Week 7 Fantasy Football Recap: Tom Brady dominates the Raiders; Tyler Lockett has career day

Before we officially say goodbye to Week 7 of the NFL season, you know we must quickly recap everything that went down from a fantasy football perspective; from Tompa Bay to Cole Beasley to Tyler Lockett and everything in between.

Speaking of Tyler Lockett, that’s all I'm going to touch on in this intro. I'm just going to say I hope Lockett was on your side this week as he scored 53, yes 53 (!), fantasy points Sunday night. If anyone went to bed up 50-points while your opponent just had Lockett remaining, I am truly sorry. Lockett did a little lot of everything, hauling in one-handed passes, check downs, deep bombs, and making acrobatic catches in the back of the end zone.

So, shoutout Tyler Lockett for that performance of a lifetime. Now, let’s review:

Quarterbacks

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Stud: Tom Brady (370 total yards, 5 total TDs, 36.86 fantasy points)

Close your eyes Patriots fans — Touchdown Tom was in full force on Sunday, tossing four touchdowns while sneaking in a rushing score as well. He completed a season-best 73.3 percent of his attempts, including a back-shoulder touchdown to Rob Gronkowski and a beautiful 33-yard touchdown to Scotty Miller. The Buccaneers’ receivers are quite banged up, but Brady has proved he can succeed no matter who he’s lined up with.

Dud: Patrick Mahomes (281 total yards, 1 TD, 12.0 fantasy points)

Mahomes had his lowest scoring output of the season against the Broncos as he frankly just did not need to do much. The 23-pass attempts were a season-low while it was the first time he failed to toss multiple touchdowns on the year. It was a nightmare game for Mahomes in fantasy, but he’ll certainly bounce back next week against the porous Jets’ defense.

Injuries: Andy Dalton

Dalton was sidelined with a concussion after a vicious, late hit by Jon Bostick. Bostick was ejected after the hit that put Dalton immediately into concussion protocol. Dalton will have to clear protocol if he wants to play next week, but is in danger of missing Week 8.

Waiver Wire: Joe Burrow (440 total yards, 4 total TDs, 1 INT, 33.64 fantasy points)

Rostered: 57.2 percent

Burrow is finally owned in over 50 percent of ESPN leagues after his roster percentage increased 8.2 percent after Week 7. If Burrow is still available in your league and you need a QB, grab him. He’s thrown the ball at least 30 times in every game he’s played and is on pace for 670 throws this season - which would be the eighth-most for an NFL passer, rookie or not. He completed a career-best 74.5 percent of his throws on Sunday and now has five 300-yard passing games on the season. Burrow is an intriguing option based on his passing volume.

Running Backs

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Stud: Jeff Wilson Jr. (120 total yards, 3 TDs, 32.0 fantasy points)

Wilson had the best game of his career as he gashed the Patriots defense on the ground. He carried the ball 17 times for 112 yards and added three touchdowns, while also turning two catches into eight yards. Unfortunately for Wilson, he was tackled awkwardly on his third touchdown run and had to be carted to the locker room. He is expected to land on IR with a high-ankle sprain.

Dud: Ezekiel Elliott (51 total yards, 6.1 fantasy points)

A negative game script took the ball out of Elliot’s hands early, but even then he saw just two targets in the passing game (catching one). For the second-straight week, Elliot only handled 12 carries while being held to under 50-yards. With Dallas likely turning to their third-string quarterback next week, Elliot should be featured early, but he’s struggled to produce on the year.

Injuries: Chris Carson, Kenyan Drake, Phillip Lindsay

Carson left Sunday night’s game with a foot injury. Despite returning to the sideline, he never made his way back to the field. His MRI showed he suffered a mid-foot sprain, and the back is considered “week-to-week” according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

Drake also was removed from Sunday night’s matchup, but he was carted off after a fourth-quarter carry. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Drake will miss “a few weeks” as he is dealing with a slight tear to a ligament in his ankle. Arizona has a Week 8 bye, but Chase Edmonds needs to be owned with Drake missing time.

Lindsay was running well on Sunday, busting nine carries for 79 yards. However, a helmet-to-helmet shot in the second quarter sent him into concussion protocol. Broncos coach Vic Fangio said he is “unsure” if Lindsay will be cleared in time for Week 8.

Waiver Wire: La’Mical Perine (55 total yards, 1 TD, 13.5 fantasy points)

Rostered: 11.1 percent

I know, he’s a Jet. But, New York has started to commit to Perine as their lead back with Le’Veon Bell now out of town. While Frank Gore won't go away, it would be smart for the Jets to continue to develop their fourth-rounder rookie (we know ‘smart’ and ‘Jets’ usually don't go in the same sentence but...). Perine played 70 percent of the team's snaps in Sunday's loss, compared to Gore’s 28 percent. They both saw 11 carries, but Perine received a pair of catches on three targets.

JaMycal Hasty (73 total yards, 8.3 fantasy points)

Rostered 3.5 percent

With Wilson Jr. joining Raheem Mostert on injured reserve, undrafted rookie JaMycal Hasty could be the next man up in San Fran. Hasty ran nine times in relief on Sunday, piling up 57 yards. He added a catch for another 16 yards. Hasty was kept on the roster after an awesome training camp, and could be a nice addition in Kyle Shanahan’s offense.

