Fantasy Football Week 7 Recap: Key Takeaways, Injuries, and Role Changes

Week 7 was a bloodbath.

Yes, we got to see some fun debuts and young players shifting into larger roles, but it was a week marred by injuries to high-profile players that will have season-long implications.

It sucks. And there's a lot to dissect. So let's dig in now and see what we should expect from those altered situations going forward.

All snap-rate and average depth of target (aDOT) data is via Next-Gen Stats unless noted otherwise. A "deep" target here is a target more than 15 yards beyond the line of scrimmage.

Key Injuries to Track Entering Week 8

Brandon Aiyuk

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said he fears that Brandon Aiyuk suffered a torn ACL. It'd be a massive bummer for a player who was outstanding last year but hadn't yet hit his stride in 2024.

It'd also dramatically impact how we view every player in this offense.

Starting with Brock Purdy, it's a big downgrade for him. The supporting cast wouldn't be as bad as it was on Sunday with Deebo Samuel out due to illness and with Jauan Jennings inactive, but Purdy's a guy who had upside concerns previously. Losing the offense's biggest downfield threat would amplify those concerns, pushing Purdy down the season-long ranks and off the DFS map in most situations.

Conversely, Samuel, Jennings, and George Kittle would all get healthy bumps. Kittle already has a 23.2% target share in the games he has played this year, putting him in the conversation to be the TE1. This only bolsters that argument.

Samuel -- assuming his illness doesn't linger -- would threaten to be a target hog. In the one game Aiyuk missed last year, Samuel had 129 yards and a touchdown on 12 targets. We won't want to set expectations that high as Samuel has been a bit banged up all year, but he'd still be a firm "buy" in the fantasy market.

As for Jennings, if we were having this conversation a month ago, I might have written him off. But now that he has shown he can have yardage upside when one of The Big Three is out, that narrative has shifted. Jennings and Purdy have a rapport, so once Jennings is healthy, he's a season-long starter and a player we can consider in DFS.

With Samuel and Jennings at least somewhat up in the air, Ricky Pearsall should be added in season-long leagues. He played 78.6% of the snaps in his debut, earning 5 targets on a team-high 26 routes. He's not someone we'll want to start once Jennings is back, but he could carve out a role in what will still be a quality offense, making him a desirable bench stash.

Jayden Daniels

Given Jayden Daniels' sideline smiles and his mom's tweets, it seems like he escaped a major injury Sunday. But head coach Dan Quinn said after the game that Daniels will undergo further testing on his ribs Monday, so we can't exhale just yet.

Given how rush-heavy the Washington Commanders are, Terry McLaurin was getting by mostly on efficiency. Even with how well Marcus Mariota played in relief of Daniels, it'd be tough to have confidence in that efficiency sticking in Week 8. Thus, we'd have to downgrade McLaurin quite a bit, and it'd push secondary options like Zach Ertz and Noah Brown out of play.

Mariota could be good enough, though, to keep Brian Robinson afloat. Mariota deserved to get bench in his last run as starter with the Atlanta Falcons in 2022, but his efficiency numbers were better than those of Desmond Ridder, and the offense was competent. With Robinson being a week further removed from his knee injury and the offense not expected to crater, we could still feel fine about him, even if it would be a downgrade from Daniels.

Deshaun Watson and Dorian Thompson-Robinson

After a tumultuous season, Deshaun Watson's 2024 season is likely done due to a torn Achilles' tendon he suffered on Sunday.

With Jameis Winston as the emergency third quarterback, Dorian Thompson-Robinson took over at quarterback until Thompson-Robinson sustained a finger injury. Thompson-Robinson struggled mightily before the injury, so you'd have to wonder if Winston would get the ball next week regardless.

The efficiency in the Cleveland Browns' offense can't get any worse, so this isn't a downgrade. Because of the unknowns, it's possible this is an upgrade, meaning the usage of the skill players is extra noteworthy.

David Njoku and Cedric Tillman got peppered in a negative script as both logged double-digit targets (14 and 12, respectively). Nobody else had more than seven (Elijah Moore), and Jerry Jeudy finished with just five.

