Drake Maye
28.44 pts
24 of 31, 321 yards, 2 passing TDs, 1 rushing TD.
Drake Maye carried Thursday night almost by himself, Roschon Johnson produced one of the worst starts of your season, and a calf injury at Thursday's Rams practice has put your best player in doubt for Sunday.
LordHaveMRSA
29.74
Gridiron Guru 23
7.80
Undecided. Five of your seven starters and six of theirs still to play.
Roschon Johnson
1.30 pts
Two carries, 13 yards, zero targets.
Puka Nacua
Calf - limited
Left Thursday's practice. Sunday in doubt.
Where the matchup stands
You are ahead 29.74 to 7.80 over Gridiron Guru 23, but that gap is an accident of scheduling rather than a lead. Only Drake Maye (New England Patriots), Roschon Johnson (Chicago Bears) and, off your bench, DeMario Douglas (New England Patriots) have played. Your opponent has had only A.J. Brown (New England Patriots) on the field.
The rest of your week arrives Sunday: Kyren Williams (Los Angeles Rams) and Puka Nacua (Los Angeles Rams) at the Las Vegas Raiders at 4:25 PM Eastern, Tre Tucker (Las Vegas Raiders) in that same game, Trey McBride (Arizona Cardinals) against the Denver Broncos at 4:05 PM Eastern, and Xavier Worthy (Kansas City Chiefs) at the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday night at 8:20 PM Eastern.
At 2-4 and ninth in a twelve-team league, this is a game you need. Gridiron Guru 23 is 3-3 and has a healthier remaining slate than you do, led by Ashton Jeanty (Las Vegas Raiders) and Brock Purdy (San Francisco 49ers).
Your starters who played
Drake Maye (New England Patriots) - 28.44 points
A superb night and the only reason you are ahead. He completed 24 of 31 passes for 321 yards with two touchdowns and one interception, then added four carries for 26 yards and a rushing touchdown of his own. That is roughly nine points clear of his 19.7-point season average, and his fourth game above 23 points in five weeks. The Patriots lost 30-24; your quarterback was not the problem.
Roschon Johnson (Chicago Bears) - 1.30 points
A disaster, and one that was predictable. Two carries for 13 yards, no targets, no touchdown. The usage tells the story: D'Andre Swift took 22 carries and the goal-line touchdown, and Johnson is buried behind him in the Chicago backfield. Johnson had scored exactly 0.0 points in all six weeks before this one. Starting him at running back was a bet on a player with no demonstrated role, and it cost you a starting slot that is now locked at 1.30 for the week.
Your bench
DeMario Douglas (New England Patriots) - 5.30 points
Three catches for 23 yards on four targets. After 19.6 points in Week 6 this was a thud, and with A.J. Brown back in the lineup Douglas took a clear step down the pecking order - Rhamondre Stevenson (five catches, 93 yards, a touchdown) and Hunter Henry (seven catches, 71 yards) were the night's real beneficiaries. No starter at wide receiver has played yet, so there is no bench-over-starter lesson to draw. Keep him; he is still the best fourth wide receiver you have while Buffalo is on bye.
The honest framing: no bench player outscored a starter at the same position, because every one of your wide receivers and your tight end plays Sunday. The damage Thursday was at running back, and your only alternative there was Cam Skattebo (New York Giants), who has been benched. This was a roster hole, not purely a lineup error.
Injuries and byes on your roster
Puka Nacua (Los Angeles Rams) - calf, limited
The headline of the day. Nacua left Thursday's practice early with a calf injury and was listed as limited; his availability against the Las Vegas Raiders depends on today's session, and reporting suggests he will struggle to play if he misses it. He is your highest scorer at 22.9 points per game, with 37.7 and 27.7-point weeks on his ledger. Davante Adams is already on injured reserve for six to ten weeks, so there is no cushion in that receiver room. Check the Friday injury report before you do anything else today.
DJ Moore (Buffalo Bills) - out, and on bye
Listed out with a sprain and the Buffalo Bills are on bye in Week 7 regardless. Keon Coleman (Buffalo Bills) is on that same bye. Both sit on your bench, so neither costs you a starting slot this week, but it does mean your wide receiver depth behind Nacua is thinner than the roster count suggests.
Cam Skattebo (New York Giants) - healthy, and benched
Not an injury, which is worse. Skattebo took zero carries in Week 6 against the New Orleans Saints and played just six snaps - the percentage of his team's offensive plays he was on the field for - while Tyrone Tracy Jr. logged 29 snaps and eight touches. Skattebo said he was punished for a Week 5 fumble; head coach Harbaugh called the zero carries 'not by design.' He has 91 touches on the season and none in the last game. The Giants have a Week 8 bye. He is your most droppable asset.
