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    Jaguars Start-Sit: Week 5 Fantasy Advice for Tank Bigsby, Travis Etienne Jr., Brian Thomas Jr., Christian Kirk, and Others

    In Week 5, the Jacksonville Jaguars will host the Indianapolis Colts. Here's all the fantasy football advice you need to determine whether you should start or sit these players on the Colts.

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    The Jacksonville Jaguars will host the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday in Week 5. The spread currently stands at Jaguars -2.5, with a game total of 46. The Colts’ implied points are 21.8, and the Jaguars’ implied points are 24.3.

    Here’s fantasy football start-sit advice for every Jaguars skill player who has the potential to make an impact during the game.

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    Trevor Lawrence, QB

    These days, it’s rare to see the Jaguars broken down (be it on TV, a podcast, or otherwise) without mention of Lawrence’s losing streak. Yes, things have been a mess, there’s no avoiding that, but we live in a fantasy world where every week is the most important of the season, regardless of what the NFL standings say.

    Lawrence completed at least two-thirds of his passes with multiple scores in both games against these Colts a season ago, a level of success that I think is well within the range of outcomes for Sunday. The numbers aren’t pretty this season (53.3% completion percentage with under 180 passing yards in three of four games), but he’s missed on a handful of bombs that could have been plays worth 5-7 fantasy points.

    Those misses are, of course, on Lawrence, but we have seen him connect on those attempts in the past; against the seventh-worst defense in terms of yards per pass, we could get a spike week for the NFL’s QB3 in terms of average depth of throw.

    Lawrence is hovering around QB15 in my rankings. He isn’t someone I’d plug in over your current option in season-long formats, but I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if his name is highlighted on some big-money DFS builds.

    Travis Etienne Jr., RB

    Was he really hurt last week?

    The broadcast credited a shoulder injury for Etienne’s lack of usage, but he seemed to be deprioritized from the jump, and that’s a terrifying thought in an offense that is struggling to create advantageous situations.

    Etienne was drafted as the RB8 this summer but has yet to finish a single week this season better than RB19. He’s no longer a lineup lock given the explosive potential that we’ve seen from Tank Bigsby and Jacksonville’s indifference to getting him work, but he remains just inside of my top 20 this week in a game that I expect to be tight throughout.

    Tank Bigsby, RB

    Bigsby handled the first carry for the Jags last week and again was ripping off chunk plays. For the season, he’s only been handed the ball 21 times, but he’s managed to pick up 172 yards, fueling committee talk for the final winless team in the NFL.

    A lack of versatility is going to cap Bigsby’s upside (and the downside of Etienne). His impact on our game might not be for himself but to completely negate our confidence in Etienne.

    For now, Etienne is a fringe starter while Bigsby is a stash, but almost nothing from this backfield would surprise me this weekend, and that’s an uncomfortable spot to be.

    Brian Thomas Jr., WR

    Malik Nabers’ excellence and Marvin Harrison Jr.’s splash plays have masked what BTJ is doing – he’s been a top-25 producer at the position in three of four weeks this season. While I love the player, he does boast some limitations on the route-running front, and I fear that this is a tough matchup for a player like that.

    The Colts are one of five defenses that have yet to allow a deep touchdown pass, and if we remove that upside from Thomas’ profile, he’s a risky Flex at best. I do expect this passing game to have some success, I’m just not sure it comes courtesy of their future WR1 …

    Christian Kirk, WR

    Are Kirk managers allowed to complain about a 7-61-1 stat line against the Texans last week?

    Probably not. Getting a WR14 finish from a member of this underwhelming Jaguars offense is a net win, but after seeing the first four targets of the game and being missed on a long touchdown, there were points left on the field.

    I worry a little bit about the Colts allowing the fifth-fewest yards after the catch per reception this season (3.4 yards), but Kirk’s role has been extending with time (9.7 aDOT in 2022, 10.7 last season, and 13.2 so far in 2024), making a defensive strength like that less impactful.

    The increase in depth of target hasn’t come at the expense of slot usage. In fact, Kirk’s 78.7% slot rate is tracking for the highest rate of his career and is very much a spot where Indianapolis’ secondary is vulnerable.

    Slot WRs’ success vs. Colts, 2024:

    • Week 1: Stefon Diggs (21.9 fantasy points, 55.2% slot usage)
    • Week 3: Rome Odunze (23.4 fantasy points, 41% slot usage)

    They got the Malik Willis-led Packers in Week 2, a run-oriented script that had little to do with the Colts. Last week, the Steelers didn’t feature any one player in the slot, but their two top pass catchers (George Pickens and Pat Freiermuth) combined to catch five of six slot targets for 87 yards and a touchdown.

    Kirk sits as a WR2 for me this week, ranking ahead of the streaking Diontae Johnson and the upside of Thomas.

    Evan Engram, TE

    The 2023 Pro Bowler came up lame during warmups ahead of Week 2 and has now missed three consecutive games due to that hamstring injury. This is all after essentially being invisible in the season opener against the Dolphins (one catch for five yards).

    Safe to say, it hasn’t been a banner season for those who targeted the middle tier at the tight end position (or really anyone who spent anything at all to address TE). The Jaguars don’t go on bye until Week 12, which means that Engram will have to work through this injury within the cadence of a normal schedule — something that, based on reporting out of Jacksonville, seems to be nearing.

    As things stand on Sunday morning, Engram is considered a long shot to play, so if you are planning to start him, do so with caution.

    Through a month, it’s clear that this offense is lacking a go-to option, and that’s enough to assume that Engram is a fantasy starter the second he returns to the field. These soft-tissue injuries introduce in-game risk because they can flare up at a moment’s notice, but that’s a risk I’m willing to take at this position — particularly in a matchup where he caught all 12 of his targets a season ago.

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