Fantasy football projections, Week 7: Vikings-Eagles featuring Stefon Diggs, Kyle Rudolph, Carson Wentz, more

The Week 7 matchup between the Minnesota Vikings and the Philadelphia Eagles features two teams nobody expected to be good continuing to impress. We’ve got the fantasy projections courtesy of numberFire.

Wide receiver Stefon Diggs returned to practice on Wednesday, putting him in position to play against the Eagles in Week 7. Diggs last started in Week 4, catching five passes for 47 yards against the New York Giants. After beginning the season with 285 receiving yards in his first two games, Diggs has been held under 50 yards in his last two games. The Eagles’ pass defense is much improved this year. Given that Diggs is returning from a hamstring injury and might be a bit tentative on Sunday, pushing past his projected totals is going to be a challenge on the road.

Diggs will be supported in the passing game by tight end Kyle Rudolph. Rudolph caught just two passes for 15 yards against the Houston Texans in Week 5. His performance broke a three-game touchdown scoring streak. Rudolph has come into his own with Sam Bradford at quarterback. He’s been targeted at least seven times in all but one game this year. That’s a solid number of looks for a tight end considered to be on the cusp of being elite. Perhaps Rudolph is realizing his potential a little bit late. No team has given up fewer points to tight ends than Philadelphia, but Rudolph is a big enough target and an important enough offensive player to neutralize his Week 7 opponent.

After starting his NFL career off with a bang, quarterback Carson Wentz finally posted his first ever dud performance in Week 6 against Washington. He completed just 11 passes for 179 yards in the game and failed to throw a touchdown pass. It was the first time this season that Wentz couldn’t find a pass catcher in the end zone. He had his share of opportunities, but things just didn’t click. Minnesota’s defense has turned the Vikings into a Super Bowl contender. It’ll be interesting to see how Wentz performs when fantasy owners are hoping for a big bounce-back performance. Week 7 is a great litmus test game for the Eagles, but it may not be so friendly in terms of allowing Wentz to rise above his projections.

Although Wentz has done very well overall this season, it hasn’t helped tight end Zach Ertz deliver much fantasy value. He’s been targeted 13 times in three games this year, but seven of those targets came in the opening week of the season. Three targets per game otherwise isn’t enough to make anybody a fantasy stud. Fantasy owners have to be hoping that Wentz soon figures out what a valuable asset Ertz is in the passing game. If he doesn’t, Ertz could be in for a down year even though he’s finally healthy again.