Week 7 is the week when we are potentially getting a lot of injured players back. The Vikings, in particular, look to be getting healthy off their bye. There is optimism that Jordan Addison, T.J. Hockenson, and Jordan Mason will all be returning in Week 7. We're viewing Hockenson as a borderline TE1, Addison as a boom/bust WR3, and Mason as a touchdown-dependent flex. Their return is good news for Kyler Murray, who will have his full complement of weapons in a plus matchup. The additional competition for targets doesn't hamper a No. 1 wide receiver like Justin Jefferson, but it could be a big problem for Aaron Jones.
Jones has been a true workhorse running back over the past few weeks, handling three-quarters of the team's rush attempts and a 20% target share. Mason will crush his rush share, and 50% is probably the best-case scenario. Meanwhile, the return of Addison and Hockenson could completely diminish Jones' target share. When all three have been healthy, the running backs have been completely uninvolved in the passing game. I'm still viewing Jones as a low-end RB2, but that is only because the Vikings have an excellent matchup and there could be some rust to shake off for the returners. The sell high window is probably closed.
Baker Mayfield back, Emeka Egbuka in concussion protocol
The good news for Tampa Bay is that Baker Mayfield looks like he will return in Week 7. The bad news is Egbuka probably won't. The latter is in the concussion protocol and was listed as a DNP on both Wednesday and Thursday. Mayfield without Egbuka is no more than an upside QB2 with or without Egbuka. If Egbuka is out, we would view Chris Godwin as a WR3, Ted Hurst as an upside flex, and Cade Otton as a decent streaming option. The biggest winner may be Bucky Irving. He has a great matchup and a much higher target share when Mayfield plays. Start him as a borderline RB1.
Lamar Jackson practicing on Thursday
Jackson technically practiced on Wednesday, though he wasn't there for the media portion and was seen limping afterward. On Thursday he looked better and there is growing optimism he could return. if Jackson is active, you should start him against the Bengals. Zay Flowers is a WR1 with Jackson and a WR2 with Tyler Huntley. Ja'Kobi Lane is a much more appealing flex if Jackson is able to play, especially if Rashod Bateman is not. Mark Andrews has been pretty bad this year, and we don't want to start him, no matter who the quarterback is.
Zach Charbonnet activated
Charbonnet is slated to return against the Chiefs in Week 7, but we are hesitant to start any Seahawks running back. The Chiefs have one of the best run defenses in the league and this game has a lower over/under. We would expect a healthy split in Charbonnet's return, which makes him a touchdown-dependent flex. We would like to hold Emanuel Wilson for one week, just to be sure of the roles in the backfield, but we certainly don't want to start him.
Saquon Barkley back at practice
There has been optimism that Barkley will play in Week 7, so we are ranking him. He's slightly higher in the rankings than Dameon Pierce was, closer to RB15 than RB20. Hamstrings do have a high recurrence of injury, so if you can hold Pierce, that probably makes sense. It will be interesting to see if Barkley's return causes the Eagles to scrap their extremely high pass rate in Week 6. We're still starting Devonta Smith and Dallas Goedert, but we're nervous.
Breece Hall and Adonai Mitchell limited
Hall logged a limited session on Thursday, which could have a big impact on the start of the week, Braelon Allen. For now, we're still projecting Hall as out, but he is potentially in play, so be careful if Rhamondre Stevenson and Braelon Allen are your only two options. If Hall returns, we expect him to lead the backfield and be an RB2, while Allen has a bigger role than he did earlier in the year and is a touchdown-dependent flex. Mitchell could dampen out excitement for Omar Cooper as well. We wouldn't want to start any Jets receiver besides Garrett Wilson if Mitchell returns.
David Montgomery out again
Woody Marks will lead the backfield, and his rush share could be even higher with Jawhar Jordan placed on IR. This is a very good matchup against the Giants that should provide both a fantastic game script and improved rushing efficiency. Marks is best viewed as an RB2, though he could have RB1 usage and if he scores a touchdown, he could produce top-12 results. Start him.
Jeremiyah Love still not ready
This will once again be a split between Tyler Allgeier and Zonovan "Bam" Knight. Knight had the hot hand in Week 6, but we still expect Allgeier to get the first crack at the Broncos suspect run defense. If Knight breaks another long run, then he could absolutely be the best Cardinals back but this is a low-confidence situation. It's best to view both of these backs as low-end flexes; we prefer Allgeier, but not by much.
Dalton Schultz limited on Thursday
Schultz didn't practice Wednesday and was limited onThursday, so you should probably be wary about starting him in Week 7. At the very least, you should start Hunter Henry and Colston Loveland over Schultz and prepare a backup plan. If Schultz is out, we aren't going to start another Texans tight end but we may be more interested in flexing Marvin Harrison Jr. or Jaylin Noel.
Quinshon Judkins and Dylan Sampson limited on Thursday
Head Coach Todd Monken has expressed optimism about both players returning in Week 7, so we are ranking them. Judkins is a low-end RB2 in what should be a good game script, while Sampson is best viewed as a PPR flex. The Browns have thrown to their running backs much more than we expected and we will be interested to see how those targets are distributed if their top two backs are healthy.
