Fantasy football 2024: One QB, RB, WR and TE primed for huge Week 5 performances

Week 4 of NFL action is now behind us, which means that it’s time to look ahead to Week 5, and not to look back at Week 4 and the huge miss we had with Devin Singletary.

Okay — I guess since I mentioned it, I gotta talk about it. Everything was aligned for a big game from Singletary in Week 4. He had full control of the Giants backfield. He was playing a defense that had been consistently destroyed by opposing running backs. And in the end, Singletary finished with 14 carries for a season-low 24 yards. Ouch.

But we move on, because there’s nowhere to move but forward, right? Let’s take a look at one player at each skill position who is set to have a strong 2024 Week 5 performance for fantasy football.

Quarterback: Jordan Love - Green Bay Packers

Despite losing Christian Watson to injury early in the team’s Week 4 loss to Minnesota, the rest of the team’s receivers stepped up and allowed Jordan Love to have a very strong showing. After missing two games, Love returned and threw for 389 yards and four touchdowns in a 31-29 loss. He was picked off three times, but overall Love’s numbers were still really strong for fantasy managers.

Up next, Love takes on a Rams defense that’s largely struggled against the pass this season. The team managed to hold Caleb Williams to 157 yards last week, but that was more about the Bears than it was about the Rams, as Williams was still 17-for-23 in the game. The Bears just leaned more on the run game.

The Rams have just one interception all season and are averaging less than two sacks per game. This is a defense that Love can exploit, especially if Dontayvion Wicks and Jayden Reed play like they did in Week 4 when the two combined for three touchdown receptions. Wicks looks like a potential breakout with Watson sidelined while Reed has over 100 receiving yards in both games that Love has played.

Running Back: D’Andre Swift - Chicago Bears

Last season with the Eagles, D’Andre Swift rushed for over 1,000 yards. When he signed with the Bears this offseason, hopes were high that Swift would make a major impact in Chicago this season as the Bears tried to surround rookie QB Caleb Williams with talent.

After the first three games, that wasn’t really the case. Offensive line issues prevented Swift from getting much running room and he never even reached 50 scrimmage yards over any of those contests.

But Swift exploded in Week 4 against the Rams, going for 165 scrimmage yards and finding the end zone for the first time all season. I’m not sitting here assuming that every issue with the Chicago run game is suddenly fixed, but I do feel a big sigh of relief about what Swift was able to do in this contest.

Now, he gets a Week 5 matchup with the Carolina Panthers, another defense he should be able to perform well against. Carolina has allowed more fantasy points to opposing running backs than any other team, allowing 505 yards and six touchdowns on the ground to the position as well as 18 catches for 129 yards and a score. This is a perfect week for Swift to continue his resurgence.

Wide Receiver: Xavier Worthy - Kansas City Chiefs

The Kansas City Chiefs are the unluckiest two-time defending Super Bowl champions ever. I mean, I guess John Elway retired after the Broncos won back-to-back Super Bowls and the team went 6-10 the next season, but that was a planned retirement — it wasn’t a team that opened the year in good shape and then went through so many injuries that suddenly the team doesn’t even really have a No. 1 wide receiver.

The Chiefs need someone to step up this week against the Saints. It could be anyone, but if you’re looking for the most likely candidate, you have to look at rookie Xavier Worthy.

Worthy hasn’t been peppered with targets this season, but he has been getting decent opportunities, with 12 targets over the past three games. He’s also flashed his big-play upside, scoring three touchdowns this season, with two as a receiver and one on a rushing play.

There’s no one with game-breaking speed like Worthy on this Chiefs roster, and this week he gets a Saint defense that has allowed 654 receiving yards to the wide receiver position, the seventh-most in the NFL this season.

Patrick Mahomes is going to want to work on getting the ball into Worthy’s hands now that Rashee Rice is sidelined. The Chiefs have some solid receivers like Justin Watson and JuJu Smith-Schuster, but Worthy is by far the most talented healthy receiver on this roster. Expect a season-high in targets for the former Texas Longhorn.

Tight End: Evan Engram - Jacksonville Jaguars

This one comes with a pretty big caveat, as Evan Engram has missed the past three games with a hamstring injury. For him to be a top fantasy play this week, he has to be on the field, which is obvious, I know, but it’s got to be stated.

But if the Jaguars do have Engram back, I love this matchup for him, as the Jaguars face a Colts team that has allowed the second-most fantasy points to opposing tight ends this season, giving up 24 catches for 226 yards and two touchdowns.

Last year, Engram had the best season of his NFL career, as he was targeted 143 times and caught 114 of those for 963 yards and four touchdowns. Trevor Lawrence loves getting the ball to Engram.

And while the Jaguars are a little more complicated this year after adding Gabe Davis and Brian Thomas Jr., I don’t think they eat into a healthy Engram’s production too much. Davis has had a couple of poor weeks in a row, with just three total catches over the last two games. Thomas has seen his role grow, but there should still be room for Engram to make an impact on this Jaguars offense.