Njoku's the most enticing guy here because he fills tight end. We've seen Njoku produce with Jacoby Brissett and Joe Flacco, so he is now far more appealing than he was and worth a look in all formats.

As for Tillman, we should still rank him behind Jeudy, but it's clear they're going to give him a chance. Tillman was second in routes behind just Jeudy, ahead of Moore. He's worth an add in season-long, though I'd prefer to stay away in DFS until we see whether the team can cobble together some semblance of efficiency.

DK Metcalf

D.K. Metcalf got carted off late in the Seattle Seahawks' win over the Atlanta Falcons due to a knee injury, but head coach Mike Macdonald didn't sound too concerned about Metcalf's availability going forward.

If Metcalf were to miss time, it'd obviously lead to usage bumps for Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Tyler Lockett with Smith-Njigba being the top dog. JSN leads with a 20.1% target share for the season with Lockett sitting at 17.1%, and both have 23.1% of the deep targets. Smith-Njigba would be the preference, but both would be desirable options.

We would have to downgrade Geno Smith, though. Metcalf has 46.2% of the deep targets for the year and is the one guy with chunk-play juice. It'd take Smith off the DFS radar and make him a fringe streamer in season-long.

JuJu Smith-Schuster

JuJu Smith-Schuster hurt his hamstring in practice this past week and left almost right away in Week 7. That means he's probably going to miss time, making it as grim as can be for the Kansas City Chiefs' skill corps.

And yet they're still undefeated. Wild.

With Smith-Schuster leaving early, Xavier Worthy led with eight targets, four of which were downfield. His previous highs were six and one, respectively.

That's all well and good. But Worthy turned those 8 targets into 19 yards with a catch rate over expectation of -30.5%, per Next Gen Stats.

Like I said. Grim.

That's why Travis Kelce just continues to get bumped up. He's the only proven target-earner the offense has left. He had just five targets Sunday, but you can't expect much for a tight end facing Fred Warner. Kelce's outlook is as good as it can get for a 35-year-old at his position.

As for Worthy, he does get a bump up simply because the Chiefs need him. They'll find ways to get the ball in his hands, and again, he did earn four deep targets Sunday. It's not just gadgety non-sense.

I'd ideally like for his DFS salary to come down from the $7,300 mark it reached in Week 7, but he's going to get volume whether it's efficient or not. This volume also makes him someone we should start in season-long despite the volatile outputs thus far.

Beyond that, it's a fart noise. Justin Watson earned 1 target on 23 routes. Mecole Hardman and Skyy Moore had 10 and 8 routes, respectively. Watson would be the highest-ranked option because at least he's on the field, but I'd really rather not go down that path again.

The Chiefs will have to hope an offense built around Kelce, Worthy, and Kareem Hunt can be enough. It was again on Sunday. It's just a lot to put on the shoulders of two older players and one 165-pound rookie.

Aidan O'Connell

Shortly after claiming the starting job, Aidan O'Connell suffered a thumb injury on Sunday, giving the reins -- at least for now -- right back to Gardner Minshew.

The two players have had relatively equal efficiency this year, so there's no real shift in how we view the offense. It is worth noting, though, that Minshew gave Brock Bowers all he could handle.

Bowers finished with 93 yard on 14 targets, pushing his target share to 29.0% in 4 games without Davante Adams. Even in a putrid offense, that's enough to make him a top-tier tight end.

As for the wide receivers, I don't want to chase anything there. They haven't produced -- which is unlikely to change given the quarterback situation -- and Jakobi Meyers should be back soon. Bowers is the only pass-catcher worthy of consideration.

Fantasy Football Role Changes

Davante Adams

The New York Jets certainly didn't ease Davante Adams in during his debut. He played a whopping 96.4% of the snaps, so we are fully off to the races.

Aaron Rodgers showed the immediate trust for Adams, giving him 9 targets, a 23.1% share. A lot of those were shallow looks, which is to be expected, given the short turnaround.

Even with the Jets' woes, Rodgers is good enough to support fantasy-relevant receivers, and Adams is going to get the requisite volume to be exactly that. He's back to being a no-doubt season-long starter, and he's a DFS consideration in the right matchups.

