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Those who enjoy seeking out matchups as a means to start or sit players in NFL fantasy leagues received a mixed bag on the Week 5 edition of Thursday Night Football.
There, in what should have been another strong performance for New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, he only managed 13.62 points, the second-lowest total of his season so far. Those who took a bigger risk on Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston came out with 18.46 points.
It goes to show name recognition isn't everything in fantasy, a tone Kareem Hunt set in Week 1. Now the focus shifts to the rest of Week 5, where several notable matchups help shuffle around the rankings and projections.
Week 5 Schedule
Arizona at Philadelphia
Buffalo at Cincinnati
Carolina at Detroit
Jacksonville at Pittsburgh
L.A. Chargers at N.Y. Giants
N.Y. Jets at Cleveland
San Francisco at Indianapolis
Tennessee at Miami
Baltimore at Oakland
Seattle at L.A. Rams
Green Bay at Dallas
Kansas City at Houston
Minnesota at Chicago
Quarterbacks
Player Projected Points Aaron Rodgers 25 Matthew Stafford 24 Deshaun Watson 21 Dak Prescott 19 Russell Wilson 18 Andy Dalton 18 Cam Newton 17 Carson Palmer 17 Eli Manning 16 Jared Goff 14 Philip Rivers 14 Alex Smith 12 Carson Wentz 12 Tyrod Taylor 12 Ben Roethlisberger 12 Author's projections. *If he plays.
Again, names and statuses don't mean everything.
Look at Houston Texans rookie quarterback Deshaun Watson up there with the rest of the big names. Some will balk at the rookie status, but Watson has been on absolute fire over the past two weeks, scoring 22.14 and 34.72 points.
At home, Watson might land somewhere between those numbers, if not perhaps higher if a game against the Kansas City Chiefs turns into a shootout. In a showdown of Offensive Rookie of the Year candidates between Watson and Hunt, the versatile former should have a huge day.
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Less versatile but no less notable this week is Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton. Owners had wondered how he would look under the direction of a new offensive coordinator, but he put on a display in Week 4 with a 28.34-point outburst.
Dalton next gets the Buffalo Bills, a team that has looked good against quarterbacks so far but had the benefit of playing against Josh McCown and Trevor Siemian, not to mention Cam Newton while he was in a slump.
With the Bengals' season on the line and Buffalo not having anyone who can run with A.J. Green, fans can expect a big day.
Running Backs
Player Projected Points Le'Veon Bell 23 Kareem Hunt 21 Ezekiel Elliott 20 Todd Gurley 18 Melvin Gordon 17 Marshawn Lynch 16 Carlos Hyde* 15 LeSean McCoy 14 Jay Ajayi 13 Leonard Fournette 12 Jordan Howard 12 DeMarco Murray 12 Bilal Powell 12 Ameer Abdullah 11 Joe Mixon 11 Christian McCaffrey 11 Lamar Miller 10 Frank Gore 10 LeGarrette Blount 10 Duke Johnson 10 Latavius Murray 9 Isaiah Crowell 9 Tarik Cohen 8 Derrick Henry 8 Thomas Rawls 8 Author's projections. *If he plays.
It's downright impossible not to rave about Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell this week.
Bell exploded for 144 yards and two touchdowns, good for 30.6 points, in Week 4. It was an apology to owners after three consecutive dud showings to start the year.
Next comes a Week 5 matchup with the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jaguars are still the Jaguars in some ways, permitting the third-most points to opposing backs on average. The unit let Bilal Powell run for 163 yards on the way to 25 points, so Bell should feast for one of his bigger days of the season.
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Then there's Marshawn Lynch.
The Oakland Raiders' lead back hasn't hit above 10.9 points so far this season, yet he might have one of his best days of the year outright against the Baltimore Ravens.
With starting quarterback Derek Carr out, Lynch will be the focal point of the attack against a Ravens unit coughing up the fifth-most points to opposing backs.
