Week 7 Fantasy Football QB Start/Sit: Should Mahomes and Love Be In Your Lineup?

I talk about byes a lot during this portion of the season because it plays a big part in streamers and related start/sit decisions. This week is a big one: Josh Allen, Trevor Lawrence, and Jayden Daniels are all on bye.

The first two are both top-three fantasy QBs, and Daniels ranks in the top five in fantasy points per game but missed two-and-a-half games along the way. There will be plenty of owners looking for fill-ins, leaving options a little slim despite having plenty of decent streamers.

Let's look at three quarterbacks to start and three to sit in Week 7 of the NFL season. Most stats are from NFL.com, and fantasy points and rankings are from FantasyPros.

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Start

One note: Aaron Rodgers against the Saints and Geno Smith against the Dolphins are also strong streaming options worth considering, but I don't have room for everyone and chose to focus on the others. I feel confident in both veterans this week, though.

Jordan Love, Detroit Lions vs. Green Bay Packers

Love is in the middle of a string of good matchups, facing the Bears and Cowboys the past two weeks before the Lions in this one. (Things will quickly turn, as the next four games comes against the Panthers, Patriots, Vikings, and Rams.) After a fantastic game against Chicago, Love was just average last week against Dallas, though volume and a rushing touchdown helped his fantasy score.

Detroit has allowed the 10th-most yards per pass attempt and by far the most fantasy points per game to quarterbacks. That latter number is partly driven by volume, as the Lions have faced the ninth-most pass attempts, but every team above them has played six games, while Detroit has only played five.

Touchdowns are the other factor, as the Lions gave up three passing touchdowns in four of their five games and two TDs in the other. Throw in 69 rushing yards and two scores on the ground from Josh Allen in Week 2, and it's not a surprise that Detroit is at the top in allowing QB fantasy points.

It's tough to tell how a team is going to score their touchdowns, but the Lions have been regularly beaten to the end zone through the air, and they have struggled to stop the pass each of the past two seasons. Love is in position to continue his streak of strong starts and should be in lineups this week.

Tanner McKee, Philadelphia Eagles vs. Dallas Cowboys

McKee will be the starter in Philadelphia for the foreseeable future after Jalen Hurts was ruled out for the season due to blood clots in his lungs. In his first start last week, McKee struggled to 215 yards on just 4.8 per attempt. Part of the problem is a lack of playmakers, as Saquon Barkley was out, leaving DeVonta Smith and Dallas Goedert to lead the pass-catching group without a lot of other reinforcements.

The other problem was the matchup, as Carolina has been strong defending the pass since the Bears put up 59 points on them in Week 1. That won't be a problem against Dallas. The Cowboys have allowed the fourth-most yards per pass attempt and the fifth-most fantasy points per game to QBs, another team that is dealing with a multi-year issue in stopping the pass. Dallas has even been a little lucky, facing Jayden Daniels for only one half and getting Tampa Bay backup Jalon Daniels, and they have still put up bad numbers defensively.

The lack of options for McKee will persist, but he at least has a better outlook here. He is a lower-level streamer, not a guy you should run out and grab right away. Consider McKee if you're in a deeper league and/or missing your guy on the bye this week, but don't expect huge things from Philadelphia's backup.

Bo Nix, Denver Broncos @ Arizona Cardinals

It has been a rough season for Nix. He has always been below average throwing the ball from an efficiency standpoint, but he did enough to put himself on the fantasy radar, especially when factoring in his strong running. Neither of those factors is working in 2026. On top of just 37 total rushing yards in six games, Nix is averaging 174.8 passing yards and one TD per game, far from being usable in fantasy.

Matchups have been part of the problem, with games against tough defenses in the Chiefs, Rams, 49ers, and Seahawks, and he was much better against the Jaguars in Week 2. Nix gets another strong matchup in this one against Arizona. The Cardinals have allowed the most yards per pass attempt and the fourth-most fantasy points per game to quarterbacks. They haven't faced many running quarterbacks, but they did let Justin Herbert and Brock Purdy get around 30 yards apiece on the ground.

I'm skeptical of trusting Nix given how much he and the Broncos have struggled to move the ball. With the matchup so far in his favor, though, I'm willing to call him a low-to-mid-level streamer who is a fine fill-in if you're missing a guy on bye.

Sit

Sam Darnold, Seattle Seahawks vs. Kansas City Chiefs

Since he missed two games, it's tough to measure Darnold's fantasy performance against those who have been healthy. He has only really had one good fantasy game, though, and that came in a fantastic matchup against Washington. Turnovers have been a problem, and Darnold doesn't run much, so he should only be in your lineup when the matchup is right.

This is one of the worst matchups he will have all year. The Chiefs have given up the fourth-fewest yards per pass attempt and the third-fewest fantasy points per game to quarterbacks. Kirk Cousins had a big day in Week 4, but none of the other four quarterbacks that Kansas City has faced went above 210 yards or had multiple touchdowns.

Seattle is dealing with some issues outside of Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and with a tough defense across the field this week, it's best to leave Darnold sitting on your bench.

Daniel Jones, Indianapolis Colts @ Minnesota Vikings

Jones was a revelation for the Colts last season, ranking as QB7 through Week 13. He then suffered a torn Achilles in Week 14, and though he made it back for Week 1 this year, Jones has played below-average football for the 2-4 Colts. After 253.4 passing yards and 1.6 TDs per game in 2025, Jones is at 215 and 0.7, respectively, through six games. He also has just one rushing touchdown after five in 12 games last year.

This is also one of the toughest matchups around, as the Vikings have allowed the fewest fantasy points per game to QBs. Minnesota has allowed the ninth-fewest yards per pass attempt but has faced the second-fewest pass attempts (they just had their bye), helping to explain why their fantasy score is so low. Even so, Minnesota has been very good on defense and creates a terrible matchup for any quarterback.

Jones also has a lack of pass-catching weapons, with Alec Pierce on IR and Tyler Warren questionable after missing Week 6, so things aren't looking good for even a middling fantasy day. Leave Jones on the bench.

Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs @ Seattle Seahawks

We talked about Darnold, but now let's focus on the other side of this matchup. Mahomes has been good but not great as a fantasy player. He is QB15 but had his bye already and would likely be a top-10 player at the position with that extra game. Mahomes is throwing the ball well but not running as much as last season, averaging around 11 rushing yards per game with one score. He's a strong fantasy option most weeks.

The matchup here is a rough one, though, as the Seahawks have given up the fewest yards per pass attempt and the second-fewest fantasy points per game to quarterbacks. There might not be a team that I want to avoid more with fantasy players than Seattle, and only the very best should be in your lineup when playing the reigning Super Bowl champs.

Some owners won't have a better option, and if that's the case, that's OK. I wouldn't be excited about Mahomes' prospects this week, though, and would look to see if I could find a player with a better outlook in Week 7.