NFL Usage Trends from Week 7: Fantasy Football Notes for All 32 Teams

Week 7 offered quite the specture of fantasy football offerings across it’s 15 games. A full 14 teams scored at least 25 points, while four teams scored seven points or less. Based on that, it’s becoming more and more clear which teams we want to target for fantasy production this year. Thoughts and prayers to those whose teams are built around players from the New York Jets, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Miami Dolphins.

More Week 8 Fantasy Football Fun!: | Sneaky Starts | Fantasy Football Waiver Wire | Weekly Sleepers & Streamers | Starts & Sits | Skrip’s Week Winners | NFL DFS | NFL Player Props | IDP Analysis | Bold Predictions | Survivor Picks | NFL Injury Report | Dynasty Trade Targets | Weekly Rankings | Dynasty Risers and Fallers

This weekly piece will look at those trends and make recommendations for players who might be worth rostering or starting in our fantasy lineups. We will look primarily at how roles changed over the first five games of the season for a player on each team, and if that is signal or noise this early in the year.

If you have interesting usage notes, feel free to reach out to me on Twitter/X (@CableBoxScore) and let me know. Let’s dive into the NFL Week 7 usage!

NFL Week 7 Usage Trends

ARIZONA CARDINALS

Trey McBride Does it All

ATLANTA FALCONS

To The Mooney

Darnell Mooney came back from an injury and stepped right back into 83% of snaps. But he is a clear fourth option now behind Bijan Robinson, Kyle Pitts Sr., and Drake London. Those three combined for 28 targets while Mooney had five targets he turned into three catches for 68 yards.

BALTIMORE RAVENS

The Baltimore Ravens Were on Bye For Week 7

👑#NextGenStats powered by @awscloud pic.twitter.com/RoW7WZ3mQl

— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) October 17, 2025

BUFFALO BILLS

The Buffalo Bills Were on Bye For Week 7

Sundays with #BillsMafia >>>#GoBills | https://t.co/QjszvzxOzS pic.twitter.com/tUaf7MPeP5

— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) October 19, 2025

CAROLINA PANTHERS

Running Back Tandem Disappoints

After two 200+-yard games from Rico Dowdle, Chuba Hubbard was welcomed back into the mix. Coach Dave Canales said they would split the backfield, and they did absolutely that. Dowdle had 18 touches. Hubbard had 16. Dowdle played 46% of the snaps. Hubbard played 54%. That’s a recipe for a headache moving forward, but both can still be useful.

CHICAGO BEARS

Caleb Williams Letdown at Home

Caleb Williams was playing a New Orleans Saints defense at home and was projected to have a good game through the air. That absolutely did not happen, as he finished with 172 scoreless yards, negative two rushing yards, and an interception. This was Williams’ worst game of the season, but at least for now, it looks like an outlier performance considering the rest of the season.

CINCINNATI BENGALS

Ja’Marr Chase Close to Breaking Records

With 23 targets, Ja’Marr Chase is now tied for the third-most in a single game all-time. Chase’s 16 receptions are also tied for sixth-most all time. Thank god for Joe Flacco coming to town.

CLEVELAND BROWNS

Quinshon Judkins Hat Trick

Quinshon Judkins was the latest running back to shred the Miami Dolphins’ porous run defense on Sunday. Judkins finished the day with only 84 rushing yards, but scored three times on his 25 rushing attempts and played a season-high 65% of snaps. He didn’t have any passing work, but with how dominant the Browns were on Sunday, they only had to throw the ball 18 times in this game.

DALLAS COWBOYS

George Pickens’ Role With CeeDee Lamb Back

George Pickens had 26 total targets over the last three weeks, but just six with CeeDee Lamb returning from an injury. Pickens was still plenty productive with four receptions for 82 yards, but Lamb had more targets, receptions, yards, and touchdowns.

DENVER BRONCOS

WHOA Nix!

Bo Nix just set a new bar for fantasy points in a single game this season. In Half-PPR formats, Bo Nix’s 40 fantasy points are now the best fantasy game of the season by any player at any position. He may have waited until the fourth quarter to work his magic against the New York Giants, but he did not disappoint. Nix finished the day with 279 passing yards, two passing touchdowns, 48 rushing yards, two rushing touchdowns, and two two-point conversions. According to ESPN, he became the first player to ever throw and rush for two scores all in one quarter. Incredible.

