It’s hard to think we’ve already reached the midway point of the fantasy football season. Some days it feels like we’re just getting started and sometimes it feels like it’s already been a marathon. Despite entering Week 8, we continue to learn new things every football Sunday. Unexpected fantasy stars are still sprouting up. Unfortunately, devastating injuries are still occurring. And the rosters we thought would carry us to a championship are now faltering, while the fantasy manager who started 0-4 has won three weeks in a row. That’s why The Ballers always stress that the draft isn’t the end-all-be-all and not to give up even if you fall to 0-5 to start your season. Things are constantly changing and there’s always a chance to make a run. Take a dive into some of the things we learned over Week 7 to help us move forward.

Not So Slim Pickens

Volume has been the knock on George Pickens so far in his career. We’ve seen his athleticism, his ability to make contested catches, and the way he can haul in the deep ball. But we hadn’t seen him be a target hog until now with Russell Wilson starting at quarterback. Dare I say, Wilson looked good, and he finished as the QB1 on the week (not counting the Monday night games). And he looked to Pickens often, as if he knew the wideout was the most talented pass-catcher on the team. Pickens had a team-high nine targets, more than double the next player. Wilson looked for him in the red zone and connected with him on an 11-yard touchdown pass to end the first half. It’s just one game, but with matchups against the Giants, Commanders, and Bengals over the next five weeks, this could be the start of a beautiful fantasy football relationship.

Etienne’s Job at Risk

A couple of weeks ago I spelled out my concern for Travis Etienne and his conceding snaps to Tank Bigsby. I was worried then and that was before D’Ernest Johnson got involved, who has looked good as the third-down back over the past two weeks. Etienne missed the Week 7 game in London and Bigsby took advantage of the starting opportunity, rushing for 118 yards and two touchdowns on 26 attempts. He’s already had an RB1 weekly finish so far this season. He is the RB21 on the season in standard scoring and only played 83 total snaps heading into Week 7! Despite Jacksonville Head Coach Doug Pederson saying Etienne is still the team’s starting running back, I’d be wary. Bigsby has been too good to ignore.

Lamar Jackson Is the Fantasy MVP (So Far)

During the offseason, our writing staff put together a series on draft prep and one of the questions was which quarterbacks we were targeting factoring in ADP. Most of the team highlighted the strategy of selecting quarterbacks in the later rounds, and while I generally agree with this method, I made an exception for Lamar Jackson this year. Another year in Todd Monken’s system, the addition of Derrick Henry, and a healthy Mark Andrews, who is finally rounding into form over the last couple of weeks, made Jackson a no-brainer in the late fourth or early fifth round of fantasy drafts. He’s proven to be the QB1 by a mile, 40 fantasy points ahead of Josh Allen who was drafted almost two rounds earlier than him.

Bo Nix Is in Streaming Consideration

Viewed more as a dynasty quarterback than a redraft starter, Bo Nix has entered the conversation as a streaming option in single-QB leagues because of his rushing prowess. The rookie is the QB7 over the last three weeks, averaging 19.6 fantasy points. He has accumulated 136 rushing yards in the last two weeks, and despite not throwing or rushing for a touchdown last week, logged 14.1 fantasy points. It doesn’t get better than a running quarterback in fantasy football, and Nix will always have a decent floor because of his ability to run the ball. In good matchups like next week against the Panthers, feel confident in streaming Nix if you need a quarterback.

TE Movers and Shakers

In the weekly tight end spotlight, it’s important to note two players who have been on the rise over the past couple of weeks – Hunter Henry and Noah Fant. Henry is coming off a TE4 performance (13.2 fantasy points) on Sunday and managed 11.6 fantasy points the week prior (TE8). If you watched the early morning London game, you saw Drake Maye looking for Henry frequently. Amid an inexperienced and injured WR room, Henry is the only constant right now for the rookie QB. Fant’s target share has gradually been on the uptick over the past couple of weeks, and he’s been in the top 12 at the position two weeks in a row.  For added comfort, Henry and Fant have done this in the past. Granted, it’s been a few years since Henry’s vintage days on the Chargers and Fant’s youthful promise on the Broncos, but they have been playable for fantasy in the past. Both players should be rostered in this unforgiving TE economy.

