Week 5 Matchups – Fantasy Football Player Spotlights

Every week, I do the dirty work for you and dig into every Sunday matchup to determine who is the player from each team to spotlight. This involves looking at Fantasy Points Per Game (PPG) and yardage allowed by defenses, along with looking at player usage and performances. I will always have hits and misses, but I will also always have detailed reasoning behind the points I am making. Here are some of the hits in points per reception (PPR) leagues from last week’s article:

• AJ Brown: 38.5 Fantasy Points
• Justin Fields: 28.9 Fantasy Points
• Brock Purdy: 21.3 Fantasy Points
• Chris Godwin: 19.4 Fantasy Points
• Matthew Stafford: 17.2 Fantasy Points
• Adam Thielen: 15.2 Fantasy Points
• Garrett Wilson: 15 Fantasy Points
• James Cook: 14.7 Fantasy Points
• Evan Engram: 12.9 Fantasy Points

Definitely had some rough misses last week as well, but I feel through four weeks of football I have been hot with my hit-to-miss ratio. Keep in mind that we have our first set of BYE weeks in Week 5, with all of the Browns, Chargers, Seahawks, and Buccaneers off. Adjust accordingly. Below are players I feel will have a solid Fantasy Football performance, and are considerations to add to your DFS lineups for Week 5. Let’s get it!

Week 5 Fantasy Football Matchups and Player Spotlights

Jaguars vs Bills

• Travis Etienne: The Bills allow the 16th most Fantasy PPG to running backs, which is nothing stellar but where their defense is the most friendly. Rookie De’Von Achane had a massively efficient eight carries for 101 rushing yards and two touchdowns against Buffalo last week. Brian Robinson rushed for 70 yards on 10 carries the week prior. In Week 1, Breece Hall rushed for 127 rushing yards on 10 carries. That’s three running back examples of high rushing efficiency for good yardage. Travis Etienne has finished three of his four weeks with 23 or more touches and has had fantasy weeks finishing as the RB6 (Week 1) and RB9 (Week 3).
• Dalton Kincaid: The Jaguars allow the second most Fantasy PPG to tight ends this season and are 11th in passing yards per game allowed. Jonnu Smith finished with six receptions and 95 receiving yards last week, Brevin Jordan scored a touchdown in Week 3 and Travis Kelce scored in Week 2 against the Jaguars. Dalton Kincaid through three weeks of football earned 12 targets which was equal to teammate Dawson Knox through those weeks, which looked like some sort of tight end committee. Week 4 was a sign of separation though for the first-round rookie from this year’s class, as he earned five targets to Knox’s one. This could be the breakout week for Kincaid.

Saints vs Patriots

• Alvin Kamara: The Patriots are the 15th-best matchup in Fantasy PPG allowed to running backs. Again, nothing wild here but New England is much tougher on other positions. Raheem Mostert did torch the Patriots for 121 rushing yards and two touchdowns back in Week 2. Many Fantasy managers questioned placing Alvin Kamara in their lineups upon his Week 4 return from suspension, which should have served a lesson on Kamara – he has been extremely Fantasy-relevant for his entire career. Kamara has had four seasons of 81+ targets and four seasons of 97+ receptions. Kamara rushed 11 times for 51 yards (4.64 yards per carry) and caught 13 of his 14 passes for 21.4 Fantasy Points on 75% of the snaps. Massive implications for PPR Leagues. Keep Kamara in your lineups.
• DeVante Parker: The Saints allow the 13th most Fantasy PPG to wide receivers this season. Chris Godwin caught eight passes for 114 yards last week, Romeo Doubs caught five passes for 73 yards and a touchdown in Week 3, Adam Thielen caught seven balls for 54 yards and a score in Week 2 and in Week 1 DeAndre Hopkins caught seven passes for 65 yards against the Saints. Looking ta last week’s 38-3 loss against Dallas, it seemed tough to pick a wide receiver seeing as though Demario Douglas, Kendrick Bourne, and DeVante Parker all had just two catches and JuJu Smith-Schuster had just one. The difference is that all of those wide receivers but DeVante Parker played under 55% of the snaps while Parker played 82%. Parker was targeted eight times back in Week 2, and the hope is that he can see that volume again.

