We are just about halfway through most fantasy football regular seasons, and the bye week only makes things more difficult in Week 7. Managing the waiver wire effectively is critical at this point as fantasy leagues’ playoff pictures start coming into focus.
Fantasy football waiver wire: 5 wide receivers to target for Week 7
Week 7 has a lot of notable wide receivers on their bye week. We have a look at five intriguing waiver wire replacements.
There are four teams again on bye, and they feature some significant players. This week’s byes include the Denver Broncos, Chicago Bears, Cincinnati Bengals and Green Bay Packers. For the wide receiver position, this means Demaryius Thomas, Emmanuel Sanders, Alshon Jeffery, A.J. Green, Marvin Jones, Randall Cobb and James Jones are all sidelined. This will affect quite a few teams. To help you get through Week 7, we look at five potential options owned in 50 percent of less of Yahoo! leagues.
Tavon Austin, St. Louis Rams (44 percent)
Austin has been a wildly inconsistent player throughout his young career. Prior to the Rams’ Week 6 bye, Austin had scored three touchdowns in two weeks. He preceded that with single digit efforts, but the upside is there. If you are low on options, Austin is worth rolling the dice against a shaky Cleveland Browns defense.
Leonard Hankerson, Atlanta Falcons (46 percent)
Julio Jones is the No. 1 play in Atlanta, but Hankerson has quietly emerged as the No. 2 option ahead of Roddy White. While White finished with better numbers in Week 6, Hankerson was targeted more frequently. Hankerson is inconsistent, but the targets should be there.
Michael Crabtree, Oakland Raiders (44 percent)
The Raiders offense has been slowly developing, and Crabtree has been Derek Carr’s top target. Amari Cooper will be the bigger threat, but Crabtree provides some solid upside, particularly in PPR leagues. He has had at least four receptions in each game this season, and faces a Tennessee Titans secondary that is not particularly good.
Michael Floyd, Arizona Cardinals (32 percent)
If you are looking for a one-week plug-and-play option, Floyd might be it. He has slipped to third on the Cardinals’ wide receiver depth chart behind John Brown, but Week 7 provides a choice matchup. The Cardinals face a Baltimore Ravens defense that is atrocious. They are losing defensive backs at a rather rapid rate, and the Cardinals should have their way with that defense. Floyd is an intriguing one-week play.
Stevie Johnson, San Diego Chargers (45 percent)
We don’t know yet if Johnson will be able to go on Sunday, but if he can, he faces a quality matchup against the Raiders. They rank in the bottom third of the league in fantasy points allowed to wide receivers. Johnson opened the season with touchdowns in Weeks 1 and 2. He slowed down from there, but remains a solid target for Philip Rivers. The return of Antonio Gates does not help him, but he remains a threat for them if he is recovered from his hamstring injury.
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