Reviewing the early and afternoon games of Week 7

Week 7 proved to be a big test for fantasy teams. A large number of players got hurt. At QB you had Jay Cutler, who was a popular start this week, and Sam Bradford. You probably didn't start Sam Bradford, but he was widely owned. Nick Foles also left, and he was a pretty popular pick this week as well. Both guys could be out for an extended period. In the running back department, Arian Foster left very early & did not return. Doug Martin also left and did not return. Both of those injuries to be a little less serious. At WR, Desean Jackson left the game and was a big disappointment for owners. Doesn't appear to be long-term. Lastly Jermichael Finley was carted off. When you hear the words 'carted off' its never a good sign. Naturally, I hope you understand that any person making predictions can't really account for injuries. When you are looking long-term, guys do take a hit in value if they are injury prone, but when making rankings, you can't really lower a guy because he might get hurt. It happens. Lets look position by position at the performances around the league.

QBs:
With Peyton & Andrew Luck still to duel, a lot could change here, but standing atop the leaderboard is Matthew Stafford (26) and he is really a huge step up when Calvin Johnson is healthy. He is close to a must start in all leagues. For the second straight week, Andy Dalton (26) put up huge numbers. Its well known he has the offensive firepower around him. I think he's gotten himself into a groove, and that makes him a good play depending on the matchup. Next week he faces the Jets, and I'm not playing him there. RGIII (25) finally returned to prominence. He is running again. As long as he is healthy, he is a top 5 QB. That is all there is to it. Matt Ryan (22) showed us all how talented he is. He turned Harry Douglas into a star. No problem starting him. Colin Kaepernick (19) also returned to form. He didn't throw a ton, but he didn't make mistakes and had a great day running. I really like him when Manningham and perhaps Crabtree return. Mike Glennon (17) had a respectable day for any desperate owner who started him. It looks like he will be a matchup play. On the disappointing end we have Tony Romo (12), Tom Brady (7), and Nick Foles (5). I know Foles got injured, but if you were expecting a big day, shame on you. I did have him as my 12th or 13th ranked QB, so he was generally the best alternative option on my rankings, but I wasn't expecting much. Long term, it looks like Vick is safe. Tony Romo is a bit inconsistent, but 12 points isn't terrible for a bad day. Tom Brady on the other hand...with Gronk back thats a pretty terrible performance, even against a good defense. I am definitely concerned.

RBs:
No surprises at the top with Matt Forte (28) and Frank Gore (22), but Roy Helu (22) with three touchdowns? This is a bad bad sign for Alfred Morris (9). He got the carries and the yards, but they refused to go to him at the end zone. This might turn into a Bills timeshare from last year but worse. Speaking of the Bills C.J. Spiller (1) looked really bad and just not healthy. I saw someone on Twitter suggest they need to give him a game off. It might be the best option. I'm one of many analysts who has loved Spiller without stepping back, but even I am admitting its time to reel back expectations. I still have hope that its injury-related and he can heal and bring it back for the fantasy playoffs. Jacquizz Rodgers (17) hardly rushed at all, but he has become a very solid pass catcher. He might be a Darren Sproles type player. Reggie Bush (9) had a rough day, but he is still a great option long term. As bad as it was, he came out with 90+ yards. Another bad day for Ray Rice (6), I'm holding, but I'm not stopping anyone else from trading for whatever they can get. It looks pretty bad. Luckily he is on bye next week.

WRs:
Calvin Johnson (27) with that signature day everyone looks for. Had touchdown issues last season  but with his talent, they were bound to come. I would consider him untouchable if I owned him. Across from him, A.J. Green (21) had another big day. He is still a bit dependant on the play of his QB, but if he had a Stafford-type QB...wow. Vincent Jackson (25) with two straight 2 TD games. I was really worried on how he will do with Mike Glennon, but it looks like he can definitely be a top 10 play. Harry Douglas (20) with a great day. This may have been my worst call, but I stand by my reasoning. There was no reason to think Douglas could come out and perform this well. I give him credit, but a lot of that goes to Matt Ryan as well, who played phenomenal football. The same goes for Jarrett Boykin (16). He is looking at long-term relevance. Pick him up if he is still out there. Justin Blackmon (5) and Josh Gordon (2) are guys that everyone was high on but they both got shut down. With those offenses and QBs, it will happen from time to time. Still like both a lot based on talent. Torrey Smith (6) and Pierre Garcon (5) are two #1's on good offenses that got shut down. I'm buying low if I can, especially on Smith. Start all Patriots receivers at your own risk.

