terrion Arnold and DJ Reader dealing with injuries, as well as safety Kerby Joseph.
Sleeper WR Start of the Week: Christian Kirk (at SEA)
Christian Kirk had a season-high 64 receiving yards and 10.4 fantasy points in Week 5, before the Houston Texans‘ Week 6 bye. Now, he’ll face the Seattle Seahawks‘ banged-up secondary. Expect C.J. Stroud to connect with Nico Collins early and often in this game, but there is also room for Kirk to put together a top-30 fantasy performance in this matchup. The Seahawks have allowed the fifth-most receiving yards and tied for the second-most receiving touchdowns to slot receivers this season. If you are struggling with injuries or bye weeks, Kirk is a viable flex option in PPR leagues.
Ice WR Starts of the Week: Jaxon Smith-Njigba (vs HOU)
Don’t get me wrong, you are going to start Jaxon Smith-Njigba; he is the WR2 overall in fantasy through the first six weeks. However, I am expecting a down performance from him in Week 7. Puka Nacua is the only wide receiver who has scored more than 12 fantasy points against the Houston Texans this season, and he had just one reception for five yards against Derek Stingley Jr. in coverage in that game. Smith-Njigba does not play with other high-quality weapons that will take attention away from him in coverage like Nacua. It could be a long, tough game for Smith-Njigba if Stingley shadows him.
Tight Ends
Fire TE Start of the Week: Sam LaPorta (vs TB)
After a slow start to the season, Sam LaPorta has 147 receiving yards, two touchdowns, and 36.7 fantasy points over the last two weeks combined. The Buccaneers have been susceptible to the tight end position as of late, which could keep him rolling again in Week 7. In their last three games, the Buccaneers have allowed AJ Barner to score 24.3 points, Dallas Goedert to score 19.5 points and Jake Tonges to hit 11.8 fantasy points against them. LaPorta outpaces all of those tight ends by a significant margin in terms of talent; there’s no reason he shouldn’t be a top-three tight end in Week 7.
Sleeper TE of the Week: Harold Fannin Jr. (vs MIA)
David Njoku is not expected to play this Sunday after not practicing all week long due to a hyperextended knee. This should give rookie TE Harold Fannin Jr., who saw a career-high 10 targets and 81 yards last week, even more opportunities in Week 7. In his two games played with Dillon Gabriel as the Browns starter, Fannin has scored 11.3 and 15.1 fantasy points. The Miami Dolphins have allowed 11-plus fantasy points to three tight ends (Dalton Kincaid, Mason Taylor, and Oronde Gadsden) over the last four weeks.
Ice TE Start of the Week: T.J. Hockenson (vs PHI)
T.J. Hockenson has hit 10-plus fantasy points in only one game this season while scoring fewer than eight fantasy points in three of five games. He has yet to record 50 receiving yards in a game while averaging a mere 30.6 yards per game in 2025. His only good fantasy day came against the Cincinnati Bengals defense, who have given up the most points to tight ends this season. The Philadelphia Eagles are not a favorable matchup – they have allowed the third most fantasy points per game to the tight end position this season.
Fire & Ice Fantasy Football Plays
Here, I categorize every relevant fantasy player into five different buckets: (1) fire starts (best starts of the week); (2) thumbs up (good starts); (3) Risky players with upside (sleepers); (4) Ice starts (predicting bad performance from good player); (5) Stop (must sits).
Note: If a player/defense is not listed, I am not considering starting them in Week 7. I did not include Steelers/Bengals players as they will have already played by the time this article is published.
Fire 🔥
Thumbs Up 👍
Upside 📈
- RB: Isiah Pacheco, Rhamondre Stevenson, Jordan Mason, Woody Marks, D’Andre Swift/Kyle Monangai (if Swift is out)
Ice 🥶
- TE: Darren Waller, Kyle Pitts
- DEF: Vikings, Giants, Chargers
