Fantasy Football Week 7: 7 Must-Start Players, Including a Giant

Vincent Rapisardi

Oct 23

9 min read

Updated: 13 minutes ago

Published Oct 23, 2026, 9:09 AM ET | By Vincent Rapisardi

Key points

Packers at Lions has the highest total of the week at 53.5 points, and three of our seven must-starts play in it.
Malik Nabers has 29 catches for 398 yards over his last three games, the only Giant on the list.
Every pick here faces a defense that ranks 23rd or worse in fantasy points allowed to his position, per Pro Football Reference.

Fantasy football Week 7 is here, and the bye weeks are starting to squeeze rosters.

Thursday night's Patriots-Bears game is already in motion, so every player below plays Sunday. That leaves seven names we would start in any league, at any roster size, without a second thought.

The method is simple. We looked for three things: weekly volume, a soft opponent and a healthy projected point total from the betting market. Each player checks at least two of the boxes, and most check all three.

Matchup ranks come from the Pro Football Reference Week 7 fantasy matchups pages, which rank all 32 defenses by fantasy points allowed per game.

A rank of 32nd means the defense has allowed the most. Player stats are from each player's 2026 game log through Week 6.

Week 7 Implied Team Totals

An implied team total turns the point spread and the over/under into a projected score for each side. Higher totals mean more scoring chances, and that is where fantasy points come from.

Game	Spread / total	Implied points
Packers at Lions	DET -3 / 53.5	DET 28.25, GB 25.25
Giants at Texans	HOU -10.5 / 42.5	HOU 26.5, NYG 16
Rams at Raiders	LAR -3.5 / 48.5	LAR 26, LV 22.5
Steelers vs. Saints (Paris)	PIT -3.5 / 44.5	PIT 24, NO 20.5

Source: consensus lines from VegasInsider as of Thursday, Oct. 22. Implied points = (total plus or minus the spread) divided by 2, our math.

Detroit's 28.25 is the highest team total among Sunday and Monday games. Houston's 26.5 is close behind. The Giants' 16 sits near the bottom, which matters for one pick in particular.

Fantasy Football Week 7: The 7 Must-Start Players

1. Jordan Love, QB, Packers at Lions

Jordan Love gets the best quarterback matchup on the board. The Lions rank 32nd against quarterbacks and allow 27.2 fantasy points per game in standard scoring, per Pro Football Reference. No defense has been more generous.

It has not mattered who lines up under center against Detroit. CBS Sports' Jamey Eisenberg notes that all five quarterbacks to face the Lions this season scored at least 25.5 fantasy points.

That list includes Tyler Shough, Josh Allen, Geno Smith, Bryce Young and Jacoby Brissett.

Love brings the volume to cash in. He has completed 135 of 226 passes for 1,684 yards, 11 touchdowns and four interceptions in six games. He averages 280.7 passing yards and 37.7 attempts per game, and he has added a rushing touchdown.

He has three 300-yard games already: 387 yards at Minnesota in Week 1, 312 vs. Atlanta in Week 3 and 367 against Chicago in Week 5. In that Chicago game, he completed 25 of 31 passes, an 80.6% rate.

Eisenberg also points out that Love has scored at least 20 fantasy points in 20 of his 31 career games with 30 or more pass attempts.

He averaged 26.9 points in two games against Detroit in 2025. With a 53.5-point total, 30 attempts looks like a floor. Love was limited Wednesday with back soreness but practiced fully Thursday, per the Packers' injury report, and he said he had no concerns about his availability.

2. Jahmyr Gibbs, RB, Lions vs. Packers

Jahmyr Gibbs is the safest running back play of the week. He has scored a touchdown in all five of his games, nine in total. Detroit comes off its Week 6 bye with the slate's highest implied total.

The workload is elite. Gibbs has 105 carries for 504 yards and seven rushing touchdowns, plus 27 catches on 34 targets for 243 yards and two receiving scores. That is 21.0 carries and 6.8 targets per game.