TEs:
Well, Gronk (11) is officially back. I'm pretty confident he will be my #1 TE going forward. Jordan Reed (19) had a huge coming out party. He is still available in many leagues. Grab him. He is extremely talented and rose up the depth chart very fast. Tyler Eifert (10) finally had the game I was looking for, but it only came on 3 catches and 4 targets, so I don't really see him as a good play yet. Jeff Cumberland (4) only had 3 catches for 41 yards, but he really looks like a big part of that offense. Zach Ertz (3) is one of my latest man crushes. Another quiet day, but he has definitely overtaken Brent Celek. At least with Nick Foles throwing. No idea how it plays out with Michael Vick.

Thats a wrap for the early games. Time to go watch Peyton destroy Indianapolis! If you want further discussion on a player mentioned above, or a player not mentioned, leave a comment! For quick and brief analysis, tweet me @LopsidedTrades! 

Week 7 WR Rankings

Just wanted to say, these are subject to quite a bit of change this week as news will come out about guys like Roddy White, James Jones, and Cecil Shorts!

1. Dez Bryant
2. Brandon Marshall
3. A.J. Green
4. Calvin Johnson
5. Desean Jackson
6. Wes Welker
7. Demaryius Thomas
8. Victor Cruz
9. Vincent Jackson
10. Pierre Garcon
11. Torrey Smith
12. Reggie Wayne
13. Antonio Brown
14. Justin Blackmon
15. Josh Gordon
16. Eric Decker
17. Mike Wallace
18. Andre Johnson
19. Jordy Nelson
20. Keenan Allen
21. Greg Jennings
22. Alshon Jeffery
23. T.Y. Hilton
24. Hakeem Nicks
25. Steve Smith
26. Kenbrell Thompkins
27. Harry Douglas
28. Terrance Williams
29. Anquan Boldin
30. Jerome Simpson
31. Jarrett Boykin
32. Rueben Randle
33. Dwayne Bowe
34. Kendall Wright
35. Julian Edelman
36. Cecil Shorts
37. Kris Durham
38. Jacoby Jones
39. Emmanuel Sanders
40. Miles Austin
41. Steve Johnson
42. DeAndre Hopkins
43. Brian Hartline
44. Mike Williams
45. Vincent Brown
46. Nate Washington
47. Marlon Brown
48. Brandon LaFell
49. Mohamed Sanu
50. Ted Ginn
51. Tandon Doss
52. Chris Givens
53. Leonard Hankerson
54. Stephen Hill
55. Aaron Dobson
56. Kevin Cone
57. Austin Pettis
58. Riley Cooper
59. Donnie Avery
60. Marvin Jones
61. Brandon Gibson
62. Greg Little
63. Jeremy Kerley
64. Darrius Heyward-Bey
65. Marquise Goodwin
66. Santana Moss
67. T.J. Graham
68. Robert Woods
69. Damian Williams
70. Cole Beasley
71. Jason Avant

Torrey Smith #11 - #18 on ESPN rankings

This one is more of a gut call, but I can't see Smith getting shut down in two straight weeks. He is the most talented receiver on this team by far. Ike Taylor is the only very talented human that stands in the way of Torrey Smith getting his points.

Jordy Nelson #19 - #10 on ESPN Rankings

With Randall Cobb out and James Jones possibly out, the Browns only need to focus on stopping Nelson. Joe Haden is the man to do that. He has faced top guys like Megatron, AJ Green, and Torrey Smith. To a lesser extent he has also faced Stevie Johnson and Mike Wallace. The only one of those to come away with a respectable day was Torrey Smith at 85 yards. I don't see Jordy doing anything better than that.

Greg Jennings #22 - #28 on ESPN Rankings

Jennings only had 34 yards last week, but that was on 6 catches and 10 targets. I acknowledge this one is totally a wildcard with Josh Freeman starting, but they clearly want him to be a bigger part of this offense, and I expect them to work hard to get him more catches with Freeman this week.

