Best fantasy football waiver wire pickups for Week 7
As we look ahead to Week 7 of the 2021 NFL season, there will be six teams on bye, which means not only are you scouring the waiver wire for long-term solutions, but streaming options as well.
Those six teams on bye include the Buffalo Bills, Los Angeles Chargers, Dallas Cowboys, Minnesota Vikings, Pittsburgh Steelers and Jacksonville Jaguars, all teams that have fantasy-relevant players at multiple spots.
Here’s a look at players from those teams you might need a one-week replacement for:
Bills: QB Josh Allen, RBs Devin Singletary and Zack Moss, WRs Stefon Diggs and Emmanuel Sanders, TE Dawson Knox
Chargers: QB Justin Herbert, RB Austin Ekeler, WRs Mike Williams and Keenan Allen
Cowboys: QB Dak Prescott, RBs Ezekiel Elliot and Tony Pollard, WRs CeeDee Lamb and Amari Cooper, TE Dalton Schultz
Vikings: QB Kirk Cousins, RB Dalvin Cook, WRs Justin Jefferson and Adam Thielen
Steelers: RB Najee Harris, WRs Diontae Johnson and Chase Claypool
Jaguars: RB James Robinson, WR Marvin Jones Jr.
Now, a look at some players you should be targeting on the waiver wire for Week 7.
Streaming QB: Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins
AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee
With multiple fantasy-relevant quarterbacks on bye, managers will be scouring the waiver wire for a replacement this week.
Tua’s numbers from this season certainly don’t jump off the page at you, but desperate times call for desperate measures and he is coming off his best fantasy showing of 2021.
He draws a favorable matchup against a Falcons defense giving up the fourth-most fantasy points per game to quarterbacks, and that alone is sufficient to stream him in Week 7.
RBs D'Ernest Johnson and Demetric Felton, Cleveland Browns
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The Browns have a short turnaround after losing on Sunday, which could be bad news for their pair of injured running backs in Kareem Hunt and Nick Chubb suiting up.
If either or both can’t go, Johnson looks to be in line to get the work. Should one of them play, Johnson could still be relevant, as this Browns offense has shown it can support two running backs.
Fellow back Demetric Fulton will also get some run if Hunt and Chubb are out, but we believe Johnson will see the bulk of it.
RB Marlon Mack, Indianapolis Colts
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With the trade deadline approaching after Week 8, and with Mack having asked to be traded, this is a situation to keep an eye on in the coming weeks.
If you have an extra spot on your roster, it might be worth taking a flyer on Mack with the hope he gets traded to a team that features him. However, he doesn’t have any fantasy relevance as long as he’s in Indy and Jonathan Taylor is healthy.
Streaming RB: Mark Ingram, Houston Texans
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Other than Brandin Cooks, you really don’t want any piece of the Texans right now, but that changes this week with some good running backs on bye.
Ingram is the No. 1 back in Houston’s messy backfield, and he still managed to log 18 carries for 74 yards despite his team getting blown out in Week 6.
We can expect the Texans to get creamed again this week versus the Arizona Cardinals, but at least Ingram will see some volume and, who knows, maybe he falls into the end zone once.
WR T.Y. Hilton, Indianapolis Colts
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Hilton made his 2021 debut on Sunday and wasted no time making his presence felt, reeling in four passes for 80 yards, which paced all Colts receivers.
Hilton did come down with a quad injury so his status bears monitoring, but there might be a new No. 1 in Indy, and it’s a guy who has been an elite fantasy receiver before.
WR Donovan Peoples-Jones, Cleveland Browns
AP Photo/Wade Payne
Peoples-Jones led all Browns pass-catchers with 101 yards and two scores in Week 6, and he has 11 targets, nine receptions, 171 yards and two touchdowns over the last two games.
Jarvis Landry is still on IR, and Odell Beckham Jr., who suffered a shoulder injury on Sunday, remains average at best. Peoples-Jones looks to be the Browns’ No. 1 receiver right now, at least until Landry returns.
WR Rashod Bateman, Baltimore Ravens
AP Photo/Gail Burton
For a rookie making his debut after missing the first five weeks of the season, you couldn’t really ask for much more than what we saw out of Bateman.
The Minnesota product was immediately involved in the offense, seeing six targets. He turned those into four catches for 29 yards in the Ravens’ win over the Los Angeles Chargers.
Rostering Bateman is more of a luxury than anything else. We’re fine with stashing him and seeing what happens as long as he doesn’t take a roster spot from someone who could help you immediately. Marquis Brown owners would also be wise to pick Bateman up as a potential handcuff.
TE Ricky Seals-Jones, Washington Football Team
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Washington’s No. 1 tight end, Logan Thomas, will be on IR for at least one more week, which means Seals-Jones will remain the starter.
Seals-Jones has found the end zone twice this year, and in the two weeks he has filled in for Thomas he has nine catches for 99 yards and a touchdown.
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