He has two 150-yard rushing games. Gibbs ran 29 times for 156 yards and two scores against New Orleans in Week 1. He then went for 151 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries at Arizona in Week 5, a 45-21 win.

Pro Football Reference ranks Green Bay 30th against running backs, allowing 22.5 fantasy points per game in standard scoring. Gibbs averages 25.3 standard points per game himself, the top projected back on that site's Week 7 matchup page.

The only knock is efficiency in losses. He managed 46 yards on 15 carries at Carolina in Week 4, and he still scored. Start him everywhere.

3. Puka Nacua, WR, Rams at Raiders

Puka Nacua was already a target magnet. Now Davante Adams is out six to 10 weeks with a ruptured hamstring, and Week 7 is the Rams' first game without him, as CBS noted.

In four games, Nacua has 37 catches on 52 targets for 417 yards and one touchdown, plus a rushing score. That works out to 13.0 targets, 9.3 catches and 104.3 yards per game. He has played 84.6% of the offensive snaps.

The ceiling is enormous. Against Buffalo in Week 5, he drew 24 targets and caught 17 for 138 yards and a touchdown. A week earlier at Philadelphia, he caught nine passes for 125 yards.

The Raiders rank 23rd against receivers at 22.9 standard points allowed per game, per Pro Football Reference. Las Vegas has also allowed 30 or more points in three straight games, according to the team's site. The Rams' implied total is 26.

One flag: Nacua left Thursday's practice early with a calf injury and did not practice Friday. Sean McVay said Friday that Nacua will be listed as questionable for Sunday's game in Las Vegas and will test the calf before kickoff, per ESPN's Sarah Barshop. Tests showed a minor injury, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, but he is a game-time decision. If he is active, he is a must-start.

4. Tucker Kraft, TE, Packers at Lions

Tight end is the thinnest position in fantasy, which is why the matchup carries Tucker Kraft onto this list. Detroit has been a disaster against the position.

Pro Football Network's Jason Katz notes the Lions allow 31.9 fantasy points per game to tight ends, more than 10 points above the next-worst defense.

CBS adds that seven tight ends have scored at least 13.3 PPR points against Detroit. The Lions have also allowed a league-high nine touchdowns to tight ends.

Pro Football Reference ranks Detroit 32nd against tight ends, at 21.7 standard points per game. On the DraftKings scale, which uses full points per reception, that number rises to 32.5.

Kraft's own numbers are steady rather than flashy. He has 25 catches on 37 targets for 249 yards and one touchdown. He averages 6.2 targets per game and has played 80.5% of Green Bay's offensive snaps.

He drew eight targets in both Week 3 and Week 6, and his 65-yard game at Minnesota shows the upside. In a shootout against the worst tight end defense in football, a full-time role is enough.

5. C.J. Stroud, QB, Texans vs. Giants

C.J. Stroud is playing his best football right now, and the matchup sets up well. Houston is a 10.5-point favorite against the Giants at 1 p.m. ET Sunday, with an implied total of 26.5.

Stroud has completed 143 of 219 passes for 1,714 yards, nine touchdowns and one interception, and he has a rushing score. Giants.com notes his yardage ranks second in the NFL, behind only Matthew Stafford's 1,794.

The recent stretch is sharp. He threw for 347 yards and two scores against Dallas in Week 4.

Then he threw for 312 yards and three touchdowns in a 34-31 win at Jacksonville in Week 6. Eisenberg notes he has scored at least 22.9 fantasy points in three straight games.

The Giants rank 26th against quarterbacks at 20.1 standard points per game, per Pro Football Reference. CBS also notes that Stafford, Jayden Daniels and Shough each scored at least 32.3 points against them in three of their past five games.

Stroud's supporting cast is improving. Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans confirmed Tank Dell will return, and Marvin Harrison Jr. made his Houston debut in Week 6. On the other side, Giants linebacker Tremaine Edmunds and cornerback Greg Newsome II did not practice Thursday, per Giants.com.

6. Jaylen Warren, RB, Steelers vs. Saints

Jaylen Warren gets the softest running back matchup in football in Paris, with a 9:30 a.m. ET kickoff. Set your lineup early.