Hakeem Nicks #24 - #17 on ESPN Rankings

This is a good matchup for Nicks, no doubt about that. Unfortunately with that offense right now, I cannot in good faith put Nicks any higher. Randle is just as likely to have a big day as Nicks is. The one good thing for Nicks is that if there is any truth to the trade rumors, they probably want to showcase him this week.

Kendall Wright #33 - #47 on ESPN Rankings

At this point, Wright is only a low end flex play or a WR3 in deeper leagues. But I do have him ranked a good bit higher than the pros because he and Fitzpatrick have looked to be on the same page and therefore I believe he is a safe option to get at least 3-4 points with a good chance of 5-6. Thats more than you can say for most at this point in the rankings this week.

Deeper Thoughts...Kris Durham has looked to be a big part of the offense in Detroit and at this time is clearly the #2 guy. He is very tall which makes for a nice redzone target. Jarrett Boykin is an intriguing option only if James Jones is out for sure. At that point hes worth a flier. Miles Austin would be a big gamble, but if he ends up being fully healthy this week, its a great matchup for big numbers. I still believe Doug Baldwin is the best option in the Seattle offense, but its all so murky there that its only worth it in deeper leagues still. Chris Givens is bound to show us his playmaking ability again at some point, but he and Tavon Austin have been major disappointments so far. Super deep sleeper here, but Kevin Cone could slot in as the #2 in Atlanta this week. I actually think he is more talented than Harry Douglas, but he probably hasn't had much opportunity with Matt Ryan. Lastly, Greg Little would be a sneaky desperation play, two straight games with 7 points.

55 & 5: Week 7 RB Rankings - The always tantalizing C.J. Spiller and possibly the last time Brandon Jacobs will be relevant. Ever.

C.J. Spiller, I swear this is the last week I believe you in. Another letdown and our relationship is done for! Seriously though, its a great week for a big 60 yard play again from one of the best playmakers in the game. Brandon Jacobs is a low end RB2 this week or solid flex play.

Brandon Jacobs missed practice Saturday. It is a BAD idea to risk hoping he's active Monday night at this point with no other solid option. He has been removed from rankings to reflect this advice. Figures Jacobs can't even be relevant this week...

1. LeSean McCoy
2. Matt Forte
3. Adrian Peterson
4. Jamaal Charles
5. Arian Foster
6. Reggie Bush
7. Alfred Morris
8. Knowshon Moreno
9. Frank Gore
10. Eddie Lacy
11. C.J. Spiller
12. DeAngelo Williams
13. Ray Rice
14. Giovani Bernard
15. Trent Richardson
16. Doug Martin
17. Lamar Miller
18. Fred Jackson
19. Stevan Ridley
20. Le'Veon Bell
21. Ryan Mathews
22. Danny Woodhead
23. Chris Johnson
24. Maurice Jones-Drew
25. Joseph Randle
26. BenJarvus Green-Ellis
27. Bilal Powell
28. Willis McGahee
29. Zac Stacy
30. Jacquizz Rodgers
31. Mike Tolbert
32. Chris Ogbonnaya
33. Joique Bell
34. Chris Ivory
35. Daryl Richardson
36. Ben Tate
37. Bryce Brown
38. Roy Helu
39. Donald Brown
40. Ronnie Hillman
41. Kendall Hunter
42. LeGarrette Blount
43. Bernard Pierce
44. Jason Snelling
45. Brandon Bolden
46. Jonathan Franklin
47. Michael Bush
48. Peyton Hillis
49. Phillip Tanner
50. Jackie Battle
51. Felix Jones

#10 Marshawn Lynch - 4th on ESPN Rankings

Marshawn Lynch is a beast and you are starting him if you have him. This ranking is just a warning to temper expectations a bit. He was listed with a hip injury and did miss a practice. Thursday games are rough in that kind of situation. Luckily its still Marshawn Lynch and there is a good chance he gets in the endzone even if his yardage is a bit lower.

#12 C.J. Spiller - 20th on ESPN Rankings

Disclaimer: Spiller is a weakness of mine, and my continued belief in him will be my downfall. But its a very nice matchup and he has shown promising signs lately. His ankle continues to improve. He has put up nice YPC numbers the past two weeks (8.3, 5.5). The biggest thing I'd like to see is an improvement in the passing game from Spiller, where his longest catch this year is 8 yards. Its bound to improve sooner than later, I'm banking on the sooner.