Titans vs Colts

• DeAndre Hopkins: The Colts allow the ninth most Fantasy PPG to wide receivers and the fifth most passing yards per game this season. Puka Nacua caught nine passes for 163 yards and a score last week, Nico Collins caught seven passes for 146 yards and a touchdown in Week 2, and Calvin Ridley caught eight passes for 101 yards and a touchdown in Week 1. DeAndre Hopkins’ usage looked great opening up the season, catching seven passes on 13 targets for 65 yards. The next three weeks Hopkins saw five, seven, and six targets while having a high of 10.3 Fantasy Points last week. The Colts present a matchup friendly to wide receivers where Hopkins can “get right.” Hopkins averaged 16.9 Fantasy Points last season.
• Michael Pittman Jr.: The Titans allow the eighth-most Fantasy PPG to wide receivers this season and 10th most passing yards per game. Ja’Marr Chase finished with 73 receiving yards last week, Amari Cooper caught seven passes for 116 yards and a touchdown in Week 3, Keenan Allen combined with Mike Williams in Week 2 for 194 receiving yards and two touchdowns, and in Week 1 Chris Olave finished with eight catches for 112 all against the Titans. Down Week 4 for Michael Pittman Jr, but prior to that he scored 23.7-13.6-16.7 Fantasy Points. MPJ’s targets for the opening three weeks were great with 11-12-11, and the connection with Anthony Richardson looks great beyond the matching t-shirts.

Ravens vs Steelers

• Zay Flowers: The Steelers allow the 3rd most Fantasy PPG to wide receivers and the seventh-most passing yards per game this season. Nico Collins caught seven passes for 168 yards and two touchdowns last week, Davante Adams caught 13 passes for 172 yards and two touchdowns in Week 3, Amari Cooper caught seven passes for 90 yards in Week 2 and Brandon Aiyuk caught eight passes for 129 yards and two touchdowns Week 1 all against the Steelers. Despite a low four targets in Week 4, Zay Flowers still leads all Ravens with 29 targets on the season. Flowers was targeted 10 times both in Week 1 and Week 3 where he finished with 17.7 and 13 Fantasy Points. Other positive signs include 78 receiving yards in Week 1, 18.67 yards per catch last week, and at least one rushing attempt in every game. Flowers is set up to follow suit with wide receivers against the Steelers.
• George Pickens: The Ravens are not necessarily a plus matchup for any position this year in Fantasy PPG allowed. Week 2 was a big game for George Pickens catching four passes for 127 and a touchdown for 22.7 Fantasy Points. Pickens outside of this performance has finished WR49, WR38, and WR66. The one positive note here is that he has been targeted fairly consistently, seeing 7, 10, 6, and 7 targets, and is coming off of a game he played 98% of the snaps. We know Pickens receiving yard upside (31.75 and 18.75 yards per catch in Weeks 2 and 3), and he had a game last season with 78 receiving yards against Baltimore.

Panthers vs Lions

• Hayden Hurst: Playing the matchup numbers here, because Hayden Hurst has trended down in usage from his Week 1 seven targets to three straight weeks of just three to follow. The Lions are the fourth-best matchup in Fantasy PPG allowed to tight ends. Kyle Pitts caught five passes for 41 yards in Week and Noah Fant combined with Colby Parkinson and Will Dissly for nine catches and 132 yards in Week 2 against the Lions. The Lions’ defense has totaled 12 sacks the last two weeks combined, so Bryce Young may need to use Hurst as a safety outlet similar to Week 1.
• David Montgomery: The Panthers allow the fourth most Fantasy PPG to running backs this season and sixth most rushing yards per game. Alexander Mattison rushed for 95 yards last week, Kenneth Walker III for 97 yards and two scores in Week 3, Tony Jones Jr. scored twice in Week 2 and Tyler Allgeier scored twice in Week 1. A lot of touchdowns to note, with David Montgomery up next who has rushed for five touchdowns in three games played. Rookie Jahmyr Gibbs has not had much of an impact on Montgomery’s volume, with Montgomery totaling 21, 17 and 34 touches in his three games played. Montgomery is coming off of a red-hot 121 rushing yards, three touchdowns, and RB2 Fantasy week and will look to keep that rolling.

