RADIO
Whether due to their own play, the play of others, or injuries, players' stock increases and decreases on a weekly basis. Perhaps more than any other, the NFL is a league that experiences ups and downs at a rapid pace. With only 16 games, there’s little room for error and seemingly endless opportunities for improvement. The same goes for fantasy football, and managing rosters effectively is key to winning that championship.
Throughout the season, players get hot and see an increased role while others struggle and fight to stay relevant. Experienced fantasy players know this happens every year. In this weekly column, we’ll showcase those who have taken important steps forward and those who have taken steps back.
These are the key fantasy risers and fallers heading into Week 7 of the NFL season. Dynasty owners, check out our separate Dynasty Risers/Fallers segment each week as well.
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Week 7 Risers
Old People (QB, RB, WR, ARI)
The Cardinals' trio of retirement home members, Carson Palmer, Adrian Peterson, and Larry Fitzgerald all get to occupy one spot on the risers list. Palmer threw for 283 yards, which is actually his lowest yardage total since week 1 and three touchdowns. The bulk of his throws went in the direction of the ageless wonder, Larry Fitzgerald, who amassed 138 yards and a score on 10 receptions. Then we have Adrian Peterson. In his first game with the Cardinals, AP took his 26 carries for 134 yards and two touchdowns. Peterson wasted no time in making my proclamation of him being done look really stupid. I'm not going to let one strong outing overshadow two seasons' worth of poor performance, but it certainly looks as if Peterson will have legitimate fantasy value going forward. While none of these players look like their old selves, they have all proven quite capable of playing at the highest level well into their 30s.
Jarvis Landry (WR, MIA)
In the absence of DeVante Parker, Jarvis Landry stepped up and saw a whopping 14 targets, catching eight of them for 62 yards and his second touchdown in as many weeks. Landry has reached double digit PPR fantasy points in every game this season as he continues to possess one of the highest floors at the position. With the bye week well in the rear view mirror and an overall favorable rest of season schedule, the arrow is pointing way up for Landry to maintain his consistency.
Mark Ingram (RB, NO)
Freed from having to worry about Adrian Peterson stealing any of his snaps, Mark Ingram shined. He saw a season high 25 carries for a season high 114 yards and a season high two rushing touchdowns. Ingram also added 36 yards on five receptions. He was heavily involved in the offense and clearly ahead of Alvin Kamara in the pecking order. Sean Payton may hate Ingram, but it didn't matter last week. Ingram looks like his typical RB1 self going forward.
New York TEs
With both the Jets and Giants possessing a dearth of talented/healthy WRs, it was the TEs that shined. Austin Seferian-Jenkins and Evan Engram dominated on Sunday. ASJ now has a touchdown in back to back weeks and should've had two last week - you can never convince me otherwise. Now with 19 targets over the past two weeks, it's clear that ASJ is the man in the green New York jerseys. I see no reason his target share won't be sustainable. Stock up for ASJ rest of season.
Calling home to the same stadium, Evan Engram had a complete 180 performance from his zero catch week 5 effort. The Denver defense was no match for E Double as he caught five balls for a season best 82 yards and his second career touchdown. Rookie TEs are not supposed to be this good. Engram's near unprecedented athleticism combined with the lack of viable options for Eli Manning to throw to has Engram in an extremely favorable position for fantasy. He could be an elite TE1 this season.
Week 7 Fallers
Matt Ryan (QB, ATL)
I'm not going to add insult to injury by putting Aaron Rodgers here. Matt Ryan gets the nod for being even more overrated than I thought he was. Although he's thrown a touchdown in every game this season, he's thrown for multiple scores just once while throwing multiple picks twice. Ryan hasn't touched 300 yards since opening Sunday and has failed to reach 20 fantasy points in every game this season even in six point passing touchdown leagues. Not only is Ryan not a QB1, he's barely a QB2.
Michael Thomas (WR, NO)
How do the Saints score 52 points and Michael Thomas only has 11 receiving yards? That's Amari Cooper level bad. The situation is pretty much exactly what I outlined in my preseason article arguing against Thomas as a WR1. He is not a true number one WR and struggles against big time cornerbacks. Xavier Rhoades locked him down week 1 and "Big Play" Slay erased him last week. He alternates good and bad matchups over the next four weeks. You're not benching him, but be aware that he is very matchup dependent.
C.J. Anderson (RB, DEN)
When we last saw C.J. Anderson before the bye, he was ripping off 95 yards on 20 carries. Last week, he only carried the ball nine times for a whopping 17 yards. He didn't lose any work to Jamaal Charles; he just didn't do anything. To be fair, the Broncos totally flopped at home against the Giants so this could be an outlier. However, with Devontae Booker back in the mix, Anderson's workload could take a hit and he's not a guy that can be relied upon to produce on limited touches.
Jordan Reed (TE, WAS)
He's supposed to provide a significant weekly edge at the position. He's been doing that...for your opponent. Jordan Reed is not a TE1 anymore. He's barely a TE2. Not to completely rehash everything I said in my TE waiver wire article, but the crux of it is that Reed's snap share is substantially lower than it was when he was healthy at the beginning of last season. A 15-20% reduction in snaps in massive. Reed isn't on the field enough and he's not being targeted or treated like an important or even relevant member of the offense. He will have his pop weeks like anyone else, but they will be sporadic and unpredictable. Reed does not provide any weekly edge at the position for you. He's just a guy.