DETROIT LIONS

Jameson Williams Disappearing Act

Jameson Williams led the NFL in air yards in Week 4, although it only led to two catches for 40 yards. But after eight targets and 215 air yards that week, surely he would regress to a big game in Week 5, 6, or 7. Right? That didn’t happen on Monday as the Lions scored 24 points, but Williams only had two targets, zero receptions, and zero yards. The Lions are on a record-breaking pace for points, but Williams is not a part of the plans.

GREEN BAY PACKERS

Josh Jacobs Somewhat Limited

The illness that kept Josh Jacobs Questionable for this game did cause him to lose snaps and touches to Emanuel Wilson. Jacobs played a season-low 55% of snaps and only had 14 touches to seven for Wilson.

HOUSTON TEXANS

C.J. Stroud Collapsing

This would have been helpful to know before the game started.

CJ Stroud has now played 11 quarters against a Mike Macdonald-led defense. Twice in 2023 when Macdonald was in Baltimore — Stroud's Week 1 debut and the divisional round that year — and then 3 quarters tonight.

Stroud has yet to lead a TD drive.

— Dugar, Michael-Shawn (@MikeDugar) October 21, 2025

INDIANAPOLIS COLTS

Alec Pierce Emerges

With no Josh Downs and Adonai Mitchell still in the doghouse, Alec Pierce emerged and played 87% of snaps in this game. He caught five passes for 98 yards, clearly his best outcome of the entire season. He doesn’t have any touchdowns yet, but sooner or later, these deep balls are going to connect for one.

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS

Travis Hunter Playing More

Travis Hunter played almost exclusively on offense on Sunday and played on 67 snaps as a wide receiver (Brian Thomas Jr. had 51). He had a couple of massive plays in this game on both sides, especially a long reception for his first touchdown, which helped him earn his career-high in receiving yards in this game.

KANSAS CITY CHIEFS

Rashee Rice Returns

Rashee Rice didn’t exactly get eased back into action after a six-game suspension, did he? Rice had 10 targets, seven receptions, 42 receiving yards, and two touchdowns. Rice saw multiple red zone targets and seemed to already be Patrick Mahomes’ favorite when a play must be made.

LAS VEGAS RAIDERS

What More Can You Say About That Performance?

Geno Smith just lost a game by 31 points, and yet somehow only managed 67 passing yards on 16 attempts while playing 86% of the game. What were the Las Vegas Raiders doing to try to get back in this game? This is now three straight weeks with no more than nine fantasy points, and he only has one total touchdown in that time. Smith is a safe player to drop now, as there are surely better options on the waiver wire.

LOS ANGELES CHARGERS

Goodness, Gadsden

Rookie Oronde Gadsden is now a lock to be the most popular player taken on the waiver wire during this Bye-pocalypse week coming up. He was Justin Herbert’s favorite target and finished the loss against the Colts with nine targets, seven receptions, 164 yards, and a touchdown. His 164 yards set a new rookie record for tight ends.

Gasden had 2 HUGE college szns

NFL success shouldn’t be a surprise pic.twitter.com/c1LLIbSWV2

— Skrip (@P2WFantasy) October 19, 2025

LOS ANGELES RAMS

Blake Corum and Kyren Williams

For the third straight game, Kyren Williams’ snaps and touches decreased. For the third straight game, Blake Corum’s snaps and touches increased. Did the final score have something to do with this? Sure, but Williams now has one rushing touchdown since Week 1 and only touched the ball 14 times.

MIAMI DOLPHINS

Miami Offense Dumpster Fire

Jaylen Waddle figures to get all the work he can handle going forward since it looks like Darren Waller will be joining Tyreek Hill on the injured reserve. But does it really matter what kind of role Waddle has if Tua Tagovailoa is throwing him the ball? More on Tua below, but Waddle was only able to catch one of four targets for 15 yards against Cleveland. I’m worried about Waddle moving forward, even with all the volume.

MINNESOTA VIKINGS

Jordan Mason is a Bellcow Now

Jordan Mason played a season-high 77% of snaps and handled over 15 opportunities on Sunday against Philadelphia. Those are among his best numbers of the season. Considering he has scored a goal-line touchdown each of the past two games, he should be considered a strong RB2 going forward.

