For this week’s Fantasy Football Mailbag, I had this nice introduction already written out, talking about the changing landscape at the wide receiver position. But then the Atlanta Falcons passing game finally emerged on Thursday Night Football and Kyle Pitts caught seven of eight targets for 88 yards. 

While he didn’t get into the end zone, he still posted 15.8 points in PPR formats and my immediate thought, after going through the countless early-week questions about dropping Pitts in favor of guys like Tucker Kraft and Cade Otton was, “how’d that taste?”

 

 

 

Throughout the preseason I recommended drafting yourself a top-five tight end. Yes, the early pick had some risk, but the top-five stood head and shoulders above the rest of the tight end field and even guys like Pitts or Evan Engram, who were ranked sixth and seventh on my board, had the potential to provide you with an advantage over those who waited on the position. Many followed suit, and after the first four weeks of the season, the angry mob was at the gates with torches and pitchforks in-hand.

Throughout all the negativity, I haven’t wavered from my preseason thoughts and Pitts’ performance last night is exactly why. Your expectations of what you were going to see through the first few weeks were way out-of-whack. Did you think the top tight ends were going to give you 100 yards and a score each week? Come on. 

I get the frustration with a guy like Mark Andrews, but Sam LaPorta and Trey McBride got hurt, something that can happen to anyone, Travis Kelce worked through double coverage to finally have a strong game and Pitts, who also found the end zone in Week 1, gave you a strong ceiling game for the tight end position.

My advice to everyone has been – you take the bad with the good. No tight end goes off every week. Heck, no one at any position goes off every single week. But you stick with the player because of his talent, his role in the offense and the stronger upside to out-perform others at his position. 

Yes, you’re going to get bad games from Pitts and the rest, but you’re also going to get great games like we saw last night that you’re going to miss trying to play Tight End Roulette each week.

We’ll see how Week 5 plays out, but for all of you who watched Pitts score more than 15 points for your bench, tell me how you feel after Kraft fails to see the same nine targets he saw last week. Tell me how many points you won by having Otten in your lineups instead. 

At some point, you’re going to learn that football is a game of match-ups and what you see one week doesn’t always happen again the following week. Stop chasing yesterday’s points. You’re not doing your fantasy playoff chances any favors here.

Now let’s get to some of the Week 5 questions.

 

 

 

NFL Week 5 Fantasy Football Advice: Start/Sit, Waivers & Trades

Brian K. Is Wondering...

Some very interesting options here and thanks for giving me the scoring format too. Amazing how few people remember to do that. 

Let’s start with Rhamondre Stevenson as the latest reports have head coach Jerod Mayo saying that he’s considering starting Antonio Gibson over Stevenson this Sunday against the Dolphins. The phrase that pays is “ball security is job security,” and Stevenson’s fumbles in four-straight games obviously has his coach on the brink. 

But while the easy way out is to say Stevenson is toast this week, you also have to ask yourself if this is a motivational comment. Gibson could get the start but does that mean Stevenson isn’t going to touch the ball against a defense that ranks 26h against the run and has allowed almost 120 rushing yards per game and seven rushing touchdowns? We’ve seen coaches do it before, so you have to take that into account here.

Next is Wicks, the guy Big Fantasy has been pushing on us for years. While easy drops have been an issue, the one thing we’ve routinely said is that it’s not that we don’t like the player; it’s that he is behind three receivers on the depth chart. But now that path has been cleared with the injury to Christian Watson and Wicks not only caught two touchdowns last week, but he also saw 13 targets. 

The Packers are taking on the Rams this week and that pass defense is insanely soft. So is their run defense and we expect big things from Josh Jacobs, but Jordan Love is going to be throwing heavily as well. We know the roles of each of the Packers receivers, so it looks like we can expect another strong performance from Wicks. Maybe not two touchdowns again, but still a good option here.

And then there’s Shaheed who was a fantasy stud through the first two weeks, a ghost in Week 3 and then a solid performer last week. Does he maintain this week or does he vanish again like a fart in the wind? 

The Saints move their receivers all over the field, so it’s not like there’s one particular match-up to exploit. Chamarri Conner plays the slot for the Chiefs and he’s probably their weakest cover guy, at least according to Pro Football Focus, but Shaheed only lines up there about 26-percent of the time. 

He’ll see Jalen Watson and Trent McDuffie most of the time and while he’s got the speed to beat both, in a PPR format, you still want to see more targets and opportunities. Not to mention, the best way to beat Patrick Mahomes is to keep him off the field, so I expect the Saints to still try and run at them.

Again, three solid options, but I think I would just take that waiver wire investment you made with Wicks and put it to work for yourself. There’s too much risk with Stevenson, should Gibson actually perform, and the boom-or-bust nature of Shaheed has me looking more towards Wicks in a game with a high implied point total and an absolutely horrendous defense.

 

 

 

David D. Asks...

Every time I see Doubs’ name listed, my instinct is to gravitate towards him. He’s the guy the Packers use to move the chains and so few people actually understand his role in the offense or his value in a full-point PPR format. But while I will happily use Doubs in DFS this week, I am going to tilt towards the rookie, Legette. With Adam Thielen on IR, Legette steps in as the Panthers’ No. 2 receiver and a big downfield threat. 

He saw 10 targets last week with a 6.6 YPT so it’s clear Dave Canales likes to utilize him in multiple ways. His size and speed are also key in this match-up against this Bears secondary, He’s bigger and faster than any of their corners and while top guy Jaylon Johnson will spend most of his time against Diontae Johnson, Legette should have advantageous match-ups through this game.

As for Atwell, he’s a solid guy and obviously has the trust of Matthew Stafford, but he, like Shaheed, is a boom-or-bust guy. He’s an undersized field-stretcher who is definitely capable of coming up with a big play, but in full-point PPR, I’m going with a guy who should see significantly more targets. As Coop always says, if you really want a piece of Atwell in this match-up against the Packers, use him in a GPP tournament on FanDuel or DraftKings.

David S. Wants To Know...

What I love most about this question and potential trade is that David here is doing EXACTLY what you’re supposed to do – trade from strength. While Mixon might miss this week’s game (we’ll have to check in with Friday practice reports), David here is still well-covered at the running back position should he trade Moss. 

Jacobs and Hunt are both solid starts this week and once Mixon does return, he is still left with three potential RB1s, depending on how things finish up for Hunt. And even if Hunt sits in a time-share, Bucky Irving and Nick Chubb are two reserves I would happily go to war with against anyone.

Worthy has the potential to be a game-changer now that Rashee Rice is out. We are trying to sift through the rest of the Chiefs’ receivers to see who will see an increase in snaps and targets, but the one thing we do know is that Worthy has already established himself as a top option in this offense. 

Make this move, David. I think it’s a great opportunity. I love Moss and believe he will remain the RB1 in Cincinnati, but you could be landing a no-brainer, every-week starter in Worthy.

 

 

 

Fantasy Football Week 5 - NFL 2024

If you’re new here, welcome! Be sure to send in your questions before the end of the Thursday Night Football game so I have time to pick through them all. 

I try to select questions concerning some of the most-asked about players so that I can offer a broader answer that others with similar questions can use in their decision-making process. 

If you would like to submit weekly questions for the Mailbag, you can find me and the rest of the team in the Fantasy Alarm Discord (just be sure to tag me or send a private DM) or feel free to email me at rotobuzzguy@gmail.com.

Here's to a successful Week 5!