The bye weeks are upon us. And this week, with only two teams on bye, was just a taste of the
nightmare that approaches. Week 7 features SIX teams on bye including some potent fantasy offenses
like the Bills, Cowboys, Chargers, and Vikings. Now more than ever is when we need to pay attention to
what guys are playing a decent chunk of snaps so that we can plan and anticipate
breakout matchups. Let’s take a look.
As a reminder, this year we have a brand-new tool that lets you not only look at this week's snaps but the
total snaps on the year and percentage played by each player. On top of that you can sort by team or
position to see how your guy stacks up!
The best way to consume this article is to have that tool open in another window and then sort by “team”
which will automatically sort the players from most to least snaps. Then in this article I'll give an
explanation as to what happened as well as some additional underlying stats (slot snaps, pass blocking
snaps etc.) and what sort of actionable data we can extract to help us win our leagues.
49ers
BYE
Bears
WR: Business as usual - Darnell Mooney and Allen Robinson played the entire game essentially but the
offense has just been anemic. There’s really no reason to mention that other WRs on this team if those
two are hardly fantasy relevant.
RB: Khalil Herbert showed up in a BIG way this week with David Montgomery out. The only question
now is whether his snap share looks like that when Damien Williams gets back.
TE: As usual, Cole Kmet played a lot of snaps and he played a good chunk of those lined up at WR - 23
snaps. But he suffers from the same issues as the WRs.
Bengals
WR: Once again Ja’Marr Chase led the way - Chase played 54 snaps out wide and only three in the slot
so pretty clear where they like him. Tee Higgins is the other outside WR and Tyler Boyd primarily plays
in the slot.
RB: Joe Mixon is back and had a fantastic day on a full workload. They still like mixing rookie Chris
Evans in there for a couple plays but nothing that would stop you from rolling Mixon out every week.
TE: CJ Uzomah is playing a good amount and he’s running routes but they just have too many options
in the pass game. He’s likely two injuries away from any kind of consistency.
Bills
WR: The Bills went pretty heavy 11 personnel this game with Gabriel Davis most often being the odd
man out. Sanders led in snaps followed by Beasley and Diggs.
RB: After Zack Moss had a firm grip on the job for a few weeks it seems they went with more of a split
this week. Zack Moss did blow a pass blocking assignment but then Singletary went ahead and did the
same thing. The pass snaps were razor close - Moss 29, Singletary 28.
TE: Dawson Knox once again had great deployment. He’s still not a locked in top target on the team
which hurts his upside but he may have had a better day had he not hurt his hand. He has the bye week
at least to rest up.
Browns
WR: Odell Beckham Jr. left the game briefly with a shoulder injury but did end up returning. However, it
was Donovan Peoples-Jones opposite him that had the breakout day. Rashard Higgins played the
Jarvis Landry role in the slot.
RB: Nick Chubb was already banged up and Kareem Hunt left this game with an injury as well. They
play Thursday and both are expected to miss the game on the short week. Based on usage trends, we
would expect D’Ernest Johnson to get the running down work with Demetric Felton mixing in on pass
plays.
TE: Austin Hooper ran 26 routes this week while David Njoku ran 17. Neither of them are focal points of
this pass attack. But we knew that since we talk about it every week.
Buccaneers
WR: This has been one of the strangest WR groups because it goes against what we know. Usually the
guys playing a 90% snap share would be more consistent than any player platooning. But Antono Brown
has consistently played fewer snaps than Mike Evans and Chris Godwin yet he has been arguably the
most consistent for fantasy. Most of the plays he misses are runs (Evans and Godwin played 29 and 28
run plays while AB only played seven) but AB also ran 10 less routes than the other guys. Just wild.
RB: We’ve been saying it for a couple weeks now but Leonard Fournette is locked in here.
TE: OJ Howard got the touchdown this week but he only ran 19 routes to 28 for Cameron Brate. We are
just waiting for Gronk to be back at this point.
