Upgrades For Week 7 Wide Receiver Rankings: DeVonta Smith Will Ride High

Let's get into the Week 7 WR edition of Freedman's Favorites, where I highlight guys I'm upgrading because of …

Favorable betting factors and situational spots
Advantageous defensive matchups (perhaps aided by injury)
Increased usage expectations (again, maybe aided by injury)

For process notes regarding this series, see the end of this piece. Also, check out the rest of my Week 7 favorites and fades.

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Week 7 Wide Receiver Rankings

Rank	Player
1	Puka Nacua
2	Jaxon Smith-Njigba
3	Ja'Marr Chase
4	Amon-Ra St. Brown
5	CeeDee Lamb
6	Christian Watson
7	Chris Olave
8	Drake London
9	Malik Nabers
10	Justin Jefferson
11	Matthew Golden
12	Nico Collins
13	Zay Flowers
14	George Pickens
15	Garrett Wilson
16	DeVonta Smith
17	Tetairoa McMillan
18	Jalen Coker
19	Tee Higgins
20	DK Metcalf
21	Luther Burden
22	Michael Wilson
23	A.J. Brown
24	Carnell Tate
25	Germie Bernard
26	Jameson Williams
27	Emeka Egbuka
27	Jaylen Waddle
29	Denzel Boston
30	Tre Tucker
31	Keenan Allen
32	Omar Cooper
33	Xavier Worthy
34	Devaughn Vele
35	Josh Downs
36	Rome Odunze

Week 7 Matchup Upgrades: DeVonta Smith vs. Cowboys & Matthew Golden at Lions

There are a few "flow chart" defenses so bad that they provide automatic upgrades to whatever WRs they face. If a guy is playing one of them, I aggressively move him up my ranks. If not, I carry on.

Based on the numbers I see in our Fantasy Life DvP (Defense vs. Position) Matrix as well as RBs Don't Matter and FTN, the Cowboys and Lions are two of the biggest flow chart defenses for WRs.

Cowboys: No. 32 in defensive dropback EPA (0.327)
Lions: No. 2 in largest fantasy boost allowed to WRs (+6.4)

Bang a gong.

DeVonta Smith (Eagles) vs. Cowboys: Matthew Berry's 2026 Fantasy Ride or Die, Smith has not had the smoothest campaign. He missed Weeks 4-5 with a hamstring injury, and in Week 6 he played without QB Jalen Hurts (calf, IR), who's now lost for the year. Add on top of that the fact that RT Lane Johnson (retired) and C Cam Jurgens (traded) are gone and LG Landon Dickerson (knee, IR) is uncertain, and this Eagles offense looks highly questionable. Also, is it a bad thing that HC Nick Sirianni has been hilariously incompetent as a home dog (1-7 ATS, -76.1% ROI, per Action Network)? That seems bad. But "ride or die" literally means, "Till death do I ride," and at least the matchup is good against the Cowboys, who are on their fifth away game in seven weeks, whereas the Eagles are on their third home game in four weeks. In the back seven, the Cowboys are without SS Jalen Thompson (hamstring, IR) and No. 3 S P.J. Locke (foot, IR) and could also be without LBs Dee Winters (Achilles) and DeMarvion Overshown (hamstring). Last week with backup QB Tanner McKee, Smith had good production (17.0 fantasy points, 7-75-1 receiving, 14 targets) and elite usage (51% air yard share, 100% end zone target share, 90 Utilization Score, per our Fantasy Life Utilization Report). Ride. Or. Die.

Matthew Golden (Packers) at Lions: I've highlighted Golden as a fantasy favorite in each of the past two weeks, and in that timeframe he has balled out (18.4 fantasy points per game, 12-227-1 receiving, 20 targets, 45% air yard share, 43% end zone target share, 95 Utilization Score). Not bad, right? For the season, he hasn't been as productive as teammate Christian Watson (17.4 fantasy points per game, 29-538-6 receiving, 48 targets vs. 14.3 fantasy points per game, 30-501-3 receiving, 57 targets with 1-6-0 rushing), but his usage has actually been superior (86% route rate, 41% air yard share, 86 Utilization Score vs. 85% route rate, 34% air yard share, 82 Utilization Score), and across the league he's the No. 1 WR in air yards (835). He's probably not valued or ranked this way … but Golden might actually be his team's No. 1 WR … and he has a great matchup. The Lions are off the bye, they've had the No. 2 home-field advantage over the past five years (+7.69, per NFElo), and QB Jordan Love tends to underwhelm on the road (12-18-1 ATS, -23.0% ROI), but divisional road dogs are often sharp (749-641-37 ATS, 4.6% ROI), and HC Matt LaFleur has outperformed as a dog of at least a field goal (18-6-2 ATS, 39.8% ROI). Additionally, the Lions are dealing with injuries to SS Brian Branch (Achilles, PUP), FS Kerby Joseph (knee, PUP), No. 3 S Avonte Maddox (foot, IR) and No. 4 S Thomas Harper (ankle, IR).

