A lot of 7th places, statistical anomoly or something meaningful

[Ace_Ren]

Sample size is indeed small, but at the same time, I think you hit the nail with something you said.

"it just seems like 7th is where the blinds start to hit the "move in soon or else" point"
Not everyone views the blinds the same way. There are many people who will constantly finish in the 3rd-6th place range because they don't adjust to the blinds and tend to wait for the big hands for too long. So, you'll either double up with around 7 people left and move ahead to a pretty good 1st place finish rate or you'll end up busting out at 7th.

Overall, your strategy is more beneficial where it really counts - ROI. So don't sweat it that some passive players take up the 3rd-6th spots.