Fantasy Football 2017: Super Bowl rematch tops Week 7

Few players and teams are consistently dominating week to week, but bad defense is the cure. Because of that, our Super Bowl rematch tops NFL Week 7 as your Fantasy Football 2017 Game of the Week.

Each week during the NFL season, certain games stand out. These are not necessarily the games with the most on the line or with the most impact on the standings. Instead, they hold the most star power and fantasy football implications.

These are the games every fan needs to watch, from the die hard to the guy pressured into joining a fantasy league with work associates. This is the fantasy football game of the week for NFL Week 7.

Two brothers from New York, Dan Salem and Todd Salem, debate Fantasy Football 2017 in today’s NFL Sports Debate.

Fantasy Football 2017 Week 7

After another week of upheaval, the NFL may have lucked out in Week 7. It appears that the two best games are the two prime time games, Sunday and Monday night. Sunday night is a rematch of the Super Bowl, with the New England Patriots hosting the Atlanta Falcons. And Monday night is a big NFC East showdown between the Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Redskins.

Game of the Week

Todd Salem: From a fantasy football standpoint, I am worried about the Falcons, but there appears to be no better salve for an offense than facing the Patriots defense. Through six weeks, New England ranks dead last in total defense. It has allowed the most passing yards by far and is giving up 26.5 points per game.

I find it weird how Atlanta has struggled the past couple of weeks, but that should change against the Pats. The Falcons still have a slew of stars in Julio Jones, Devonta Freeman, and Matt Ryan. I wish they had a few other more useful fantasy pieces, but that trio is hard to match. Not even New England can stand with it.

The Patriots rely on Tom Brady and a cavalcade of character actors. Five different receivers have at least 30 targets and more than 20 catches this season. Three different running backs have filled a committee in the backfield as well, and that doesn’t even include the injured Rex Burkhead. The terrible defense of this team has overshadowed how lethal Brady still is with this bunch. He is probably the favorite to win league MVP right now.

The most interesting MVP candidate, though, may be Carson Wentz; he of 13 touchdowns and just three interceptions. Brady has him beat but not by much. Ironically, the rest of the Eagles offense mirrors New England’s. There is a committee at running back and a slew of receivers at Wentz’s disposal. Again, they are just a little worse than what New England trots out.

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That, to me, is the story of the Monday night matchup. It intrigues me but is just a tad worse than the Sunday night game. Washington has its own pieces and a surprisingly adept defense, but it doesn’t carry the star power of Atlanta. If the Falcons lay one more egg, it may be time to get off them, but for now, I’ll take the Patriots-Falcons game as my Fantasy Football 2017 game of the week. And oh yeah, that Super Bowl rematch element may add something to this game…if you’re into that sort of thing.

Dan Salem: Atlanta versus New England sounds amazing, because we remember how much fun these teams were last season. Neither has impressed yet in 2017, but that’s because of a lack of defense. For fantasy football, this is perfect! The Patriots have given up over 300 yards passing in every game thus far. Atlanta had a 17-0 lead over the lowly Dolphins, then proceeded to give up 20 unanswered points in a loss. I expect lots of points, real and fantasy in this game. But because neither team can be counted on, I lean elsewhere for my game of the week.

If we were still in early September, then Kansas City versus Oakland would be a lock for our Fantasy Football 2017 game of the week. But alas, the Raiders have fallen on hard times and lost four straight. More to the point, they are not producing fantasy points like before. I like our Monday night matchup, but instead I’m throwing honorable mention to the Arizona Cardinals versus Los Angeles Rams. What the Rams are doing is well known, but the Cardinals put up a ton of points last week. Neither team has shut anyone down on defense, meaning a lot of offense and a lot of fantasy points rolling our way.

Ultimately my game of the week belongs to a known commodity versus a surprise rebound. The Cincinnati Bengals versus Pittsburgh Steelers game has the most upside of any matchup in NFL Week 7. Pittsburgh has a ton of known commodities on offense, from Le’Veon Bell to Antonio Brown. I also expect Ben Roethlisberger to find his stride once again against a fairly weak Bengals defense. The Steelers will have no trouble moving the football.

NFL 2017: 20 Bold Predictions for Week 7

What has surprised me is Cincinnati’s offensive revival. They looked unbelievably inept to begin the season. So much so that I found it hard to believe they would ever play like prior years. Yet Andy Dalton and AJ Green made nice and are producing. A game against the Browns was all the medicine this team needed, because they followed it up with a nice performance against a stout Buffalo defense. Three straight games scoring 20 or more points has me believing. I’m going against the grain. Bengals versus Steelers in NFL week 7.

Todd Salem: Cincy! I like it. Firing his offensive coordinator saved Marvin Lewis‘ job. There’s no doubt about it.