Broncos
WR: Same as it’s been - with all the injuries, Courtland Sutton and Tim Patrick play full snap shares on
the outside, Kendall Hinton plays the slot. Jerry Jeudy will be back soon to replace Hinton.
RB: We have become accustomed to this split - they split the run work down the middle but Melvin
played slightly more pass snaps. For now we just have to expect a fairly even split.
TE: Noah Fant has a nice game - his 72 snaps was on par with Sutton and Patrick. Will be interesting
to see how things shake out when Jeudy is back.
Cardinals
WR: As we surmised last week, with Maxx Williams out, the Cardinals went full Air Raid with a ton of four
WR sets. AJ Green, DeAndre Hopkins, and Christian Kirk played practically the entire game with Ronale
Moore came in as the fourth WR for 42 snaps. With the trade for Zach Ertz though, I imagine it will look
more like what we saw to start the year.
RB: This was a weird split - typically Chase Edmonds plays more pass plays while James Conner plays
more run plays but this week Conner got a lot of run plays and split pass plays fairly evenly (19 for
Conner, 20 for Edmonds). The targets went to Chase but still - not ideal for Edmonds.
TE: The Cardinals answered their TE question pretty quickly with the trade for Zach Ertz. Will be
interesting to see how quickly he can get up to speed.
Cowboys
WR: Amari and Lamb played virtually every snap, Cedrick Wilson played a partial snap share. You can
set your watch to it until Michaely Gallup returns.
RB: Zeke gets most of the high leverage snaps including pass plays and goal line while Pollard comes in
to spell him at times and for random drawn up plays. Zeke is an RB1 and Pollard is a flex/bye week type
guy.
TE: This was a big week for Schultz as the Patriots are one of the better defenses vs. the tight end.
Schultz did block on seven of his 45 pass plays which is a little high but he still played far more than
Blake Jarwin. He’s on bye next week but he’s still a fairly safe option week to week.
Chargers
WR: Very strange game - this offense only ran 56 snaps. Keenan Allen played most of them though
Mike Williams was a little bit limited and only played 20 - the majority of which were pass plays. Jalen
Guyton continues to play a lot of snaps and not do a whole lot with them. Josh Palmer got an extended
look and didn’t do much either.
RB: This team struggled mightily to run the ball and abandoned it pretty early. Austin Ekeler is still a
guy you start every week.
TE: “Do not be fooled by Donald Parham. He has blocked on more plays in every single game than
routes he’s run. He once again blocked on 6 of his 25 pass plays which is 40%. Jared Cook is the guy
you want. In dynasty, maybe stash Parham in case Cook is done and Mike Williams doesn’t come back”
The above is what we said last week. Jared Cook ran 29 routes to 17 for Parham. Cook scored the
touchdown. He’s the guy you want.
Chiefs
WR: Tyreek Hill did not play his full snap share as it seems he was a little banged up after all --only 47
of 82 snaps. Demarcus Robinson, Mecole Hardman, and Byron Pringle filled out the snaps. Josh
Gordon hardly played which is sad.
RB: There was some debate as to how the snaps would be split between Darrell Williams and Jerrick
McKinnon. Well that debate didn’t last long. Williams dominated both pass and run down snaps.
TE: Travis Kelce is the man. Unfortunately Jody “Joe” Fortson suffered a torn achilles in this game
which leaves Noah Gray as the second tight end.
Colts
WR: TY Hilton made his triumphant return only to leave the game with a quad injury. Parris Campbell
also left the game with an injury after making a big play. Based on his own comments, Hilton doesn’t
believe he will miss time so expect Pittman and Hilton on the outside next week with Pascal in the slot.
RB: This split is pretty well known - Jonathan Taylor gets the bulk of the carries but he does struggle a
little in pass pro so he cedes some of those snaps to Nyheim Hines. In a positive game scripts though,
Taylor can clearly go off.
TE: Jack Doyle led this crew in snaps again. Here were the routes run: Doyle - 9, Mo Alie-Cox - 9, Kylen
Granson - 3.
