RADIO
Dan's fantasy football start 'em, sit 'em picks for Week 7 of 2026. He looks at potential warning signals from Puka Nacua, RJ Harvey, Emanuel Wilson, Alvin Kamara, and Harold Fannin Jr.
Hi again, RotoBallers. Hard to believe, but most NFL teams have already played through a third of their schedules. Now that Week 7 is upon us, it’s time for another look at Warning Signals that might save us from players who could spoil our upcoming fantasy football matchups.
Warning Signals come in many forms and prompt different courses of action. This usually involves a look at player utilization data and upcoming matchups to adjust my expectations for a player. Perhaps the WR2 I thought I had should be treated more like a flex candidate. And maybe someone I have in my flex rotation doesn’t need to be carried anymore at all. Every so often, as is the case this week, I see something that shakes my faith in one of the titans of fantasy football.
Before you set your lineups for your next fantasy football matchup, check out the advice available on RotoBaller’s NFL hub. And before you do that, read on for the Warning Signals I picked up on for Week 7 of the fantasy football season.
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Puka Nacua, WR, Los Angeles Rams
Puka Nacua missed two weeks this season, but blew up in his return to action in Week 4, with a nine-catch, 125-yard performance against the Eagles. He one-upped himself the following week, catching 17 passes for 138 yards and a touchdown on a staggering 24 targets. Even with the time missed, Nacua ranks as the overall WR12 and the WR2 on a fantasy points per game basis. So why include one of fantasy football’s most productive players in this week's column?
Back on October 4, Erin Andrews reported that Nacua had been diagnosed with a “pre-hernia.” In all the years I’ve been watching football, I’ve never seen this diagnosis. The condition is more or less exactly what it sounds like - a weakening in the abdominal wall has been detected, which is at risk of rupturing, thus becoming a hernia. Should that happen, Nacua would require surgery that would sideline him for weeks if not months.
Nacua should definitely be in starting lineups given his use in the Rams’ offense. His performances since returning to action show that this is something he can play through, to say the least. However, given Nacua’s physical playstyle, I can’t help but feel he is a time bomb with an unknowable delay period. The heights Nacua has reached since his diagnosis have masked the risk, so now might be a good time to move him for equivalent talent if possible.
RJ Harvey, RB, Denver Broncos
In 2025, RJ Harvey showed a nose for the end zone, scoring 12 touchdowns in his rookie season while finishing just shy of 900 scrimmage yards. The production inspired hope that he would be a force to be reckoned with in 2026. Unfortunately, Harvey’s production so far this season is sorely lacking.
Through six weeks, he has just one touchdown and is averaging 48.8 scrimmage yards and 8.8 touches per game. Harvey has yet to see more than 25 rushing yards in a game, and had it not been for a 10-catch, 68-yard day in Week 4, his numbers would look all the worse. JK Dobbins is dominating the red zone and goal line opportunities, robbing Harvey of chances to get the touchdowns that would buoy his fantasy production.
Dobbins has been unproductive in his role as lead back - averaging just 3.3 yards per carry and failing to hit 50 rushing yards in five of six games to start the season. To that point, a change may be in order that could benefit Harvey. The 25-year-old is certainly worth holding onto, but fantasy managers will need to be picky about when to employ him.
For now, expectations should be no higher than the RB3 range, and he should only be considered in games where it is likely that the Broncos will be more pass-heavy to keep pace in a negative game script. That scenario isn’t very likely in Week 7, when Denver faces a Cardinals team that is hurting on both sides of the ball.
RJ Harvey takes the direct snap right into the end zone
SEAvsDEN on Prime Video
Stream on @NFLPlus https://t.co/grvdjRHL4R— NFL (@NFL) October 16, 2026
Emanuel Wilson, RB, Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks’ decision to let Kenneth Walker III walk following his Super Bowl MVP performance left a gaping hole at the top of Seattle’s depth chart. Zach Charbonnet’s (knee) recovery timeline precluded his immediate takeover as the team’s top running back, adding to the uncertainty. The resultant rotation, and an injury to one participant - rookie Jadarian Price (chest) - opened the door for Emanuel Wilson to emerge as Seattle’s most productive member of the backfield.