Texans vs Falcons

• Nico Collins: The Falcons are not necessarily a plus matchup for wide receivers, but I often will push to “ride the hot hand” for Fantasy Football. Sometimes the unexpected “hot hands” are players who simply need to be in your lineups weekly. Nico Collins is looking like a prime example. Six receptions for 80 yards in Week 1, seven receptions for 146 yards and a touchdown in Week 2, and seven catches for 168 yards and two touchdowns in Week 3. Collins has finished as a top-five Fantasy wide receiver in two of his four games this season and has at least nine targets in three of them. The connection with CJ Stroud is real.
• Bijan Robinson: The Texans allow the seventh-most Fantasy PPG to running backs this season. Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren combined for 100 rushing yards last week, Travis Etienne finished with 138 scrimmage yards in Week 3, the Colts finished with 126 team rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns in Week 2 and in Week 1 the Ravens scored three rushing touchdowns. Bijan Robinson, the amazing talent we were all hyped up for, has lived up to expectations in the first four weeks. Three Top 12 Fantasy finishes, two games over 100 rushing yards, and four straight games with at least four receptions. Bijan’s snap percentage has been separating more and more from Tyler Allgeier, with the first two games being at 63% to 72% compared to  81% to 76% in the last two.

Giants vs Dolphins

• Daniel Jones: The Dolphins allow the third-most Fantasy PPG and eight most passing yards per game this season. Josh Allen just threw 320 and 4 TDs along with a rushing touchdown last week. Justin Herbert earlier this season had 229 passing yards and a rushing touchdown against the Dolphins. Daniel Jones had a huge Week 2 against Arizona, throwing 321 yards and two touchdowns as well as rushing for 59 yards and a touchdown. Coming off of a season-high 66 rushing yards last week, I believe Jones can have another solid Fantasy outing in Week 5. 
• De’Von Achane: The Giants allow the 10th most Fantasy PPG to running backs this season. Do I even need to pull any numbers beyond that? De’Von Achane can speak for himself. 18 rushing attempts for 203 yards and two touchdowns along with two receiving touchdowns in Week 3 for 51.3 Fantasy Points. The following week, Achane upped his 41% to 60% of the snaps. Eight rushing attempts for 101 yards and two touchdowns for 27 Fantasy Points. Back-t0-back top-five Fantasy performances for Achane make him a weekly must-start, especially in a great matchup.

Bengals vs Cardinals

• Joe Mixon: The Cardinals allow the third-most Fantasy PPG to running backs and ninth ninth-most rushing yards per game. Christian McCaffrey exploded against the Cardinals last week, rushing for 106 yards and three touchdowns and catching seven passes for 71 yards and another score. Tony Pollard rushed for 122 yards in Week 3 and Saquon Barkley scored a rushing and receiving touchdown in Week 2 against Arizona. Joe Mixon has yet to have a good Fantasy week, but the Bengals have been awful in general this season. The Cardinals present a good matchup to “get right” for Mixon, and with Joe Burrow struggling with production and health along with the possibility that Tee Higgins misses time, this should be the week.
• Zach Ertz: The Bengals allow the sixth most Fantasy PPG to tight ends this season. Tyler Higbee caught five passes for 71 yards and Mark Andrews caught five passes for 41 yards and a touchdown in games against the Bengals this season. In three of Zach Ertz’s four games, he has earned 10-8-10 targets, and in two of those games, he finished with over 50 receiving yards. Three weeks finishing as a Top 12 Fantasy tight end along with a great matchup makes Ertz a solid play for this week.

Eagles vs Rams

• Dallas Goedert: The Rams allow the eighth most Fantasy PPG to tight ends this season so far. Three Colts tight ends combined for 107 receiving yards and a touchdown last week and the Seahawks tight ends combined for 67 receiving yards in Week 1. Dallas Goedert has yet to have a Top 12 Fantasy week, but has had two games of seven targets and has had a history of Fantasy Football impacts. The Rams matchup presents Goedert with his chance to make his first impactful Fantasy week in Week 5.
• Puka Nacua: The Eagles allow the sixth most Fantasy PPG to wide receivers this season. I want to plug Puka Nacua in this article because I know there will be concerns and hesitations when Cooper Kupp returns, which could be this week. Nacua has finished as the WR9, WR2, WR36, and WR4 through his first four career NFL games. For the position, Nacua ranks fourth in Fantasy Points, first in targets, first in receptions, and second in receiving yards so far. What many people do not factor in, is that while Nacua is absolutely balling out his teammate Tutu Atwell is also tied for the 12th most targets. There is volume to be had in LA, and even when Kupp returns Nacua should still earn plenty of looks. You did not spend a heavy draft pick this year and may have even picked up Nacua on waivers, so even if he transitions into a FLEX play I bet he is a weekly one. The Eagles are a great matchup to at least be just that in Week 5.