Footclan, this one is tough. As an Anthony Richardson manager, I’m struggling to hit the drop button, even though it’s probably the correct thing to do. He carries an injury risk, having missed two games already this season, and when he’s on the field he just hasn’t been good. If you take away his Week 1 performance, Richardson is the QB33 this season! That’s not hyperbole. Malik Willis, who started two games for the Packers this year, has more fantasy points than Richardson. Now if the Colts’ schedule lightened up over the next few weeks, I’d advise holding him, but with games against the Texans, Vikings, Bills, Jets, Patriots, and Broncos over the next seven weeks, it feels like he’ll just clog a roster spot. This is one of the few instances I hope I’m wrong because I want to be in on Richardson, but I just don’t see it.

Deshaun Watson‘s season-ending injury he suffered on Sunday was met with mixed reactions, but one thing is certain, Jameis Winston is a fantasy football favorite. The Browns have yet to announce whether Winston or Dorian Thompson-Robinson will start next week and moving forward, but fantasy managers are pining for Winston, who is known to sling the ball. If Winston starts, Jerry Jeudy and even Cedric Tillman become viable fantasy options. David Njoku, who is start-worthy regardless of the QB situation, would vault to an elite option at tight end. Sitting at 1-6 in the standings however, the Browns could go the DTR route to see what they have in the second-year quarterback, much to the dismay of fantasy managers.

Kareem Hunt Could Be a League Winner

Ever since Isiah Pacheco went down with an injury, the backfield in Kansas City was a huge question mark for fantasy managers. It started with Carson Steele being the lead back and there was a chance Samaje Perine would factor in more. Even after the Chiefs signed Kareem Hunt, there were rumblings of Clyde Edwards-Helaire coming off IR and taking a chunk of the workload. Edwards-Helaire didn’t play this past weekend and Steele and Perine combined for 29 snaps. The job seems to belong to Hunt, who is the RB18 since his first game action in Week 4, including a bye week. Pacheco should return in time before the fantasy season wraps up, but that’s no guarantee, and when he does return, Hunt will likely still factor in since he’s been playing well. Fantasy managers who scooped Hunt off the waivers just like KC scooped him off the street may have struck gold.

Amari Cooper made his debut with the Buffalo Bills less than a week after being traded and only ran 12 routes on Sunday, which was to be expected. Despite only running 12 routes, he was targeted five times and caught four of those targets for 66 yards and a touchdown. The Bills have been lacking a WR1 since trading away Stefon Diggs and Cooper is the right guy to take over the mantle. He’s quickly going to become Josh Allen‘s go-to target, making it easier for fantasy managers to make start/sit decisions with Bills options moving forward.

Buccaneers Lose Godwin and Evans

Watching Chris Godwin get hurt in the final seconds of the game on Monday night was devastating. He’s been a revelation this season, putting up numbers that capped him off as the WR2 through seven weeks. But also the fact that he also had to come back from a torn ACL just makes it more difficult to fathom. He’ll be out for the rest of the season, and Mike Evans also aggravated his hamstring injury that will likely see him put on IR. Unfortunately in the NFL and in this game we love to play, it’s on to the next man up. For fantasy managers, that means the next man up could be Jalen McMillan, Sterling Shepard, or Trey Palmer. McMillan has the most snaps out of the three so far, even after missing two weeks, so he seems like the most likely candidate to see an uptick in targets. The real beneficiary for fantasy however is likely tight end Cade Otton. After a slow start to the season, Otton is the TE5 over the last four weeks and is a favorite target for Baker Mayfield. He should be the top priority pickup if he’s available on waivers.