Week 7 Fantasy Football viewer's guide: Saints, Colts should provide fireworks

Let’s put a fantasy spin on this week’s action by ranking the games in expected order of point-producing relevance using the over/under totals from Las Vegas, specifically as reflected on Wednesday at VegasInsider.com.

Note: Dollar values in parentheses denote a player's current week price in the Yahoo Daily Fantasy game. It is displayed for point of reference.

Points galore

Saints at Colts, Sunday, 1 p.m., O/U 52: Neither squad plays much defense but the Saints offense is a better bet given the uncertain health of Andrew Luck ($41). Plus Ahmad Bradshaw’s 19 touches could rise further this week and thus limit the potential value of Frank Gore ($29). Target allocation is unpredictable but you want to be aggressive in fielding wide receivers against a very suspect Saints defense. Expect a breakout game from Donte Moncrief ($19). Drew Brees ($39) is throwing for the yards and yards per attempt we expect but the touchdown total has been below par. That should begin correcting this week.

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Ravens at Cardinals, Monday, 8:30 p.m., O/U 48: No one beyond Justin Forsett ($26) is bettable on the Baltimore offense. This is the point where I would have checked the Cardinals rush defense in the past but I’ve learned this year that defensive matchups have very little predictive impact on most players and are maybe a tiebreaker at best so you want to just play Forsett. Andre Ellington ($17) barely saw the field and can’t be played. The frustrating thing about the Cardinals is that both Ellington and David Johnson ($16) are much more talented than aging Chris Johnson ($20) but neither are featured. David Johnson out-snapped Ellington last week 23 to 9. Carson Palmer ($43) and Larry Fitzgerald ($32) are always safe bets.

Jets at Patriots, Sunday, 1 p.m., O/U 48: The Jets have three elite skill players but just one of them, Eric Decker ($27), is generally undervalued. Decker is easily a top 20 fantasy receiver. Coupled with Brandon Marshall ($30), he makes Ryan Fitzpatrick ($35) playable, too, especially in a game like this where game flow should help. The Jets defense will get the ultimate test and maybe the same can be said for the New England offense, too. Limit your expectations this week. The uncertain status of Dion Lewis ($31) doesn’t help, as the Jets have trouble covering running backs in the pass game.

[Week 7 rankings: Quarterback | Running Back | Receiver | Flex | Tight End | All Positions]

Second act

Falcons at Titans, Sunday, 1 p.m., O/U 47: No one on Tennessee is worth considering. The Falcons’ passing game disappointed against the Saints in Week 6. Julio Jones ($34) looked like he needed a break and his owners need him to recapture his earlier, game-changing form. 

Raiders at Chargers, Sunday, 4:05 p.m., O/U 47: I really like Amari Cooper ($27) in this game. Off the bye, let’s see if he steps up his game into the elite WR range. The Chargers are banged up on offense. Keenan Allen ($31) looks unlikely to play so Ladarius Green ($11) should get more action and makes for a nice fantasy sleeper this week.

Eagles at Panthers, Sunday, 8:30 p.m., O/U 46: Cam Newton ($42) has such a high floor with his running. It seems like it’s impossible to sustain throughout the season since no quarterback has run this much in nearly 70 years. But what’s another week? The Eagles offense and especially their passing game is such a disappointment. The talent just isn’t there. 

Cowboys at Giants, Sunday, 4:25 p.m. O/U 45: Will this be the unveiling of Christine Michael ($13)? As my fellow Yahoo! buddy Scott Pianowski said a few weeks back on our podcast, the last time we waited for Michael to reveal himself it was like the opening of Al Capone’s Vault, with one carry for minus-1 yard. Who cares if Odell Beckham Jr. ($38) is getting extra attention? The Giants have to find ways to consistently get him the ball. 

Steelers at Chiefs, Sunday, 1 p.m. O/U 44.5: Expect the Pittsburgh passing game to disappoint if Ben Roethlisberger isn’t active, and that seems very unlikely. So Martavis Bryant ($21) is a sucker play. The Chiefs are a total mess now. 

Texans at Dolphins, Sunday, 1 p.m., O/U 44.5: Did the Miami defense wake up last week? Fearlessly start DeAndre Hopkins ($36) and Arian Foster ($31). Ryan Tannehill ($38) is such a disappointment. Jarvis Landry ($28) can’t find the end zone and is too limited to rack up yardage. Lamar Miller ($27) is reliably unreliable.

Vikings at Lions, Sunday, 1 p.m., O/U 44.5: Did Calvin Johnson ($29) turn a corner last week? I need to see two big games in a row before I’m a buyer. Adrian Peterson ($36) has been a disappointment, predictably, at age 30. He’s been okay, no doubt. But he’s not a championship asset right now. 

Defensive battles

Bucs at Redskins, Sunday, 1 p.m., O/U 42.5: The big story here is whether Mike Evans ($19) can get on track off of the bye and hopefully fully recovered from his leg woes. He’s getting a ridiculous level of targets of late from Jameis Winston ($28). He just needs to deliver. Don’t be afraid of the Washington rush defense, Doug Martin ($28) owners. 

Browns at Rams, Sunday, 1 p.m., O/U 42: Gary Barnidge ($21) is questionable and we have to care about Barnidge’s injury status. Insane. Was Josh McCown ($30) a few-week wonder? Probably. I mean, the man is 36. Todd Gurley ($31) is insanely good though the Rams don’t throw to him (three catches in three games), which is mystifying since the is said to be a complete back and you want to get him the ball in space. 

Bills at Jaguars, Sunday, 9:30 a.m., O/U 41: You can stream this game, played in London, on Yahoo. The Bills defense is probably the best play here though it has disappointed greatly and has not been able to generate sacks. However, the lineman all complained this week so perhaps changes were made and a barrage is coming. The Jacksonville passing game is playable in a weird way with volume and garbage time keying things. Oddly, the early struggles of Blake Bortles ($39) have fed into his overall statistical performance but this is a very dangerous way to make a fantasy living. Allen Robinson ($31) looks like a go but check his status. EJ Manuel ($25) is back at QB for the Bills.