Select Snap Count Observations: Transactions for Week 7 (Fantasy Football)
We are deep enough into the season that definitive playing time trends have crystallized on the field. We do not need to waste any ink explaining how tracking snap counts gives you a distinct advantage on the waiver wire, so let’s skip the small talk and get right into the data.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Brian Thomas Jr. (21%)
Houston Texans
Marvin Harrison Jr. (12 snaps)
Los Angeles Chargers
KeAndre Lambert-Smith (87%)
Remember back in Week 1 when we said you could completely forget about KeAndre Lambert-Smith? Well, fantasy football comes at you fast. With Tre’ Harris already sidelined, Ladd McConkey suffered a concussion early in the second quarter of Sunday’s loss to the Chiefs, leaving the Chargers’ WR room decimated. Enter Lambert-Smith, fresh off injured reserve. He was immediately thrust into a primary role, leading the entire team in pass routes and commanding 9 targets.
Unfortunately, the volume didn’t translate into much production. He didn’t do a whole lot with the opportunity, turning those 9 targets into just 5 catches for 32 yards while also losing a costly fumble. It was an inefficient day (a miserable 0.86 yards per route run), which underscores just how broken this passing offense looks right now under Justin Herbert. The volume makes him a mandatory name to monitor in deeper leagues as the Chargers head into their Week 7 bye, but there is simply not enough efficiency here to trust him in standard fantasy lineups.
Conclusion: Monitor Lambert-Smith on the waiver wire in deep leagues, but leave him there for now.
New England Patriots
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A.J. Brown (79%)
It was an anticipated but rusty return for A.J. Brown in the Patriots’ 26-19 win over the Jets. Playing in his first game since suffering an injury in Week 1, Brown didn’t have his usual hands or timing. He played a heavy role, logging 52 out of 67 possible snaps, and pacing the offense with 10 targets. Unfortunately, he turned those 10 opportunities into an incredibly inefficient three receptions for just 27 yards.
While the Patriots managed to slog out a divisional victory, Brown’s uncharacteristic drops turned a potential blowout into a frustratingly sloppy offensive performance. Brown was charged with a career-high three official drops, including a brutal second-quarter deep ball from Drake Maye that slipped right through his hands for what should have been a walk-in 61-yard TD. He even added a dropped onside kick to his ledger late in the fourth quarter.
Brown owned his struggles after the game, bluntly stating that his timing was off and that there were no excuses for the mistakes. Fantasy managers shouldn’t panic, though. The massive target volume proves he is still the undisputed alpha focal point for Drake Maye whenever he is on the field. He gets a quick chance to shake off the rust and build up that chemistry on a short week when the Patriots travel to face the Bears on Thursday night.
Conclusion: Treat him as a locked-in, high-volume WR2.
New York Giants
J.J. McCarthy (40%)
We officially have a QB controversy in New York. After Jameis Winston struggled mightily through three quarters—throwing two costly INTs as the Giants fell into a massive 34-10 hole—head coach John Harbaugh finally pulled the plug. He turned the offense over to J.J. McCarthy with 11:25 remaining in the fourth quarter, and what followed was pure historical chaos.
McCarthy did throw a quick INT on his first drive, but he settled down and engineered a furious comeback bid. He completed 11-of-21 passes for 243 passing yards in just over 11 minutes of action—the most passing yards in that short of a timespan in NFL history. He threw an absolute dart to Isaiah Likely for a 24-yard TD, led a separate TD drive capped by a Tyrone Tracy Jr. run, and executed a field-goal drive to pull the Giants within 34-27. He even led the team in rushing with 26 yards. The magic finally ran out on a fourth-and-1 from the Saints’ 14-yard line with 12 seconds left when his final shot to Likely in the end zone fell incomplete.
Harbaugh refused to name a starter for next week’s matchup against the Texans, but the explosive contrast between the two signal-callers makes it incredibly hard to imagine Winston keeping this job. McCarthy’s mobility completely opens up the run-pass option game and breathes life into this offense.
Conclusion: If you are a Malik Nabers or Isaiah Likely manager, you should be actively rooting for McCarthy to win the job. Nabers feasted for 165 yards on 12 catches, and McCarthy clearly isn’t afraid to lock onto his top playmakers and let it rip. McCarthy is worth a speculative bench stash in 2-QB or SuperFlex leagues right now.
Arizona Cardinals
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Zonovan Knight (44%) | Tyler Allgeier (56%)
With rookie Jeremiyah Love sidelined due to a lingering left ankle injury, the Cardinals’ backfield was up for grabs in their gritty 18-16 win over the Rams. If you started Tyler Allgeier expecting him to assume the true alpha workhorse role, the actual execution on the field left a frustrating taste in your mouth.
While Allgeier technically led the backfield in total opportunities—logging 18 carries and earning two targets—he looked sluggish, averaging 2.1 yards per carry. He was consistently met at the line of scrimmage and failed to generate any explosive chunk plays. Instead, it was Zonovan “Bam” Knight who looked like the superior, more effective asset, making you wonder why Arizona spent all that money on Allgeier. Knight matched Allgeier’s efficiency in the passing game with two catches for 18 yards, but outclassed him on the ground (80 rushing yards on just 15 carries, 5.3 YPC, bolstered by a 31-yard chunk play).
Conclusion: This appears to be a committee for as long as Jeremiyah Love remains out of the lineup.