It’s a hard knock life for fantasy football owners going into Week 5.
Not only has the first month of the season been a wild affair—Tavon Austin just outscored all wideouts in Week 4, after all—but there’s a borderline overwhelming amount of information available.
In fact, such access to information might do more harm than good as owners attempt to keep up with every tidbit. To help streamline the process, let’s throw Week 5 rankings into tables based on projections, injuries, matchups and much more.
Week 5 Schedule
Quarterbacks
Quarterback remains the easiest position to project on a week-to-week basis.
Here’s Tom Brady of the New England Patriots at the top of the totem pole. He’d normally be close to the No. 1 slot, but is especially so thanks to an encounter with the Dallas Cowboys, a defense that has allowed 44 points to quarterbacks over its last two outings.
Don’t forget Brady is coming off a bye, too, so it’s not hard to see he should be the position’s highest scorer.
Close behind should be Matt Ryan of the Atlanta Falcons thanks to a matchup with Washington. He hasn’t posted jaw-dropping numbers yet with just one trip over the 20-point mark, but he gets a Washington defense that has yet to face any real threat under center.
Young guys seem to be the way to go when it comes to sleepers. Take Tennessee Titans rookie Marcus Mariota for example. He’s thrown eight touchdowns in three games and now goes against the Buffalo Bills, owners of a defense that is allowing the third-most points to quarterbacks on average.
Mariota‘s positioning on a list provided by Jim Wyatt of the team’s website says it all:
Also intriguing is Jacksonville Jaguars sophomore Blake Bortles. He’s surrounded by capable weapons such as Allen Hurns and Allen Robinson as well as rookie back T.J. Yeldon.
Owners in a pinch could do quite a lot worse than Bortles against an erratic Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense.
Running Backs
Le’Veon Bell is back, meaning the top of the running back rankings looks normal.
Once again among the elite is Chicago Bears back Matt Forte, who is the only contributor on a struggling offense—a good thing from a fantasy standpoint. He’s going to post crazy numbers against the Kansas City Chiefs after the unit just allowed 38 points to backs.
Then again, how normal can things be when Devonta Freeman leads all scorers at the position?
The Atlanta Falcons’ breakout star has more than 30 points in each of his last two outings. Owners might consider shying away this week due to his matchup against Washington, but the defense’s numbers are inflated by the fact only one team has attempted more than 20 rushes against the unit.
Those on the hunt for a young sleeper don’t have to look far: Todd Gurley of the St. Louis Rams isn’t going anywhere. He just posted 15 points in his first real action of the season, and did it against a tough Arizona Cardinals defense. Now he gets an exploitable Green Bay Packers defense.
As ESPN’s Matthew Berry pointed out, the rookie’s in some strong company:
Also feel free to consider Indianapolis Colts back Frank Gore a sleeper this week. He only has one trip to double digits, but an encounter with a leaking Houston Texans defense hints at a major performance.
Wide Receivers
The big names at wideout will always produce.
One that doesn’t get enough credit? Keenan Allen of the San Diego Chargers. Philip Rivers’ favorite target has at least 13 points in three of four games and a whopping 46 targets already, more than 20 higher than the next player on the team’s list.
Also a target monster? DeAndre Hopkins down in Houston, who has at least 15 points in three of four games. He’s seen 61 targets already, also more than 20 better than the next Texan. Feel free to remember he’s playing the Colts, too, the seventh-worst unit against wideouts so far on average.
Remember Week 2 hero Travis Benjamin? There, he posted 29 points for the Cleveland Browns and his sparse amount of owners. He’s back as a sleeper this time around thanks to an AFC North clash with the Baltimore Ravens.
Considering the Ravens allow the second-most points to wideouts, Benjamin seems to be in for a major day.
So does Brandin Cooks of the New Orleans Saints, with his sleeper status saying quite a lot about his season to date. He has yet to break into double digits, with NFL.com’s Brian Billick hitting the proverbial nail on the head:
Defenses continue to key on Cooks because the Saints got rid of tight end Jimmy Graham in the offseason, and it doesn’t help that Drew Brees has been hurt.
Brees is back though and Cooks gets the Philadelphia Eagles next, a defense that has allowed at least 25 points to wideouts in three of four games, so expect Cooks to break out this week.
Tight Ends
The most volatile position gets fantasy’s most reliable scorer back from bye this week thanks to the return of Rob Gronkowski.
The star to know, though, might just be Owen Daniels of the Denver Broncos. Daniels touts a touchdown in each of his last two games and gets the Oakland Raiders in Week 5, the league laughingstock when it comes to defending the position—they allow an average of five more points to tight ends than any other team.
Also returning from bye would be a sleeper candidate by the name of Delanie Walker. He’s had a quiet season so far, but he’ll be Mariota‘s favorite target in an encounter with the Bills.
Defense/Special Teams
Owners know the deal with defenses: The Broncos and Bills tout two of the best fantasy units this year.
The Broncos have already totaled six interceptions and three trips to double digits in four games. Next up is the Raiders, and while it’s on the road, the unit should still do plenty of damage.
Ditto for the Bills in Tennessee, where the strong rush could fluster the rookie Mariota into mistakes.
A sleeper to consider? Try the Ravens considering the unit has looked miserable so far this season. Baltimore has just one double-digit outing this year and one in the negatives, but owners should expect nothing short of a big day against the Browns.
Kickers
It’s Matt Bryant and Nick Novak time at kicker.
Bryant and his Falcons should do plenty of scoring with Washington in town. He’s reliable with at least six points in every game this season, and that total comes despite his attempting just two field goals over the course of his past three games.
Novak in Houston hasn’t been nearly as notable yet, but he joined the team at the end of September. He looks to be in for his biggest performance to date against the Colts as the Texans should find plenty of success on the offensive side of things.
Even better, three of four kickers have gone for at least eight points against the unit, so Novak looks ready for a breakout.
All scoring info courtesy of ESPN standard leagues, as is points-against info and ownership stats as of October 7. Statistics courtesy of ESPN.com. Miami, Minnesota, Carolina and the New York Jets are on bye.
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