You would think after five weeks we would have everything figured out. But let me let you in on a little secret. I’ve been doing this for a few years now and it’s almost never fully figured out. Sure, some teams use the same couple of guys every snap and we love that about them. But there will always be rookies getting ramped up. There will always be injuries. And we are now into bye weeks. We need to not only know who is trending up or down but we need to know who the next man up is. We told you for two weeks now about guys like Emari Demercado and Tyjae Spears. This article is honestly the basis for everything I do, especially my weekly fantasy rankings.


This article goes best with our snap count tool where you can see all of the raw snap numbers. But I take it a step further letting you know who got the pass snaps, two minute drill, who pass blocked, who played slot, who played two WR sets. I do my best to let you know who is getting the work and who isn’t. So, without further ado, here is Week 7.

 

Fantasy Football Week 7 Snap Count Preview

San Francisco 49ers - 62 Snaps

WR: Deebo Samuel got a little banged up but is expected to go. If he is out, Ray-Ray McCloud filled in for him and could be viable - he ran 30 of 36 routes. If Deebo and Brandon Aiyuk are both active though, there is no other relevant WR for fantasy because of how much they use the fullback.

RB:  Christian McCaffrey is questionable. If he doesn’t go, it’s Jordan Mason who has been running well vs. Elijah Mitchell coming off injury. Kyle “Hot Hand” Shanahan implied that both deserve to play which makes it a bit of a toss-up but we also know he’s not afraid to lean on whoever is playing best in the game. I like Mitchell if I have to pick one but we have to acknowledge that.

TE: There are no complaints about the usage of George Kittle. He ran 35 of 36 snaps. It’s the targets. The gamescripts have been conducive to shootouts and the touches have been spread too thin.

Chicago Bears - 64 Snaps

WR: Every week I’m surprised at how many snaps Darnell Mooney plays considering how little production we have out of him. He ran 30 of 33 routes which is behind only DJ Moore. Tyler Scott is the third WR right now but he only ran 21 routes.

RB: D’Onta Foreman got the bulk of the towkr though Darrynton Evans contributed some pass work. With Roschon Johnson returning, it will be interesting to see what happens. Foreman doesn’t offer much in the pass game so will we see Roschon on early down with Evans on pass downs? Is Roschon and Foreman splitting with Evans on pass downs? Or maybe Foreman will help with early downs and Roschon will skew pass? I’m just hoping it’s not a big rotation - that is bad for fantasy football.

TE: Cole Kmet didn’t have a great game but he quietly played the highest snap share he has played since Week One. 63 of 66 snaps in fact. He did block on five pass plays though so he only ran 25 of 33 routes. So he’s got the 95% snap rate but only ran 76% of the routes. Annoying but still better than usual.

Cincinnati Bengals - 54 Snaps

WR: It’s usually Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Tyler Boyd and that’s it. But Tee Higgins is nursing a rib injury so he split snaps with Trenton Irwin 29 to 24. He should be back up to speed after the bye.

RB:  Joe Mixon continues to get all of the meaningful work for this team. That makes him a buy-low candidate if they can turn things around. I think they will.

TE: Irv Smith Jr is back but he only ran 25 of 40 routes. Even if he played the whole game, they have too many weapons.  

Buffalo Bills - 61 Snaps

WR: Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis. That’s it. No other WR played more than 24 snaps. And oddly it was Khalil Shakir who only ran 6 routes.

RB:  The usage here is getting a little scary for James Cook. He and Latavius Murray split the snaps right down the middle - 30/30. And they each ran 15 routes. Murray has been getting a lot of pass snaps and he gets the goal line work. That reminds us of Melvin Gordon’s rookie year when he got the work in space but Danny Woodhead took pass plays and goal line work. Not great, Bob.

TE:  With no Dalton Kincaid we got a lot of Dawson Knox. But we’ve seen four years of Dawson Knox without Dalton Kincaid and it’s not that interesting for fantasy football. We would much rather see Dalton Kincaid without Dawson Knox.

Cleveland Browns - 76 Snaps


WR: Amari Cooper and Donovan Peoples-Jones on the outside with Elijah Moore operating out of the slot. It’s been like that all year and they all play a good amount. I’ll let you know if that ever changes.

RB:  Kareem Hunt (28 snaps) made his biggest impact yet on Jerome Ford (38). Ford still got more carries and played a couple of extra pass plays but the split is closer now it seems.

