Daily Fantasy Football Week 7: DraftKings Must-Start Players at Each Position

When one thinks of daily fantasy football must-start players, the classification falls into two parts.

One is the genuine must-starts. Last week, for example, everyone and anyone should have started New York Jets running back Chris Ivory, who went on to tally 31.6 points. The second is sleeper must-starts, such as, say, Pittsburgh Steelers wideout Martavis Bryant, who went off for 35.5 points.

The rules don't change for Week 7, folks. Must-plays of the star and sleeper variety line the schedule even with powerhouses such as the Cincinnati Bengals and Green Bay Packers on bye, so let's take a look.

Quarterback    

High-end Options
Sleepers
Player	Team	Opp	Price*
Andrew Luck	IND	NO	$7,600
Matt Ryan	ATL	TEN	$7,200
Matthew Stafford	DET	MIN	$5,700
Ryan Fitzpatrick	NYJ	NE	$5,200

One of the daily fantasy old guard returned last week, and there's no reason to turn away from him in Week 7.

This refers to Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck, of course. Fresh off an injury, he tossed three scores and totaled 30.98 fantasy points. Now he gets to engage in a shootout with the New Orleans Saints, who have allowed 11 touchdowns to quarterbacks this year.

John Minchillo/Associated Press

Also good for high totals would be Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan. He went for 19.8 points against those Saints in Week 6 and now gets to bully the Tennessee Titans, owners of a defense that has already allowed nine scores to signal-callers.

While recognizable, Matthew Stafford certainly warrants the sleeper label based on his price and miserable start to the season. He turned things around in Week 6, though, posting 37.9 points.

Similar production against the Minnesota Vikings wouldn't be a shock, especially considering in his first encounter with the defense this year, he posted 20.44 points, and that was on the road.

New York Jets leader Ryan Fitzpatrick continues to sit at an absurdly low price, too. He leaned on Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker to go for 26.22 points last week and now gets to play from behind in a shootout with New England.

Running Back   

High-end Options
Sleepers
Player	Team	Opp	Price*
Adrian Peterson	MIN	DET	$7,600
Arian Foster	HOU	MIA	$7,500
Todd Gurley	STL	CLE	$5,000
Frank Gore	IND	NO	$4,900

Owners might shy away from the idea, but Vikings running back Adrian Peterson looks like a great play this week despite his 6.7-point outing in Week 6.

Peterson has gone for at least 19 points in three of his games this year, and a fourth seems a sure thing thanks to an encounter with the Lions, whom he torched for 23.2 points in Week 2. The Lions haven't been able to stop a runner all season.

Phelan M. Ebenhack/Associated Press

Houston Texans back Arian Foster looked back to his old ways this past weekend, gaining 22.2 points, making it two consecutive starts of 20 or more points. He gets the Miami Dolphins next weekend, a defense that has allowed five touchdowns to backs over its last three outings.

When it comes to sleepers, St. Louis' Todd Gurley once again looks like an easy decision despite the price. He's scored 18.9 or more points in each of his past two outings, easily going for more than three times his value in each showing.

Now Gurley's going against the Cleveland Browns, one of the league's leakiest units against backs, with four allowances of 100 or more yards by backfields already.

Veteran Frank Gore has had his ups and downs, but it's hard to complain about a matchup against the Saints. New Orleans has surrendered a touchdown to backs in all but two games so far and more than 100 yards rushing in five outings.

Wide Receiver 

High-end Options
Sleepers
Player	Team	Opp	Price*
DeAndre Hopkins	HOU	MIA	$8,600
Brandon Marshall	NYJ	NE	$7,800
John Brown	ARI	BAL	$5,500
Martavis Bryant	PIT	KC	$4,700

Other than the extremely obvious pricey options such as Julio Jones, owners would be best to keep in mind Houston's DeAndre Hopkins.

The league's target monster comes at a costly price, but he's scored more than 30 points in each of his last two games and no fewer than 27.1 in five of six. He should do his usual damage and then some against a Miami secondary that has allowed a touchdown to wideouts every week except the opener.

The aforementioned Marshall is another target monster in a great situation. New York figures to be playing from behind a lot against New England, which is great news for Marshall, who has already scored 22.8 or more points in four consecutive starts.

The dollar signs next to Arizona Cardinals wideout John Brown suggest he's a sleeper this week despite his 10 catches and 31.6 points last week. It really wouldn't be a shock to see him do similar damage against a Baltimore Ravens defense that has surrendered nine touchdowns to wideouts and even helped San Francisco's woeful aerial attack look potent last weekend.

While Pittsburgh's Bryant got a shoutout in the intro, the pricing here suggests he's still a sleeper. It makes sense with his quarterback situation boiling down to Michael Vick vs. Landry Jones.

It sounds terrible, but keep in mind Bryant next gets the Kansas City Chiefs. Home team or not, those Chiefs have been the laughingstock of the league when it comes to defending receivers this year, having allowed 11 touchdowns to the position so far.

Tight End 

High-end Options
Sleepers
Player	Team	Opp	Price*
Greg Olsen	CAR	PHI	$6,100
Antonio Gates	SD	OAK	$5,000
Benjamin Watson	NO	IND	$3,300
Coby Fleener	IND	NO	$3,000

Rob Gronkowski isn't on bye, but his must-start status seems obvious enough by now.

Greg Olsen of the Carolina Panthers deserves more credit and is well worth the cost. He's by far the top passing option in Carolina, and he has outbursts of 36.4 and 29.1 points to show for it. The Philadelphia Eagles have looked good against the position thus far, but it tends not to matter when a player like Olsen sees so many targets.

It's the same story for San Diego Chargers tight end Antonio Gates, although he happens to be in the matchup of the week thanks to an encounter with the Oakland Raiders. Not only does Gates have 30.2 and 18.5 points in his two outings this year, the Raiders are laughably bad at defending the position.

Gerald Herbert/Associated Press

The date between the Colts and Saints has interesting must-plays on both sides. For the Saints, it's reliable veteran Benjamin Watson, who exploded for 31.7 points this past weekend. It seems the Saints have discovered he can somewhat fill the Jimmy Graham role.

On the opposite side, it's all about Coby Fleener this week. With Luck back under center, he's a steal at this price, his 23.3 points in Week 4 perhaps a good indicator of what he could do against a struggling Saints defense that has allowed four touchdowns to the position and at least five catches in every contest so far.

D/ST

High-end Options
Sleepers
Team	Opp	Price*
Cardinals	BAL	$3,600
Falcons	TEN	$3,300
Washington	TB	$2,500
Rams	CLE	$2,400

Like always, there isn't much reason to go away from the top-dollar options here. 

The Cardinals top the list thanks to a home encounter against the hapless Ravens. Last week's 1.0-point outing hurt, but the unit still has nine sacks and 11 picks and goes into a favorable situation.

Atlanta didn't post any points at all in Week 6, but that too isn't a reason to hit the panic button. The Falcons have a decent rush, solid corners and a matchup with a rookie quarterback by the name of Marcus Mariota, who will have to deal with losing his starting center, Brian Schwenke, for the rest of the season, per John Glennon of the Tennessean.

Speaking of dates with rookie quarterbacks, check out Washington. The unit gets to go against Jameis Winston and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and enters with three consecutive showings of 10 points or more.

It's a similar track record for the St. Louis Rams, owners of nine or more points in their last three outings. A date with the Browns speaks for itself and the Rams rush that has produced 19 sacks already shouldn't have any problems hitting home.

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Pricing information and scoring data obtained from DraftKings. All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus unless otherwise specified.