Dolphins
WR: With the Dolphins hurting at WR, Jaylen Waddle and Mack Hollins led the charge. Albert Wilson
played the third most. DeVante Parker and Will Fuller will be back at some point - until then only Waddle
is interesting.
RB: We were scared this might happen. Myles Gaskin and Malcolm Brown each played exactly 25
snaps with Salvon Ahmed playing 19. Just a mess.
TE: Mike Gesicki has been a shining beacon of hope in the tight end landscape as he’s essentially
playing WR but you can start him at TE. He played 38 snaps at WR this week and only three in-line.
Eagles
WR: Jalen Reagor returned and he and DeVonta Smith led the way for the Eagles WRs. Quez Watkins
primarily played in the slot.
RB: Miles Sanders played the vast majority of the snaps with Kenneth Gainwell playing a couple pass
plays. This offense has not had much success on the ground outside of Jalen Hurts.
TE: With Zach Ertz being traded to the Cardinals, Dallas Goedert is finally free.
Falcons
BYE
Giants
WR: Kadarius Toney started hot with three catches on only six plays but left with an injury. If Kenny
Golladay and Toney are both out it will be Sterling Shepard, Dante Pettis, and Collin Johnson. Not ideal.
RB: With Saquon out, Devontae Booker played a fairly full snaps share. He’ll be a decent start anytime
Barkley is out.
TE: Evan Engram once again played a ton of snaps, ran a lot of routes, and didn’t give you much. He’s
hard to trust outside of a DFS dart throw.
Jaguars
WR: Same as last week - Marvin Jones and Laviska Shenault on the outside, Jamal Agnew in the slot.
RB: James Robinson is getting the full role he had last year. You lucked out if you drafted him.
TE: Not great production this week but Arnold played a lot of snaps and ran 28 routes. He played 22
snaps at WR which is good deployment. He will have more productive days.
Jets
BYE
Lions
WR: There was some hope that with all the injuries, Amon-Ra St. Brown would transition from a guy who
just plays slot into a guy that play outside in two WR sets. That didn’t happen unfortunately as Khalif
Raymond and Khadarel Hodge played those roles.
RB: Jamaal Williams’s role seems to be fully marginalized at this point in favor or D’Andre Swift. Even
when the team gets crushed, Swift’s usage is decent because of his pass game work.
TE: We told you not to panic when it comes to TJ Hockenson. I hope you listened. He played on 39 of
46 pass plays and only pass blocked once.
Packers
WR: Davante Adams and Allen Lazard played big snap shares on the outside - Randall Cobb only
played a partial one in the slot.
RB: In years past, Aaron Jones would get the bulk of the carries then split the pass plays with Jamaal
Williams. This year, he is getting the bulk of the pass plays while splitting the carries with AJ Dillon.
Aaron Jones is must start and AJ Dillon is a bye week flyer or DFS play.
TE: Robert Tonyan isn’t necessarily even playing less than he did last year. He’s always been
touchdown dependent and this is just what it looks like when Aaron Rodgers isn’t throwing 48 touchdowns
passes.
Panthers
WR: The Panthers typically use the same three WRs every play but Terrace Marshall suffered a
concussion early in this one and was ruled out. Brandon Zylstra stepped up in his place.
RB: With CMC out it’s Chuba. With CMC in, it’s CMC. Same as it ever was,
TE: With the injury to Marshall, the Panthers rolled out more two WR sets than they typically would. Ian
Thomas ran 27 of 54 routes, Tommy Tremble ran 22 of 54. Not nearly enough to trust.
Patriots
WR: Was a very strange offense this week - they only played 53 snaps and passed 26 times. Jakobi
Meyers (22) and Nelson Agholor (20) led the team in routes run followed by Kendrick Bourne (15).
RB: Damien Harris is clearly the guy on run downs. Rhamondre Stevenson and Brandon Bolden split
the pass work this week - Bolden has struggled in pass protection as of late.