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS

Time to Drop TreVeyon Henderson?

TreVeyon Henderson officially bottomed out on Sunday against Tennessee, so it’s welcome to dumpsville for the rookie running back. He rushed two times for five yards on Sunday, and those were his only two opportunities as he played a season-low 14% of snaps. Rhamondre Stevenon is now the starter and the bell cow, and Henderson can be let go without regrets.

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS

Kendre Miller Injury

After reaching almost 40% of snaps in each of his last two games, Kendre Miller suffered a season-ending knee injury and will now not be ready until next season. Devin Neal steps up in his place, but it’s possible the Saints give Alvin Kamara 20 touches a game again.

NEW YORK GIANTS

Jaxson Dart Has Arrived

Jaxson Dart was on the other side of that Bo Nix game, and for about 2.5 hours, it looked like he was going to be the fantasy hero of the day. Going into a vicious road environment, the rookie Dart threw for 283 yards and three touchdowns of his own, while also adding another rushing touchdown. This was the first start that he did not run for at least 50 yards, but if he is going to be throwing these dimes to players like Theo Johnson and Daniel Bellinger, Dart is going to rise up the quarterback rankings very quickly.

NEW YORK JETS

Justin Fields Bottoms Out

Justin Fields just had his third game with under 50 passing yards this season. After an injury scare, he was replaced by Tyrod Taylor, and that might not be a temporary move.

Jets TD through three quarters in each game this season:

3
0
0
1
0
0
0

— Mick Ciallela (@themick23) October 19, 2025

PHILADELPHIA EAGLES

Saquon Barkley Gets Left Out

Saquon Barkley caught the ugly side of the coin as the Eagles focused on their passing game, leaving Barkley once again with an underwhelming performance. Barkley rushed 18 times for 44 yards and also finished with negative receiving yards in the game. Some of his struggles this year are certainly due to game script, but we also can’t help but wonder if his efficiency is in the tank because of overwork last season. Only Chuba Hubbard had a lower yards per rush number among qualified running backs on Sunday.

PITTSBURGH STEELERS

Jaylen Warren Slowly Getting Back

After playing 53% of snaps last week, coming off a missed week with injury, Jaylen Warren was back up to 65% on Thursday night, his second-highest mark of the season. There really is no competition anymore, as Warren had 19 touches to just five for Kenneth Gainwell.

SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS

Christian McCaffrey Always and Forever?

Christian McCaffrey had his best game since 2023 on Sunday night, going for 129 rushing yards, 72 receiving yards, and two total touchdowns. McCaffrey had an incredible 32 opportunities in this game, as he just continues to get work at an overwhelming rate we have never seen before. Enjoy it while it lasts, because this is as good as it gets for fantasy football managers.

SEATTLE SEAHAWKS

JSN Fireworks

Jaxon Smith-Njigba logged at least 100 receiving yards for the fifth time in seven games this season, and he scored a touchdown. With Puka Nacua out for the current week, JSN put up over 20 fantasy points and is now the number one wide receiver in football.

TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS

Tez Johnson Role Secure

Baker Mayfield threw the ball 50 times against Detroit on Sunday night, and wide receiver Tez Johnson saw almost 20% of them (nine targets), finishing with 58 yards and a touchdown. With Chris Godwin injured and Mike Evans now out for almost the whole season, Tez Johnson is a must-roster wide receiver to play alongside Emeka Egbuka.

TENNESSEE TITANS

Wide Receiver Distribution

With Calvin Ridley out, the top wide receivers in snaps were Elic Ayomanor (96%), Van Jefferson (85%), Chimere Dike (57%), and Tyler Lockett (26%). This is interesting information to know, but it’s not actionable because this audience is so horrific.

WASHINGTON COMMANDERS

More Injuries For the Commanders

Jayden Daniels left during the second half of the game against the Dallas Cowboys with a hamstring injury and did not return. The team has announced that Daniels will undergo an MRI, which happened on Monday, but fantasy managers should start preparing for the possibility that Daniels will miss some time moving forward. This team continues to be cursed with injuries.

Data Sources: Pro Football Focus, NFL Next Gen Stats, Football Guys Snap Summary, FTN Air Yards, Pro Football Reference, Team Rankings, Fantasy Points Data Suite

Make sure to check out all of our Week 8 Fantasy Football Rankings and Analysis!