The Fantasy Footballers’ “Starts of the Week” for Week 7

Football is back for the seventh week of the season. For Thursday’s The Fantasy Footballers episode, Andy, Mike, and Jason went over their Starts of the Week. Before the conversation about starting players, the Ballers went over their “Taking It Up To 100” players for the week. Andy selected Tom Brady, Mike picked Marquez Valdes-Scantling, and Jason went with Matthew Stafford.

Towards the end of the episode, the guys brought the main event — their Starts of the Week. If you missed the episode, you can listen to the podcast here or watch it on Youtube. Subscribe and hit the bell so you stay in the know. Also, give JoinTheFoot.com a look as it provides lots of additional resources exclusively for #FootClan members.

Andy’s Starts

QB: Matt Ryan vs. Detroit Lions

Andy chose Ryan as the start of the week at the quarterback position because Andy is chasing points. This game is exciting as the starting quarterback on either team is worth a start this week. The over/under for this game is one of the highest of the week (56.5). When you watch Ryan, you can recognize he is a different type of player with Julio Jones on the field. Viewing Ryan’s finishes for the weeks Jones was there, you will notice he was QB7, QB6, and QB2. With Jones completely healed, Ryan will have great fantasy stats. Detroit will put up huge numbers against the bad Atlanta defense, so Ryan will be forced to throw the ball. Andy would like you to know that Matty Ice is Matty Nice for this week.

RB: Justin Jackson vs. Jacksonville Jaguars

Austin Ekeler is currently injured, and Justin Jackson has seemed like the better of the healthy running backs on the Chargers roster. Jackson saw 59-percent of the offensive snaps with Ekeler out, while Joshua Kelley saw 35-percent. In that same span, Jackson had 21 opportunities to Kelley’s 12. Jackson is the Chargers back to start at the moment. This week finds him taking on a Jacksonville defense ranking 28th against opposing fantasy running backs. Jackson will have the chance to put up big numbers for your team when he battles Jacksonville. Jackson could be an excellent DFS play this week as well.

WR: Terry McLaurin vs. Dallas Cowboys

Can Terry get his “Scary” back this week? McLaurin will be facing a Dallas defense that is 30th versus fantasy wide receivers. He has had two consecutive weeks outside the top-24, but this will be the game to change that. McLaurin frequently has balls thrown his direction. He had 12 targets last week with Kyle Allen at the helm. Over the first six games of the season, McLaurin was targeted 58 times. Even with his lower than expected fantasy numbers, he has been an integral part of the offense. Allen will get him the ball this week, and McLaurin should have an exceptional game. Andy believes he is going to have some sort of big play, most likely a touchdown.

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TE: T.J. Hockenson vs. Atlanta Falcons

Hockenson is getting an Atlanta defense that is the most benevolent to the tight end position (Andy’s big word, not mine). Every week of this season, the Falcons defense gives up top-10 weeks to opposing tight ends, minus Ian Thomas. That defense is currently ranked dead last against tight ends. Hockenson has three touchdowns on the season and also gets four to five targets each contest. Again, this game sees a huge over/under, and Andy loves Hockules in this competition. With a shootout bound to happen, Hockenson will put up great fantasy numbers as one of Matthew Stafford‘s favorite weapons.

Jason’s Starts

QB: Ben Roethlisberger @ Tennessee Titans

Big Ben has not had to do much this season with wins against the Giants, Texans, Eagles, and Browns. This situation is ideal for a player coming off of injury. In this contest, Roethlisberger takes on a Tennessee team that can keep up with his team. Wideout Diontae Johnson will be back in the lineup, alongside Mapletron Chase Claypool and JuJu Smith-Schuster. Gardner Minshew, Kirk Cousins, and Deshaun Watson all located the endzone three or more times when meeting Tennessee. Don’t let Roethlisberger’s underwhelming numbers from last week prevent you from starting the Steelers QB.

