Fantasy Football Week 7: Eliminator Picks to Keep You in the Game

It was a good week for my entry WTF as the Bengals took care of business at home against the Colts, 27-17.

The Colts made the game interesting by closing the gap to three in the fourth quarter before turnovers got the best of them. A blocked field goal and a fumble return for a TD were the key plays late for Cincinnati. While I still believe there are wins to be had at Indy’s expense, I wouldn’t count them as a gimme anymore, although they will probably be crushed by the Saints this week.

Unfortunately, it was also a good week for the herd as Atlanta, Green Bay, Oakland, Pittsburgh and the New York Jets all walked away with victories. These were the top five selections from last week on ESPN Eliminator.

Because of this, there wasn’t much of a drop off in perfect entries on ESPN, but I feel pretty good that I was able to get by on the backs of the Bengals in Week 6 while many competitors dropped the Packers or Steelers.

Here are my picks through Week 6:

Week 1: San Diego Chargers

Week 2: New York Giants

Week 3: Dallas Cowboys

Week 4: Green Bay Packers

Week 5: New Orleans Saints

Week 6: Cincinnati Bengals

I will be taking a huge chance in Week 7. But before I get to that, let's look at the most popular picks for Week 7 thus far.

The Baltimore Ravens and Dallas Cowboys are each receiving more than 20 percent of selections. I used the Cowboys in Week 3, so they're out for me.

I like the Ravens pick and was tempted to take it. But my thinking is it is still only Week 7 and I have already burned the Packers, Saints and Chargers. I have 11 weeks of picks left and it's nice to have a couple of aces in the hole down the stretch.

Besides, it's a herd pick. What do I have to gain over my fellow competitors?

The Saints (Week 5) at home versus the Colts are getting about 15 percent of selections.

The Oakland Raiders and Pittsburgh Steelers round out the Top 5. The Raiders have a question mark at quarterback. Even if Carson Palmer does start, I'd like to see him throw before I lay my streak on him.

Pittsburgh is on the road, and while I feel they'll beat the Cardinals, I'd rather not get burned by a road pick when there is a more profitable selection on the table. 

This week, I think it's a good time to steal a win with the Carolina Panthers.

The Panthers are at home against the Washington Redskins, who are in the midst of a quarterback controversy. Rex Grossman has fallen back down to earth while the Redskins have put up point totals of 16, 17 and 13 the past three weeks. I like the Carolina offense, and even though they are a five-loss team, they have only lost one game by more than seven points.

It's an aggressive pick, but I don't want to be left sifting through sub-.500 teams from Week 10 on. I like this matchup here, so I'm willing to risk it. Are you?

Week 7 Selection: Carolina Panthers