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Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Week 7: Smartest Matchups to Exploit, Sleeper Plays and More

Fantasy Football
October 18, 2016

For fantasy football owners, Buffalo Bills running back LeSean McCoy and Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Kenny Britt serve as valuable lessons going into Week 7.

The two exemplify exploiting matchups and sleepers. McCoy stood as an obvious big name to deploy against the struggling San Francisco 49ers in Week 6, and he responded with 32 points by way of 140 rushing yards and a trio of scores.

Britt landed on the sleeper end of the spectrum. Before Monday’s action, he sat behind only Odell Beckham Jr. in scoring at wideout thanks to a 25-point outburst—one owners could have seen coming when looking at his past usage versus a favorable matchup against the Detroit Lions defense.

Below, let’s provide a guide of matchup value comparisons and then look at the notable exploitable matchups and sleepers of Week 7.

    

Quarterback

Matchup to Exploit: Philip Rivers, SD (at ATL)

Owners of San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers will have to forgive him for an 11-point outing against the Denver Broncos in Week 6.

Then again, owners should have never started him in the first place.

The skies look clear for Rivers in Week 7, though, thanks to a matchup with the Atlanta Falcons. Rivers has 18 or more points in three games this year and two four-touchdown games.

Those Falcons allowed a ridiculous 14 touchdown passes over the first five games of the season before tightening up in Week 6. Rivers, on the road or not, should have a productive day.

    

Sleeper to Know: Kirk Cousins, WAS (at DET)

Hardly owned in more than 70 percent of leagues, Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins continues to sit around unused while having yet to prove himself. 

Over the first six games of the season, Cousins has yet to hit more than 20 points in an outing and has thrown an interception in every game except one.

Remember the Lions defense from the intro? Cousins gets to exploit the unit in Week 7, a unit that entered Week 6 allowing the most points on average to quarterbacks. It is a unit that has now coughed up 17 touchdown passes.

Given the dire situation for Detroit, Cousins should finally hit for more than 20 points.

    

Running Back

Matchup to Exploit: Jamaal Charles, KC (vs. NO)

Owners don’t have much of a choice but to bank on Jamaal Charles taking off the training wheels in Week 7. 

How could they not? Charles facing the New Orleans Saints seems ripe for his topping the overall weekly leaderboard. The Saints entered Week 6 allowing the most points on average to backs thanks to eight rushing scores allowed over four games, then allowed two more in Week 6.

As for Charles, he only received nine carries against the Oakland Raiders while Spencer Ware took 24. Even so, he tallied 33 yards and a score, good for 10 points.

Provided Kansas City feels Charles can handle the workload, he’ll see even more usage in one of the best matchups of the year.

    

Sleeper to Know: Chris Ivory, JAC (vs. OAK)

Expect Jacksonville Jaguars running back Chris Ivory to be one of the hotter names on the waiver wire given his 55.9 ownership percentage. 

Ivory looked back to his usual self in Week 6 after weeks of dealing with a health issue. He took 11 carries against the Chicago Bears and turned them into 32 yards and a score, good for nine points.

Other than sitting as a known producer who looks back to health, the real boon in Week 7 is Ivory’s matchup. The Raiders coughed up 21 or more points three times to opposing backfields through the first five weeks of the season, then gave up the 10 to Charles and 22 more to Ware.

    

Wide Receiver

Matchup to Exploit: Allen Robinson, JAC (vs. OAK)

Jaguars top wideout Allen Robinson has been one of the most frustrating players in fantasy so far this season. 

In two bad matchups to start the season, Robinson couldn’t hit double digits. In two good matchups that followed, he totaled three scores and a minimum of 11 points in each game.

Then Week 6 happened. Robinson had an incredible matchup against the Bears—and caught three passes for four yards.

Alas, owners can’t ignore Robinson, especially not against Oakland. The Raiders entered Week 6 allowing the most points on average to wideouts, with four opposing sets scoring a minimum of 25 (and one with a high of 55).

Robinson let owners down in Week 6, but he’s in for one heck of an apology.

    

Sleeper to Know: Mike Wallace, BAL (at NYJ)

The demise of Revis Island has made the New York Jets one of the best defenses to face when it comes to fantasy wide receivers.

In Week 7, the favorable slot belongs to Baltimore Ravens wideout Mike Wallace. The veteran had a nice outburst to start the season with his new team, scoring three touchdowns over his first two games.

He hasn’t hit double digits since, and his ownership percentage dipped to 64.1.

It might be wise to grab Wallace before the percentage swells again after he gets to run wild on the Jets. New York ranked only behind Oakland in terms of points allowed to wideouts entering Week 6, with three opposing sets hitting on 34 or more points.

All it takes for Wallace to have a season high is getting past the New York secondary once or twice deep.

    

Tight End

Matchup to Exploit: Hunter Henry, SD (at ATL)

San Diego looks like the Hunter Henry show. 

Despite Antonio Gates still on the roster, injuries to Danny Woodhead and Keenan Allen have thrust Henry into the lineup. He’s responded well much to the delight of fantasy owners, having scored a touchdown in three straight games with 12 or more points in each.

Perhaps the best part? Not every game was a great matchup, meaning an encounter with the Falcons in Week 7 should prove quite fruitful. The Falcons entered Week 6 allowing the second-most points to tight ends, having already coughed up five touchdowns to the position over as many games.

Henry seems like a lock to keep his pair of hot streaks going.

    

Sleeper to Know: Vernon Davis, WAS (at DET)

Vernon Davis, owned in 11.7 percent of leagues, stepped up big for Washington in Week 6, catching two passes for 50 yards and a score, which translated to 11 points. 

Davis hit the field in place of the injured Jordan Reed, who had another concussion sideline him for an unknown amount of time. Given the fact he’s only played in nine, 11 and 14 games over the past three seasons, Davis might see another game or two as the lead man.

Good news—the Week 7 opportunity for Davis would come against Detroit. The Lions can’t defend much of anything, but especially tight end. Detroit’s defense has now allowed seven touchdowns to tight ends over six games, giving Davis one incredible outlook for Week 7.

    

All scoring info and statistics courtesy of ESPN.com standard leagues, as are points-against info and ownership stats.

Follow Chris Roling (@Chris_Roling) on Twitter.

Read more Fantasy Football news on NerdyFootball.com

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