Wide Receivers

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Stud: Tyler Lockett (15 catches, 200 yards, 3 TDs, 53.0 fantasy points)

After two underwhelming performances before Seattle’s bye, Lockett returned and DOMINATED the Cardinals defense. He started the night with a spectacular one-handed grab for 35-yards and never looked back. Lockett’s first touchdown of the night came just five plays later, while he then caught a 47-yard moon ball from Russell Wilson for his second score. Piling up 20 total targets on the night, Lockett’s third touchdown catch came in the fourth quarter, as the speedster showed off his tremendous body control in the back of the end zone (above). Lockett set career highs in receptions and receiving yards and he’ll look for the targets to keep coming next week against the 49ers.

Dud: DK Metcalf (2 catches, 23 yards, 4.3 fantasy points)

While Lockett shined, Metcalf took a back seat Sunday night. The five targets, two receptions, and 23-yards were all season lows for Metcalf, who saw his fair share of Patrick Peterson in coverage. The poor stat-line did not stop DK from having the play of the night, where he chased down Budda Baker to make a touchdown-saving tackle after a Wilson interception on the goal line.

Injuries: Diontae Johnson, Deebo Samuel, Tim Patrick, Breshad Perriman

Johnson had his best game of the season, posting a 9-80-2 stat line, but left the game with another ailment. He limped off the field late in the game with either a leg or ankle injury. We will have to monitor Pittsburgh’s practice reports for more detail. Samuel also left late in San Francisco’s victory after coming off gimpy following a rushing attempt. Deebo has already been ruled out for Week 8 and likely Week 9.

After a strong start to Sunday’s game, Patrick disappeared as Drew Lock struggled. To make matters worse, Patrick became limited with a soft-tissue hamstring injury. Vic Fangio declared him as “day-to-day.”

Perriman took a monstrous hit from Bills S Micah Hyde on one of the final plays of the game and has since entered concussion protocol. He had just two catches before leaving and does not appear to be a fantasy option moving forward.

Waiver Wire: Sterling Shepard (6 catches, 59 yards, 1 TD, 17.9 fantasy points)

Rostered: 36.2 percent

Sterling Shepard returned from IR and put together a successful game for the Giants. He led all wide receivers with eight targets, catching six of them for 59 yards and a score. Except for Week 2 this season when he left with an injury, Shepard has seen at least six targets in every game he has played since Nov. 19, 2018. He is the top receiver to own of the Giants.

Cole Beasley (11 catches, 112 yards, 22.2 fantasy points)

Rostered: 39.3 percent

Beasley finally looked healthy this week after battling an assortment of injuries this season. His play agreed, as his 112 yards were a new career high and his 12 targets were one higher than Stefon Diggs. Beasley is now on pace for a 90-catch, 1,075-yard season and has scored at least 10 fantasy points in six straight games.

Brandon Aiyuk (6 catches, 115 yards, 17.5 fantasy points)

Rostered: 20.4 percent

Aiyuk had a nice game against a tough Patriots secondary, hauling in six passes for 115 yards. The rookie led the 49ers in targets and receptions while the 115-yards were the highest total of his career. With Deebo Samuel out next week, Aiyuk will be in a prime spot to keep up this production against a poor Seahawks defense.

Tight Ends

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Stud: Harrison Bryant (4 catches, 56 yards, 2 TDs, 21.6 fantasy points)

Austin Hooper was our start of the week at the tight end position, but after he was held out due to appendicitis surgery, opportunity came for Bryant. The 2019 Mackey Award winner as the top tight end in college football snagged two touchdowns on five targets in Cleveland’s win on Sunday. With Odell Beckham Jr. (ACL) done for the year, Bryant will be a worthy starter at the tight end position if Hooper misses more time.

Dud: Jonnu Smith (1 catch, 9 yards, 1.9 fantasy points)

It’s unclear if Smith was limited due to an ankle injury he suffered last week, but he was bottled up by the Pittsburgh defense all afternoon. Smith caught one-of-four targets on the day, marking his second straight game with just one catch. He still should be viewed as a top-ten fantasy tight end moving forward.

Injuries: None

Waiver Wire: Richard Rodgers (6 catches, 85 yards, 14.5 fantasy points)

Rostered: 4.0 percent

With both Dallas Goedert and Zach Ertz on IR, it was Rodgers who got the start at tight end for the Eagles. He responded with a solid outing, catching six passes for 85 yards in Philly’s Thursday night victory. Rodgers was the only Eagles tight end to see a target in the passing game as he saw eight total. Rodgers should be relied on again next week in a mouthwatering matchup against the Cowboys.

Patriots Player of the Week

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Jakobi Meyers (4 catches, 62 total yards, 10.2 fantasy points)

Uh, yeah. It was that kind of day for New England’s offense. Besides Meyers’ 10.2 points, Nick Folk was tied for the second highest point total on the Patriots, while Cam Newton finished with -0.18 points. It was a forgettable day for New England’s offense, but it was actually Meyers’ best performance of the season. The second-year receiver has struggled to get on the field this season, but impressed when given the opportunity Sunday. He caught four of six targets for 60 yards and carried one time for two yards. It was a nice performance compared to the rest of the team, but Meyers’ won't provide any fantasy appeal going forward.

That is all for this week’s recap. Leave a comment below or reach out on Twitter @iambrianhines if you have any questions about your fantasy team!