TE:  David Njoku ran 35 routes which tied Elijah Moore for second behind only Amari Cooper with 38. Njoku remains a middle-of-the-pack option based on what he’s offered so far. Would be better with the starting QB back.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers - 56 Snaps

WR: Chris Godwin and Mike Evans are locked in. Trey Palmer (37) and Deven Thompkins (14) still split to some degree but clearly Palmer is the favored guy in the event of an injury. Worth a roster spot in dynasty if it’s deep enough.

RB:  The one thing Rachaad White has going for him is that he routinely gets the bulk of the work. It hasn’t been pretty in this offense but he’s the guy. Ke’Shawn Vaughn is the next man up but only 12 snaps this week.

TE:  Cade Otton actually leads all tight ends in snap share with 96.4%. But he does pass block a fare amount so he’s only TE6 in route participation. He needs either Godwin or Evans to go down to have a shot at relevancy.

Denver Broncos - 52 Snaps

WR: Marvin Mims is actually going the other way it seems - he was WR5 in snaps this week with only 12. The only fantasy-relevant options are Courtland Sutton and Jerry Jeudy right now.

RB: Javonte Williams returned and took the bulk of the carries as expected. What was unexpected was that Jaleel McLaughlin leads the team in routes run while Samaje Perine only played 9 snaps. Perine is droppable and I might hold onto Jaleel.

TE: Greg Dulcich might not have been ready to come back after all as he reinjured his hamstring after 11 snaps. We have no interest in Adam Trautman so we are back to waiting for Dulcich.

Arizona Cardinals - 76 Snaps

WR: The targets weren’t great but Michael Wilson had his best usage yet - Marquise Brown led with 68 snaps and 43 routes while Wilson was right there with 67 snaps and 42 routes. Kyler Murray is back at practice which is certainly intriguing. Rondale Moore only ran 34 routes but he did get three carries again which is nice.

RB: Keontay Ingram and Damien Williams split the carries while Emari Demercado ran 26 routes to 11 for Ingram and 3 for Williams. So it’s a big mess but Demercado could hang onto the pass-down work.

TE: Trey McBride played 44 snaps to 35 for Ertz but Ertz ran 25 routes to 23 for McBride. That was out of a possible 48 though so, if that’s how they are going to split it, neither will matter.

Dallas Cowboys - 64 Snaps

WR: Ceedee Lamb ran 40 routes, Brandin Cooks ran 36, and Michael Gallup ran 33. Those are your three starting WRs with Lamb being the only one we can really trust right now.

RB:  Tony Pollard is locked in. He played 51 of 64 snaps.

TE: Jake Ferguson has been such a strange player. We have faded him for his poor usage. This week he had his best usage yet, running 34 of 41 routes, yet hard one of his worst games with only one catch. I just don’t trust this guy.

Los Angeles Chargers - 72 Snaps

WR: Joshua Palmer has fully taken over the Mike Williams role - he played 70 of 72 snaps and looked good. Keenan Allen is Keenan Allen of course. Quentin Johnston only played 34 snaps so he’s just not involved close to enough.

RB:  Austin Ekeler played 50 of 72 snaps, and Joshua Kelley is the next man up. Same as it’s been.

TE: Gerald Everett continues to only be a part-time player, running 35 of 53 routes. Donald Parham ran 17 and Stone Smartt ran 7. Combine them all and maybe you have a TE we could use in fantasy.

Kansas City Chiefs - 72 Snaps

WR: Same mess as always. The leading WR in snaps, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, played 40 of 72 snaps. Rashee Rice improved to ~48% but it’s still not enough. Justin Watson is now hurt so the rotation is smaller but all of MVS, Skyy Moore, Rashee Rice, and Kadarius Toney will still rotate. They also just traded for Mecole Hardman back…

RB:  Isaiah Pacheco played 45 snaps which is more than any WR on the team. He’s a smash start this week. Jerrick McKinnon played 19 snaps, all pass plays and he ran a route on each one.

TE: Travis Kelce is the man. Noah Gray also quietly played a lot of snaps but didn’t run a lot of routes. Only 20 of 48.

Indianapolis Colts - 78 Snaps

WR: Alec Pierce left the game with a shoulder issue and has yet to practice this week. Michael Pittman always plays the whole game but the injury could really open the door for Josh Downs. The third WR without Pierce would likely be Amari Rodgers.

RB: Jonathan Taylor got roughly half the work back from Zack Moss and I doubt that ever goes back to more Moss than Taylor. Maybe it will stay split to some degree but Taylor is back..

TE: Kylen Granson is the best bet for fantasy at the moment but he still rotates too much. If I’m holding any Colts TE, it’s Jelani Woods.