Your Sunday start and sit calls
| Slot | Player | Call |
|---|---|---|
| QB | Drake Maye (New England Patriots) | Done - 28.44. Locked. |
| RB | Kyren Williams (Los Angeles Rams) | Start. At Las Vegas, Rams favored by 3.5, total 48.5. His best game script of the month. |
| RB | Roschon Johnson (Chicago Bears) | Done - 1.30. Locked. Drop candidate after this week. |
| WR | Tre Tucker (Las Vegas Raiders) | Start, with eyes open. 26.7 in Week 6 and 7.5 in Week 5 after four straight blanks - a boom-or-bust profile, but there is no better option. |
| WR | Puka Nacua (Los Angeles Rams) | Pending the Friday report. If he is out or doubtful, start Cooper Kupp (Seattle Seahawks). |
| TE | Trey McBride (Arizona Cardinals) | Start. 17.2 per game and your steadiest producer. Denver is a tough defense; he is still unbenchable. |
| FLEX | Xavier Worthy (Kansas City Chiefs) | Start. At Seattle on Sunday night, a 42.5-point total. Modest 9.5 average but the only healthy flex you have. |
Game script above means whether his team is ahead or behind, which drives how much they run versus pass. The one real decision you have left is the Nacua slot. If he sits, Cooper Kupp (Seattle Seahawks) over Chris Godwin Jr. (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) is the call: Kupp averages 7.6 to Godwin's 7.7, which is a coin flip on the season, but Kupp is in a Sunday-night game against the Kansas City Chiefs with a higher ceiling, while Godwin has not cleared 9.1 points in any week and faces a Carolina Panthers team favored by three.
Waiver wire - who to claim and what to pay
| Player | Why | Bid |
|---|---|---|
| Rashid Shaheed (Seattle Seahawks) | Your actual need: wide receiver insurance that plays Sunday night. Finished as a top-32 wide receiver in Week 6 and hosts the Kansas City Chiefs. Free in your league. | 8-12% of FAAB |
| Michael Mayer (Las Vegas Raiders) | The best player on your wire in the abstract - seven catches for 95 yards on nine targets, a career high, even with Brock Bowers on the field. You have Trey McBride, so this is a speculative hold, not a need. | 0-5% of FAAB |
| Audric Estime (Cleveland Browns) | Running back with an actual role: nine carries and a touchdown while Quinshon Judkins is out. Not exciting, but a functioning body is more than Cam Skattebo is giving you. | 1-5% of FAAB |
| Tyler Higbee (Los Angeles Rams) | The direct beneficiary if Puka Nacua misses time, and borderline startable at tight end in that case. Only worth it if you want to block a rival - you are set at the position. | 0-3% of FAAB |
FAAB is your $100 season-long budget for bidding on waiver pickups. The straightforward move is Rashid Shaheed for Cam Skattebo: you convert a benched running back into a wide receiver who plays in a game you need points from.
On the honest side of the ledger: no free agent had a monster Thursday night. The two best performances on the field, Luther Burden III (Chicago Bears) with four catches for 130 yards and a touchdown, and Rhamondre Stevenson (New England Patriots) with 23.5 points on 93 receiving yards and a score, are both already owned in your league. The best unowned line was Eli Raridon (New England Patriots), who caught three passes for 56 yards and a touchdown - a nice night for a tight end you do not need.
Where you stand in the league
| Rank | Team | Record |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | UndisputedGiant | 5-1 |
| 2 | Rjay25 | 4-2 |
| 3 | Heisenberg | 4-2 |
| 4 | Heilstafford | 4-2 |
| 5 | Injury bug | 4-2 |
| 6 | Gridiron Guru 23 (this week's opponent) | 3-3 |
| 7 | The Daddies | 3-3 |
| 8 | vargy | 3-3 |
| 9 | LordHaveMRSA | 2-4 |
| 10 | markc1281 | 2-4 |
| 11 | honeybadgerr1 | 1-5 |
| 12 | WhoottieBoys | 1-5 |
You have scored 597.02 points and allowed 661.16 - the fourth-most points against in the league. You are not being outplayed by as much as 2-4 suggests, but six of twelve teams make the playoffs and you are the first team outside. Last week you lost 90.00 to 96.54 against vargy, a game decided by Cam Skattebo's zero.
The trade deadline is Week 13. If you are going to buy a running back, the window is open now and the price only rises.
Thursday night full box score - Chicago Bears 30, New England Patriots 24
New England Patriots. Drake Maye 24/31, 321 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT, and 4 carries for 26 yards with a rushing touchdown. Rhamondre Stevenson 6 carries for 22 yards plus 5 catches for 93 yards and a touchdown. Hunter Henry 7 catches, 71 yards on 7 targets. Eli Raridon 3 catches, 56 yards, a touchdown. A.J. Brown 3 catches, 48 yards on 6 targets. DeMario Douglas 3 catches, 23 yards on 4 targets. TreVeyon Henderson 3 carries, 9 yards.
Chicago Bears. Caleb Williams 22/33, 308 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT. D'Andre Swift 22 carries, 78 yards, a touchdown, plus 4 catches for 12 yards. Luther Burden III 4 catches, 130 yards, a touchdown on 4 targets. Colston Loveland 7 catches, 69 yards, a touchdown on 12 targets. Rome Odunze 4 catches, 69 yards. Cole Kmet 3 catches, 28 yards. Roschon Johnson 2 carries, 13 yards.