Now that we are four weeks into the season, fantasy football managers are starting to get an idea of which players need to be in lineups and which need to be on the bench. However, matchups remain essential to lineup decisions. Let’s take a look at our Week 5 start ’em and sit ’em plays.
NFL Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em for Week 5: Quarterbacks
Which QBs should you start and sit in Week 5?
Start ‘Em | Sam Darnold, Carolina Panthers (vs. PHI)
Occasionally, losing can be a positive. In Week 1, the Cowboys lost to the Bucs, but it was overall a positive because they were very much competitive in a game that could’ve been a rout. In Week 4, it was a similar experience for Sam Darnold and the Panthers.
The fact that the Panthers were competitive and Darnold looked good against a better than expected Cowboys defense is encouraging. Darnold threw for 301 yards against Dallas, his third consecutive 300-yard passing game. He finished as the overall QB1 in fantasy last week.
On the other hand, the Eagles are fresh off getting torched by Patrick Mahomes. Of course, Darnold is not Mahomes, but the conclusion to draw is the Eagles are not an imposing matchup. Add in the fact that Darnold is getting it done on the ground as well (he leads the league with 5 rushing scores), and it makes Darnold a must-start this week.
Sit ‘Em | Baker Mayfield, Cleveland Browns (@ LAC)
I know what you’re probably thinking — this is an easy one. Baker Mayfield isn’t even good. There’s a lot going on in Cleveland that’s led to Mayfield’s extremely slow start to the season.
Prior to last week, the most critical factor in Mayfield’s lack of fantasy points was touchdown variance. Through four weeks, the Browns have scored 9 touchdowns on the ground and just 2 through the air. That scoring ratio is unsustainable.
With that said, it was recently revealed that Mayfield is playing through a torn labrum in his left shoulder. It’s clearly impacting his accuracy. So we have a run-heavy offense, a QB with accuracy issues, and a smothering pass defense allowing the fourth-fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks. All of that adds up to Mayfield being on the bench in Week 5 fantasy lineups.
Running Backs
Which RBs are we starting, and who are we sitting in Week 5?
Start ‘Em | Leonard Fournette, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (vs. MIA)
The Miami Dolphins allow running backs to rush for 123 yards per game against them. They’ve given up the third-most fantasy points to opposing running backs. Furthermore, no team has allowed more 20-plus-yard rushes than Miami’s 5.
Last week, with Giovani Bernard out, Leonard Fournette was used as a true three-down back. He played 82% of the snaps, handled 20 carries, and saw 5 targets. The only chinks in Fournette’s armor heading into Week 5 are the fact that Ronald Jones stole a rushing touchdown last week, and Bernard is set to return.
Regardless, it’s difficult to envision Bruce Arians seeing what Fournette did last week and marginalizing him in favor of the other two. Fournette has been a high-end RB3 on the season without scoring a touchdown. That will change, and I’m betting it changes this week. Fire up Uncle Lenny in a dream matchup.
Sit ‘Em | Myles Gaskin, Miami Dolphins (@TB)
For the sit of the week, we go to the other side of this game. Myles Gaskin was a seventh-round pick that had all of 133 rushing yards his rookie year before surprisingly breaking out as a sophomore. Although a popular fade amongst fantasy analysts, Gaskin’s projected status as the Dolphins’ lead back prevented him from falling too far in 2021 fantasy drafts.
Here we are in Week 5, and all of the fears about how it could go wrong for Gaskin are coming to fruition. Replacement-level talents with Day 3 draft capital have an uphill battle. The slightest misstep could spell doom for their NFL future. Or sometimes, coaches just change their minds because they can.
Gaskin was drafted purely based on situation and opportunity. The situation is now worse, and based on Week 4, the opportunity is gone. Gaskin carried the ball just 2 times for 3 yards last week. He played 23% of the snaps and appears to have lost his job to Malcolm Brown.
This week, the Dolphins face a pass-funnel defense in a Bucs team allowing the seventh-fewest fantasy points to RBs. Not only is Gaskin an easy sit, but he very well may be a drop when the week is up.
NFL Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em for Week 5: Wide Receivers
With the WR position deeper than ever for fantasy football, start ’em or sit ’em decisions for Week 5 are invariably matchup-dependent.
Start ‘Em | Emmanuel Sanders, Buffalo Bills (@ KC)
Emmanuel Sanders really is my top start of the week. I’m setting myself up for embarrassment if he doesn’t produce, but I’m very confident he will. Sanders’ peripherals remain strong, and the matchup is excellent.
This Sunday night’s Bills-Chiefs matchup lays claim to the highest over/under of the weekend at 56.5 points. We are going to enjoy a cornucopia of points, and Josh Allen cannot throw every pass to Stefon Diggs.
That sets up Sanders, the clear WR2 in this offense, to smash. The 34-year-old is still very good at football and has seen exactly 6 targets in three straight games. He’s caught 5 passes in two straight and posted receiving yardage totals of 74 and 94.
Last week, Sanders was productive in spite of the Bills not needing to throw more than 29 times in a 40-0 shutout of the Texans. I would be stunned if Allen didn’t reach 40 pass attempts this week against a Chiefs defense surrendering the second-most fantasy points per game to quarterbacks.
If Allen is scoring points, then so are his pass catchers, namely Diggs and Sanders. The latter continues to barely be ranked as a weekly WR3 despite being the WR25 on the season, scoring just 2 fantasy points fewer than DeAndre Hopkins. Sanders should probably be in lineups every week but definitely needs to be in your lineup this week.
Sit ‘Em | Allen Robinson, Chicago Bears (@ LV)
I don’t know what’s going on with Allen Robinson. Nothing about how he looks suggests any drop-off in talent. Unfortunately, there’s been a serious drop-off in usage and production. Robinson saw 11 targets in Week 1. Since then, he’s seen a total of 13, and he’s averaging just 37.25 receiving yards per game.
This week, Robinson will likely face off against Casey Hayward, who held Mike Williams to just 1 reception for 11 yards last Monday night. At this point, fantasy managers simply cannot start Robinson until we see something.
It feels like Robinson will inevitably have a big game, and it’s going to be frustrating to see it happen on the bench. However, when anyone is this bad for this long, we have to adjust. Robinson is torpedoing fantasy lineups every week. He has to show us production before we let him back in a starting roster spot.
