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Should I start Rashee Rice, Ladd McConkey, Courtland Sutton for Week 7? Fantasy football start 'em, sit 'em picks and recommendations for the 2025 NFL season.
Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice, Los Angeles Chargers wideout Ladd McConkey, and Denver Broncos WR Courtland Sutton are among this season's best fantasy assets. But nearly every player in fantasy is prone to having bust games.
While Rice hasn't played in a game yet, both McConkey and Sutton have had single-digit outings in PPR leagues. McConkey scored 2.1 PPR fantasy points in Week 4, even in a favorable matchup, and Sutton has two games with just one catch each so far.
Players of their caliber are obvious starts in leagues with 12 or more teams. But it's worth questioning if you should put them in your lineup in smaller leagues. So which ones should you start in leagues with 10 or fewer teams? Let's dive in.
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Should I Start Rashee Rice for Fantasy Football?
Probably the most obvious start/sit decision I'll ever get to make is here. There is no planet on which it makes sense to bench Rice. He's returning to a team that's 3-3, has the single highest neutral passing rate in the NFL, has an elite quarterback and an elite offense, and is lacking in overall receiving talent in his absence.
In three games last season, before a season-ending MCL tear, Rice was on pace to finish as a top-3 WR in PPR fantasy leagues on the season. He's the No. 1 target for a passing offense that's throwing the ball more than it did last year, and he displayed absolutely elite efficiency.
Reminder that Rashee Rice was the only WR last season to have over 4 yards per route run on horizontal routes and 2 YPRR on vertical routes (and he had almost 4.5 YPRR on vertical routes)
Obscene efficiency that will lead to obscene production pic.twitter.com/th5DkL3GIV
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) October 18, 2025
In terms of overall efficiency, Rice was simply in a league of his own. Upon his return, he could immediately become an elite WR1 all over again, and I wouldn't be surprised. I'm projecting him to be an instant must-start top-10 option.
His upside this year might be even bigger than last. He was fully healthy in the offseason and has had an extra month-and-a-half to recover, and the chemistry he's built with quarterback Patrick Mahomes II is well-established. It would be a crime against the fantasy football gods, if they exist, to bench Rice.
So start him.
Should I Start Ladd McConkey for Fantasy Football?
McConkey had a big game in Week 6, catching seven of his nine targets for 100 yards and a touchdown. While it seemed like he got things back on track as his team's clear WR1, the underlying data wasn't super positive. His production was, but his playing time wasn't.
He actually played a season-low of offensive snaps despite the absence of WR Quentin Johnston, who's been the team's effective WR1 in games he's played. Johnston outproduced McConkey by a solid margin overall in the games they played together.
ladd mcconkey.
📺 | @nfloncbs pic.twitter.com/Frb9xmCeYx
— Los Angeles Chargers (@chargers) October 12, 2025
McConkey is still a fantastic separator, but for whatever reason, Chargers offensive coordinator Greg Roman decided Johnston needed to get the ball more. Perhaps the 33-year-old Keenan Allen, the team's other good wideout, could fade as the season goes on.
But McConkey's role feels pretty settled. He'll average his usual seven or so targets per game, albeit on less efficiency than last season, which sucks. Still, he's not a player you can bench -- it's just that expectations need to be adjusted a bit.
Rather than a sure-fire WR1, he needs to be treated as a volatile flex with WR2 upside until things change. But it might take multiple injuries for that to happen, because he didn't get more playing time with Johnston out. The Chargers really should get him the ball more, though.
Should I Start Courtland Sutton for Fantasy Football?
Sutton's miserable outing in Week 6 was emblematic of who he is as a fantasy asset. He's extremely volatile and matchup-dependent, evidenced by his high fantasy score this season being 23.8 PPR points and his low of a mere 1.6. He's had four games above 17.0 points and two below 3.0.
Sutton struggled against the New York Jets and Indianapolis Colts, who both run top-12 rates of man coverage. Strangely enough, man coverage and Cover 3 defensive shells are those that Sutton does well against, so it's more likely that he struggles against good cornerbacks in man coverage, like Sauce Gardner of the Jets.
Bo Nix and Courtland Sutton connect for 43 yards 🎯
Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/9SX1Smr73H
— NFL (@NFL) August 23, 2025
While there's an element of "you just have to take the good with the bad" involved here, the New York Giants, who the Broncos will face in Week 7, don't exactly have elite defensive backs in their secondary. It doesn't make much sense to bench Sutton, and he'll probably have a solid game.
Denver's defense is coming off easily its worst performance of the season, but overseas games are always odd. This game should be a nice "get back on track" outing, so Sutton should remain locked in starting lineups as a WR2 or flex for the upside he provides.
Who Should I Start Tool
Not sure who to start? Check out the Who Should I Start tool:
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Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some common Week 7 fantasy football lineup decisions are regarding players like Rashee Rice, Ladd McConkey, and Courtland Sutton. But not to worry, we are here to help make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 7. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 7 of the 2025 NFL season. Our free Who Should I Start? tool will help make your fantasy football lineup decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to start... all free! Get your winning lineups set, and make the right decisions.
Week 7 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Rashee Rice, Ladd McConkey, and Courtland Sutton. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 7.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool, but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player's name. In the second box, search for the second player's name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed that our Who Should I Start? tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, enhanced search results with data to compare, and a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week, our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do is to select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circles), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 7 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 7 (2025)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 7 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular Week 7 searches and comparisons from our 'Who To Start' tool for Rashee Rice, Ladd McConkey, and Courtland Sutton compared to others:
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