Week 7 Risers and Fallers

by Jonathan Lange · Studs and Duds
Week 7 Rankings

If you’re reading this, congratulations! You made it through Bye-mageddon! Week 7 has mercifully come to an end and it’s time for Week 7 rankings Risers and Fallers. We had a major upset in the AFC West and the Raiders were blown out in Chicago. I’ve tried to avoid writing about a player more than once, but today that rule changes. There is a Riser on this list that I wrote about back in Week 2. We also have an All-Pro-caliber running back who had an inconsistent start to the season. But first, let’s get started with a quarterback who just had his best passing performance of the season.

Risers

Lamar Jackson, QB — Baltimore Ravens

Lamar Jackson ran a quarterback clinic on Sunday against the Lions. He threw for 357 yards, three touchdowns, and finishing with a completion percentage of 77-percent. Detroit isn’t the most intimidating defense, but they haven’t been steamrolled in such a fashion. Jackson detractors consistently point to his passing as a limitation and believe he is not a top-eight passer in the NFL. However, we witnessed one of the better throwing performances of his career. He appears to be a threat for MVP if he can keep stringing these types of performances together. Jackson finished the day with a perfect passer rating of 158.3 on throws of 10-plus yards. These Ravens may be on the verge of greatness as they begin to grasp the Todd Monken offense.

Puka Nacua, WR — Los Angeles Rams

Way back in Week 2, when injuries were minimal and we all thought our fantasy teams had a chance, I deemed Puka Nacua a riser. Little did I know how far he would rise; now he’s ascended to the top ten wide receivers in fantasy this season. Now that Cooper Kupp has returned, fantasy managers wondered if Nacua would be able to maintain his historic pace, but on Sunday he finished with eight receptions for 136 yards. Nacua is putting together a special season. Coming out of college, one of the few concerns he had was his ability to stay healthy. Nacua is currently on pace to finish the season with over 100 receptions, and he’s on pace to finish near the 1,532-yard mark set by Ja’Marr Chase during his rookie season.

Gardner Minshew, QB—Indianapolis Colts

It hasn’t been pretty, but in both games Gardner Minshew has started since Anthony Richardson was injured, he has thrown for more than 300 yards. There have been ugly moments, such as his three interceptions against Jacksonville, but Minshew and the Colts offense appeared to be much more synchronized. They employ a balanced attack where Minshew doesn’t have to drop back 40-plus times. Michael Pittman and Josh Downs have put strong performances together, and now with Jonathan Taylor ramping up, Minshew will only need to get the ball in the hands of his playmakers to remain fantasy relevant this season.

Dalton Kincaid, TE—Buffalo Bills

Last week, Michael Mayer was a Riser after the rookie tight end put together two games as a top receiving option for the Raiders. The fantasy community was beginning to wonder if this rookie tight end group was going to leave Dalton Kincaid in the dust. Worry no more. Kincaid put together his best game of the season, catching all eight of his targets for 75 yards against the Patriots.

The Bills offense is in dire need of a second option behind Stefon Diggs. Kincaid can be that guy, but he has had only 19 targets until this weekend. Perhaps Josh Allen‘s shoulder issues have forced him to take more checkdowns and less rushing attempts. That could be a shift in offensive philosophy with more targets headed to Kincaid in the coming weeks. This situation is something worth monitoring in the coming weeks.

Fallers

Josh Jacobs, RB — Las Vegas Raiders

Last season’s RB1 in fantasy hasn’t gotten off to the same start that he did in 2022. Josh Jacobs has had only two games with 12 fantasy points or more over the first six games of the season. There was hope he could get his production going against the lowly Bears defense. Unfortunately, Jacobs ended the game with less than 50 total yards and turned in another performance under ten fantasy points. This is nothing new. It seems to be a time-honored tradition that the running back that leads the league in touches will endure a down season the following year. Despite Jacobs being an All-Pro-caliber running back, he looks to be the next player to fall short of expectations after smashing them the previous season.

Jordan Love, QB — Green Bay Packers

Coming out of a bye week, Packers and Jordan Love seemed sure to crush the struggling Broncos, right?! It’s time we started to have a serious conversation about Love’s future with the Packers. Love played the role of Captain Checkdown, taking every underneath throw available to him. With the Packers down two under two minutes, Love threw an interception that sealed his team’s fate. The Packers have been fortunate to go from Brett Favre to Aaron Rodgers, but luck may have run out on them this time around. How much longer can an offense with Aaron Jones, Christian Watson, and Jayden Reed look so elementary? We’ll find out.

Calvin Ridley, WR — Jacksonville Jaguars

Check on your friends who drafted Calvin Ridley; they are not okay. After a strong Week 1 showing, there was hope he was going to be the new Alpha Receiver for the Jaguars. He has had only two games where he finished as a WR2 or higher, but last Thursday night was a new low as he finished with only one reception for five yards on four targets.

Ridley will have games in the future where he is the leading receiver, but he was being drafted early in fantasy drafts with the expectation that he would be a True Alpha. If you haven’t yet, now is the time to adjust your expectations for Ridley in the future. The offense does not flow through him – this offense will operate with different receivers finishing with total receiving yards. Ridley is strictly a WR3 with upside moving forward.

Quentin Johnston, WR — Los Angeles Chargers

When Mike Williams went down, everyone knew that now would be the time for Quentin Johnston to get an opportunity and prove that he was worth the 1st round pick used on him in dynasty drafts. The good news is that while Johnston has gotten on the field, that’s where the good news ends for him. He finished with two receptions for 38 yards, and he’s been an afterthought behind Keenan Allen, Joshua Palmer, and Gerald Everett. Rookie receivers have hit big so far this season, such as Jordan Addison, Rashee Rice, and Zay Flowers. We saw Jaxon Smith-Njigba haul in his first touchdown this weekend. Johnston could be good, but when the Snap Share rises and there is no increase in receptions or targets, there is cause for concern.

Conclusion

Lamar Jackson, Puka Nacua, Gardner Minshew, and Dalton Kincaid are the Week 7 Risers. Josh Jacobs, Jordan Love, Calvin Ridley, and Quentin Johnston are the Fallers. Kincaid may be the most acquirable of this list. If you can move on from Calvin Ridley after he has a big game in the future, pull the trigger. Travis Etienne appears to be the only reliable weapon in Jacksonville. TIme to make those waiver claims and go win Week 8!