Fantasy Football Week 7 Rankings: Projections for Players with Matchups We Love

Sometimes we all get a little crazy analyzing matchups in fantasy football. A great matchup can't turn Geno Smith into Peyton Manning, after all. Riley Cooper isn't suddenly going to become Julio Jones. It's just not happening, but matchups can be the difference between a good performance and a great one.

Below, we'll take a look at some of the more appealing matchups to exploit in fantasy football while ranking the top options in the game this week. 

Schedule

Sunday, October 19	Time (ET)
Monday, October 20	Time (ET)
Atlanta at Baltimore	1:00 PM
Tennessee at Washington	1:00 PM
Seattle at St. Louis	1:00 PM
Cleveland at Jacksonville	1:00 PM
Cincinnati at Indianapolis	1:00 PM
Minnesota at Buffalo	1:00 PM
Miami at Chicago	1:00 PM
New Orleans at Detroit	1:00 PM
Carolina at Green Bay	1:00 PM
Kansas City at San Diego	4:05 PM
Arizona at Oakland	4:25 PM
NY Giants at Dallas	4:25 PM
San Francisco at Denver	8:30 PM
Houston at Pittsburgh	8:30 PM

Quarterbacks

Rank	Player	Projected Points
1	Aaron Rodgers	25
2	Andrew Luck	24
3	Peyton Manning	22
4	Philip Rivers	20
5	Jay Cutler	20
6	Russell Wilson	19
7	Matt Ryan	18
8	Matt Stafford	17
9	Colin Kaepernick	17
10	Drew Brees	16
11	Cam Newton	16
12	Kirk Cousins	15
13	Tony Romo	14
14	Carson Palmer	14
15	Andy Dalton	13
16	Joe Flacco	13
17	Eli Manning	13

It seems almost like cheating to highlight Aaron Rodgers in any given week since we pretty much expect him to produce each and every time he steps on the field, but this week a matchup against the Carolina Panthers is surprisingly promising.

Despite having one of the better defenses in football a season ago, the Panthers are giving up 252.3 passing yards per game (20th in the NFL) and are allowing 17.5 fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks per week (24th).

They've been especially accommodating in the past three weeks, as Joe Flacco (25 fantasy points), Jay Cutler (21 points) and Andy Dalton (18 points) have all had nice fantasy performances for their owners. 

Meanwhile, after a bit of a slow start Rodgers has been red hot, with 71 total fantasy points in his last three games. Even better, the Packers are at home, and Rodgers has scored 18 or more fantasy points in each home contest.

Anyway you slice it, this is a great matchup for Rodgers. Expect a stellar performance.

Running Backs

Rank	Player	Projected Points
1	DeMarco Murray	20
2	Matt Forte	19
3	Jamaal Charles	19
4	Le'Veon Bell	18
5	Giovani Bernard	17
6	Marshawn Lynch	17
7	Arian Foster	16
8	Andre Ellington	15
9	Eddie Lacy	14
10	Alfred Morris	14
11	Justin Forsett	13
12	Fred Jackson	13
13	Ben Tate	13
14	Frank Gore	12
15	Ahmad Bradshaw	12
16	Lamar Miller	11
17	C.J. Spiller	10
18	Joique Bell	10
19	Reggie Bush	10
20	Branden Oliver	10
21	Trent Richardson	9
22	Andre Williams	8
23	Jeremy Hill	7
24	Ronnie Hillman	7
25	Jerick McKinnon	7
26	Zac Stacy	6
27	Darren McFadden	6
28	Pierre Thomas	5
29	Mark Ingram	5
30	Khiry Robinson	5
31	Bishop Sankey	5
32	Steven Jackson	5

Somewhat quietly, Andre Ellington has been one of the better RB2 options this season. While he's had just one huge performance with 26 points in Week 5, he's scored seven or more fantasy points in four of five games this season.

More promising for fantasy owners is that he's gotten 15 or more carries in his last four games and has been targeted 28 times in the passing game. There's no doubt that he's a huge part of Arizona's game plan each week.

Now he faces an Oakland Raiders defense giving up 21.0 fantasy points per week, 29th in the NFL. Expect the Cardinals to lean on him early and often in this contest.

Two teams to pay attention to this week are the Buffalo Bills and Cincinnati Bengals. While Fred Jackson has been steady as ever, C.J. Spiller has struggled in recent weeks. That should change against a Minnesota defense giving up 21.8 fantasy points per week to opposing running backs, 30th in the NFL. Both Jackson and Spiller are excellent options this week.

Meanwhile, few teams are more favorable for opposing backs than the Indianapolis Colts, who are giving up 20.5 fantasy points to opposing running backs per week, 25th in the NFL. Giovani Bernard is a rock-solid RB1 this year, but Jeremy Hill is a sneaky flex play against Indy's suspect defense.

Plus, with A.J. Green questionable to play according to Coley Harvey of ESPN, the Bengals may lean on the running game again this week. Bernard and Hill should have a field day. 