Washington Commanders - 51 Snaps

WR: Terry McLaurin, Jahan Dotson, Curtis Samuel. That’s it. Highly consolidated as it’s been. Jahan has been borderline useless though and Samuel gets carries here and there so he’s more appealing.

RB: Brian Robinson gets the carries in good game scripts but, in bad ones, Antonio Gibson takes over for the two minute drill. Be wary of that.

TE: Logan Thomas oddly only ran 19 of 30 routes which is oddly low for him. I hope he will bounce back this week but it was interesting that a beat writer actually asked Eric Bieniemy why he was getting so many targets last Thursday and Bieniemy got a little defensive.

Miami Dolphins - 67 Snaps

WR: Like the 49ers, they use a lot of fullback which keeps the WR3 off the field at times. Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill are the only guys we need to worry about here.

RB:  Raheem Mostert was a stud once again with De’Von Achane and Jeff Wilson out. But Wilson returns this week so prepare yourself for him to take on some short yardage work which could include vulturing touchdowns.

TE: Durham Smythe once again didn’t get targeted, he’s just not a fantasy asset.

Philadelphia Eagles - 70 Snaps

WR: AJ Browna and DeVonta Smith played the whole game, always. Olamide Zaccheus was filling in with Quez Watkins on IR but the team signed Julio Jones. Will be interesting to see how many snaps the big dog can get up to.

RB:  D’Andre Swift continues to get the bulk of the work in all phases. Does not look like he’s giving any major part of the role back to Kenneth Gainwell soon who just pitches in on some pass plays.

TE: Dallas Goedert played his normal snap share and ran a good chunk of routes. He is solid but would be fully unlocked by an injury to one of Brown or Smith.

Atlanta Falcons - 83 Snaps

WR: No change here - Drake London is the only one playing a meaningful snap share because they use multiple tight ends and a fullback. The TE3, Mycole Pruitt, played 32 snaps while the third WR, KhaDarel Hodge, played 29.

RB: Bijan Robinson played 64 snaps here so he’s dialed in but Allgeier continues to mix in for some carries. He got a carry on 14 of his 23 snaps.

TE: Kyle Pitts is still working back from offseason knee surgery so he’s only playing a partial share. He played 46 snaps and ran 35 routes, and Jonnu Smith played 45 snaps and ran 34 routes. Not ideal for either.

New York Giants - 77 Snaps

WR:  Finally - they are using the guys we want. Darius Slayton (67), Jalin Hyatt (56), and Wan’Dale Robinson (46) played the most snaps and next up was Isaiah Hodgins with 18.

RB: Saquon Barkley was not eased back in at all  - 60 of 77 snaps. Very nice.

TE: Darren Waller continues to get great deployment - he played 71 of 77 snaps. And he should have scored a game-winning touchdown but was held on back-to-back plays in the end zone, the second not being called.

Jacksonville Jaguars - 64 Snaps

WR: With Zay Jones out, no one really stepped up to play a full snap share as the WR3, Jamaal Agnew was closest with only 20 snaps. It’s Calvin Ridley and Christian Kirk until Zay is back.

RB: Travis Etienne is the man - 51 of 64 snaps was more than Christian Kirk and the same as Calvin Ridley.

TE: Evan Engram is also dialed in. He played 48 snaps and ran 33 of 37 routes. He continues to get featured on a lot of screens which is easy receptions.

New York Jets - 65 Snaps

WR: Garrett Wilson and Allen Lazard get the big snap shares but only Garrett Wilson matters.

RB: Breece Hall carved an even bigger share of the work this week with 43 snaps. The next highest was Michael Carter with 13. It’s his backfield.

TE: Tyler Conklin ran 32 of 45 routes which simply is not enough for fantasy.

Detroit Lions - 70 Snaps

WR:  Amon-Ra St. Brown returned to claim his spot on the throne. Josh Reynolds played opposite him with 57 snaps. Jameson Williams made the big play but he did it on only 16 snaps.

RB: David Montgomery is trending towards out and all the other backs are nicked us as well. Craig Reynolds should get some early down work with Jahmyr Gibbs in his pass down role.

TE: Sam LaPorta is the man. He once again pass blocked on three snaps which isn’t great but who cares, you start him every week.

Green Bay Packers

BYE

Carolina Panthers - 69 Snaps

WR: Finally, we got the info we have been looking for all year. Terrace Marshall split snaps with DJ Chark. So Adam Thielen and Jonathan Mingo are the full time WRs (most likely). Thielen is must start, Mingo is the only guy I would stash.

RB: Miles Sanders will hopefully get healthy during the bye here. Otherwise, it’s the Chuba Hubbard show.

