Sunday's Studs, Duds and Optimal Lineups: Week 7

by Stephen Keech (SBK) Last Updated 2014-10-22 19:12:03

When the clock strikes 1 PM EST on Sunday afternoons, it might as well be Christmas morning. All of your flawless lineups are ready to rock, you have every excuse to bury yourself on the couch for the next six or seven hours, and it’s not totally frowned upon to be a few beers deep in the early afternoon. But there is still that one caveat that has yet to be thrown into the equation: the games themselves. Everything seems relatively predictable in the middle of the week and the outlook becomes clearer as Sunday approaches, but once the early games kickoff…brace yourself. A stringent research routine still goes a long way for those that put in the time, but some wacky stuff can (and will) happen each week in the NFL; it’s simply the nature of the game.

This column will highlight a few of the week’s best and worst performers at each position (Sunday games only), and will shed some light on the underlying circumstances which brought on success (or lack thereof). I’ll also provide optimal lineups for both FanDuel and DraftKings, which will consist of all players outside of the Thursday/Monday night game. Let’s get into it!

Sunday’s Studs

Quarterback

Russell Wilson – Despite the Seahawks dropping a game in St. Louis, Wilson absolutely went off on Sunday, becoming the first player in NFL history to run for over 100 yards while also eclipsing 300 passing yards in the same game. Seattle was playing catch up right from the start, which was a big plus for Wilson’s fantasy owners. He attempted 36 passes, an abnormally high total in Seattle’s offense, and surpassed 100 rushing yards for the second time in the last three weeks. Doug Baldwin was the main beneficiary, racking up 7-123-1 on 11 targets, while Jermaine Kearse finished with a 3-50-0 line on seven looks. With Percy Harvin out of town, Baldwin should benefit from the extra time he’ll see in the slot.

Wilson was basically a must-have in GPPs/qualifiers this weekend, and those that paired him with Baldwin were set up beautifully considering it didn’t cost much to handcuff those two together. He’s still a little hard to trust week-to-week, but Wilson is in another great spot next week against a Panthers team that was just completely embarrassed by Aaron Rodgers and the Packers.

Also Receiving Consideration – Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, Ryan Tannehill

Running Backs

Matt Forte – Forte is absolutely locked in right now. He’s arguably the safest play at the RB spot with how heavily involved he is in the passing game, and he proved it yesterday in a game the Bears were constantly playing from behind in. His first touchdown of the afternoon came shortly after half-time on a 10-yard pass from Jay Cutler, and he added another 1-yard TD run mid-way through the 4th quarter to give the Bears some life. Forte racked up a combined 109 yards on his 18 touches, six of which were receptions. Especially on full-point PPR sites, Forte remains an elite cash game play with monster upside.

DeMarco Murray – When I said Forte was “arguably” the safest play among RBs, Murray was the reason why. He’s now exceeded 100 rushing yards in every game this season, picking up 128 yards and a score on 28 totes against the Giants defense. It will be interesting to see how long he can keep this up, since he’s always been a question mark from a health standpoint and he’s receiving huge workloads week in and week out. For as long as he’s healthy, Murray will continue to see 20+ touches as the no-doubt focal point of the Dallas offense.

Also Receiving Consideration – Ronnie Hillman, Denard Robinson, Ahmad Bradshaw

Wide Recievers

Demaryius Thomas – Thomas has absolutely exploded the past few weeks after a relatively slow start to the year, and now looks to be firmly entrenched as a top two or three WR for the rest of the season. After failing to top 100 receiving yards in his first three games, DT has amassed 521 yards over his past three games, including five touchdowns. He’s far and away the most physically gifted weapon the Broncos have, and Peyton is going to continue feeding his top target despite the myriad of options at his disposal.

Sammy Watkins – The rookie first-round pick benefited in a big way from the Bills pass-heavy approach on Sunday, as he led the team in targets with 14 and totaled 9-122-2 on the day. Buffalo lost both of it’s top RBs to injuries and could be without both for quite awhile, so the Bills will be forced to get the ball in the hands of the uber-talented Watkins. Kyle Orton attempted 43 passes on Sunday, and looked Watkins’ way more than twice as many times as the next closest Buffalo receiver. His two-yard TD catch in the fourth quarter gave the Bills the lead with just a second remaining in regulation, and considering the mid-range price tag he entered the week with, Watkins was among the top $/point values of Week 7.

Also Receiving Consideration – Golden Tate, Randall Cobb, Doug Baldwin, Roddy White, Kenny Stills, Odell Beckham Jr.

Tight End

Gavin Escobar – If you had given me 100-1 odds on Gavin Escobar being the top TE of Week 7, I’m not sure I would have even thrown a dollar down. Nonetheless, the 6’6 former second-round pick had his best game as a professional, finishing with three catches for 65 yards, two of which went for touchdowns. He opened the scoring with a 15-yard strike from Tony Romo in the first quarter, and added a 26-yard score shortly after half-time. Escobar is obviously not a guy we’ll be targeting in the future as long as Jason Witten is around, but he has quite a bit of athletic ability for his size and could evolve into a red-zone threat if Witten were to miss time.

