Week 7 Flex Rankings: Time to Get Supercharged!

It is not often you will see an NFL team with five skill players who are solid fantasy plays in a given week. But that is precisely the case this week, as the Los Angeles Chargers boast a quintet of players inside the top 75 in my Week 7 Flex rankings. Not bad for a team that has not won a game since Week 1. 

The Chargers have been through quite a bit in the last month or so. They defeated the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 1 but lost their incumbent quarterback the following week in a fashion which is usually reserved for soap operas and crime dramas. Their team doctor punctured Tyrod Taylor’s lung while giving him an injection before their game against the Kansas City Chiefs. Satirical conspiracy theories abounded. 

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Meanwhile, Justin Herbert had to fill in, and the rookie did an admirable job. He nearly leading an upset victory before the Chiefs eventually prevailed in overtime. That began a four-game losing skid for Los Angeles, though each loss came by seven points or less as Herbert continued to impress.

Head coach Anthony Lynn eventually named him the team’s starting quarterback going forward. But this is not a quarterback column. If you need one of those, click here while I get back to the Chargers skill group. 

The Chargers lost standout running back Austin Ekeler in the early stages of a Week 4 loss in Tampa. Ekeler was an RB1 last season and was on his way to maintaining that status again in 2020 before going down. He averaged nearly 20 PPR points per game over his first three games of the year.

After Ekeler left that Week 4 contest, the combination of rookie Joshua Kelley and second-year back Justin Jackson combined for 16 yards on 15 carries. Nope, not a typo. In their last game, Jackson had the better day, finishing with 71 yards on 15 carries compared to Kelley’s 11-29 effort. Although to be fair, if you remove Jackson’s 36-yard run in that game from the equation, the duo’s rushing lines from Week 5 look quite similar.

So what does this mean for Week 7, and their place in my Week 7 Flex rankings? Well, it sure looks like Jackson is the 1A to Kelley’s 1B in this scenario. And Lynn’s reluctance to promote rookies in place of veterans (as illustrated in the Taylor-Herbert situation) leads me to believe that is indeed the case. The good news for managers invested in Kelley is that the rookie does have a role in this offense.

Tackle Bryan Bulaga should also return this week after missing the last two games. His presence will be a welcomed addition upfront, where Trey Pipkins has played 100 percent of snaps the last two weeks despite grading out as PFF’s worst offensive lineman. All of this should be enough to make both Kelley and Jackson worth considering in a plum matchup.

Opponents have routinely run the ball effectively against the Jacksonville Jaguars this season. D’Andre Swift was the latest to get in on the act. The rookie ran for 116 yards with two scores last week after entering the game with just 42 yards on the ground. This has become the norm against Jacksonville this year. The Jaguars have now allowed seven backs to finish inside the top 24 among fantasy running backs in just six games.

Ironically, the only game in which they did not allow such a high-end fantasy finish was when they faced Derrick Henry. They have twice permitted teammates to finish as RB2s or better, and they have also allowed three top-four overall weekly PPR finishes. Though I give Jackson a slight edge, I would not hesitate to use Kelley as a Flex this week.

You certainly do not need me to tell you to start Keenan Allen this week, and the same likely goes for Hunter Henry as well. Mike Williams is the fifth Charger I would feel comfortable starting this week. Williams has been banged up this season which looks to have affected his early-season production. He broke out in a big way in Week 5 and had last week’s bye to let his body heal.

He should be the freshest he has been all season in this game. Most people view Allen as the team’s slot receiver, but the truth is that all their wide receivers move along the formation. Of the five Jaguar cornerbacks who have logged at least 100 snaps, three rank among the bottom 20 percentile per Pro Football Focus, so there should be room for both Charger wideouts to make an impact.

Keeping Up with the Joneses

Aaron Jones had a rough game last week, but he has proven that 2019 was no one-off. Julio Jones was finally healthy last week and reminded us that his ceiling is nearly unmatched among fantasy wide receivers. Even Ronald Jones has emerged to be a consistent fantasy performer in recent weeks. He is the only back in the NFL this season to record three straight games with at least 100 rushing yards. Marvin Jones, however, has been anything but a fantasy stud in 2020.

The veteran wideout currently sits as the overall WR84 in PPR leagues. He failed to do much damage while Kenny Golladay nursed a hamstring injury early on and has bottomed out since Golladay’s return to action. Jones has recorded single-digit yardage in each of his last two games. He looks a step slow and may very well be approaching the downside of his career.

Jones currently sits 90th overall in my Week 7 Flex rankings, which is outside the range at which I would recommend starting him. However, if you are desperate or in a bye-week crunch, the matchup is ideal for Jones to have his best game of the year. Atlanta has gifted the fifth-most fantasy points and second-most receiving yards to opposing wide receivers this season. If Jones cannot produce this week, it may be time to cut ties.

Week 7 Flex Rankings

If you found Mick’s Week 7 Flex Rankings helpful, make sure to check out the rest of our NFL Week 7 Slate of Analysis.

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