#14 DeAngelo Williams - 16th on ESPN Rankings

This ranking isn't a marked difference from ESPN, but I wanted to take a moment to point out how bad the Rams have been against the run this year. In the past four games, they gave MJD his highest yardage total of the year at 86. The other three games? DeMarco Murray 203 total yards, Frank Gore 153 total yards, Arian Foster 198 total yards. DeAngelo won't get there, but 100+ total yards is a reasonable expectation right now.

#18 Doug Martin - #12 on ESPN

Plain and simple, Martin has looked bad this year. Averaging a paltry 3.5 yards per carry with just one touchdown. He did get 91 yards against the Eagles, but that surely wasn't what owners were hoping. Right now, anything more than 10 points is a good game for Martin.

#21 Brandon Jacobs - #28 on ESPN

I might regret this ranking, but Jacobs really did look good last week. With Da'Rel Scott's injury, they waived him again and brought in Peyton Hillis. I can't see Hillis immediately jumping in for anything more than 3-4 carries. That makes Brandon Jacobs the guy against a Minnesota defense allowing the MOST fantasy points to running backs this season. A big tough guy like Jacobs should be able to take advantage.

Deeper thoughts...It's a brutal matchup for Le'Veon Bell, I'm not starting him if I can help it. ESPN likes Joseph Randle more than I do. He didn't look great when he was thrust into the role of main RB last week, but going against Philadelphia should present opportunities. Andre Ellington continues to climb up the rankings. Very explosive talent, its just a matter of how many touches he gets. I'm not big on Zac Stacy this week, its a tough matchup and he missed Wednesday practice. He might see an improvement in rankings later this week though. BenJarvus Green-Ellis has continued to look pretty good for whatever reason, he would be a deeper league flex consideration this week. As mentioned with DeAngelo Williams, Mike Tolbert could find his way into the endzone this week again, fantastic matchup. Chris Ogbonnaya looked great last week, a nice refresher from the old and slow McGahee, worth an add in deeper leagues as well.

Week 7 TE Rankings

A fun week for TE rankings with Gronk almost definitely back & Jimmy Graham out. I tweeted this earlier, but its entirely possible Gronk may not play that much this week. Think about it this way - the Patriots are notorious for being as deceptive as they can with their injury report. Why now, would they make it clear that Gronk will be back, giving the Jets time to prepare? There are two possible reasons for this. 1.) It really was a major clubhouse issue and some guys were questions Gronk's commitment to the team, so they needed to make it public and get that out of the way. 2.) He will be used sparingly and mostly as a decoy while they ease him in to the speed of a real game. Either way, if he is playing, he instantly becomes the best red zone target for Brady. Because of that it its my philosophy that unless you have one of the great options this year, you are starting him immediately.

1. Julius Thomas
2. Tony Gonzalez
3. Jordan Cameron
4. Antonio Gates
5. Rob Gronkowski
6. Jason Witten
7. Vernon Davis
8. Jermichael Finley
9. Martellus Bennett
10. Heath Miller
11. Kyle Rudolph
12. Charles Clay
13. Coby Fleener
14. Greg Olsen
15. Scott Chandler
16. Timothy Wright
17. Jordan Reed
18. Zach Ertz
19. Jeff Cumberland
20. Sean McGrath
21. Brandon Myers
22. Garrett Graham
23. Delanie Walker
24. Jared Cook
25. Brandon Pettigrew
26. Joseph Fauria
27. Dallas Clark
28. Clay Harbor
29. Tyler Eifert
30. Levine Toilolo
31. Brent Celek

Jordan Cameron #3 - #6 on ESPN Rankings

The Jordan Cameron hype train has died down a little bit the past two weeks. A lot of people are wondering Weeden's return has spelled the demise of Cameron's value. Don't be one of those people. Cameron jumped to elite numbers at the beginning of the season behind Weeden and he is very capable of doing it again. This week should be a great return to that.

Greg Olsen #13 - #10 on ESPN rankings

The Rams are very tough against tight ends, the one spot they are decent against. They are allowing the 5th fewest points to opposing tight ends and have only allowed touchdowns to much better players Jason Witten and Vernon Davis.