Week 7 Scoring Upgrades: Zay Flowers vs. Bengals & Jordan Watkins at Falcons

Sometimes upgrades are as simple as: "This team is going to score a lot of points, so I need to bump up the WRs."

This week, the Ravens are No. 2 in implied team total (26.75); the 49ers, No. 4 (26.5).

Upgrades warranted.

Zay Flowers (Ravens) vs. Bengals: Right now the Ravens (in my opinion) are priced as if QB Lamar Jackson (ankle) will play. Maybe he will. But even if he doesn't, I'll probably still be bullish on Flowers, who hasn't produced over the past two weeks with backup QB Tyler Huntley (10.2 fantasy points per game, 14-119-0 receiving, 20 targets with 2-14-0 rushing), but has had good usage (91% route rate, 33% target share, 36% air yard share). And with No. 2 WR Rashod Bateman (shoulder) uncertain, Flowers could have even more opportunities this week.

Jordan Watkins (49ers) at Falcons: Who? The 49ers WR who had a 91% route rate on Monday Night Football. No. 1 WR Mike Evans (Achilles) exited last week with an injury, and No. 2 WR Deebo Samuel (hamstring) is out, as are WRs Ricky Pearsall (knee, IR), Christian Kirk (calf, IR), De'Zhaun Stribling (ankle, IR) and Demarcus Robinson (ankle, IR), and No. 2 TE Jake Tonges (knee, IR). The second-year depth option has done almost nothing in the NFL (5-108-0 receiving, 6 targets), but at least he has been explosive with his few opportunities (18.0 yards per target). The setup isn't great. The 49ers are on a one-day deficit. They're traveling across the country for an early 1 pm ET kickoff. And the Falcons are on their third straight game at home, where they have a boosted edge because they're outside division, on turf (vs. grass) and indoors (vs. outdoors). Still, the Falcons could be without four defensive starters in LBs Divine Deablo (arm) and Kendal Daniels (neck) and CBs C.J. Henderson (groin) and Billy Bowman (hamstring), and someone's gonna need to catch the ball from QB Brock Purdy. Why shouldn't Watkins get a handful of targets? You remember WR Richie James in Week 9 of the 2020 season (9-184-1 receiving, 13 targets)? Just sayin' …

Week 7 Indoors Upgrades: Drake London vs. 49ers & Jaylen Waddle at Cardinals

In general, I want to be heavy on WRs playing indoors, where they don't need to worry about wind, temperature or precipitation. Here are two such WRs who stand out.

Drake London (Falcons) vs. 49ers: This is my fourth consecutive week to highlight London as a fantasy favorite, which is basically another way of saying I like London when he has QB Michael Penix throwing to him. In his four games with Penix this year, London has gotten the production (15.4 fantasy points per game, 25-470-0 receiving, 37 targets) and the usage (99% route rate, 34% target share, 49% air yard share, 85 Utilization Score). As noted in the Jordan Watkins blurb, the setup is good for the Falcons, who are on their third straight game at home, where they have a boosted edge because they're outside division, on turf (vs. grass) and indoors (vs. outdoors). Additionally, the 49ers are on a one-day deficit, traveling across the country for an early 1 pm ET kickoff, and dealing with injuries to EDGE Nick Bosa (calf) and SS Marques Sigle (ankle).

Jaylen Waddle (Broncos) at Cardinals: Waddle has been unfathomably disappointing this season. His production (7.4 fantasy points per game, 22-228-1 receiving, 38 targets with 2-23-0 rushing), efficiency (6.0 yards per target) and usage (23% target share, 34% air yard share, 0% end zone target share, 56 Utilization Score) have rendered him almost worse than useless. A boom/bust merchant, he has two games with at least 12.0 fantasy points and four games with fewer than 6.0. In Guillotine Leagues^TM he has likely gotten his original investors chopped. But this week he could boom against the Cardinals, who are No. 28 in defensive pass DVOA vs. No. 1 WRs (24.2%) and without No. 1 CB Will Johnson (neck, IR) and potentially FS Andrew Wingard (knee). Coming off Thursday Night Football, the Broncos have a three-day edge, which I believe HC Sean Payton will utilize as he continues to reestablish himself as the playcaller after OC Davis Webb's rough audition.