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RB: Todd Gurley vs. Detroit Lions

Gurley has been more engaged in the receiving game as of late, and he has additionally seen tons of volume. In his last matchup, Gurley was targeted four times while carrying the football 20 times. The touchdown possibility is always there with Gurley, which is good for him this week as he takes on a Lions defense that coughed up four top-10 running back games. He plays in a game with the highest over/under of the week while being favored at home by Las Vegas. All of these factors make Gurley an intriguing option this week. Gurley is bound to find the end zone in this meeting.

WR: DJ Chark vs. Los Angeles Chargers

Chark is back, which is terrific for your starting lineup if you have him rostered. Last week, he saw 14 targets while playing 57-of-64 snaps. His fantasy statistics were not notable, but he should continue to acquire targets. Gardner Minshew will find a way to get Chark the ball as he is the clear number one receiver on the team after last week. The Chargers defense has seen better days, as they are now without Derwin James, Melvin Ingram, and Chris Harris Jr. Chark is set for success this week.

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TE: Hunter Henry vs. Jacksonville Jaguars

Before his bye week, Henry was ranked as the TE10 on the season. In this contest, the Chargers tight end takes on a Jacksonville defense that ranks 27th against the tight end. Henry has seen double-digit fantasy points in every game this season except one. This matchup is a contest he can tally another double-digit game. Henry sees an average of seven targets a game, and he should find himself with a hearty number of targets in this outing as well. “Unter Enry” will fetch the meats and the targets in week 7.

Mike’s Starts

QB: Gardner Minshew II @ Los Angeles Chargers

Mike is going with a quarterback meeting a Chargers defense that concedes the third-most points per game. Minshew takes on a team that gives up 273 passing yards per game, something beneficial to Minshew as, on average, he throws for 280 yards a game. Minshew has thrown for two or more touchdowns in four games this season. In his last game against Detroit, Minshew tossed a score but additionally ran one in. Feel confident placing Minshew in your starting lineup this Sunday.

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RB: David Johnson vs. Green Bay Packers

Johnson faces a Green Bay defense conceding the most fantasy points to opposing running backs. This season, the Packers give up more points to running backs than wide receivers, so Johnson will have an exceptional opportunity to rack up points. No more Bill O’Brien means the team has gotten back on track. Over the last two weeks, the organization has gone for 30 or more points, and Johnson has seen 21 opportunities. He is averaging 10 yards per catch, something to keep an eye on too.

WR: Tee Higgins vs. Cleveland Browns

The Cincinnati wide receiver is going to need to be in your fantasy lineup from here on out. Higgins had a breakout game in week 3 of the season, and he has been averaging eight targets a game since that impressive match. Additionally, since breaking out, he is averaging five receptions for 76 yards. The Browns defense has only shut down receivers once this year, and they are letting opposing wideouts have the fourth-most points in the league. Wide receiver Tyler Boyd is another adequate play in this game. AJ Green could potentially have a decent game as well. Quarterback Joe Burrow should find Higgins a lot this weekend.  Check to see if Higgins is available in your league because he is start-worthy going forward.

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TE: Austin Hooper @ Cincinnati Bengals

For back-to-back weeks, Hooper has put up 50+ yards. Furthermore, he has five receptions in three straight weeks. The Bengals, whom Hooper is battling this week, allow the sixth-most points to tight ends this year. Zach Ertz somehow managed to pull off 70 yards against Cincinnati, so watch for Hooper to have a big game as well. Hooper has been becoming more involved with his new team after starting slow. The tight end is out for at least 70-percent of snaps in each game, so he will have an abundance of chances to find paydirt this week.

And don’t forget about Jason Moore‘s Iron-Clad Locked and Loaded 100% Guaranteed Boom Boom Kicker of the Week:
“With the goggles on bye, I just don’t even know how to be, but I guess I’ll pick someone else and go with the Packers Mason Crosby.“