Fantasy Football Waiver Wire – Week 5

The Week 5 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire isn’t quite as good as some of the past weeks, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t plenty of options to help your team!

There’s a lot of players out there this week but there still isn’t that one player that you need to blow a lot of FAAB on quite yet. We (fortunately) haven’t had that “crown jewel” of the Fantasy Football Waiver Wire that can swing a league that is worth too much. The closest we have this week is likely T.J. Yeldon since we don’t know what the status of Leonard Fournette. He’s already been banged up and missed games once this season. Now he’s likely to miss at least one more. Let’s get to work!

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Quarterback

Alex Smith, Washington Redskins – at New Orleans Saints 

Yahoo –  54 percent      ESPN – 64.5 percent 

Smith is a little higher owned on ESPN than I like to mention, but the matchup is too good and the factors lineup too well for him. The Saints finally had a solid day on defense in New York but the Redskins offense is coming off the bye week. They’ve been preparing for the Saints for a little while now and New Orleans had been bleeding points before the Giants game. The touchdown rate is down from last season and the yards per game is down as well but he’s averaging the exact  same yards per attempt, 8.0. The Saints had been dead last in points given up to the quarterback(Pittsburgh will likely take over now) but that doesn’t mean the Saints defense is good. They’re still giving up the highest passer rating and are in the top 12 of passing yards given up. Smith and the Redskins offense are going to be able to hit the weak points.

Blake Bortles, Jacksonville Jaguars – at Kansas City 

Yahoo – 32 percent  ESPN –  16.1 percent 

I know, I know. I’ve said that the Jaguars offense is volatile and I do believe that. However, a matchup against Kansas City is enough to make me want you use Blake “The Snake” Bortles. The Chiefs have yet to take the field in Week 4 as of this writing and they’re still seventh in passing yards surrendered. They’ll be flirting with the top spot by the end of things. They also rank third in points given up to the position and Bortles is coming off another monster game of 380+ passing yards and two touchdowns. On top of that, Bortles is averaging 33 yards rushing so far this year and will likely be without Leonard Fournette again in this matchup. Even if the Jacksonville defense can contain the Chiefs offense, the Jaguars are likely going to have to be aggressive and put up some points in this one. The last time they played like that, Bortles threw for four touchdowns against the Patriots.

Also Consider – Derek Carr, Oakland Raiders – at Los Angeles Chargers, Andy Dalton, Cincinnati Bengals – vs Miami Dolphins, Marcus Mariota, Tennessee Titans – at Buffalo Bills

Potential Drops – Ryan Fitzpatrick, Tampa Bay Buccaneers(definitely drop him)

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Running Back

T.J. Yeldon, Jacksonville Jaguars – at Kansas City Chiefs 

Yahoo – 49 percent  ESPN – 46.8 percent 

This really isn’t even about the opponent this upcoming week. It’s about Leonard Fournette not being able to stay healthy this season and when he is out, Yeldon is going to get the bulk of the work. Running back is terribly thin right now and Yeldon needs to be on your roster almost the rest of the way. He received 21 total touches in this past game and he didn’t even have a full game to get the workload. Seeing as how Fournette might be dealing with this hamstring for a while, Yeldon could be a key player for the next couple of weeks in the same style Gio Bernard has been.

Nyheim Hines, Indianapolis Colts – at New England Patriots

Yahoo – 14 percent   ESPN – 15.5 

You’re probably tired of me talking about Hines but it’s not my fault he’s so readily available. The Colts have a short week coming off a tough loss against a much superior opponent. The Patriots will be able to score at home and that’s going to put the game into Andrew Luck‘s hand again, just like this past week against the Texans. Hines saw double-digit targets and that might be an effect of not having Jack Doyle the past two weeks and T.Y. Hilton being in and out of this past game. Hilton is likely out and Doyle hasn’t suited up in the past two weeks. Seeing either of them in this game seems like a long shot. Hines might see close to double-digit targets again and he makes up for his lack upside on the ground. I wouldn’t expect two touchdowns again by any stretch but fantasy owners are desperate.

Ronald Jones, Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Bye Week

Yahoo – 24 percent    ESPN – 17.9 percent

This obviously isn’t for anyone that needs a back for Week 5, but rookie Ronald Jones finally found his way onto the field this week. Nothing really popped from his 11 touches but the Bucs spent a high pick on him and Peyton Barber has done nothing in the role. They need someone to seize the chance to be the lead back and Jones could be the man coming out of the bye week. Gettin Jameis Winston back might help the offense a little bit as well. It’s hard to tell what Jones might be capable of considering his first NFL action came on the road against a tough defense while getting blown out.

Mike Davis, Seattle Seahawks – vs Los Angeles Rams 

Yahoo – 2 percent     ESPN – 0.1 percent 

I wouldn’t go too crazy getting Davis on my roster. Chris Carson was a surprise inactive on Sunday and while some ran after Rashaad Penny, Davis was the one who handled the vast majority of the running back touches with 21 carries. He didn’t so anything to not deserve work this upcoming week if Carson is still out, since he went for over 100 yards and two touchdowns. My only fear this upcoming week would be a matchup against the Rams is terrifying. Los Angeles should be able to run wild over this Seattle defense and I wouldn’t want to have to rely on Davis in the passing game for points. He’s still worth trying to pick up as long as you understand there’s a chance he’s not going to be used at all.

