Arizona Cardinals vs. Denver Broncos Fantasy Football Matchup Breakdown For Week 7
Fantasy

Arizona Cardinals vs. Denver Broncos Fantasy Football Matchup Breakdown For Week 7

John Laghezza breaks down the Cardinals vs. Broncos game for the Week 7 fantasy football slate.

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What happens when the worst four-win team in the NFL heads for the desert to face an Arizona Cardinals team that only seems to be able to beat teams from Los Angeles? Hard to see it getting any worse on offense for the Broncos, so let’s call this a litmus test for the AFC’s current 6-seed … 

Cardinals vs. Broncos Matchup Breakdown For Fantasy Football Week 7

DEN_broncos-logo.svgDenver Broncos Fantasy Preview For Week 7

No, it’s not hyperbole calling these Broncos the worst four-win team in the league. Twist my arm, and I’ll concede the team element, but as far as offenses go? Denver stinks. Bo Nix suits up Sunday for another episode of “be wary drafting players off late-season lower body injuries”. Without hyperbole or exaggeration at all, it’s some of the worst QB play I can remember from a starter with winning expectations attached. Of 33 QBs with +90 attempts, Nix ranks bottom-5 in fantasy points/game (10.9), EPA/dropback (-0.14), passing yards/game (174.8), yards/attempt (5.6), throws to sticks (29.1%), deep shot (6.9%), and first down rates (26.5%). Six weeks in without a single top-10 finish, and I’m suddenly reminded of the famous line from Dirty Work, “What is it exactly you’d say you do here?”

When you run the third-fewest plays on the lowest yards/play in the league, everyone suffers. Now mix in a three-headed backfield, and it’s nothing but fantasy frustration. Yes, you read that right … three. Rookie Jonah Coleman returns Sunday. Given he’s probably the best runner and easily the most well-rounded RB, Coleman’s going to earn touches. Between split work, poor efficiency, and an overall shrinking of the offensive pie, the entire DEN backfield owns just one RB10 finish … and it belongs to Coleman back in Week 2. Fortunate to even be in this position in the standings, I’m stashing the rookie wherever possible in case a flippening’s on the horizon. Start any of these guys at your own risk …

At the league’s lowest team aDOT, it takes a ton of volume to move the fantasy needle. The only player who even remotely qualifies is Jaylen Waddle, earning 6.7 targets/game on poor efficiency. Even with a WR10 and WR26 finish so far, I’m not sure it cancels out the damage of four separate weeks as the WR60 or worse. Sheesh. If there was ever a time to get right, it’s Sunday against a Cardinals’ D grading dead last in EPA/dropback (-0.32),  opposing passer rating (116.5), yards/attempt (8.6), and passing TD (16). Essentially, it’s sink or swim for Denver — another faceplant and all fantasy hope is lost.        

  • Start: Jaylen Waddle (WR28), RJ Harvey (WR27)
  • Sit: J.K. Dobbins (RB24), Courtland Sutton (WR37)
  • Sleeper: Jonah Coleman (RB52)

ARI_cardinals-logo.svgArizona Cardinals Fantasy Preview For Week 7

After a magical 2025 stretch run of QB1 finishes for Jacoby Brissett, we’re starting to see what happens when over-relying on garbage time production — things go wrong. At least when Brissett hits, he hits big, posting two top-7 finishes already. The volume we hoped would repeat did exactly that (41.5 dropbacks/game), but efficiency’s fallen right off the cliff against tougher competition (83.4 passer rating, 5.7 yards/attempt, 37.6% throws to sticks). Keeping that in mind, where do you slot the Broncos in the pantheon of defensive units? Be careful citing year-to-date stats, as Denver’s already faced KC, SF, LAR, and JAX. And despite facing a veritable gauntlet of opposing offenses, they’re still top-10 in scoring (20.8 PPG) and success rate (55.7%).

For an ordinary offense, some or all of that might actually matter — just not when the entire offense funnels through two players. Would you believe we’re a month and a half into the season, and the combo of Trey McBride plus Michael Wilson accounts for +54% of team targets, and +60% of both air yards and receiving yards? Numbers that gaudy deserve a start in fantasy regardless of matchup, even if it means facing a top-5 pass-defending unit. Don’t get cute with ancillary pieces like Kendrick Bourne on Sunday; you can save him for next week against Dallas.

First, Arizona signs Tyler Allgeier in the offseason to presumably bring a solid presence to the backfield. Then, they follow that up by spending a premium draft pick on Jeremiyah Love to create an indestructible thunder-and-lightning pairing. So why the heck are we even talking about Bam Knight? Love’s ankle must not be healing properly. He still hasn’t practiced, which I’m assuming means he’ll miss at least one more game. In his stead, the usually reliable Allgeier posted egregious numbers on the ground: 2.1 yards/carry, 2.17 yards after contact/rush, -0.23 EPA/attempt, 44% success. Woof. So to answer my question earlier, that’s how you wind up considering Knight, who clearly looked like the more explosive player Sunday. The duo split carries, targets, and green zone work essentially down the middle — it’s hard to get too excited about either right now.

  • Start: Tyler Allgeier (RB26), Trey McBride (TE2), Michael Wilson (WR27)
  • Sit: Jacoby Brissett (QB21), Kendrick Bourne (WR46)
  • Sleeper: Bam Knight (RB37)

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