Even with Adams in the fold, both Garrett Wilson and Breece Hall had delightful roles. Hall had 12 carries and 9 targets, turning them into 141 yards from scrimmage. With Adams boosting the offense's projected efficiency, Hall is creeping back toward his lofty preseason expectations.

As for Wilson, there's more uncertainty there, given that he had a key drop and that he and Rodgers have struggled to connect this year. For now, we can remain high on him, but we'll want to keep close tabs on how things evolve the longer Adams is in the facility.

Nick Chubb

Given how brutal things were at quarterback for the Browns Sunday, it was good to see Nick Chubb hit the end zone in his first game back off his knee injury.

Chubb's snaps were monitored in his return as he played just 35.1%. But he had 11 carries and 3 targets, so they were willing to use him when he was out there.

Chubb's role should continue to expand. We'll have to keep tabs on the offense's efficiency with the quarterback situation, but from a usage perspective, Chubb had about the best-case scenario in his return.

Amari Cooper

The Buffalo Bills did ease Amari Cooper in -- to an extent -- with just a 33.3% snap rate. But he had 5 targets for 66 yards, so when he was out there, he was getting the ball.

It's noteworthy that this Cooper role came at the expense of Mack Hollins rather than Keon Coleman and Khalil Shakir. Hollins ran just 21 routes (even with Curtis Samuel leaving early due to injury) compared to 28 for Coleman and 27 for Shakir. Coleman went for 125 yards, though Dalton Kincaid actually led the team with three deep targets to Coleman's two.

This makes the takeaways here pretty complex. Cooper getting a boost thanks to a competent quarterback is the one obvious aspect. We'll want to buy him for sure.

But the usage for Coleman and Kincaid was good here, too, so it's tough to knock them down too much.

Instead, we may want to keep them relatively even while dinging Shakir a bit. Shakir's big appeal was that he was the one guy who could separate within the offense, but that's no longer true. I'd still rank him as the No. 2 receiver (behind Cooper), but the gap between him and Coleman is lower now than it was before.

Finally, this is a boost for Josh Allen. They'll likely still want to run the ball, but at least now Allen should have fewer games where the passing efficiency bottoms out. He's behind Lamar Jackson, but Allen's in play as the QB2 going forward.

Tyrone Tracy

In Devin Singletary's return, Tyrone Tracy Jr. remained the New York Giants' lead back. It's just a question of how much it'll matter.

The role for Tracy was great. He played 67.3% of the snaps, and that likely would have been higher if not for garbage time. He was tied for second on the team with three targets, so he does a lot of what you want.

The key is that earlier phrase: garbage time. In their first game without left tackle Andrew Thomas -- who is out for the year -- the Giants' offense was dysfunctional. They took eight sacks and mustered just three points. It's hard for anybody to be a fantasy stud in an offense like that.

I'd still be looking to be in on Tracy. His production here undersells his role, and the Giants won't be facing this defensive line every week. We'll just want to do so cautiously, both due to potential efficiency concerns and the possibility that Singletary's role rises as he gets further removed from the injury.

Tank Bigsby

It remains to be seen what kind of role Tank Bigsby will have once Travis Etienne returns, but Bigsby checked two of three key boxes on Sunday.

Bigsby logged 26 carries on a 66.1% snap rate. Of those 26 carries, a whopping 14 came in the red zone. He was also effective, racking up 118 yards.

So, Bigsby had the early-down and red-zone work. That's the good.

The bad is that D'Ernest Johnson was still involved in the passing game. He ran 11 routes compared to 7 for Bigsby on 20 drop backs. That's not an awful split, but it does ding Bigsby's upside, especially as it cements that he's unlikely to get many targets even if he does surpass Etienne.

Bigsby's stock is on the rise due to how effective he has been, but we will want to keep those limitations in mind.

Kyle Pitts

Kyle Pitts has had good games recently, but it has typically been on low target counts and broken plays.

Sunday was the most tangible of a shift we've seen yet.

Pitts led the Falcons with nine targets, his highest mark of the season. It pushes his season-long share to 16.0%, which still isn't great, but it's trending the right direction.