Also Receiving Consideration – Greg Olsen, Antonio Gates, Owen Daniels, Charles Clay

Sunday’s Duds

Quarterback

Kirk Cousins – Wasn’t it just a few weeks ago that Cousins looked like the best option at quarterback for the Redskins? After RGIII went down against Jacksonville, Cousins parlayed a strong effort in relief into a Week 3 explosion against the Eagles, but it’s been all downhill since then. On Sunday, Cousins was 10-of-16 for 139 yards and an interception before getting the hook in favor of Colt McCoy, who eventually led the Redskins to a one-point victory. The Washington quarterback situation is in flux right now with RGIII having a chance to return as soon as Monday night, so this situation will be worth monitoring throughout the week.

Brian Hoyer – Hoyer was one of my favorite punt plays at the quarterback spot this week, but he failed miserably against a Jacksonville defense that came into Week 7 having allowed the most passing yards of any team in the league. He wasn’t much better than Cousins, finishing 16-of-41 for 215 yards and an interception. It was very surprising to see him complete fewer than half of his attempts against a secondary that lacks any note-worthy talent, and a bad loss in Jacksonville is sure to fire up the Johnny Manziel fans. I don’t see the torch changing hands in the near future, but another couple of performances like this one will force the Browns into a tough decision.

Dishonorable Mentions – Andy Dalton, Derek Carr, Jay Cutler

Running Backs

Ben Tate – It was an all-around disaster for the Browns on Sunday. Tate was in a prime position to feast on the Jags run-defense as the no-doubt top back in Cleveland, but he was limited to 34 yards on 17 touches with the Browns playing catch-up all afternoon. After watching this running game feast on the Steelers last weekend, I can’t blame anyone for taking the plunge on Tate at his mid-range price tag across the industry. He appears to be locked into somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 touches as long as his body holds up, and Tate is a very interesting bounce back candidate with the Raiders coming to Cleveland next weekend.

Giovani Bernard – With A.J. Green out again, Bernard looked like one of the safest options at the running back spot against the Colts, but Indy was more than ready to put the clamps down on the former University of North Carolina star. Andy Dalton and Mohamed Sanu both struggled mightily as well, which didn’t help out the Cincinnati running game at all. Gio was held to single-digit touches (9) and only turned them into 16 total yards, leaving him as the biggest $/point bust at the tailback position.

Dishonorable Mentions – Marshawn Lynch, Alfred Morris, Andre Williams, Fred Jackson, Frank Gore

Wide Receivers

Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffrey – After getting back on board last weekend against the Falcons, Marshall’s production once again fell off against Miami. Jay Cutler’s struggles obviously played a big role in that, considering Marshall racked up double-digit targets but wasn’t able to surpass 50 receiving yards. Things were even worse for Alshon Jeffrey, who caught just two passes for nine yards on seven total targets. Matt Forte was the lone productive Chicago skill-player, and things won’t get any easier for the Bears next weekend as they head to New England (a team Jay Cutler has notoriously struggled against).

Brandin Cooks – The Saints passing game was relatively solid considering the road matchup against the Detroit defense, who came into this week having allowed the fewest number of fantasy points as a team. However, Brandin Cooks wasn’t able to benefit. Cooks caught two passes on three targets for 23 yards in Sunday’s loss, and played 65 of 74 offensive snaps, compared to 62 snaps for Marques Colston and 47 snaps for Kenny Stills. Despite seeing more action, Stills and Colston had considerably better days then Cooks. The rookie was targeted only three times, a surprisingly low total considering Jimmy Graham didn’t see a single look.

Dishonorable Mentions – Andre Holmes, DeSean Jackson, Mohamed Sanu, Julio Jones, Steve Smith

Tight End

Julius Thomas – Orange Julius’ record-setting touchdown total finally slowed down on Sunday night, after he was held without a score for the first game all season. Thomas looked to be in another great spot to produce with Patrick Willis out of action for San Francisco, but Demaryius Thomas posted another monster game and Wes Welker finally found the end zone, leaving Thomas out to dry (he was second in the team in targets with six, however). Emmanuel Sanders also reeled in a touchdown pass, so Julius was the lone pass-catcher not the find the end zone. Peyton picking up another four touchdown passes is extremely impressive with him attempting just 26 passes in the Broncos blowout win, and Denver will keep right on rolling next week at home against San Diego. Julius won’t be kept out of the end zone for long, so be prepared to pounce next week if his price has dropped even a few hundred dollars on your site of choice.

Dishonorable Mentions – Delanie Walker, Vernon Davis, Travis Kelce, Jason Witten

Optimal Lineups For Week 7 (Sunday Games)

FanDuel

DraftKings