Week-Ahead Stash Candidates for Week 7

This weekly article series will attempt to help you in two ways. First, we are going to be examining players who may not be the hot waiver pickups of the week. This will save your FAAB or waiver priority for when you need it most. Second, we will be diving into stats and trends that point to players improving their fantasy scores next week, not this current week. The goal is to sift through the rough to find those diamonds who emerge every single year, except you won't be sweating over whether or not you claimed them on waivers, because you will already own them. At least that's the goal.

Here's the fifth transparency report of the season. Before Week 5, I told you to grab these guys for a Week 6 start. Here's how they did:

Jameis Winston was the top QB this week, so hopefully you got him on your roster because this Bucs offense is rolling. All of the other choices did fine, and none of them were busts. You might have noticed I subbed in C.J. Uzomah's numbers for Tyler Kroft, who was out with a foot injury. The logic there is Kroft being out should've led to grabbing Uzomah, who is starting to look like a decent tight end option for a few weeks.

Now, on to next week! Here are some guys who may not be startable for Week 7 but could be valuable the following week and beyond. So, if you have space, add them now or hope that they fall through waivers after this week.

Marlon Mack, RB, Colts

Yahoo ownership: 43%

Week 6 was Marlon Mack's second game in action this season, so I expected his snaps to rise from Week 5. They did, but his percentage of snaps played only rose 5.3%. Still, Mack received 12 rushing attempts that he turned into an impressive 89 yards. Jordan Wilkins was relegated to zero offensive snaps. Robert Turbin injured his shoulder in his second game active and was very uninspiring in his limited usage. And finally Nyheim Hines has been solid, but will likely be primarily a pass-catching option now that Mack is back. Hines only saw 3 rushing attempts in Week 6. The path is opening up for Mack and he should not be only 43% owned.

In Week 7 the Indianapolis Colts will be playing against a Buffalo Bills defense that has actually been impressive recently. In the last four weeks, the Bills have 11 turnovers, including 6 fumble recoveries, and have also not allowed more than 22 points to opposing teams. I expect the Colts to win this game, but what I don't expect is the Colts running a boat show on the Bills.

Instead, let's stash Mack for next week. In Week 8, Mack gets to take on the Oakland Raiders. The Raiders have allowed 674 rushing yards so far this season, good for 5th most in the NFL. The Raiders may be coming off of a bye week, but that won't be enough for them to fix their defensive (and many other) problems. By this point, Colts offensive weapons T.Y. Hilton and Jack Doyle should be back in play and rust free. Mack is a good option for 20-plus rushes this game, and against the weak run defense it could be a prime start.

C.J. Uzomah, TE, Bengals

Yahoo ownership: 36%

I'm doubling down on grabbing the Cincinnati Bengals' tight end, but this time I'm switching it to C.J. Uzomah. Some of you may have already grabbed him for his situation in Week 6, which he turned into a fringe TE1 outing. Uzomah had 7 targets that he converted into 6 receptions for 54 yards. In the last two weeks, he's played at least 91.7% of snaps in both games.

The best part about this pickup is that he gets a great matchup this week as well with the Bengals playing at Kansas City. This game has a week-high 57.5 total, and the implied total for the Bengals is just over 25 points. The game script is going to be great for Andy Dalton and the gang trying to play catch-up all day. Uzomah could benefit greatly from this, seeing as the Chiefs have allowed the most yards to tight ends through six weeks with 550 yards.

So how can that get any better? Well, in Week 8 the Bengals will play one of the two teams giving up more points to tight ends than Kansas City -- the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. They have allowed 486 yards, the second-most yards to tight ends this season despite playing one less game than most teams in the league. Jameis Winston has shown that he's capable of running up the scoreboard, and I expect that this game will be near the same total as the Chiefs. Uzomah looks to be a great two-week streaming candidate.

Christian Kirk, WR, Cardinals

Yahoo ownership: 20%

The Arizona Cardinals have shown life the last few weeks. Josh Rosen has now started three games for the Cardinals, and while he hasn't been perfect, he has certainly breathed some life into this Mike McCoy bogged offense. Against an injured but still solid Minnesota Vikings defense, Rosen threw for 240 yards and an interception. Christian Kirk was one of the main benefactors, catching 6-of-7 targets for 77 yards. Kirk also caught his sole red zone target for just three yards, but didn't make it into the end zone. The rapport between Rosen and Kirk is starting to grow and come to fruition.

In Week 7, I would not recommend starting Kirk. He's been moving around the offense quite a bit, playing 58% of his snaps outside and 42% of his snaps from the slot. This means that he's likely to see each of the Denver Broncos' cornerbacks. While the Broncos haven't been as stellar as the last couple years, they're still stout against receivers. They have allowed the 12th-least points to receivers this season. Not a great spot for an ancillary passing option.

However, in Week 8, the Cards will be playing the San Francisco 49ers for the second time this season. In the first game, the Cardinals won 28-18, and Kirk caught 3-of-4 targets for 85 yards and a score. That touchdown play was a 75-yard bomb where Kirk torched the outside corner and showed off his impressive big play ability. In the last two weeks, Kirk leads his team in air yards and yards after the catch with 115 and 50 yards, respectively. The Kirk/Rosen connection seems to be trending up, and I will be stashing Kirk where I can.

Anthony Miller, WR, Bears

Yahoo ownership: 7%

This is going to be a retread from the the Week 3 edition of this series, but I am a huge believer of Anthony Miller as a slot receiver for the Chicago Bears. People have been flying to the waiver wire to grab Miller's teammate Taylor Gabriel, but instead of chasing points, I'm trying to look to the future. Miller missed the first matchup I touted with a shoulder injury, but he came back to play in Week 6 against the Miami Dolphins, who have been strong against the pass this year. Miller's slot skill set is unique enough for him to surpass Gabriel, as well as tight end Trey Burton, who has been somewhat unimpressive for the Bears outside of a few scores.

The Bears will take on the New York Jets in Week 8 at Soldier Field. The Jets' main slot cornerback, Buster Skrine, is allowing a 115.3 passer rating when targeted so far this season. In addition to that, he was ruled out in Week 6 against the Indianapolis Colts with a concussion. If Skrine is still out, this leaves an aptly named rookie cornerback in Parry Nickerson playing the nickel corner role in Skrine's wake. Unfortunately, he isn't as good as his name would imply. Nickerson has allowed a passer rating of 137.5 on 93 snaps in coverage. That's the fifth-highest rating allowed by slot corners with at least 20% of team defensive snaps played. Miller will get an opportunity to roast one of these two awful corners in Week 8, and I'll have him on my bench waiting for the big game.

Patriots D/ST

Yahoo ownership: 48%

I'm not going to write up anything extensive, as all you need to know is the New England Patriots are playing against the Buffalo Bills in Week 8. I don't think many will be playing them against the Chicago Bears this week considering their recent success. Stash the New England D/ST and get a top-three D/ST for next week.