Wide Receivers

Rank	Player	Projected Points
1	Julio Jones	20
2	Jordy Nelson	19
3	Dez Bryant	18
4	Antonio Brown	18
5	Randall Cobb	17
6	Brandon Marshall	16
7	Demaryius Thomas	16
8	Mike Wallace	15
9	Steve Smith	14
10	Alshon Jeffery	14
11	Golden Tate	13
12	DeSean Jackson	13
13	Emmanuel Sanders	12
14	Calvin Johnson*	11
15	Terrance Williams	11
16	James Jones	10
17	T.Y. Hilton	10
18	Pierre Garcon	9
19	A.J. Green*	9
20	Percy Harvin	8
21	Roddy White	8
22	Kelvin Benjamin	8
23	Torrey Smith	8
24	Andre Johnson	7
25	Reggie Wayne	7
26	Sammy Watkins	7
27	DeAndre Hopkins	7
28	Mohamed Sanu**	7
29	Michael Floyd	6
30	Larry Fitzgerald	6
31	Malcom Floyd	6
32	Wes Welker	6
33	Michael Crabtree	6
34	Brian Quick	6
35	Keenan Allen	5
36	Kendall Wright	5
37	Eddie Royal	5
38	Marques Colston	5
39	Brandin Cooks	5
40	Anquan Boldin	5

The Panthers are pretty friendly to opposing quarterbacks. Shockingly, they are also quite accommodating to opposing wideouts, giving up 24.2 fantasy points per week to the position, 26th in the NFL. So yes, you can once again expect Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb to both be WR1s. 

Antonio Brown is already Mr. Consistent for fantasy owners, with double-digit fantasy points in five of six games and at least eight fantasy points in every game. Better yet, he's had five receptions or more in every game this year. 

His consistency is nothing new. Dating back to last season, he's reached double-digit fantasy points in 12 of his past 15 games and has seven or more fantasy points in 19 of his last 22 games. Fantasy football is "uncertainty" defined; Brown is an anomaly. 

Now he gets a matchup against the Houston Texans, a team giving up 23.8 fantasy points to opposing receivers per week, 24th in the NFL, a team that just allowed T.Y. Hilton to go off for nine receptions, 223 yards and a score. Brown must be chomping at the bit. 

And then there's James Jones, who has eight or more fantasy points in four of five games and has a matchup against a Cardinals team giving up 27.8 fantasy points to opposing wideouts each week, 31st in the NFL. With Oakland's passing game starting to heat up, Jones is a fairly safe play this week.  

Tight Ends

Rank	Player	Projected Points
1	Julius Thomas	15
2	Jimmy Graham*	13
3	Jordan Cameron	13
4	Martellus Bennett	12
5	Antonio Gates	11
6	Jordan Reed	10
7	Dwayne Allen	9
8	Greg Olsen	9
9	Vernon Davis	8
10	Larry Donnell	8
11	Travis Kelce	7
12	Delanie Walker	7

He's baaaa-aaaaaack!

After a pretty slow start to the season, Jordan Cameron awoke in Week 6, catching three passes for 102 yards and a score. Now he gets a terrible Jacksonville defense allowing 11.3 fantasy points to opposing tight ends per game, 29th in the NFL, and a defense that has given up double-digit points to the position in four of six weeks. 

USA TODAY Sports

Cameron should remind everyone why he's one of the elite fantasy options at tight end in this contest. 

Defense/Special Teams

Rank	Team	Projected Points
1	Buffalo Bills	13
2	Arizona Cardinals	12
3	Seattle Seahawks	11
4	Chicago Bears	11
5	Houston Texans	10
6	Detroit Lions	9
7	Dallas Cowboys	9
8	Minnesota Vikings	8
9	San Diego Chargers	8
10	Denver Broncos	7

In the past two weeks, the Minnesota Vikings have allowed opposing defenses to score a total of 43 fantasy points. The Buffalo Bills pressure the quarterback (19 sacks) and are averaging eight fantasy points per game this year. 

Do you see how appealing this matchup is? Of course you do. Start the Buffalo defense, at home, with confidence this week.

Kickers

Rank	Player	Projected Points
1	Dan Bailey	15
2	Justin Tucker	13
3	Chandler Catanzaro	12
4	Phil Dawson	12
5	Adam Vinatieri	12
6	Nick Novak	11
7	Dan Carpenter	11
8	Matt Bryant	10
9	Josh Brown	10
10	Matt Prater	9

The New Orleans Saints don't have a very good defense, folks, while the Detroit Lions could be without their top red-zone target, Calvin Johnson (or at least he might go into the game rather hobbled). In what seems likely to be a shootout, Matt Prater could be a very busy man. If you're streaming kickers, he's worth a look this week.

All point totals and points-against statistics via ESPN standard-scoring leagues. Hit me up on Twitter—I'll answer your fantasy questions and make some corny jokes, too. It's more fun than math class with Jason Pierre-Paul.