The NFL Week 7 slate shapes up to be one of the weakest ones on the entire calendar, especially from a fantasy football perspective. The Buffalo Bills, Los Angeles Rams, Minnesota Vikings, and Philadelphia Eagles are all on byes, meaning 30% of the 10 winning teams in the NFL won’t play this Thursday Sunday, or Monday.

Despite the down schedule, the Sportcasting experts are still here to help as you set your NFL Week 7 lineups. In our NFL Week 7 fantasy forecast, we’ll let you know what quarterback and defense to avoid, the player prop that will hit, and what rookie and kicker could save you on this major bye week.

Sportscasting’s NFL Week 7 Fantasy Football Forecast

Quarterback Bust of the Week: Bailey Zappe

Luke Norris: Bailey Zappe is coming off a phenomenal performance in his second start with the New England Patriots. The rookie sensation completed 70.6% of his passes for a career-high 308 yards with a pair of touchdowns and no picks, prompting many fantasy owners to add him to their roster. 

But that was against the Cleveland Browns, who have one of the worst defenses in the NFL. Zappe won’t have that luxury in Week 7. While the Chicago Bears’ defense is one of the worst in the league against the run, it’s one of the best against the pass. 

The Monsters of the Midway have given up the third-fewest passing yards, allowing just 178.7 per game, and have allowed only four passing TDs through six games, tied for the second-fewest in the NFL. The Bears are also tied for the fewest completions allowed at 17.7 per game. So Zappe won’t have nearly as easy of a time as he did against Cleveland.

Player Prop of the Week: Damien Harris under 11.6 PPR points

Jack Dougherty: I’m not entirely sure where this projection is coming from. Rhamondre Stevenson has clearly taken over as the No. 1 running back in New England. He’s turned 50 touches into 266 total yards and two touchdowns over the last two games with Harris injured, and there’s no reason the Patriots won’t keep feeding him this week against the Chicago Bears.

Even if Harris plays through his hamstring injury, he won’t see enough volume to surpass his projection of 11.6 points. Leave him on your bench this week.

Breakout Rookie of the Week: Brian Robinson

Tim Crean: Washington Commanders rookie running back Brian Robinson is already one of the best stories of the 2022 NFL season. The third-round pick out of Alabama was shot twice during an attempted carjacking during training camp and fought his way back to make his debut just 42 days later. 

In his first game back, Robinson played 29% of the Commanders offensive snaps and had nine carries for 22 yards. In game two, he played 47% of the snaps with 17 carries for 60 yards and a touchdown, per Pro Football Reference. 

In Week 7, Carson Wentz is out and Tayor Heinicke is in. The team will likely rely on the running game even more than usual and Robinson seems like the emerging back in that backfield. On Sunday vs. the Packers — a team that’s struggled against Saquon Barkley and Breece Hall the last two weeks — look for Robinson to put up his first career 100-yard game. 

Defensive Disaster of the Week: San Francisco 49ers

Mike Thomas: If the Atlanta Falcons can put up 28 points, what can a hungry Kansas City Chiefs team do?

Seven of those Falcons points came off a fumble recovery, so we’ll lighten up on the 49ers defense a bit. However, Marcus Mariota completed 13 of 14 passes for two touchdowns. He also rushed for 50 yards and a score.

Look for Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs to get back on the winning track after falling at home to the Buffalo Bills. Take the over. This will be a wild one.

Kicker Sleeper of the Week: Cairo Santos

Adam Fromal: Do you really want to trust the Chicago Bears? Absolutely not. But that’s why this is such a good sleeper. You’re actually not trusting the Bears by picking Cairo Santos, who’s rostered in just 9.5% of ESPN leagues. You’re trusting the offense, led by the inefficient and ineffective Justin Fields, to move a bit down the field before stalling out. 

You don’t have to worry about the weather in the Windy City. You don’t have to worry about field goals being subsumed by touchdowns. You don’t have to worry about the Bailey Zappe-led New England Patriots offense forcing the Bears into fourth-down attempts. 
Just grit your teeth and plug in Santos.  

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