Week 7 of the 2024 NFL season is here, and while we’ve covered our best buy-low and sell-high trade targets, who are the top sleepers and stashes you should pursue on the waiver wire?
Some of these players will be immediate contributors, while others are intriguing stashes. Let’s break down why each player deserves some consideration if they’re available in your fantasy football league. All players are rostered in less than 50% of Yahoo leagues.
Top Waiver Wire Sleepers
Ray Davis, RB, Buffalo Bills (14%)
James Cook was a surprise inactive as the Buffalo Bills faced the New York Jets on Monday Night Football, and while Ty Johnson got the start, it was Ray Davis who emerged as the team’s RB1 in Cook’s place.
Davis looked excellent, rushing 20 times for 97 yards while adding three receptions for 55 yards. In fact, the rookie fourth-rounder played so well that one can imagine him taking on an increased role as the season progresses.
Show out on #MNF, @Ray_Davis07!
📺 @ESPNNFL pic.twitter.com/ShGbOy39on
— Kentucky Football (@UKFootball) October 15, 2024
The Bills drafted the 24-year-old in part due to his NFL readiness, so it’s no surprise that he made the most of his opportunities against the Jets. This was Davis’ coming-out party, and since it happened in a prime-time game, he’s going to garner a ton of waiver-wire interest.
Cook will likely be back in the Bills’ starting lineup next week, but Davis will now be viewed as a top handcuff who you can start with confidence if Cook remains sidelined with his toe injury.
Tyrone Tracy Jr., RB, New York Giants (45%)
For the second week in a row, Tyrone Tracy Jr. looked outstanding while filling in for Devin Singletary, who has missed the last two games with a groin injury.
Tracy racked up 107 total yards and a touchdown against the Cincinnati Bengals, becoming the first Giants running back to post a top-10 fantasy finish this season. The rookie was a top-20 producer in both of his starts in Singletary’s absence, totaling 237 yards and playing well enough that the Giants likely won’t be able to keep him off the field going forward.
It’s hard to believe that Tracy is still relatively new to the RB position (since he’s a converted wide receiver) and that he slipped to the fifth round of the 2024 NFL Draft.
Tracy should be rostered everywhere since he has shown what he can do with a starting role, but his upside is capped significantly once Singletary returns since the duo will be splitting carries.
Sean Tucker, RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2%)
Is it a coincidence that the Buccaneers’ rushing attack exploded the moment that Rachaad White was sidelined with a foot injury? I don’t think so.
In a 51-27 win over the Saints, Tampa Bay rushed for 277 yards on 35 carries — their third-best rushing performance in franchise history — thanks to huge games from Sean Tucker (14 carries for 136 yards and a touchdown) and Bucky Irving (14 carries for 81 yards and a touchdown). Tucker also added 56 receiving yards and a score through the air.
The first TD for @seantucker2020 🙌
📺: #TBvsNO on FOX pic.twitter.com/yK7Dl8ADPI
— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) October 13, 2024
On Monday, Bucs head coach Todd Bowles raved about Tucker’s play, saying that he’s shown enough to make this backfield “a three-headed monster” going forward. A three-way split would be frustrating for fantasy managers, but if White remains out, Tucker has proven he’s good enough to be a viable Flex play, if not an RB2, given all the injuries and byes.
The Bucs have a tough Week 7 matchup against the Baltimore Ravens, who are allowing by far the fewest rushing yards per game (59) this season, but Tucker needs to at least be on your radar.
Demario Douglas, WR, New England Patriots (8%)
I thought this might be the Ja’Lynn Polk breakout game. Well… nope. Drake Maye keyed in on Demario Douglas, targeting him nine times. Douglas caught six balls for 92 yards and a touchdown.
Douglas has now seen nine targets in three of his last four games. He has six receptions and double-digit fantasy points in two straight and three of his past four as well. Also, Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo was highly critical of Polk after the game, so you don’t have to worry about him supplanting Douglas anytime soon.
“He needs to get over this mental hump. You’ve got to eliminate the dropped passes. You’ve got to be better at blocking, which in college he did a great job at that. You have to continue to grow. He has to work harder, has to pay more attention to the details,” Mayo said of Polk. “We fully expect him to grow into a receiver that’s dependable on run and pass downs.”
Douglas’ role is secure and he should be rostered in way more leagues.
Kimani Vidal, RB, Los Angeles Chargers (11%)
Making his in-game NFL debut, Kimani Vidal operated as the Chargers’ RB2 behind J.K. Dobbins. This wasn’t really a timeshare, though. Vidal carried the ball four times for 11 yards and caught two passes for 40 yards and a nice over-the-shoulder touchdown grab.
Whenever a player scores a touchdown, he typically draws the attention of fantasy managers. Vidal is not startable for now.
