The 2017 NFL season has hit the halfway point and things are just starting to heat up in the fantasy football world. Unfortunately, the injuries are also piling up once again.
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The biggest injury of Week 7 will have ripple effects on the Arizona Cardinals’ offense. Carson Palmer went down with a broken arm that required surgery, sidelining him eight weeks and perhaps the rest of the season. There’s no way to sugarcoat this loss — Drew Stanton is actively terrible, and Adrian Peterson looked like an old man once again.
With the quarterback situation unsettled, Larry Fitzgerald and John Brown should be downgraded to volatile WR3s until further notice. We saw what happened to Jordy Nelson when the Green Bay Packers went from Aaron Rodgers to Brett Hundley.
In addition to the injuries, we’ve got a whopping six teams on bye this week. Let’s go over the teams and players that won’t be available.
Arizona Cardinals: Peterson, Fitzgerald, John Brown, J.J. Nelson, Jaron Brown
Green Bay Packers: Aaron Jones, Ty Montgomery, Nelson, Randall Cobb, Davante Adams, Martellus Bennett
Jacksonville Jaguars: Blake Bortles, Leonard Fournette, Marqise Lee, Allen Hurns
Los Angeles Rams: Jared Goff, Todd Gurley, Sammy Watkins, Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp
New York Giants: Eli Manning, Orleans Darkwa, Shane Vereen, Evan Engram
Tennessee Titans: Marcus Mariota, DeMarco Murray, Derrick Henry, Rishard Matthews, Eric Decker, Delanie Walker
Between the injuries and bye weeks, it’s an incredibly thin waiver -wire pool in Week 8. Let’s go over the best (or at least most palatable) options available in 50 percent or less of Yahoo! leagues.
1. WR Kenny Stills, Miami Dolphins (21 percent)
Taking advantage of DeVante Parker’s sprained ankle, Still exploded with two touchdowns on Sunday, playing a big role in the Dolphins’ comeback win over the New York Jets. Both of Stills’ scores came when Matt Moore replaced Jay Cutler, suggesting the two have some chemistry together. With three touchdowns in the past two games, Stills has proven that the Dolphins don’t need to rush back Parker. The main concern is a tricky Thursday night matchup with the Baltimore Ravens.
2. RB Jalen Richard, Oakland Raiders (11 percent)
Marshawn Lynch did a bad thing and got a one-game suspension for shoving a ref. It honestly might be a blessing in disguise for the Raiders’ offense — Lynch is looking old and worn down, while Richard has shown more burst on his younger, fresher legs. He showed his big-play ability last season and can play on passing downs, catching seven passes the past two games. Of course, DeAndre Washington is still in the mix and took all the goal line carries last week, so Richard has a hard path to RB2 value. Regardless, he looks like the Raiders back to own with Lynch out.
3. Marlon Mack, Indianapolis Colts (40 percent)
With the Colts’ season circling the drain, it seems certain that Mack will overtake Frank Gore for the starting job. He had one of his more productive outings in Week 7, putting up 66 total yards on nine touches. More tellingly, he played 32 snaps compared to 22 for Gore. The Colts are stuck in a lost year and Chuck Pagano will surely be fired soon, so with the team in evaluation mode, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to keep feeding the 34-year-old Gore. Mack figures to be one of the week’s top waiver adds.
4. Josh McCown, New York Jets (12 percent)
McCown Town is back... sort of. He did his usual thing in Week 7, which is getting off to a hot start, slowing down, and then throwing a back-breaking interception that ends up losing the game. You pretty much know what you’re getting from the guy, which is volatile QB2 play, but that makes him usable in the bye weeks. Carson Palmer owners should take a long look here, especially with the QB wire so thin.
5. O.J. Howard, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (13 percent)
The rookie had by far his biggest game of the season, and it will probably be his best game when all is said and done. He entered Week 7 with a grand total of five catches on the season, and ended up with six in Sunday’s game alone. Ninety-eight yards and two touchdowns is not repeatable, rookie tight ends are notoriously slow starters (unless they’re Evan Engram, apparently), and fantasy owners generally should avoid chasing stats.
That said, there’s a reason the Bucs drafted Howard in the first round and he showed off his freaky athleticism on the touchdowns. It seems like only a matter of time before they take off the training wheels and let him do more than just blocking. Also, Delanie Walker is out with an ankle injury so his owners could really use a backup option.
