Fantasy Football Week 7 Start/Sit

Last Week:
Jordan Matthews vs. Will Fuller — Win
Frank Gore vs. Tevin Coleman — Win
Mark Ingram vs. Amari Cooper — Loss
Week 6 Record: 2–1
Season Record: 14–13

This weekly column serves to help Fantasy Life App users make tough start/sit decisions and win their weeks. Let’s get into the questions.

@thafezz asked: “Mark Ingram of Jay Ajayi this week?”

Ajayi was one of my favorite pre-season value picks before Arian Foster got signed on to be the workhorse back in Miami. Well, Foster pulled an Arian Foster, and here we are in week seven, Foster banged up and Ajayi coming off a remarkable 25–204–2 performance. His three yards on one reception put him at 32.7 fantasy points in standard leagues, crowning him week six scoring champ just barely over Drew Brees’ 32.6…. And I’m not buying in. While Foster was active last week, he only logged five touches, and those totes cannot be solely attributed to Adam Gase’s turning to the hot hand — Foster was still hurt. With seven more days of rest and practice under his belt, Foster will see more touches this week, and, even if he doesn’t outdo Ajayi, will seriously cut into the Boise State product’s workload. Ajayi had averaged less than thirty yards per game before last week’s outburst, and another 62-yard scamper-and-score doesn’t appear imminent. Ajayi has never been a great running back, and with Foster back and against a surging Buffalo defense, he should be benched in favor of Ingram. Not only does Ingram have the better match up against Kansas City, but he is the sole proprietor of the New Orleans backfield. He’s had at least 18 touches in each of his last three games, and has been generally more reliable than Ajayi. Off a down week and in a contest where there figures to be a sufficient amount of running action, Ingram will outperform the sell-high candidate Ajayi.

The Pick: Mark Ingram

@sumosini54 asked: “Start Vernon Davis over Gary Barndige?”

With Jordan Reed out another week due to his fifth concussion, Davis will once again take over starting tight end duties in Washington. Davis put up a more-than-solid 11 point performance against the Eagles last week, though that number is a little misleading: He caught only two passes on four targets, but one of those receptions happened to occur in the endzone. Davis is not a big part of Washington’s offense, and he’s no Reed. The Browns’ Barnidge, however, has not been much better. While most would agree that he’s more valuable and used in Cleveland’s offense than Davis in Washington’s, he hasn’t been able to do very much with the extra opportunities. Averaging less than five catches and sixty yards per game — and still without a touchdown — Barnidge’s floor doesn’t seem incredibly high, and neither does his ceiling. Still, he averages more than six targets per game, and could find his way at any time. Barnidge will play the fifth-worst fantasy defense against opposing tight ends, while Davis will play the third-worst, making that difference negligible, leaving this decision up to strict chance, or really, who can make the most of their chances. Barnidge, as previously mentioned, will earn more opportunities than Davis, and the tight end is more overdue for a big game, so I’ll head to the Dawg Pound in this one.

The Pick: Gary Barnidge

@bobbywilliams7783 asked: “Risk it with Baldwin, or play Hurns with the favorable matchup?”

I wrote extensively about my distaste for Doug Baldwin during the offseason, and so far my assessment of his play last year — and it’s likely negative translation to this season — has been fairly accurate: He’s a boom-or-bust wideout that relies too heavily on touchdowns playing for a run-first team. He was never truly the WR1 he finished as last year and isn’t the consistent WR2 he was drafted to be this season…. But Allen Hurns hasn’t been any better. Another wideout I projected to fall off without a ridiculous supply of touchdowns, Hurns — and really, the entire Jaguars offense — has disappointed thus far and isn’t even startable in most leagues. He’s only accumulated five receptions twice and amassed 75 yards once. His lone score isn’t enough to inflate his numbers as his many endzone receptions did last year, leaving him as the WR51 in standard leagues. Alas, to describe the underachievement of two wideouts was not the question; I was asked about matchups. And yes, Hurns has an excellent match up against the Raiders, who have allowed the fourth most fantasy points to opposing wide receivers, while Baldwin does not, as he’ll face Patrick Peterson and the Cardinals secondary who allowed the ninth fewest fantasy points to opposing wide receivers. Still, I’ll take a team’s No. 1 receiver who has actually proven to be a starting option this year.

The Pick: Doug Baldwin

Until next time, ask your start/sit questions to @cb on the Fantasy Life App and @CBRetweet on Twitter.

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