No matter how deep your league is, Week 7 offered plenty of injuries and potential breakout performances to make sure your waiver wire has intriguing names on it.
Our fantasy football analysts break down key names you'll be either bidding on or considering with your top waiver claim.
RB Gus Edwards, Ravens
Sean Koerner: Edwards operated as the lead back in his first action in a year and a half. He ran for 66 yards on 16 attempts and punched it in for two scores.
With J.K. Dobbins (knee surgery) reportedly sidelined for 4-6 weeks, Edwards should be able to provide low-end RB2 value. His lack of receiving stats limit his upside, but RB-needy teams who are fighting for a playoff berth should be pretty aggressive trying to land Edwards this week.
Mike Triplett: I’ll pounce if I need RB depth or have an early waiver-wire priority this week. Otherwise, I might be a little hesitant to use a large portion of my FAAB budget on Edwards.
There are just too many red flags for me, including the severity of Edwards’ injury and how much time he missed; the fact that he has never caught 10 passes in a season before; and the fact that Baltimore’s backfield is still overcrowded – especially when J.K. Dobbins returns from IR.
Since Edwards isn’t used in the passing game, the main reason to invest in him is if you expect volume — and I’m worried that will be hard to rely on since the Ravens have treated both Dobbins and Edwards cautiously after their major knee injuries.
However, I do have to admit that they surprised me by handing Edwards 16 carries and two TD runs in his first game back. He definitely soared past Kenyan Drake in the backfield pecking order.
WR Parris Campbell, Colts
Koerner: Campbell has always carried WR3-type upside if he could ever stay healthy, and we are seeing him live up to his potential over the past two games.
I would add him in deeper leagues, but he isn’t someone I would be too aggressive with for my FAAB bid. With the Colts switching from Matt Ryan to Sam Ehlinger at quarterback, it could lower the overall passing volume and reshuffle the target distribution enough to hurt Campbell.
It’s going to be tough for him to maintain consistent WR3/4 value as long as Michael Pittman and Alec Pierce are healthy. I prefer the Giants' Wan’Dale Robinson if he’s available, as he has a much clearer path to every-week WR3 production.
Triplett: I hate to be the pessimist again, but I’m concerned the switch from Ryan to Ehlinger could slow Campbell’s recent momentum as a high-volume pass catcher.
The one thing Ryan was doing well (for fantasy purposes, anyway) was firing off a heavy volume of quick, short passes to avoid pressure behind the Colts’ struggling offensive line. Ryan is actually tied for the NFL lead with 203 completions this season, but he ranks 29th in yards per completion (9.89).
I think Campbell was a big benefactor of that style of offense. His production could drop if the passing volume decreases or Ehlinger uses his mobility to scramble more. … Or if Ehlinger just plain struggles behind that O-line that has put a damper on all of Indy’s fantasy prospects this year.
RBs D'Onta Foreman and Chuba Hubbard, Panthers
Koerner: Hubbard operated as the lead back before he was forced out of the game due to an ankle injury. Foreman took advantage of both the injury and the positive game script to rip off a 15/118/0 rushing line.
Going forward, I would lean toward Hubbard being the more valuable back considering he will see the majority of the pass-catching work, with Foreman possibly seeing more early down work and goal-line carries.
With the Panthers expected to be in more negative game scripts, I rank Hubbard as a high-end RB3/Flex and Foreman as a mid-range RB3/Flex.
Triplett: Don’t be fooled by the final stat lines here. Despite Foreman’s monster output (145 yards on 17 touches), Hubbard actually got the start and out-snapped Foreman 22-14 through three quarters before leaving with an ankle injury that was reportedly minor.
Plus, Hubbard should be more effective in the passing game if the Panthers fall back down to earth and don’t have the luxury of playing with big leads in the future. Hubbard is also the younger back, so the Panthers might want to feature him a little more down the stretch to see what they have for the future.
Unfortunately, the downside of both RBs being effective is that they will probably remain stuck in a timeshare for the foreseeable future.
QB Daniel Jones, Giants
Koerner: Jones’ rushing upside puts him on the QB1/2 cusp. Due to a plethora of injuries to the Giants' WR room and being involved in so many positive game scripts at 6-1, Jones hasn’t provided too much value with his arm.
However, with Wan’Dale Robinson looking closer to 100% and the potential return of Kadarius Toney (at some point), we could see Jones sneak into the low-end QB1 discussion for the rest of the season.
Samantha Previte: Jones had his best game of the season as the G-Men picked up their sixth win of the year after defeating the Jaguars 23-17. He completed 19-of-30 attempts for 202 yards and a touchdown and tacked on 11 rushes for 107 yards and a touchdown.
Jones, the QB9 on a per-game basis this season, is averaging just shy of 50 rushing yards per game, which gives him a high floor for fantasy purposes.
I am mildly concerned about the loss of right tackle Evan Neal, who suffered a MCL sprain. The injury is not believed to be season-ending, though any attrition on the offensive line could be detrimental to Jones’ fantasy value. The Giants’ OL has been a perpetual pain point and ranks 25th in sacks allowed per game.
Jones is still a high-end streaming option for Patrick Mahomes or Justin Herbert managers as he goes up against a Seattle defense that ranks 22nd in defensive DVOA, according to Football Outsiders.
TE Greg Dulcich, Broncos
Koerner: I have been talking up Dulcich for the past couple weeks. He should be viewed as a low-end TE1 and has potential for more if/when Russell Wilson breaks out of his slump.
Previte: Who is the Broncos’ best tight end and why is it Greg Dulcich?
I seriously spent more time than I would like to admit learning how to pronounce Albert Okwuegbunam’s name ahead of the season. That ended up being a complete waste, as Okwuegbunam has just 50 yards in four games (and no touchdowns) and has been a healthy scratch the last two weeks.
Levity aside, Dulcich could be everything we hoped Albert O would be. I spoke about him in my lookahead waiver wire column on Friday after he shined in his rookie debut.
He caught 2-of-3 passes for 44 yards and a touchdown, finishing as the TE9 for the week in half-PPR scoring against the Chargers. The impressive rookie followed that up with a strong Week 7 against the Jets (in spite of Brett Rypien starting) and caught 6-of-9 passes for 51 yards. Dulcich is currently the TE12 heading into Monday night and could be Denver’s new TE1.
While that isn’t the most attractive prospect given how poorly the Broncos have played, Dulcich warrants attention, especially in deeper leagues, as this situation develops.
QB Sam Ehlinger, Colts
Koerner: Ehlinger has enough rushing upside and pass-catching talent surrounding him to provide mid-range QB2 value for as long as he remains the Colts' starter.
It remains to be seen just how long that will be, but how he performs this week gives us a much better idea going forward. He is a must-add for QB-needy teams in 2QB/Superflex leagues.
Triplett: Samatha told me on Monday’s Fantasy Flex podcast that she is in a 16-team league with deep benches where she had to choose between Brett Rypien and P.J. Walker. So there are indeed some leagues where someone like Ehlinger is a must-add!
Otherwise, it’s hard to have high hopes, considering how much Indy’s offense has struggled this year behind a crumpling offensive line. His best path to any potential fantasy relevance is using his mobility to add some rushing yardage value.
