Who Should I Start? Dillon Gabriel or Khalil Shakir

Tuesday, October 21, 9:59 PM

Cleveland Browns quarterback Dillon Gabriel completed 13 of his 18 passes for 116 scoreless yards while adding four carries for 12 yards in a 31-6 win over the Miami Dolphins in Week 7. As has become customary over his three starts, Gabriel operated as a game-manager for the Cleveland offense as they leaned heavily on the rushing attack. The rookie quarterback has now thrown for 546 yards and three touchdowns while completing 59.8% of his passes and throwing zero interceptions through five games. He will look to raise his fantasy ceiling in a Week 8 road matchup against the New England Patriots. The Patriots have been solid on defense this season, allowing the fifth-fewest points per game in the league at 19.0 per game. Gabriel sets up as a low-end QB2 in a week with six teams on bye.

Tuesday, October 21, 7:55 PM

Buffalo Bills wide receiver Khalil Shakir broke out in his third year in the league in 2024 with career-highs across the board in catches (76), targets (100), and receiving yards (821), but it came with only four touchdowns in 15 regular-season games (nine starts). Going into Buffalo's Week 7 bye, Shakir had 25 receptions on 34 targets for 268 yards and two touchdowns in six games. He scored in back-to-back games in Weeks 3 and 4, but he has not exceeded 70 receiving yards in a contest this year, while the Bills continue to spread the ball around in the passing attack. In half-PPR scoring, Shakir is just inside the top 50 wideouts with 8.6 points per game. Although the 25-year-old is one of the top wideouts in the Bills' offense, he's not a great fit in an offense that relies on power more than anything, and he's rarely targeted in the red zone. Fantasy managers might want to expect another quiet game this Sunday against a Carolina Panthers defense that has been much-improved in 2025 against the pass.