Week 7 Waiver Wire: Early Pickups and Breakout Fantasy Football Candidates

The NFL season continued to confound fans on Sunday.

The Miami Dolphins, who had scored just 24 combined points in their last two games, posted 31 against the league's best scoring defense (the Chicago Bears) thanks in part to backup quarterback Brock Osweiler.

Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Cole Beasley, who was averaging just 38.6 yards per game through five weeks, caught six passes for 74 yards and a touchdown in one half against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

And the Seattle Seahawks defense held the Oakland Raiders to three points and 185 yards from scrimmage despite being without six-time Pro Bowl safety Earl Thomas, who is out for the year with a lower leg fracture.

The 2018 campaign has been bizarre, and the same could be said for the fantasy season. Every week, a few of a slate's top fantasy performers can be found on most leagues' waiver wires. That's not a bad occurrence, though, as players have numerous options to fill roster gaps.

Here's a look at some Week 7 waiver-wire recommendations. Players rostered in 50 percent or more of Yahoo leagues were not considered.

Week 7 Top Breakout Candidates and Pickups

Carolina Panthers WR DJ Moore (19 percent) at Philadelphia Eagles

Chicago Bears WR Taylor Gabriel (22 percent) vs. New England Patriots

Miami Dolphins WR Albert Wilson (9 percent) vs. Detroit Lions

Miami Dolphins WR Danny Amendola (10 percent) vs. Detroit Lions

Cincinnati Bengals TE C.J. Uzomah (32 percent) at Kansas City Chiefs

Tampa Bay Buccaneers WR Chris Godwin (44 percent) vs. Cleveland Browns

Cleveland Browns WR Damion Ratley (0 percent) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Dallas Cowboys WR Cole Beasley (9 percent) at Washington Redskins

Cleveland Browns WR Damion Ratley at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Cleveland Browns wide receiver Damion Ratley received his first career start Sunday as wideouts Derrick Willies and Rashard Higgins were declared out with injuries prior to the team's game with the Los Angeles Chargers.

Ratley took advantage of his chance with six catches (on eight targets) for a team-leading 82 receiving yards. He's deserving of further opportunities moving forward given his production, but the team may have no choice but to play him Sunday regardless.

Per Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com, the aforementioned Higgins, who is healing from an MCL sprain, will probably miss the team's upcoming game with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as well.

Ratley has an easier matchup this time around. The Bucs have given up point totals of 40, 21, 30, 48 and 34 in their five games, and they ranked last in pass-defense efficiency through five weeks, per Football Outsiders.

If you're looking for some flex help (and that may be the case with four NFL teams going on a bye), Ratley isn't a bad option given his Week 7 opponent and potential opportunities.

Cincinnati Bengals TE C.J. Uzomah at Kansas City Chiefs

One Cincinnati Bengals tight end (Tyler Eifert) is out for the season with a broken ankle suffered in Week 4, and another Bengals tight end (Tyler Kroft) may have season-ending foot injury, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.

The only other active tight end on the season-opening roster is C.J. Uzomah, who should be added in all formats.

Uzomah was the team's No. 1 tight end for the Bengals' 28-21 loss to the Steelers. He was tied for third on the team in targets (seven), receptions (six) and receiving yards (54).

The fourth-year pro has caught just 51 career passes, but he hasn't consistently seen the opportunities he will now get as the team's No. 1 tight end through the rest of the season.

While Uzomah won't be guaranteed seven targets every week, he's playing on a successful offense that ranks sixth in efficiency, per Football Outsiders.

Expect some scoring chances moving forward, especially against the Kansas City Chiefs in a potential Week 7 shootout. The Chiefs have averaged 35.0 points per game through five weeks, and the Bengals may need to keep passing to hang with the high-powered Kansas City attack. Therefore, Uzomah should stay busy.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers WR Chris Godwin vs. Cleveland Browns

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Chris Godwin is on fewer than 50 percent of Yahoo rosters. That won't be the case soon as the ex-Penn State star caught a touchdown pass for the fourth time in five games Sunday.

Godwin likely won't be catching touchdown passes every week, but he's productive enough to be a flex option at best or on your bench for wideout depth at worst. He's seen a decent amount of targets (31) through five games, including a team-leading eight in the red zone (six through four games and two more Sunday).

If that red-zone trend continues, Godwin will at least be a decent threat to score every week, which could make up for the fact that he isn't seeing a large volume of looks on a weekly basis.

Godwin may also have a good Week 7 matchup against the Cleveland Browns. Cleveland's defense has been mostly fantastic through four weeks, but the entire unit failed in a 38-14 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. Of note, Chargers wideout Tyrell Williams caught a 45-yard touchdown pass with three Browns defenders right around him:

The Browns defense could rally and return to the form that played a part in holding the Baltimore Ravens to nine points in 70 minutes two Sundays ago, but the team is hard to trust on that end given its performance against Los Angeles. Godwin could certainly catch his fifth touchdown in six games and is a solid flex option.