Week 5 of the fantasy football season is officially underway for 30 of the NFL’s 32 teams. The Tennessee Titans and New England Patriots appear to be ready to play, which means this should be a relatively normal week of football. With that in mind, fantasy football owners won’t have quite as difficult a time making their wide receiver start/sit decisions. Keenan Allen is a fantastic play yet again, while A.J. Green should go on your bench.
Running Back Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em
Keenan Allen, D.J. Moore Week 5 Highlight Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em
Start: Keenan Allen
The Keenan Allen breakout game is so close to coming to fruition. After a disappointing Week 1 in which Tyrod Taylor rarely looked his way, Allen has turned into one of the biggest opportunity hogs with Justin Herbert running the offense. By my metrics, he’s the WR2 in terms of weighted opportunity and should only see more targets without Austin Ekeler.
Allen has just about everything going in his favor heading into Week 5. Head coach Anthony Lynn just named Herbert the starter moving forward, there is no competition for targets, and faces a solid matchup against a high-flying New Orleans Saints offense with banged-up cornerbacks. I don’t care how good your other receivers are, find a way to put Allen in your lineup.
Sit: A.J. Green
In terms of raw opportunity, A.J. Green is actually in a pretty decent place. However, the former great is steadily losing his place in the offense and doesn’t have the ability to capitalize on what targets he still receives. Just from watching the film, Green clearly isn’t the player he once was. The explosiveness just isn’t there and he’s having a tough time developing a rapport with rookie quarterback Joe Burrow.
The team seems to be realizing this as well, as rookie receiver Tee Higgins is steadily becoming a larger part of the passing attack. These targets are coming at the expense of Green, and that trend will only continue to grow as the season progresses. Unless you’re truly desperate, you should look somewhere else for Week 5.
Start: Robby Anderson
As the leader of the D.J. Moore offseason hype train, it pains me to say that Robby Anderson is the alpha in the Carolina Panthers passing attack. The former New York Jet escaped from Adam Gase and is now thriving in a new environment. He has recorded at least 17.9 fantasy points in three of his four games, and it’s no fluke. By my opportunity metric, he’s the WR9 for the week and faces a fantastic matchup against the Atlanta Falcons.
Sit: Julian Edelman
This might be the beginning of the end for Julian Edelman. The three-time Super Bowl champion is clearly playing through some type of injury, and his hands are worse than they’ve ever been. Based on snap count usage alone, Edelman currently behind Damiere Byrd and N’Keal Harry on the depth chart. Byrd is starting to steal some of Edelman’s targets, as he’s really only had one good game on the season. You shouldn’t cut him, but you’re probably better off looking somewhere else, especially since Cam Newton is a longshot to play in Week 5.
Start: D.J. Moore
Robby Anderson may be the top option in this passing attack, but that doesn’t mean D.J. Moore can’t carry some fantasy relevance of his own. Even with Anderson earning a larger role than anyone expected, Moore is still a WR2 in terms of weighted opportunity. He’s on the field on basically every snap and should see plenty of targets against the Atlanta Falcons. While he may lack league-winning upside, he should be a solid start in every format.
Sit: Jerry Jeudy
Jerry Jeudy is a fantastic talent, but that won’t be enough to carry him through Week 5. Even if Stephon Gilmore doesn’t play, this is still a terrible matchup for Jeudy. Brett Rypien simply isn’t the answer under center, and he’ll probably earn the start. Rypien seemed to favor Tim Patrick last week, and Bill Belichick loves to take away an opponent’s top option. Even if Drew Lock manages to suit up, he won’t be 100%. This is going to be a low-scoring game, and you’re probably better off pivoting away from Jeudy.
Running Back Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em
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