Instead, his value comes from being the now-clear handcuff to the oft-injured Dobbins since Gus Edwards has struggled and is now on injured reserve. Vidal is a nice stash if you have a roster spot to burn.
Michael Wilson, WR, Arizona Cardinals (16%)
It wasn’t the best performance by the Arizona Cardinals’ offense, as they scored just 13 points and were never really competitive against the Green Bay Packers.
Michael Wilson salvaged his day with the Cardinals’ lone touchdown, but that’s not the real story. Marvin Harrison Jr. left the game in the first half with a concussion. The odds are heavily in favor of him missing at least one week. That would put Wilson in the WR1 role.
Wilson has hit double-digit fantasy points in three of his last four games. He’s at least a passable WR4 during bye weeks.
Tyler Allgeier, RB, Atlanta Falcons (30%)
This is a surprisingly low roster percentage for Tyler Allgeier. Even though this was the first week he was really startable, Allgeier has always been one of the best handcuffs in fantasy.
Allgeier ran for 105 yards and a touchdown against the Carolina Panthers’ league-worst run defense. Both he and Bijan Robinson did whatever they wanted on the ground.
Tyler Allgeier will not be stopped 😡
📺: #ATLvsCAR on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/SRdaYjqY4e— NFL (@NFL) October 13, 2024
The only reason Allgeier out-carried Robinson is because Allgeier was the one milking the clock away with the Falcons up three scores in the fourth quarter.
Don’t get any ideas about starting Allgeier weekly. However, he needs to be rostered because he’s a weekly RB2, at worst, if Robinson ever has to miss time.
Isaac Guerendo, RB, San Francisco 49ers (4%)
On Thursday night, Jordan Mason fell hard on his shoulder and left the game. After a brief attempt to return, Mason was unable to go. Replacing him was rookie fourth-rounder Isaac Guerendo. He ran the ball 10 times for 99 yards and would have scored a late-fourth-quarter touchdown if he didn’t slide to kill the clock.
Mason is dealing with a sprained AC joint. With an extra three days to recover, he should be able to play in Week 7. At most, he will miss one game, barring a setback. The 49ers have a Week 9 bye and then Christian McCaffrey is tentatively expected back in Week 10. That means Guerendo is a one-or-two-week streamer, at best. Still, if you have room on your roster, he could be worth a stash in case McCaffrey is sidelined longer than expected. Just don’t go overboard in your pursuit of the rookie.
Dameon Pierce, RB, Houston Texans (6%)
Cam Akers has been the Houston Texans’ starting running back for the last three weeks, but it’s only because Joe Mixon and Dameon Pierce were both injured.
Now, both running backs are healthy again, so Pierce is back in the RB2 role; furthermore, Akers is on his way back to Minnesota in a pick-swap trade.
Last week, Mixon (132 total yards and two touchdowns) and Pierce (77 total yards and one touchdown) showed why they were ahead of Akers on the depth chart entering the season. Given Mixon’s age and injury history, his backup has value. Pierce is a nice handcuff to own, especially since the Texans’ offense is solid.
Cam Akers, RB, Minnesota Vikings (17%)
Over the last three weeks, Cam Akers was serviceable while filling in for Mixon and Pierce, turning 40 carries into 147 yards and one touchdown and adding four catches for 16 receiving yards and a score.
He clearly showed enough that the Vikings decided to acquire him in a pick-swap with the Texans. Now, Akers will compete with Ty Chandler for the RB2 role behind Aaron Jones, who is currently battling a hip injury.
The #Vikings’ trade for Cam Akers isn’t a reflection of any long-term concerns with RB Aaron Jones, who could play Sunday. Just another quality RB who knows the system going back to his days with Kevin O’Connell in L.A. https://t.co/SfZ7XucHUL
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) October 15, 2024
It’s worth noting that Akers has never finished with a positive production-over-expectation rate, something that is fueled by 20.9% of his career carries failing to gain yardage.
However, he knows Minnesota’s offense and Chandler has also been a bit underwhelming with 42 carries for 147 yards (3.5 yards per attempt), so he’s worth a speculative add in deep leagues.
D’Ernest Johnson, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars (0%)
This one is highly speculative but still worth mentioning. Travis Etienne Jr. is not a particularly good player and is now dealing with a hamstring strain. The latter is the more important fact, as the former would not keep him off the field. For D’Ernest Johnson to be fantasy-relevant, Etienne needs to not be playing at all.
If Etienne has to miss time, Tank Bigsby would be the RB1. However, Bigsby does not play on passing downs. Plus, Bigsby was clearly benched for fumbling a kickoff late in the Jaguars’ loss to the Chicago Bears.
I have no idea if Doug Pederson will still be the Jaguars head coach next week. But if he is, he clearly has no problem pulling his best players off the field to prove a point. Perhaps Bigsby is in the doghouse, which would result in increased usage for Johnson.