Jets vs Broncos

• Breece Hall: Revenge game script here for Breece Hall, who tore his ACL in Week 7 last season against the Broncos in a game where he rushed the ball just four times for 72 yards and a touchdown. Jets head coach Robert Saleh was quoted saying that Hall has “no pitch count any more” which is an encouraging sign for the sophomore who opened up the season with 127 rushing yards in Week 1. The Broncos allow the most Fantasy PPG to running backs and by a large margin. Khalil Herbert rushed for 103 yards last week against Denver. De’Von Achane went off for 203 rushing yards and two touchdowns along with two receiving touchdowns while Raheem Mostert also rushed for 82 yards, three rushing, and one receiving touchdown in Week 3 against the Broncos. Brian Robinson also rushed for 87 yards and two scores in Week 2 against the Broncos. Great matchup for Hall who may finally see the touches we want.
• Denver’s Starting Running Back: The Jets allow the 11th most Fantasy PPG to running backs, allow the fifth most rushing yards per game, and rank 30th in Fantasy PPG allowed to wide receivers this season. Javonte Williams left last week’s game injured, which resulted in Jaleel McLaughlin stepping up rushing seven times for 72 yards and also catching three passes for 32 yards and a score. Veteran Samaje Perine played 46% of the snaps last week. Monitor this situation as we approach Sunday.

Chiefs vs Vikings

• Rashee Rice: The Vikings allow the most Fantasy PPG to wide receivers this season. Adam Thielen caught seven passes for 76 receiving yards last week, Keenan Allen and Mike Williams combined for 336 receiving yards and a touchdown in Week 3, DeVonta Smith finished Week 2 with 131 receiving yards and a touchdown in Week 2 and Mike Evans caught six passes for 66 yards and a touchdown in Week 1 against the Vikings. Rookie Rashee Rice has been targeted 12 times across the last two weeks and currently is the second most targeted player on the Chiefs this season. Rice scored in Week 1 and finished with 59 yards in Week 2. Sleeper pick of the week to have his first big game in 2023.
• TJ Hockenson: The Chiefs allow the 10th most Fantasy PPG to tight ends this season. Tyler Conklin finished with 58 yards last week, Evan Engram finished with 57 yards in Week 2 and Sam LaPorta caught five passes for 39 yards in Week 1. TJ Hockenson is the Fantasy Football TE1 this season and has the opportunity for yet another big game in Week 5. Hockenson through the first three games was targeted 9-8-11 times and had games of 66 and 76 receiving yards. Hockenson scored two touchdowns in Week 2 which propelled him to a 25.6 Fantasy Point score. Anytime you play Patrick Mahomes, the ball is likely going to be in the air often and Hock could be lined up for heavy volume.

Sunday Night Football

Cowboys vs 49ers

• CeeDee Lamb: The 49ers allow the 14th most Fantasy PPG to wide receivers this season, which is the most friendly position in terms of what their defense has allowed for Fantasy. Marquise Brown finished with seven receptions for 96 yards with rookie teammate Michael Wilson also catching seven passes for 76 yards and two touchdowns just last week against the 49ers. Three of CeeDee Lamb’s four games this season have been four catch weeks, which have resulted in WR33, WR46, and WR24 finishes which is disappointing vs. expectation. Week 2 Lamb caught 11 of his 13 targets for 143 yards and 25.3 Fantasy Points, which lines up much better to his expectations. The game scripts have impacted Lamb this season with Dallas blowing out the Giants 40-0 and the Patriots 38-3. Dak Prescott also needs to play much more efficiently for Lamb to get back to what we know.
• Brandon Aiyuk: The Cowboys are one of the toughest, if not the toughest, matchups for Fantasy Football this season. I simply want to highlight how great Brandon Aiyuk has looked this season. If we look at the two games Aiyuk played in full, he finished as the WR2 and the WR9. Aiyuk caught all eight passes for 129 receiving yards and two touchdowns in Week 1 for 32.9 Fantasy Points. In Week 4, Aiyuk caught all six targets for 148 receiving yards and 20.8 Fantasy Points. Aiyuk has been extremely productive when on the field and looks very well-connected to Brock Purdy. A tough Dallas matchup will be a big test for Aiyuk, but he warrants being in all lineups in Week 5.

Week 5 Fantasy Football Rankings: Quarterback | Running Back | Wide Receiver | Tight End | Half-PPR by Position | Flex Rankings | Positional Ranks w/ K & DST | Dynasty | Superflex Dynasty