Fantasy Football Week 7 News & Notes: Big defensive trades, Ryan Tannehill to start

Ben Gretch gets you up to speed on the latest headlines for Fantasy Football in Week 7, starting with the Titans decision to bench Marcus Mariota for Ryan Tannehill.

By Ben Gretch

Oct 16, 2019 at 1:25 pm ET • 6 min read

The Titans have made a quarterback change, moving away from the No. 2 pick in the 2015 draft, Marcus Mariota, in favor of the No. 8 pick from the 2012 draft, Ryan Tannehill. Of course, both of these player's stars had dulled considerably since being top-10 picks.

What does it mean? Well, things can't get much worse. Tennessee is averaging just 188 passing yards per game, fourth fewest in the league. Their 17.8 completions per game are fewest.

But a lot of that is due to their offense, and they've averaged just 29.2 passes per game, second-fewest in the league. Tannehill took over in a trailing script last week, so it's hard to read too much into his 13 of 16 for 144 yards, as the Broncos didn't need to press defensively. Tannehill also took four sacks in his short stint under center.

There's reason for mild optimism simply because there's nowhere to go but up for this passing game, and rookie A.J. Brown has been a bright spot who has started to see more work over the past two weeks. Maybe the move helps jump start a breakout there.

But we also have a lengthy sample that says Tannehill likely isn't a difference-maker, and an arguably more important sample that Mike Vrabel favors an old-school style of football that takes the air out of the football. That combination means we're likely looking at not much different with Tannehill under center than what we saw with Mariota, who — in his defense — hadn't thrown an interception until Week 6 and had looked pretty good in at least a couple of games this year, most notably against Atlanta's poor secondary.

Rams make three cornerback moves

After putting Aqib Talib on IR Monday, the Rams traded their other starting cornerback, Marcus Peters, on Tuesday, and then traded for perhaps the most disgruntled player in the league, Jalen Ramsey. Peters heads to the Ravens, and he's a high-volatility corner who has graded well at times throughout his career as a stopper but has always had a penchant for giving up the big play. He'll improve the Ravens secondary, but doesn't move the needle a ton in terms of how we approach targeting the Ravens for Fantasy.

The Rams' situation is a bit more complex. Setting aside the high cost associated with acquiring Ramsey, adding one of the game's top cornerbacks can't be considered a bad thing for their immediate prospects. But they lost two cornerbacks this week in favor of one, and will now be thin on the other side of the field. Looking back at Ramsey's time in Jacksonville, the Jaguars defense was much improved immediately after drafting him in 2016, but took a step forward to elite in 2017 after they also brought in A.J. Bouye, a plus corner in his own right, to patrol the opposite side of the field.

If Ramsey can lock down No. 1s on one side of the field, the Rams will be in good shape being able to roll coverage away from him, and Aaron Donald creates so much havoc up front that they certainly now have the potential to be a high-level Fantasy defense and a matchup to avoid. But if Ramsey is anything less than elite, it will be difficult for that to work, and we'll likely see secondary receivers be players to target against them.

Here what else you need to know as we prepare for Week 7:

Alvin Kamara is reportedly dealing with a "high-ankle type issue." Kamara played through it in Week 6, staying in the game until the final drive. High-ankle injuries typically result in multi-week absences, so more clarity on Kamara's specific injury will be needed before we can know if he has a legitimate shot to miss Week 7. Regardless, it does seem clear he'll be at less than 100% if he does suit up.
Malcolm Brown picked up an ankle injury in Week 6 and is day to day. Todd Gurley's status hasn't yet been updated this week, but Darrell Henderson looks like the only healthy back for the Rams early in the week. Henderson looked good in his first extended playing time of the season, and may be a flex (or better) option in a bye-heavy Week 7, depending on the status of the other two Rams backs as we approach Sunday.
Sammy Watkins got in a limited practice Tuesday, but has been ruled out for the Chiefs, while Emmanuel Sanders practiced in full for the Broncos. Sanders looks likely to suit up when the Chiefs and Broncos square off Thursday night, while Kansas City will again be without their No. 2.
Bears interior defender Akiem Hicks was placed on IR. Hicks has graded well but is actually PFF's third highest-graded interior defender on the Bears defensive line. While the other two are more well-rounded, Hicks is 17th among all interior defenders in rush defense grade and is the Bears' top rush-stuffing tackle. The Bears have plenty of talent and this won't cripple them, but if it's a knock, it will be to their run defense.
Chris Thompson reportedly has a mild case of turf toe, and his status for Week 7 is not yet known. Washington worked out free agent passing downs back Josh Ferguson, who was most recently with the Texans in the preseason.
Patriots rookie N'Keal Harry returned to practice, and while he's not eligible to return until Week 9, early reports have him likely to be involved upon his return. The Patriots used a first-round pick on the former Arizona State star and have been thin at the wide receiver position, so they'll hope he can contribute. He's a worthwhile stash in deeper leagues.
Steelers interior defender Stephon Tuitt has been placed on IR with a torn pec. PFF's seventh-graded interior defender has been a key part of a Steelers defense that has kept them competitive in the wake of Ben Roethlisberger's season-ending injury. Two of the Steelers' past three games — both of their prime-time wins in that span — have featured two of the three lowest air yards totals from a quarterback who started and finished the game in the NFL this season. At some point, Pittsburgh will be forced to air it out more, even with a suspect quarterback situation, and injuries to their defense will only make that more likely.
Cam Newton has reportedly been cleared to practice following the Panthers' Week 7 bye. There will be a lot of discussion next week about whether Kyle Allen's undefeated streak has put him in a position to maintain the starting job. Even if Allen does start Week 8, there will be a target on his back and Newton could easily take back over as soon as Allen stumbles. It does seem likely the Panthers will bring Newton along as slowly as possible to get more of a look at Allen.
DeSean Jackson is reportedly nearing a return, but didn't practice Wednesday. Coach Doug Pederson said he was hopeful Jackson would be back for Week 7, but the Eagles play on Sunday night so it might become a tricky situation for Fantasy managers. Keep an eye out on his status, but Jackson is worth stashing after a 10-8-154-2 monster game in Week 1 that featured 142 air yards.