UPDATE: 5:19 a.m. Saturday
You’d think things are all swell in San Francisco, where the undefeated 49ers stand alone atop the NFL with a 6-0 record. But their lineup will have some holes in it tomorrow in Atlanta.
The Niners’ top two receivers, Mike Evans and Deebo Samuel, have already been ruled out. Luckily for them, they have another veteran pass catcher up their sleeve.
Christian Kirk has yet to take the field this season because of an injured calf. He’s listed as questionable for Week 7, but he’s expected to make his 2026 debut against the Falcons.
Other standouts who have been ruled out this weekend include Kansas City WR Rashee Rice, Tampa Bay wideout Emeka Egbuka, Houston RB David Monthgomery and Indy tight end Tyler Warrer. And Philly WR Devonta Smith is looking pretty doubtful.
On the bright side, at least football-wise if not judicially, Green Bay running back Josh Jacobs is expected to return from his suspension over his domestic violence case.
We’re on the road this week, so that may alter our posting schedule. But we expect to have an update sometime this evening from … drumroll please … Boston.
ORIGINAL POST: 4:15 p.m. Monday
Stop the presses! The greatest fantasy football idol on the planet is not playing this week!
Josh Allen fans will be weeping in their Buffalo wings because the Bills’ quarterback is on bye (along with standouts from Jacksonville, Washington and the Los Angeles Chargers).
No, 17 is clearly the No. 1 player both in fantasy and in the NFL itself. He has nine touchdown passes and eight TD runs. No other QB has more than two TD dashes.
But Allen’s not the only player to far exceed the preseason forecasts and earn consideration for MVFF: Most Valuable Fantasy Fellow.
Here are another magnificent seven at the one-third mark of the season:
Kenneth Walker III (Chiefs RB) — The ninth-rated RB before the season, Walker has been near the top of the league with eight touchdowns and 760 total yards for unbeaten K.C.
Chuba Hubbard (Panthers RB) — Rose from 36th RB before the season to top 12, with 511 total yards and six touchdowns for the surprisingly spry Carolina offense.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba (Seahawks WR) — The late first-round pick before the season now leads the league in every receiving category with 49 catches for 717 yards and 7 TDs.
Christian Watson (Packers WR) — The league’s No. 3 fantasy receiver started the season outside the top 24 but has tallied 29 catches for 538 yards and six touchdowns.
Isaiah Likely (Giants TE) — The long-time second-tier tight end from Baltimore is the NFL leader in the Meadowlands with 39 catches for 383 yards and five TDs.
Brock Purdy (49ers QB) — Outside the top 10 in the summer, he’s now second only to Allen, coming into Monday night’s game with 13 TD passes and almost 1,200 passing yards.
Bryce Young (Panthers QB) — The former Heisman Trophy winner wasn’t even in the top 25 before Week 1. Now he’s top 10, passing for 1,549 yards and 11 TDs.
Sitting stars
New England is now using three running backs, Corey Kiner, Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson, which makes none of them worth starting against Chicago. … Speaking of the Patriots, don’t count on WR A.J. Brown until he remembers how to catch a football. … Forget about Giants RB Cam Skattebo while he’s in the doghouse. … Cleveland’s defense will give up very little to Tennessee RB Tony Pollard. … The Vikings will shut down Indy’s entire offense except for RB Jonathan Taylor. … Seattle QB Sam Darnold and Denver QB Bo NIx were unwatchable against each other last week, and they’ll be equally ugly when the Seahawks play the Chiefs and the Broncos face Arizona.
Matchup game
A week off should do wonders for Vikings RB Aaron Jones, as will facing the Colts’ defense. … Green Bay’s Jordan Love and his top receivers will thrive against Detroit and so, too, will RB Josh Jacobs if he’s reactivated in time. … Kansas City RB Kenneth Walker III will try to show up his old Seattle teammates this week. … Houston’s pass offense, boosted by the arrival of Marvin Harrison Jr., will continue its hot run against a Giants defense embarrassed by New Orleans last week. … A couple of breakouts could be ahead for Miami RB Ollie Gordon against the Jets and Browns WR K.C. Concepcion versus Tennessee. … Carolina wideouts Tetairoa McMillan and Jalen Coker will post great numbers against Tampa Bay. … And now that Chicago tight end Colton Loveland has awakened, it’s OK to start him against the Patriots.
Injury watch
The huge injury news is that Eagles QB Jalen Hurts will miss the rest of the season because of blood clots in both of his lungs. Just terrible news. … Will Philly get RB Saquon Barkley back to try to save the season? … Rams WR Davante Adams ruptured his hamstring and will miss a bare minimum of six weeks. … Baltimore QB Lamar Jackson could return this week, as could the Buccaneers’ Baker Mayfield. … Notables dealing with injuries include four running backs (Houston’s David Montgomery, Cleveland’s Quinshon Judkins, Arizona’s Jeremiyah Love and the Jets’ Breece Hall) and five pass catchers (Kansas City’s Rashee Rice, San Fran’s Deebo Samuel, Baltimore’s Rashod Bateman, the Chargers’ Ladd McConkey and Colts tight end Tyler Warren).
The deepest sleeper
Remember that J.J. McCarthy fellow? The one-time Vikings savior fell off the face of the Earth a few weeks ago, and now he’s BACK! He passed for 243 yards and a touchdown in just the fourth quarter of the Giants’ loss to New Orleans, and he’s very likely to be New York’s quarterback of choice the rest of the season because Jameis Winston still does Jameis Winston things. Even if the former Wolverine has to wait a little more, he’s going to be a starting quarterback very soon. And possibly a decent one.
The Thursday pick
Patriots at Bears (-2½):
Pick: Patriots by 3
Breaking news
We’ll be updating our column, based on the latest injuries and innuendo, right up until Sunday’s kickoff. Go to TwinCities.com/theloop.
You can hear Kevin Cusick on Thursdays on Bob Sansevere’s “BS Show” podcast on iTunes. You can follow Kevin on X— @theloopnow. He can be reached at kcusick@pioneerpress.com.