NFL
NFL Fantasy Forecast Week 7: Busts, Breakouts, Sleepers, and More
Tim Crean started writing about sports in 2016 and joined Sports7 in 2021. He excels with his versatile coverage of the NFL and soccer landscape, as well as his expertise breaking down sports media, which stems from his many years downloading podcasts before they were even cool and countless hours spent listening to Mike & The Mad Dog and The Dan Patrick Show, among other programs. As a longtime self-professed sports junkie who even played DII lacrosse at LeMoyne College in Syracuse, New York, Tim loves reading about all the latest sports news every day and considers it a dream to write about sports professionally. He's a lifelong Buffalo Bills fan from Western New York who mistakenly thought, back in the early '90s, that his team would be in the Super Bowl every year. He started following European soccer — with a Manchester City focus — in the early 2000s after spending far too much time playing FIFA. When he's not enjoying a round of golf or coaching youth soccer and flag football, Tim likes reading the work of Bill Simmons, Tony Kornheiser, Chuck Klosterman, and Tom Wolfe.
Get to know Tim Crean betterUpdated20 Oct 2022
The NFL Week 7 slate shapes up to be one of the weakest ones on the entire calendar, especially from a fantasy football perspective. The Buffalo Bills, Los Angeles Rams, Minnesota Vikings, and Philadelphia Eagles are all on byes, meaning 30% of the 10 winning teams in the NFL won't play this Thursday Sunday, or Monday.
Despite the down schedule, the Sportcasting experts are still here to help as you set your NFL Week 7 lineups. In our NFL Week 7 fantasy forecast, we'll let you know what quarterback and defense to avoid, the player prop that will hit, and what rookie and kicker could save you on this major bye week.
Sports7’s NFL Week 7 Fantasy Football Forecast
Quarterback Bust of the Week: Bailey Zappe
Luke Norris: Bailey Zappe is coming off a phenomenal performance in his second start with the New England Patriots. The rookie sensation completed 70.6% of his passes for a career-high 308 yards with a pair of touchdowns and no picks, prompting many fantasy owners to add him to their roster.
But that was against the Cleveland Browns, who have one of the worst defenses in the NFL. Zappe won’t have that luxury in Week 7. While the Chicago Bears’ defense is one of the worst in the league against the run, it’s one of the best against the pass.
The Monsters of the Midway have given up the third-fewest passing yards, allowing just 178.7 per game, and have allowed only four passing TDs through six games, tied for the second-fewest in the NFL. The Bears are also tied for the fewest completions allowed at 17.7 per game. So Zappe won’t have nearly as easy of a time as he did against Cleveland.
Player Prop of the Week: Damien Harris under 11.6 PPR points
Jack Dougherty: I’m not entirely sure where this projection is coming from. Rhamondre Stevenson has clearly taken over as the No. 1 running back in New England. He’s turned 50 touches into 266 total yards and two touchdowns over the last two games with Harris injured, and there’s no reason the Patriots won’t keep feeding him this week against the Chicago Bears.
Even if Harris plays through his hamstring injury, he won’t see enough volume to surpass his projection of 11.6 points. Leave him on your bench this week.
Breakout Rookie of the Week: Brian Robinson
Tim Crean: Washington Commanders rookie running back Brian Robinson is already one of the best stories of the 2022 NFL season. The third-round pick out of Alabama was shot twice during an attempted carjacking during training camp and fought his way back to make his debut just 42 days later.
In his first game back, Robinson played 29% of the Commanders offensive snaps and had nine carries for 22 yards. In game two, he played 47% of the snaps with 17 carries for 60 yards and a touchdown, per Pro Football Reference.
In Week 7, Carson Wentz is out and Tayor Heinicke is in. The team will likely rely on the running game even more than usual and Robinson seems like the emerging back in that backfield. On Sunday vs. the Packers — a team that’s struggled against Saquon Barkley and Breece Hall the last two weeks — look for Robinson to put up his first career 100-yard game.
Defensive Disaster of the Week: San Francisco 49ers
Mike Thomas: If the Atlanta Falcons can put up 28 points, what can a hungry Kansas City Chiefs team do?
Seven of those Falcons points came off a fumble recovery, so we’ll lighten up on the 49ers defense a bit. However, Marcus Mariota completed 13 of 14 passes for two touchdowns. He also rushed for 50 yards and a score.
Look for Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs to get back on the winning track after falling at home to the Buffalo Bills. Take the over. This will be a wild one.
Kicker Sleeper of the Week: Cairo Santos
Adam Fromal: Do you really want to trust the Chicago Bears? Absolutely not. But that’s why this is such a good sleeper. You’re actually not trusting the Bears by picking Cairo Santos, who’s rostered in just 9.5% of ESPN leagues. You’re trusting the offense, led by the inefficient and ineffective Justin Fields, to move a bit down the field before stalling out.
You don’t have to worry about the weather in the Windy City. You don’t have to worry about field goals being subsumed by touchdowns. You don’t have to worry about the Bailey Zappe-led New England Patriots offense forcing the Bears into fourth-down attempts.
Just grit your teeth and plug in Santos.
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