Every week has an identity. The identity of Week 7 was "weird." Things weren't normal.
Week 7 was a week that saw Colt McCoy and Blaine Gabbert play quarterback. Gavin Escobar caught two touchdown passes. And teams had leading rushers with 20, 26, 17 rushing yards.
In short, it was a weird week, and one very conducive to some all-time "worst of the week" performances. Read on, and relive some true Week 7 awfulness:
Worst quarterbacks in Week 7
Kirk Cousins, WAS (139 passing yards, 1 interception, 1 fumble, 1 fantasy point)
I've gotten so much wrong this season that I am planting every flag I have in Cousins. He was never very good, and I always thought it was obvious he wasn't going to be successful. I got that one. Cousins, in six games (five starts), has turned the ball over 11 times, and as loathe as I am to read into body language, he looked like he was just done Sunday, and that was all before he got benched for Colt McCoy, who then led the team to victory.
Next game: Washington travels to Dallas next Monday night. It's looking like Robert Griffin III very well might be healthy for the game, and even if he isn't, Washington might stick with McCoy. Cousins is off every radar.
Andy Dalton, CIN (126 passing yards, 5 fantasy points)
Yep, that's it for Dalton. No scores, no turnovers, not even any rushing yards. Dalton had a 7.9 QBR Sunday. He threw the ball 38 times for those 126 yards, an unthinkable 3.3 yards-per-attempt average. The Colts totally shut him down -- which, given he was again without A.J. Green, Tyler Eifert and Marvin Jones, comes with a built-in excuse -- and did the same to Cincinnati 'srunning game. The Bengals had 135 total yards of offense Sunday, compared to 506 for Indianapolis.
Next game: Early rumors are that Green could return for the team's Week 8 game against Baltimore. If that proves true, maybe you can justify using Dalton in a super-deep league. If not, there's no way.
Jay Cutler, CHI (190 passing yards, 1 passing touchdown, 1 interception, 3 rushing yards, 1 fumble lost, 7 fantasy points)
Cutler never looked comfortable against Miami Sunday -- whether it was just an off week or the Dolphins had his number, it's hard to tell as yet,but he couldn't get into any sort of groove as the Bears were beaten pretty convincingly. Cutler had averaged 19.3 fantasy points a game before Sunday, so best bet is that he'll right the ship, but he looked so uneven Sunday that you at least have to be wary.
Next game: The Bears travel to New England for next week. I'm willing to give Cutler a pass for this week and keep him on the back end of the starting quarterbacks for next week.
Worst running backs in Week 7
Khiry Robinson, NO (26 rushing yards, 1 fumble lost, 0 fantasy points)
The Saints had spent much of the week preparing for Mark Ingram's return to action, but saying to anyone who would listen that he would be eased back into action, which meant many still had Robinson ranked fairly highly. And then Pierre Thomas got hurt and Robinson fumbled, so of course Ingram got 10 carries, compared to three for Robinson and six for Thomas. After Robinson's fumble in the second quarter, he didn't get another touch until the fourth quarter, and while Ingram didn't look great either, he's the Saints running back you want, not Robinson.
Next game: The Saints host the Packers next Sunday night. Hold Robinson if you want, because if Ingram gets hurt again he could be interesting, but he can't touch a lineup.
Giovani Bernard, CIN (17 rushing yards, -1 receiving yard, 1 fantasy point)
Jeremy Hill, CIN (15 rushing yards, 1 fantasy point)
Bernard's game-by-game yardage totals this season: 110, 169, 54, 72, 157, 16. Meanwhile, Hill's usage had been on the upswing with all the injuries to Cincinnati's other offensive players. The Colts' defense isn't supposed to be that good. Heck, it isn't supposed to be particularly good at all. But the Cincinnati running backs were utterly shut down Sunday, with the team rushing for 32 yards on 12 carries total. I'll say it again: The Bengals had 135 yards of offense. That's only tenable if you're playing against the University of Florida.
Next game: The Bengals host Baltimore next week. Hill needs to be fully benched until things turn around, but Bernard gets the benefit of the doubt and will still be a starter.