Pitts has seemed to play well this year, and the Falcons are throwing the ball pretty efficiently. It doesn't seem like Darnell Mooney is going away, so we have three legit target-earners in the offense, but this is the best case for optimism thus far.

Chase Brown

Last week, it was hard to tell whether Chase Brown had passed Zack Moss on the Cincinnati Bengals' depth chart or if his snap increase was just due to a Moss fumble.

But after Brown out-snapped Moss again Sunday, it's clear we've seen a shift.

Brown played 58.5% of the snaps, his second time this year above 45%. He tied his season high with 15 carries and added 2 targets.

The production wasn't there with just 53 yards from scrimmage, but in this offense, you'd expect yardage to follow eventually. And the lack of production may allow you to buy into Brown's role before people fully notice.

We want pieces in fantasy tied to Joe Burrow. Brown gets us that, so even if he'll still lose some work to Moss, I'd want to find ways to get him on my rosters.

Noteworthy Fantasy Football Usage

De'Von Achane and Raheem Mostert

Sunday was the first time all year we've gotten to see De'Von Achane and Raheem Mostert play a full game together. Achane held a decent edge.

Achane outsnapped Mostert, 57.4% to 33.8%. Achane had 15 carries and 3 targets compared to 11 and 0, respectively, for Mostert. Achane also ran 18 routes compared to 8 for Mostert. The lone place Mostert had the advantage was in the red zone where he logged three opportunities versus zero for Achane.

This means we should want to buy Achane aggressively once Tua Tagovailoa is back in the saddle, which could happen as soon as next week. It's a good role, Achane has talent, and the offense should be functional then, making him one of the more obvious buy candidates league-wide.

George Pickens

In Russell Wilson's first start, he wasn't afraid to pepper George Pickens.

Pickens had 9 targets, more than double anybody else on the team. He turned that into 111 yards and a touchdown, that yardage mark being his second best of the season.

Wilson has his flaws, but he has still been able to connect with receivers outside the numbers. The quarterback shift here has Pickens' stock on the rise in a non-negligible way.

Alexander Mattison

It wasn't necessarily a role change, but with Zamir White back on Sunday, it's noteworthy how much work Alexander Mattison got.

Mattison played a season-high 69.3% of the snaps, racking up 23 carries and 3 targets. Mattison turned that into 123 yards from scrimmage, nearly doubling his previous high for the season.

Mattison gets work in the passing game and has pulled away as the early-down back. Those are positives.

The negatives are that the offense is brutal, and the Las Vegas Raiders' ground game is an embarrassment. Thus, I'd expect more games in line with what Mattison had been doing with yardage totals in the 60s going forward. Still, it's good to know this kind of game is within his range of outcomes, and with injuries mounting, it's enough for him to be on season-long rosters.

Additional Notes

• Jahmyr Gibbs confirmed that if David Montgomery were to ever miss time, he'd be one of the top backs in fantasy. Even though Montgomery managed to play most of the game, with him being a bit banged up, Gibbs turned 15 carries and 4 targets into 160 yards from scrimmage. The same would likely apply to Montgomery if Gibbs were out. It's just an offense we want pieces of whenever touches are even slightly more concentrated than usual.
• Despite a late touchdown for Ray Davis, James Cook's role was basically the same as before his injury. He played 53.7% of the snaps, more than he played in either Weeks 2 or 3. Cook should still be viewed in nearly the same light as he was before Davis' big Week 6.
• Romeo Doubs' 10 targets are the third most of his career, pushing his target share to 18.7% in the games he has played this year. Things are super dispersed here, but Doubs is doing enough where he should be viewed as firmly the team's No. 2 receiver in fantasy behind Jayden Reed.
• I would try not to overreact to Javonte Williams' big Week 7. On one hand, he had 111 yards from scrimmage for the second time in three games. On the other, he had just 36 yards from scrimmage in the other. Most aspects of his role remained stagnant, so he deserves only a slight bump moving forward.
• Hunter Henry led the New England Patriots with 9 targets, pushing his target share in Drake Maye's starts to 20.9%. Henry was already a fine season-long starter, but with Maye making this offense more palatable, Henry's in play for DFS in the right spots, as well.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.