Welcome to your week 7 release wire with injuries and breakdowns brought to you. Injuries have been a constant this offseason, and have left many of us scrambling to the wire to stake our claim for some painful and sore backups, especially at running back. If you took Naje Harris or Jal McLaughlin at the start of Week 6, you weren’t happy with your decision. However, if you have Dameon Pierce or Roschon Johnson for that start, you can feel good about both getting into the end zone. That’s usually the way things go with backups, because a touch can make or break their fantasy, so they don’t put up bell cow numbers in relief.
We have a few strong picks this week, but mostly at the receiver position, as some young guys have stepped up this week. We use Yahoo’s listing percentages and try to stay under 50% if possible.
We have some solid players on the bye, like the Buffalo Bills, Jacksonville Jaguars. The Los Angeles Chargers and Washington Chiefs will take a week off.
Kyler Murray, Vikings (51%)
Murray was off this week, but last week was his best fantasy game of the season. Getting Justin Jefferson back and healthy was a big deal for Murray. Additionally, in a win over the Saints, he ran 10 times for 51 yards. It’s great to see his fantasy up there. This week they face a Colts team at home that has allowed the 7th-most fantasy points and rushing yards to opposing quarterbacks. He also needs to bring back TE TJ Hockenson from a stretch. Additionally, Murray will face the Lions and Bills after the Colts. Both teams are giving up big fantasy points to quarterbacks, but they push their opponents because of their strong offense.
Smith has been up and down with the Jets so far, but he’s shown enough in good matchups to believe he’s a loser. And he gets a great matchup this week against a Dolphins team in tank mode. Add in the difference today in rookie wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr. and you have a great new weapon for Smith. With Garrett Wilson occupying the No. 1 slot and Adonai Mitchell expected to return next week, Smith should be ready for a good game.
Kendre Miller, Saints (34%)
Miller didn’t have a big nightmare day against the Giants on Sunday, but he did catch 22 touchdowns in their win. He finished with 70 total yards and no pay dirt, but his usage was excellent. Next week in Paris, he will face a good steel defense, but he has been in the middle of the race. The Saints welcome to Week 8. It’s tough to use him in an offseason, but we don’t want to go all in on a guy who doesn’t show much upside.
Bam Knight, Cardinals (0%)
Knight ran 15 times for 80 yards and caught two passes for 18 more yards against Tyler Allgaier in Sunday’s win over the Rams. In contrast, Allgaier rushed 18 times for just 38 yards and caught one pass for 10 more. There was little doubt that Knight had more juice than Allgaier, and if Jeremiah Love can’t get back on the field against the Broncos, I expect Knight to get plenty of opportunities to pick up where he left off. However, if Love returns, Knight loses Weaver’s wire appeal.
Samaje Perrin, Bengal (5%)
Perry played Chase Brown in the Week 5 win over the Dolphins and should have won more tackles going forward. He’s not necessarily a plus, but he’s good enough to help the Bengals’ offense put up fantasy numbers that could benefit Perry if he continues to see a large chunk of the work.
Other breeders to watch – Tyrone Tracy, Corey Keener, Jordan Mason
Jeremy Bernard, Steelers (50%)
Bernard has seen use alongside Michael Pitman and Roman Wilson, but this week was his breakout. The rookie caught 11 passes for 87 yards and the game-winning touchdown against the Buccaneers in overtime. Bernard is good under the lanes and that fits Aaron Rodgers, who is a businessman at this point in his career. This works well under Bernard, who fits the flash-happy Bucs, as Rodgers needs to get rid of the ball quickly. That may not always be the case, but Rodgers has shown an affinity for quick shooters and Bernard fits the bill.
Omar Cooper Jr., Jets (4%)
The rookie caught six passes for 103 yards and a touchdown against the Patriots on May 7. This is his first game back from an ankle injury, which is a miracle. Adonai Mitchell missed the fourth game with a finger injury, which helped Cooper see more snaps in his first game back. But Cooper is a first-round pick who put up big numbers in his first full game in the NFL. The Jets have no reason not to make him a big part of their offense moving forward.
Noel had a big game on Sunday morning against the Jaguars across the pond as he caught four passes for 107 yards. There’s talent there to be sure and it’s worth signing up if you can land him, but Texas and C.J. Strode are going to spread the ball around. And, with Marvin Harrison Jr. added to the rotation, it will still be difficult to pick the right Texans fantasy wide receiver without naming Nico Collins.
Other WRs to watch — Travis Hunter, Darius Cooper, Kendrick Bourne, Demario Douglas, Ja’Kobi Lane
TJ Hockenson, Vikings (31%)
Hockenson suffered a concussion early in Week 5, but should be ready to return following their Week 6 bye. He hasn’t had a great season yet, but his 13 receptions for 119 yards in Week 4 against the Dolphins shows that Kyler Murray has no qualms about throwing to tight ends. Also, he gets a tough matchup in Week 7 against the Colts, who have given Travis Kelce and Pat Friarmuth big games so far this season.
Other TEs to watch — Brenton Strong, Hunter Henry, Mike Gesicki
The Jets face the Dolphins at home. Miami hasn’t allowed any D/ST to score less than 8 fantasy points this season, and even with the bye, there’s no reason to believe they’re even close to contending this season.
Browns (20%) vs. Titans (2%)
Both of these teams are in the top 7 in fantasy points given up to D/STs. It might not be pretty, but if I need a D/ST discount this week, I have no problem taking one of these teams.