Fred Jackson, BUF (12 rushing yards, 16 receiving yards, 2 fantasy points)
Jackson didn't get the chance to do much Sunday before leaving with a groin injury that had him immediately ruled out for the rest of the game, and pretty quickly ruled out for Week 8 as well. Jackson had at least eight fantasy points in four straight games before Sunday, but after that injury, we have no idea how long it will be until he's back on the field.
Next game: The Bills are off in Week 9, so the earliest we could see Jackson is Week 10, and it could be longer than that. Let's see how Bryce Brown does, and what the prognosis for C.J. Spiller (also injured) is before we guess as to Jackson's long-term status.
Worst wide receivers in Week 7
Alshon Jeffery, CHI (9 receiving yards, 0 fantasy points)
Jeffery caught two passes on the Bears' first two offensive snaps Sunday, then never had another catch the rest of the game. As I said above, Jay Cutler just looked off-kilter all game long, and it bled to the rest of the offense (Matt Forte excluded) -- Martellus Bennett had only five fantasy points, Brandon Marshall had four. As I also said above, I'm comfortable saying fluke here, given the normal upside of Jeffery (and the rest).
Next game: The Bears play the Patriots next week. Like I said, one-week fluke allowance.
Justin Hunter, TEN (6 receiving yards, 0 fantasy points)
And we're back. Hunter had 99 yards and a touchdown two weeks ago, 77 yards last week. People were hyping him as an up-and-comer again. This ignored the fact that he was producing what he was producing on only three catches a game (he hasn't had more than three in a game since last year), and wasn't getting targeted enough for that to go much higher. This was Hunter's worst game of the season, but he has more in this range than he does to the other side.
Next game: Tennessee hosts Houston next week. I don't have any idea how you can trust Hunter (or Kendall Wright, for that matter, despite his successful Sunday).
Reggie Wayne, IND (15 receiving yards, 1 fantasy point)
As successful as the Indianapolis offense was Sunday -- and it was very successful -- it didn't bleed over to Wayne at all. Wayne now has three truly bad games on his resume this season, and he's firmly behind T.Y. Hilton on the depth chart, even with him having at least eight targets in four straight games and at least seven in six of seven games this season.
Next game: The Colts travel to Pittsburgh next week. The way things are going, Wayne is a flex play, and not a particularly inspired one.
Worst tight ends in Week 7
Jimmy Graham, NO (0 receiving yards, 0 fantasy points)
We got burned again. The moral of the 2014 season has been "Don't start your studs just because they're active." For years, everyone has said that, if someone like Jimmy Graham or Calvin Johnson or Arian Foster is just healthy enough to make it onto the field, that fantasy owners had to use them because of their upside. Unfortunately, this season has burned us on that note over and over, with Sunday the worst offender yet. Graham was just active enough Sunday to allegedly be a red-zone target, but he ultimately was targeted only twice and didn't catch anything.
Next game: Saints vs. Packers on Sunday night. Let's wait and see what word is on Graham's health over the course of the week, because eventually we'll have to learn not to run those guys out every time.
Jordan Cameron, CLE (5 receiving yards, 0 fantasy points)
Once again, this made no sense. The Jaguars had been terrible. Cameron was coming off of a big game. The Browns were (relatively) rolling. And everything came to a grinding halt Sunday, with Cameron hauling in only one of his six targets. That wasn't how things were supposed to go.
Next game: The Browns host the Raiders next week. Sure, Cameron couldn't produce against Jacksonville, but surely Oakland is a get-right, yeah?
Delanie Walker, TEN (17 receiving yards, 1 fantasy point)
Remember the early season, when Walker averaged 12 fantasy points a game through four weeks? The last three weeks, he's averaged 3.3, bottoming out with one in Sunday's game. Not coincidentally, Walker's production more-or-less coincides with Jake Locker's playing time as Tennessee's quarterback (not exactly, but close). Walker's stock is fading almost as fast as it rose.
Next game: The Titans host Houston next week. Walker will be right on the edge of startability, though which side of that edge he's on remains to be seen.
Worst defense/special teams in Week 7
San Francisco 49ers (42 points allowed, 2 sacks, -4 fantasy points)
You never like to face Peyton Manning if you're a defense. You like it far less when Peyton Manning is chasing a record. And you like it even worse when you're defensive players have been getting hurt right and left. Tough luck, 49ers. Sorry.