Scott Chandler #14 - #21 on ESPN Rankings

Chandler is a fantastic goal line target, standing at 6'7". He got a touchdown with Thad Lewis last week, and inexperienced QBs tend to target their TEs because they are big targets who don't usually have an elite defender in coverage.

Timothy Wright #15 - #22 on ESPN Rankings

The inexperienced QB statement from above applies here as well. Wright has quickly established himself as one of Mike Glennon's favorite targets. It will be interesting to see if Mike Williams changes this, but for now I really like Wright. Falcons have allowed 5 TDs in five weeks to TEs.

Zach Ertz #17 - #29 on ESPN Rankings

This might be the most aggressive ranking I made the entire week. I love Ertz. It seems to have flown on the radar, but after last week he was officially moved from #2 on the official depth chart to "Co-Starter". He also received 6 targets to Brent Celek's 1 target last week. He is an amazing playmaker. If he had enough catches to qualify, he would have ranked 2nd in yards per catch for tight ends, squarely between Vernon Davis and Jimmy Graham.

Deeper looks...Brandon Myers has become a non-factor, and I ranked him accordingly, but he does have a great matchup this week. I didn't highlight Jordan Reed, but I feel similarly on him as I do for Ertz. I really like fellow rookie Tyler Eifert but its clear he isn't ready to take on a major role yet. I ranked Jared Cook lowly, and I've said it before but there is no reason he should be owned. I also mentioned on twitter, Joseph Fauria should not be really be considered a great option. He might get a touchdown, but if not he isn't an option. Its one of my mantras that you don't chase touchdowns.

Thanks for reading and as always feel free to leave a comment or tweet me @LopsidedTrades.

Week 7 QB Rankings

It's a unique week where we have quite a few wildcards at the QB position. You have Nick Foles and Thad Lewis coming off great fantasy weeks and then Josh Freeman very quickly thrust into a new role and Case Keenum making his career debut. Matt Ryan may be without a single receiver who has previously shown us anything. It should be fun to see how it all unfolds! Making predictions on the other hand...

1. Peyton Manning
2. Tony Romo
3. Aaron Rodgers
4. Jay Cutler
5. Philip Rivers
6. Matthew Stafford
7. RGIII
8. Cam Newton
9. Andrew Luck
10. Tom Brady
11. Matt Ryan
12. Nick Foles
13. Eli Manning
14. Ben Roethlisberger
15. Colin Kaepernick
16. Joe Flacco
17. Ryan Tannehill
18. Alex Smith
19. Mike Glennon
20. Josh Freeman
21. Brandon Weeden
22. Geno Smith
23. Andy Dalton
24. Jake Locker
25. Chad Henne
26. Sam Bradford
27. Thad Lewis
28. Case Keenum

Jay Cutler #4 - #9 on ESPN Rankings

Jay Cutler has now had two straight games with 20+ fantasy points and five of six have been 16 or better. He has turned into a very reliable fantasy option this season and now faces a very light Redskins defense.

Cam Newton #8 - #2 on ESPN Rankings

I guess the expert thinking here is that the Rams have been destroyed by the running game so Cam should bowl over them. That might happen, but it should be noted that when the faced Kaepernick, he only ran 3 times for 11 yards. Its not the best comparison, but its what we have. Couple that with the fact that Newton has been a very poor option when he hasn't scored a rushing TD this season and I'm much more conservative on him.

Andrew Luck #9 - #4 on ESPN Rankings

Its pretty hard to think this game won't end up just like the Cowboys-Broncos game. There is one big difference: Von Miller. I think Peyton wants to crush the Colts and this whole team plays fierce football, and Miller wreaks havoc in his return. Luck is still a good play, but not a great one.

Joe Flacco #16 - #21 on ESPN Rankings

The Steelers are definitely a tough defense, and I respect that. This ranking is more a reflection of the options below him I like less. Flacco is a clear step above guys like Tannehill and Smith in talent. He also has a wider range of options to throw to with Jacoby Jones and Marlon Brown both back, plus the emergence of Tandon Doss as a reliable target. Not a bad deeper play.

Mike Glennon #19 - #25 on ESPN Rankings

Last week against an awful defense, Glennon played very nicely. The Falcons are almost as forgiving against opponent QBs, being 5th in most points allowed to QBs compared to the Eagles 4th. He shouldn't have another 18 point day, but he won't be terrible either.