Week 7 Air Yards Upgrades: Carnell Tate vs. Browns & Denzel Boston at Titans

The WRs who are targeted downfield (the guys with high aDOTs, air yard shares and WOPRs) have an elevated chance each week of enjoying a spike performance.

You can see aDOT, air yards and WOPR in our Fantasy Life Air Yards Tool. "WOPR" stands for "weighted opportunity rating," and it measures the overall quality of a player's aerial role in his offense by considering his share of targets and air yards.

Here are two air yard accumulators who have my attention this week.

Carnell Tate (Titans) vs. Browns: Tate was one of my 2026 fantasy fades entering the season, but I must admit that he has outplayed my expectations. There hasn't been anything all that special with his production (8.8 fantasy points per game, 29-344-1 receiving, 44 targets), but I also don't hold that against him, given that he's on the Titans. His usage, though, has been strong (88% route rate, 48% air yard share), and for the season he's the No. 3 WR in WOPR (77%). The Browns are No. 29 in defensive pass DVOA vs. No. 1 WRs (25.2%), and the Titans have a boosted home-field advantage because they're outside division and on turf (vs. grass).

Denzel Boston (Browns) at Titans: I plan to lock Boston into this section each week until his play drops off, and even though he had a terrible showing last game (2.0 fantasy points, 1-15-0 receiving, 5 targets), I'm still pleased by his underlying data (97% route rate, 41% air yard share, 100% end-zone target share). And for the season, his production (10.5 fantasy points per game, 17-345-3 receiving, 34 targets), efficiency (10.1 yards per target), and usage (96% route rate, 47% air yard share, 60% end zone target share) all point to someone with strong long-term potential. As noted in the Carnell Tate blurb, the Titans have a boosted home-field advantage because they're outside division and on turf (vs. grass), but they're also No. 29 in defensive pass DVOA (30.6%). The No. 3 WR in air yard share, Boston has the upside to get deep on the Titans for a long score.

Week 7 Cluster Injury Upgrades: Michael Wilson vs. Broncos & Germie Bernard vs. Saints

Here are a couple WRs who get upgrades because of offensive and/or defensive cluster injuries.

Michael Wilson (Cardinals) vs. Broncos: Neither the production (9.1 fantasy points per game, 33-320-1 receiving, 58 targets) nor the efficiency (5.5 yards per target) has been up to par for Wilson this season, but his usage remains intact (92% route rate, 38% air yard share, 30% end zone target share). Ordinarily, a matchup with the Broncos would bring with it some trepidation: They're No. 2 in smallest fantasy boost allowed to WRs (-5.0). And they have three extra days off Thursday Night Football. But this week both No. 1 CB Patrick Surtain (ankle) and SS Talanoa Hufanga (ankle) are doubtful, so the Broncos might be vulnerable.

Germie Bernard (Steelers) vs. Saints (in Paris): Even as a rookie, Bernard has flashed WR1 upside this season. Over the past two weeks, with injuries to WRs Michael Pittman (foot, IR) and Roman Wilson (finger, IR), Bernard has dominated (15.8 fantasy points per game, 17-167-1 receiving, 21 targets, 96% route rate, 86 Utilization Score with 1-4-0 rushing). At Stade de France, the Steelers have more of an edge because they play on a similar grass surface in a similar outdoor stadium. The Saints are No. 28 in defensive dropback SR (50.8%), and they're injured at all levels of the defense: DT Bryan Bresee (knee, IR) is out, and DT Nathan Shepherd (illness), LB Kaden Elliss (calf), and CBs Kool-Aid McKinstry (migraine) and Quincy Riley (neck) might sit.

Notes

Week 7 Favorites & Fades: Here's the full series.

Introduction
QB Favorites
QB Fades
RB Favorites
RB Fades
WR Favorites
WR Fades
TE Favorites
TE Fades

NEED URLs

Byes: This week, the Bills, Jaguars, Commanders, and Chargers are off.

Market Odds: As of Tuesday morning.

Injuries: Since I write Freedman's Favorites on Monday and Tuesday, I have incomplete injury information. After I submit this article, any updated thoughts I have regarding injuries will manifest in my rankings. For our quick fantasy thoughts every day, subscribe to the Fantasy Life newsletter.

Schedule: This season, I have the following rankings schedule.