TE: Both the tight ends played a similar number of snaps once again and once against Hunter Henry
(20) ran more routes than Jonnu Smith (12).
Raiders
WR: Ruggs and Edwards on the outside, Renfrow in the slot. This one is pretty set in stone.
RB: If you just looked at the box score, you might not realize that Jacobs played far more snaps than
Kenyan Drake on both pass and run downs.
TE: Darren Waller is all that matters. Foster Moreau only ran 3 routes on 24 snaps.
Rams
WR: Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp played full snap shares, as always. Van Jefferson played the
next highest snap share whole DeSean Jackson was a distant fourth.
RB: Darrell Henderson once again drastically outsnapped Sony Michel.
TE: Tyler Higbee played every snap this week but he’s still a low upside option week to week as they
prefer other weapons. .
Ravens
WR: A surprising debut from Rashod Bateman considering how the Ravens operate - he played a robust
45 snaps, primarily outside opposite of Marquise Brown. Devin Duvernay served as the third WR here.
Will be interesting to see what the snap shares look like when Sammy Watkins returns.
RB: The confusing time share continues as Latavius Murray, Le’Veon Bell, and Devonta Freeman all
play between 21 and 26 snaps. Annoying.
TE: Mark Andrews continues to be a rock solid option at tight end. You only need to make plans for his
bye week.
Saints
BYE
Seahawks
WR: The Hawks decided to go heavy on the three WR sets this week with Lockett, Metcalf, and Swain all
playing a large snap share.
RB: Alex Collins proved he’s clearly the guy to own whenever Chris Carson is out. Though DeeJay
Dallas did actually play more pass snaps than Collins.
TE: Will Dissly played more snaps than Gerald Everett though Everett ran 19 routes to 18 for Dissly.
That’s not even close to a high enough route participation rate though.
Steelers
WR: With Juju out you had Diontae Johnson and Chase Claypool on the outside with Ray-Ray McCloud
in the slot. James Washington oddly hardly played.
RB: Najee Harris is getting about of good of deployment as you could ask for. 63 of 75 snaps.
TE: Pat Freiermuth ran 23 routes to 19 for Eric Ebron but 23 routes for a team that ran 45 pass plays
still is not enough.
Texans
WR: Chris Conley left the game with a neck injury which opened the door for rookie Nico Collins and
Chris Moore to play more alongside Brandin Cooks. Keep an eye out for news on Conley.
RB: Same split - pass downs for David Johnson, run downs for Mark Ingram.
TE: Jordan Akins ran 27 routes to only 15 for Pharaoh Brown but they still like Brown on run plays so he
played more snaps. Jordan Akins only played on 3 run plays.
Titans
WR: Julio Jones once again tweaked his hamstring - that’s often the theme with guys his age. Despite
being sick, AJ Brown at least played a decent snap share. Outside of those two it’s hard to trust anyone
and even they can be tough to trust.
RB: Just when we didn’t think Derrick Henry could take things to a new level...
TE: They went heavy with the run personnel so Geoff Swaim played a ton of snaps - mostly blocking.
Firkser is not playing enough snaps to be interesting for fantasy.
Vikings
WR: Adam Thielen and Justin Jefferson played pretty much the whole game - you love to see it. KJ
Osborn is only playing 50% of the snaps so not a reliable option.
RB: Dalvin Cook is back and he’s the guy. The Vikings are great for fantasy in how they stick to their
guys where they can.
TE: Tyler Conklin once again blocked on a bunch of pass snaps. If you didn’t drop him last week when
we said to, you can do that now. He’s on bye week anyway.
Washington Football Team
WR: Terry McLaurin is the undisputed number 1 here. Dyami Brown played the second outside role
and Adam Humphries was in the slot.
RB: This is the kind of game where the RB split bites you as a Gibson owner. They clearly still like
McKissic on pass plays. With this kind of script, it hurts.
TE: As long as Logan Thomas is out, Ricky Seals-Jones is actually a fairly reliable option at tight end.
Since Logan Thomas got hurt he has played every snap but one. Great usage.