Also Consider – Nick Chubb, Cleveland Browns – vs Baltimore Ravens, Tarik Cohen, Chicago Bears – Bye Week

Potential Drops – Alfred Morris, San Francisco 49ers, Rashaad Penny, Seattle Seahawks

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Wide Receiver

Keke Coutee, Houston Texans – vs Dallas Cowboys 

Yahoo – 3 percent        ESPN – 0.1 percent 

According to coach Bill O’Brien, Will Fuller has the chance to play Sunday after leaving this past week with a hamstring injury. It would be wise to consider him questionable at best considering his history of injuries and that could mean the spotlight will be on Coutee as a running mate to DeAndre Hopkins. Now, Dallas has been fairly stout against wide receivers so far but the Lions just had three receivers go over 50 yards. We know that the Texans offense is concentrated in the passing game and then even further between two players, Hopkins and usually Fuller. Coutee stepped right in this past week and saw 15 targets opposite Hopkins. That type of volume is likely unsustainable considering Dallas plays at such a slow pace but 8-10 targets is perfectly reasonable in this spot.

Taywan Taylor, Tennessee Titans – at Buffalo Bills

Yahoo – 3 percent     ESPN – 3.9 percent

Corey Davis deservedly got the headlines from this game with a monster performance but you shouldn’t overlook Taylor on this team either. It was very encouraging to see Marcus Mariota go over 300 yards passing and run the ball as well. If he’s back, the Titans offense has no pass catchers of note past Davis and Dion Lewis. Rishard Matthews had an abrupt divorce from the team and Delanie Walker is lost for the season with an injury. Taylor has seen his snap percentage rise every single week this year and found himself over 60 percent in Week 4. In addition, Taylor is approaching a 16 percent market share in targets. It’s a solid week for receivers that are widely available and Taylor might slide through the cracks for various reasons.

Taylor Gabriel, Chicago Bears – Bye Week 

Yahoo – 6 percent     ESPN – 6.6 percent

Through the first four weeks, the Bears leading player in targets is Allen Robinson. That’s not very surprising but what is surprising is Gabriel is a scant three targets off the lead. He’s far and away the second receiver as far as snap percentages, never dipping under 75 percent in four games. He’s been a bit of a security blanket for Mitchell Trubisky and while you almost certainly just missed his most productive game of the season, he’s going to be a part of this offense. The targets have never been below five in any game and the bye weeks are coming. Sure, you have to sit on him this week but grabbing players that have already had their bye week can be a big advantage in the upcoming weeks.

Dede Westbrook, Jacksonville Jaguars – at Kansas City Chiefs 

Yahoo – 13 percent     ESPN – 12.4 percent

Is trying to pick which Jaguars receiver each week like trying to hit a bullseye on a dart board? It sure is but this matchup for Week 5 makes me think that there’s plenty of work to go around. As we touched on in the Bortles part of this article, the Kansas City defense has just been putrid. Westbrook is just over 66 percent as far as snaps and he’s now the leader in targets on the Jacksonville team. The odds of Leonard Fournette being ready to go in this one seem iffy at best with another hamstring injury and Bortles has been so much better when Fournette is out. Despite his flop against Tennessee in the last game Fournette missed, Bortles is averaging about six extra points when he’s out. If Bortles plays that much better, Westbrook could be in line for a big day.

Also Consider – Ryan Grant, Indianapolis Colts – at New England Patriots, Mohamed Sanu, Atlanta Falcons – at Pittsburgh Steelers, Donte Moncrief, Jacksonville Jaguars – at Kansas City Chiefs

Potential Drops – Chris Hogan, New England Patriots, Kenny Stills, Miami Dolphins

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Tight End

Vance McDonald, Pittsburgh Steelers – vs Atlanta Falcons 

Yahoo – 43 percent     ESPN – 31.3 percent 

I try not to toot my own horn very often but if you needed tight end help, I hope you read the Saturday Stash column because McDonald had a second straight good game. He’s seen five targets in three straight games and that’s basically gold for the tight end position right now. McDonald also has the advantage of playing in an offense that features Antonio Brown and JuJu Smith-Schuster so he’s never going to see heavy coverage. The great thing from this game is his snaps spiked over 60 percent for the first time all season. Against an Atlanta defense, he could have a monster game this upcoming week and will be an every week starter as long as he’s healthy.

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After McDonald, there’s not a lot to love here. There are players to chase but maybe not the best options. Let’s run down the list a little quicker.

Tyler Kroft, Cincinnati Bengals – He’ll be popular with the unfortunate injury to Tyler Efiert, but it’s important to note that his snaps have dropped every week and he’s behind CJ Uzomah in targets as well. He’s not the slam dunk option I thought he might be.

Cameron Brate, Tampa Bay Buccaneers – O.J. Howard is due to be out for at least a couple of weeks but Brate is going to be on a bye this week and is in a loaded offense. Howard could potentially be back by the time the Bucs are back in action so he’s a tough add for this week.

Austin Hooper, Atlanta Falcons – This would likely be a one week solution as Hooper is fourth in line for targets behind three different receivers. However, he’s in a game that should shoot out and the Steelers have given up the most points to tight ends in football.

Ricky Seals-Jones, Arizona Cardinals – This wouldn’t be comfortable but he is seeing a few targets a game and Josh Rosen seems willing to throw the ball a little more than Sam Bradford was. Larry Fitzgerald being hurt is shifting this offense and I don’t really trust the targets to stick after he is.

Geoff Swaim, Dallas Cowboys – It’s gross to consider any passing game options in Dallas but that’s a double-edged sword. Someone other than Ezekiel Elliott has to be a weapon in this offense. Swaim has started to emerge as a potential option. He’s been over 90 percent snaps in every game and has seen five and seven targets, posting either five receptions or one touchdown in both.

Stay tuned to Fantasy CPR for all the latest DFS news and Fantasy Football analysis all season long.