Wilson’s highs have cut both ways. While he has three games with 20 or more carries in the first six weeks of the season, Wilson averaged a pedestrian 3.77 yards per attempt in those contests. On the season, he is gaining 3.48 rushing yards per carry and has gained 10 or more yards on just six of his 87 runs, giving him an explosive run rate of just 6.9%. Of the 20 runnings backs in the NFL with at least 80 carries, only three have a lower explosive run rate than Wilson.
Wilson’s snap share was scaled back significantly in Week 6. With the Seahawks trailing the Broncos for most of the game, George Holani was in for late downs and two-minute drills and Wilson was limited almost exclusively to early down work. Wilson still had the most touches out of the backfield, but it is clear that he won’t be on the field in passing situations, limiting his potential in fantasy.
Even more damning is Charbonnet’s impending return. Charbonnet is expected to be activated from the PUP list this week and stands a good chance of making his season debut in Week 7, turning Seattle’s backfield into a three-headed monster. Fantasy managers who got use of Wilson can be grateful for what they got out of him, but it looks like his utility has run its course.
Zach Charbonnet practicing, and starting what coach Mike Macdonald says will be his 1st full week of work in practice since reconstructive knee surgery 8 months ago.
If the week goes well, #Seahawks expect him to make his season debut Sunday night vs the Chiefs @933KJR https://t.co/KzAyGXJVzx
— Gregg Bell (@gbellseattle) October 20, 2026
Alvin Kamara, RB, New Orleans Saints
Speaking of running backs in crowded backfields, Alvin Kamara (back) is still the most widely rostered active member of the Saints backfield despite his inconsistent production. The most obvious warning signal being shown regarding Kamara is the back injury he has been playing through for the last three weeks. Kamara made it to Paris for the Saints’ Week 7 game against the Steelers and was a limited participant in practice to open the week.
Kamara’s effectiveness and utilization are what concern me beyond the week ahead. In Week 6, Kamara had 69 scrimmage yards and a touchdown, which was good enough for his second top-12 finish of 2026. However, in the other three games he has played, he finished as an RB4 or worse. Aside from his 31-yard touchdown catch in Week 6, he has only one other reception that resulted in more than 10 yards and has just two such rushes so far this season.
Kendre Miller has recently emerged as the Saints' primary rusher. Last week he hit a career-high 20 carries and has soaked up most of the goal line work over the last three weeks. CJ Donaldson has emerged as a threat to Kamara’s hold on passing downs, edging the 31-year-old out on work on late downs and in two-minute drills. Both outsnapped Kamara in Weeks 5 and 6. Travis Etienne Jr.'s (hamstring) eventual return from injured reserve will further jeopardize Kamara’s relevance.
Harold Fannin Jr., TE, Cleveland Browns
Similar to RJ Harvey above, Harold Fannin Jr. is having a hard time following up on a strong finish to 2025. Also a rookie last year, Fannin was mostly quiet until the end of the season, when he scored four touchdowns over a five-week span. The 22-year-old has made it to the end zone three times already in 2026 - twice in Week 3, and once more in Week 4 - but outside of those scores he has done very little.
Fannin is averaging just 27.7 receiving yards per game this season. In Weeks 2 and 3, he had 54 and 51 yards, respectively, but he his next highest total is 27. Over the last two weeks he had just one catch in each game for a combined 13 yards! In the first three weeks of the season, Fannin led the team with a 23.1% target share. In Weeks 4 through 6, his involvement plummeted to a 11.9% share, fifth-highest on the team.
Rookie wide receivers Denzel Boston and KC Concepcion Jr. have become the focal points of the Browns’ passing game in the meantime. Red zone opportunities have by-and-large been handled by Cleveland’s rushing attack, limiting Fannin’s chances of finding the end zone. The lack of receiving production mirrors Fannin’s 2025. As impressive of a prospect as he was in college, he is looking little more than another TD-dependent tight end in the NFL.
Tight end Harold Fannin is unconcerned about his reception total be down compared to his rookie year. Why? Because the #Browns are winning. @BG_Football https://t.co/O4UGNqtYlY
— Jeff Schudel (@jsproinsider) October 21, 2026
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