TE: Hayden Hurst once again ran less than half the routes. Tommy Tremble had a nice hurdle but ran even fewer. Useless.

New England Patriots - 60 Snaps

WR: Kendrick Bourne is the only guy we can really consider right now. Pop Douglas and Juju Smith-Schuster will be coming back from concussion protocol but tough to trust anyone.

RB: Rhamondre Steveson got the bulk of the important touches as always, Zeke is just there to chip in. Stevenson gets most of the pass work.

TE: Hunter Henry got banged up here but should be fine. Mike Gesicki just doesn’t play enough snaps, he’s a part-time slot WR.

Las Vegas Raiders - 70 Snaps

WR: Davante Adams and Jakobi Meyers are the dudes. No one else plays enough after them because of the TEs and fullback.

RB:  Josh Jacobs played 57 snaps, he’s dialed in. If he went down it would likely be a split between Zamir White and Ameer Abdullah.

TE:  Michael Mayer has now fully surpassed Austin Hooper. That is the first hurdle. He only ran 66% of the routes so the next hurdle is a full snap share. We will continue to monitor.

Los Angeles Rams - 57 Snaps

WR: Crazy consolidated snaps here. Cooper Kupp (57), Puka Nacua (55), and Tutu Atwell. There you have it.

RB:  Kyren Williams got hurt as did Ronnie Rivers so we’re up for grabs here. Zach Evan is the incumbent but they added Royce Freeman, Myles Gaskin, and Darrell Henderson so it it will be interesting. My money is on Evans.

TE: Tyler Higbee plays a decent snap share but they have two Cooper Kupps now.

Baltimore Ravens - 71 Snaps

WR: Zay Flowers played 63 snaps, no one else played more than 37. Nelson Agholor is still operating ahead of Rashod Bateman (34) and Odell Beckham. (29)

RB:  Gus Edwards got the bulk of the work on the ground while Justice Hill really just spelled him. Maybe Gus has the job finally?

TE: Mark Andrews is a stud and Isaiah Likely is one of the few real tight end “handcuffs”.

New Orleans Saints - 72 Snaps

WR: Chris Olave (72) and Michael Thomas (68) still led but Rashid Shaheed (62) got his biggest share yet. Maybe they will fully unleash him?

RB: Alvin Kamara played 66 snaps so it’s his job but we’ve yet to see him with a healthy Jamaal Williams.

TE: Juwan Johnson is out so Taysom Hill actually played tight end and got real targets. He ran 37 of 57 routes but that with the random rushing TD upside has us interested for the first time ever.

Seattle Seahawks - 73 Snaps

WR: The big story here is Jaxon Smith-Njigba who played his biggest snap share yet with 52 of 73. He still operated behind DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett but that is still something.

RB: Kenneth Walker has fought off rookie Zach Charbonnet valiantly and he played 56 of 73 snaps. Walker with the Cardinals matchup is our RB1 overall this week.

TE: Here where the Seahawks tight end snaps: Colby Parkinson - 32, Will Dissly - 32, Noah Fant - 31. Gross.

Pittsburgh Steelers

BYE

Houston Texans - 63 Snaps

WR: With Tank Dell out were were hoping to see some John Metchie but instead we got Noah Brown (35 snaps over 16 for Metchie). Nico Collins and Robert Woods were the only viable options til Dell gets back.

RB: Uh oh. Devin Singletary looked good and essentially outplayed and out snapped Dameon Pierce. Almost impossible to trust Pierce right now with coaches that come from the Kyle “Hot Hand” Shanahan tree.

TE: Dalton Schultz only ran 23 of 33 routes but he did get some looks. I’m not quite sure I trust that when Tank Dell gets back.

Tennessee Titans - 55 Snaps

WR: Put simply, until Treylon Burks gets back, the only WR we care about is DeAndre Hopkins. And we don’t even know if Burks will be worth holding. Their QB wasn’t good and now he is hurt.

RB: Same as we’ve seen - when the script is bad, Tyjae Spears gets the pass work. Henry still gets the run work at least.

TE: Can’t use Chig in the passing offense, even with Burks out. He ran 28 of 37 routes which isn’t ideal either.

Minnesota Vikings - 57 Snaps

WR: Jordan Addison and KJ Osborn are now your every-down players with Justin Jefferson out, Brandon Powell slides into the Addison role as the third fiddle.

RB: Alexander Mattison played 45 snaps which really put Cam Akers (9) on the backburner.

TE: T.J. Hockenson is the man as expected. 30 of 34 routes.