The NFL schedule is into Week 7 on Sunday and that means fantasy football matchups will be heating up and some players to keep an eye on to start or sit includes Rob Gronkowski, Joseph Randle, Justin Blackmon, Calvin Johnson, Chris Ogbonnaya, Stevan Ridley and Adrian Peterson.
Gronkowski is the top player to look out for and as of now, he is a major START option for Sunday, as he is expected to make his season debut against the New York Jets after being cleared by his doctors. Gronk has been out for the entire season so far after getting surgery in the offseason and fantasy owners had been frustrated by the constant speculation about his status and while he is listed as questionable for the game, he is a near lock to start if he is now cleared. Both Tom Brady and Bill Belichick are thrilled to have him back, as the offense has struggled on third downs and in the red zone, two places where the Gronk excels.
Last season Gronkowski had 55 catches for nearly 800 yards and 11 touchdowns despite being injured for part of the season and while he has not been confirmed to start yet, it is looking more and more likely that he will. Over his last four regular season games played, Gronkowski scored six touchdowns and was targeted over 25 times and once he gets back on the field, Brady should be going to him early and often, especially once they are near the end zone. According to ESPN.com, Brady completes over 70 percent of his passes to Gronkowski over the past three years and he only has two interceptions compared to 38 touchdowns on targets to the tight end.
Justin Blackmon is putting up some great numbers in two games this season and although he is dealing with a hamstring issue and did not practice, the team is expecting him to play on Sunday. Over his past two games he has 19 catches for 326 yards and a touchdown and in his last game against the Broncos he has 14 catches on 20 targets for 190 yards and if Cecil Shorts can't play he is likely to put up even better numbers this week against a weak Chargers secondary. In his first game he had 136 yards and a touchdown and his explosiveness is what makes him a very good option on Sunday.
Joseph Randle is getting the start most likely with DeMarco Murray injured and that could mean a big game against an Eagles defense that is giving up too many yards and with the knee injury to Murray, Randle should get starting numbers on Sunday. He had just 17 yards last week after coming in, but they fed him the ball 11 times and he should get plenty on Sunday. Calvin Johnson, Chris Ogbonnaya, Stevan Ridley and Adrian Peterson are all solid start options, with Peterson playing on Monday night. Keep an eye on the injury report for Johnson, as he has been hurting the past couple weeks, while Ogbonnaya and Ridley could put up big numbers this week.