Should I start Germie Bernard or Josh Downs in Week 7?
Updated Oct 20, 9:11 AM ET. Week 8 answers post Tuesday.
Week 7 verdict
Start Josh Downs over Germie Bernard
- Market projects
- 14.2
- recent weeks avg
- MIN D vs WR
- 27.1
- 5th fewest to WRs (2026)
- Snap share
- 80%
- Through Week 6
- Target share
- 21%
- Through Week 6
- Market projects
- 12.0
- fantasy pts
- Snap share
- 48%
- Through Week 6
- Target share
- 15%
- Through Week 6
Start Josh Downs: 76 percent of the snaps and 20 percent of the targets over their last 3 games, against Germie Bernard's 52 percent of the snaps and 12 percent of the targets. No market projection is posted on either of them this week, so this is a usage call, and a lower confidence one than a call made on a projection. What follows is what each of them has done.
Should I drop Germie Bernard for Josh Downs?
Yes, on the rest of the season. Josh Downs projects 121 market-implied PPR points from Week 7 through Week 17 (12.1 a game over 10 games), Germie Bernard 43 (4.3 a game over 10 games). For Week 7 the call starts Josh Downs over Germie Bernard.
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Your next move
More fantasy football tools and rankings, all built from the same board.
Both players' season market-based projection, their usage this season and their last full season's numbers.
WR11 · PIT · bye 9
2026 vs anytime td line 1-5
- Market-based projection
- 12.0 pts a game
WR52 · IND · bye 13
2026 vs anytime td line 0-6
- Market-based projection
- 12.6 pts a game Wk 6 price
- Overall rank
- 118
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The gap
- Board size298 draftable players
Draft data is not current for these two, so the figures that depend on it are left out. The call above comes from each player's usage.
Where the draft room stands
Live drafts hold no current pick on Germie Bernard, and the board ranks him 20th overall on the rest of his evidence.
Live drafts hold no current pick on Josh Downs, and the board ranks him 118th overall on the rest of his evidence.
The market-based projections
Germie Bernard's market-based projection is 12.0 PPR points a game, built from 3 markets across 8 market sources. That is the 23rd highest figure of the 182 players with a market-based projection.
The market-based projection for Josh Downs is 1.8 PPR points a game off 1 market across 1 market source. That is 30 percent of what a wide receiver's projection needs, so it is a fragment of one rather than a projection.
Josh Downs's projection is not complete, so the two figures are not set against each other here.
This season through Week 6
Through Week 6, Germie Bernard has been on the field for 48 percent of PIT snaps, drawn 15 percent of the targets and had 16 percent of the red zone chances.
He has taken 9 of the offence's 52 third down targets, had 0 of its 6 chances inside the five and seen 4 of its 34 two minute targets.
His 32 targets have averaged 5.3 air yards.
In Week 4 against CLE he caught 2 of 2 targets for 11 yards and did not score.
In Week 5 against IND he carried 1 time for 4 yards, caught 6 of 9 targets for 80 yards and did not score.
In Week 6 against TB he caught 11 of 12 targets for 87 yards and scored 1 touchdown.
Through Week 6, Josh Downs has been on the field for 80 percent of IND snaps, drawn 21 percent of the targets and had 11 percent of the red zone chances.
He has taken 13 of the offence's 49 third down targets, had 0 of its 19 chances inside the five and seen 3 of its 25 two minute targets.
His 42 targets have averaged 10.7 air yards.
In Week 4 against WAS he caught 3 of 4 targets for 16 yards and did not score.
In Week 5 against PIT he caught 3 of 6 targets for 47 yards and did not score.
In Week 6 against TEN he carried 1 time for 7 yards, caught 4 of 8 targets for 40 yards and did not score.
Their 2025 seasons
Germie Bernard is a rookie, so there is no NFL season behind him to price him against.
In 2025 Josh Downs played 16 games and scored 136.4 PPR points, 8.5 a game, finishing WR44.
He caught 58 of 88 targets for 566 yards and 4 touchdowns, with 14 red zone targets.
That came to 5-6 targets a game, a 66 percent catch rate and 9.8 yards a catch.
He was on the field for 58 percent of the snaps in the games he played.
Head to head
This season Josh Downs holds the bigger snap share, 80 percent against 48 percent.
This season Josh Downs holds the bigger target share, 21 percent against 15 percent.
Byes and availability
Germie Bernard is off in Week 9 and Josh Downs in Week 13, so either can cover the other's bye.
What would change the answer
Josh Downs has only a partial projection, so the market half of this page is whole for only one of them.
Drop or keep
Should I drop Germie Bernard for Josh Downs?
Yes, on the rest of the season. Josh Downs projects 121 market-implied PPR points from Week 7 through Week 17 (12.1 a game over 10 games), Germie Bernard 43 (4.3 a game over 10 games). For Week 7 the call starts Josh Downs over Germie Bernard.
Should I drop Josh Downs for Germie Bernard?
No. Keep Josh Downs: he projects 121 market-implied PPR points from Week 7 through Week 17 (12.1 a game over 10 games), Germie Bernard 43 (4.3 a game over 10 games). For Week 7 the call starts Josh Downs over Germie Bernard.
Both players in full
Week 7 on the board
- Is Germie Bernard playing Week 7?
- Is Josh Downs playing Week 7?
- Steelers depth chart
- Colts depth chart
- Week 7 WR rankings
- Week 7 fantasy rankings
- Week 7 start or sit
- Week 7 waiver wire
- Week 7 trade value chart
- Fantasy football rankings
- Start 'em sit 'em Week 7
- Waiver wire pickups
- Fantasy sleepers
- Rest of season rankings
- Week 7 kicker rankings
- Week 7 defense rankings
