Le'Veon Bell is expected to suit up for his new team for the first time in Week 7. Now a member of the Chiefs, Bell will get to face the top-ranked Broncos run defense, and he'll have to compete for touches with first-round rookie Clyde Edwards-Helaire in his new home. As such, it's no surprise that Bell is prominently featured among our Week 7 fantasy bust picks. Bell, along with players like Drew Brees, Adrian Peterson, Julian Edelman, and Rob Gronkowski, are all closer to the "sit" end of start 'em, sit 'em decisions because of unfavorable matchups or lighter workloads.
Per usual out bust picks are just recommendations on who to sit based on bad matchups, lacking opportunities, and potential injury issues. If you don't have a comparable replacement for one of these potential busts, you can still start them. Even if you're just going with your guy, you can do that too. Just know that these players might have a low ceiling or low floor this week because of the previously acknowledged factors.
WEEK 7 FANTASY: Sleepers | Start 'em, sit 'em
Our busts were pretty much on point last week. Devonta Freeman didn't have a good game for the Giants while Jerry Jeudy, Terry McLaurin, Dalton Schultz, and Zach Ertz all had quiet games at the WR and TE positions respectively. Our QB picks were the one area that didn't pan out, as we recommended sitting Matt Ryan in a four-TD game. We'll try to avoid having that happen again, but the rest of our work was pretty solid.
WEEK 7 PPR RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
Week 7 Fantasy Busts: Running backs
Adrian Peterson, Lions @ Falcons (Jacob Camenker). The matchup with the Falcons is a good one on paper, but it could be a bigger game for D'Andre Swift than for Peterson. The Falcons have allowed four receiving TDs to RBs, the most in the league, and that would seemingly benefit Swift's skill set more. The rookie will continue to take touches away from Peterson, who is averaging just 3.15 yards per carry in his past three outings anyway.
Jerick McKinnon, 49ers at Patriots (Vinnie Iyer). Raheem Mostert (ankle) is out again, Tevin Coleman (knee) remains on the shelf, and Jeff Wilson (calf) is banged up, too. But New England should key on stopping the run first and take away McKinnon and JaMycal Hasty.
Le’Veon Bell, Chiefs @ Broncos (Matt Lutovsky). We have no idea how many touches Bell will get this week after practicing just a handful of days with his new team. Chances are, he’ll be limited to certain passing-down packages, and that doesn’t give him enough upside to merit using, even in PPR leagues.
WEEK 7 DFS CASH LINEUPS: DraftKings | FanDuel
Week 7 Fantasy Football Busts: Quarterbacks
Cam Newton, Patriots vs. 49ers (Camenker). Newton was missing four of his six top offensive linemen against the Broncos, and that contributed to a so-so week for him. Now, he takes on a 49ers defense that is getting healthier and improving. Given the Patriots' lack of talent at the receiver position, it could be difficult for Newton to move the ball. He's always a threat to rack up rushing yards and score near the goal line, but this may be a low-scoring game and a tough day for the Patriots offense.
Jared Goff, Rams vs. Bears (Iyer). Chicago’s pass defense has been downright nasty, and Goff’s off game against the 49ers doesn’t inspire in what should be a more run-effective game.
Drew Brees, Saints vs. Panthers (Lutovsky). It might seem strange to doubt Brees when he’s getting his top weapon back, but the Panthers have done a good job limiting QBs this year (fourth fewest fantasy points per game) and Brees just hasn’t looked quite right all year. Maybe that’s because he’s been missing Michael Thomas these past four games, but there are enough high-upside, similar QBs in better matchups that you don’t have to take that chance. (Update: Brees will be without Michael Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders because of a hamstring injury and COVID-19, respectively, making him even more difficult to trust.)
WEEK 7 STANDARD RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
Week 7 Fantasy Football Busts: Wide receivers
Robert Woods, Rams vs. Bears (Iyer). The wind is blowing badly against Chicago with the strength of cornerbacks Kyle Fuller and Jaylon Johnson to contain him outside. You can bench him in shallower leagues if you have good depth.
Julian Edelman, Patriots vs. 49ers (Lutovsky). Something just isn’t working for Edelman this year, and aside from a huge Week 2 in an optimal matchup in Seattle, he’s done next to nothing. It’s tough to imagine that changing much against the 49ers fifth-ranked pass defense.
WEEK 7 DFS TOURNAMENT LINEUPS: DraftKings | FanDuel
Week 7 Fantasy Football Busts: Tight ends
Hayden Hurst, Falcons vs. Lions (Camenker). The Lions have been excellent against TEs this year, allowing two catches for 19.2 yards per game to the position. That's it. Unless Hurst catches a TD, he probably won't have a very productive day in a matchup that's more skewed toward RBs and WRs.
Eric Ebron, Steelers at Titans (Iyer). The underrated part of Chase Claypool’s emergence is that he can operate like a hybrid tight end for Ben Roethlisberger, and the Titans can be burned easily at cornerback.
Rob Gronkowski, Buccaneers @ Raiders (Lutovsky). Gronk is coming off his best game of the season (5-78-1), that was at the expense of Mike Evans (one catch, 10 yards). Evans isn’t likely to get held down that much again, and the Bucs have too many other mouths to feed with Chris Godwin and Ronald Jones II. Vegas had trouble with Travis Kelce in its last game, but it all but blanked TEs from Carolina, New Orleans, Buffalo, and New England.
MORE WEEK 7 DFS: Best stacks | Best values | Lineup Builder
Week 7 Fantasy Busts: Defenses
Washington Football Team vs. Cowboys (Camenker). After watching the Cowboys get demolished by the Cardinals at home, some will assume that their offense will struggle immensely with Dak Prescott out. They certainly don't have the same ceiling with Andy Dalton at QB, but they have a lot of strong offensive weapons and Washington is allowing 27 points per game this season, which ranks middle-of-the-pack. Washington is averaging just one sack per game in its past three outings, so if it can't pressure Dalton, he may be able to make more downfield plays.
Chicago Bears at Rams (Iyer). The Bears do play sound pass defense, but they are vulnerable against the run. The Rams don’t allow many sacks with Goff getting the ball out quickly. This is a case of better for limited yardage and scoring against, not as good for big plays.
Pittsburgh Steelers @ Titans (Lutovsky). The loss of LB Devin Bush (knee) is big, and Tennessee simply doesn’t give up points to D/STs. The Titans have scored at least 31 offense points in four straight games, allowing just five sacks and three takeaways in that span.