NFL.com's Matt Okada notes the Saints allow the most fantasy points per game to running backs, 29.7, and the most per opportunity, 1.05.

They also allow the highest rush success rate to the position. Pro Football Reference ranks New Orleans 32nd against backs, at 25.7 standard points per game.

Warren's efficiency has been strong. He has 84 carries for 460 yards, a 5.5-yard average, and one rushing touchdown. He has added 21 catches on 30 targets for 258 yards and a receiving score.

His best game shows the range. Against Indianapolis in Week 5, Warren ran 15 times for 101 yards and a touchdown. He caught all six targets for 87 yards and another score.

He also ran for 127 yards on 17 carries against Cincinnati in Week 3.

Okada, who made Warren his Start of the Week, notes he has had at least 14 opportunities (carries plus targets) in every game, even with Rico Dowdle back in the rotation. Warren has played 76.1% of the offensive snaps. Pittsburgh's implied total is 24.

7. Malik Nabers, WR, Giants at Texans

Malik Nabers is the Giant on the list, and he earned it. He has 29 catches for 398 yards and two touchdowns over his last three games, with at least 100 receiving yards in each.

Giants.com notes it is the seventh time in franchise history a player has posted three straight 100-yard games.

Nabers caught six passes for 112 yards against Arizona, 11 for 121 at Washington and 12 for 165 against New Orleans. He was named the FedEx Air Player of the Week.

The volume is the real story. Nabers drew 20 targets at Washington and 15 against the Saints, 35 over the last two games.

On the season, he has 61 of the Giants' 206 targets, a 29.6% share, with 41 catches for 494 yards and two touchdowns.

The matchup also helps. Pro Football Reference ranks Houston 31st against receivers, allowing 26.5 standard points per game. Only one defense has given up more.

There are real risks. JJ McCarthy makes his first start for the Giants, and New York's implied total is just 16.

FantasyPros' Ellis Johnson still ranks Nabers as a high-upside WR2. A trailing game script usually means more throws, which keeps him in lineups.

Who Just Missed the Cut

A few players were close. Jets running back Braelon Allen would have been a strong play, but Breece Hall was limited in practice Thursday and could return. Buccaneers receiver Emeka Egbuka worked on the side with concussion and foot issues.

Lions receivers Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams also belong in most lineups in the week's highest-scoring game. St. Brown has 37 catches for 372 yards and five touchdowns in five games. We gave Gibbs the Detroit spot because of his touchdown streak.

Jared Goff is another strong option. He has thrown for 1,485 yards, 12 touchdowns and zero interceptions. We prefer Love's matchup against a Lions defense that ranks last against quarterbacks.

Our Take: How the Week 7 List Was Built

These seven picks come from the numbers, not a gut feeling. Every player on the list faces a defense that ranks 23rd or worse against his position in Pro Football Reference's matchup data. Five of the seven face a defense ranked 30th or worse.

The betting market points the same way. Three picks play in the Packers-Lions game, which has the highest total of the week at 53.5. Stroud and Nacua play for teams with implied totals of 26 or more.

Volume is the other common thread. Nacua averages 13.0 targets, Gibbs averages 21.0 carries and Love averages 37.7 pass attempts. Warren has not had fewer than 14 opportunities in any game.

Nabers is the one pick that leans on talent over team context. The Giants' implied total of 16 is low, and McCarthy is making his first Giants start.

The recent target totals, 20 and 15 in the last two games, are why he still makes the list.

Injury reports can change these calls. Nacua is questionable and will test his calf in pregame warmups, so check the Rams' inactives, released about 90 minutes before the 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff, before you lock in your lineup.

Want more Giants coverage? Catch up on all of our latest articles here on the site, and follow @BigBlueFilmRoom on X for every Giants update as it breaks.

About Big Blue Film Room: Big Blue Film Room is an independent New York Giants news site delivering daily news, injury updates and game recaps. We credit and link to the original reporting behind every story, and we correct errors promptly under our Editorial Standards. Learn more about who we are and how we report on our About page.