Wide Receivers
Player Projected Points Odell Beckham Jr.* 18 Jordy Nelson 18 A.J. Green 16 Antonio Brown 16 Tyreek Hill 15 DeAndre Hopkins 14 Stefon Diggs 14 Larry Fitzgerald 14 Dez Bryant 13 Keenan Allen 13 Doug Baldwin 12 T.Y. Hilton IND 12 Devante Parker 11 Golden Tate 11 Pierre Garcon 11 Randall Cobb 11 Adam Thielen 10 Alshon Jeffery 10 Jarvis Landry 10 Rishard Matthews 10 Kelvin Benjamin* 9 Amari Cooper 9 Devin Funchess 8 Tyrell Williams 8 Sammy Watkins* 8 Martavis Bryant 8 Jeremy Maclin 8 Jaron Brown 8 Marvin Jones 7 Brandon Marshall 7 Author's projections. *If he plays.
Few options are as reliable as Green Bay Packers wideout Jordy Nelson each week.
Nelson has a minimum of 13.9 points in every game and enters Week 5 off his best performance—a two-touchdown offering for 19.5 points—and it doesn't seem like he's done yet.
Owners can thank a matchup against the Dallas Cowboys this week. It sounds bad on first pass, but Dallas hasn't lived up to expectations this year and the unit coughs up the 11th-most points on average to opposing wideouts with five touchdowns allowed already. Nelson, with Aaron Rodgers slinging him the ball, shouldn't have any problems.
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Reliable hasn't been a fitting word for Arizona Cardinals wideout Larry Fitzgerald this season, not with a low of 2.1 points and a peak of 20.9. Usage hasn't been reliable either, with him receiving 13 targets over two total games, as well as target games of 13 and 15 looks.
Still, there is big, big reason for hope with the veteran this week thanks to a game against the Philadelphia Eagles—owners of the defense allowing the fourth-most points to opposing wideouts so far.
The unit has coughed up four receiving touchdowns to the position over the last two games alone, so rest assured Carson Palmer and the coaches are dialing up a big day for Fitzgerald.
Tight Ends
Player Projected Points Travis Kelce 13 Charles Clay 12 Delanie Walker 11 Zach Ertz 10 Hunter Henry 10 Jared Cook 8 Jason Witten 8 Martellus Bennett 8 Kyle Rudolph 7 Jimmy Graham 7 Evan Engram 6 Author's projections. *If he plays.
Bills tight end Charles Clay is at it again.
Clay, after about 11 points in the opener followed by two single-digit outings, went for another 11 in Week 4, setting up nicely for a date against those Bengals.
Cincinnati is notorious in the fantasy realm for coughing up big points to opposing tight ends. It hasn't happened this year yet, but it wasn't going to against an opponent list of Nick Boyle, Lance Kendricks and Seth DeValve.
Clay is unlike those other names because he's a big threat on every down, something a Bills team struggling with injuries at wideout will look to exploit.
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Speaking of exploiting, let's keep targeting these soft NFC East defenses by highlighting Hunter Henry against the New York Giants.
The Los Angeles Chargers tight end scored a touchdown in Week 4 as he continues to emerge as a big threat. He hasn't scored more than eight points in a game so far, but that should change against a Giants defense surrendering the most points to the position on average.
Defense/Special Teams
Unit Projected Points Minnesota Vikings 12 Pittsburgh Steelers 10 Seattle Seahawks 9 Tennessee Titans 9 New York Jets 8 Kansas City Chiefs 7 Buffalo Bills 7 Baltimore Ravens 6 Philadelphia Eagles 6 Cincinnati Bengals 6 Author's projections.
Other than the obvious, the Tennessee Titans are one of the best plays of the week thanks to a great matchup against the hapless Miami Dolphins.
Those Dolphins allow the third-most points to opposing defenses on average, and it isn't hard to see why—a Week 4, 20-0 loss against a beatable New Orleans Saints defense saw Jay Cutler throw for 164 yards and an interception.
The Titans have eight sacks and three interceptions on the year, numbers set to get a healthy boost as the Dolphins still try to figure out how to run a respectable offense.
Kickers
Player Projected Points Dan Bailey 12 Mason Crosby 10 Jake Elliott 9 Aldrick Rosas 9 Chris Boswell 8 Graham Gano 7 Justin Tucker 7 Greg Zuerlein 6 Matt Prater 6 Adam Vinatieri 6 Author's projections.
Aldrick Rosas of the Giants doesn't classify as a household name by any means.
But he could resonate with owners after Week 5, where he gets an easy matchup against the Chargers—the team allowing the second-most points to opposing kickers so far, including outings of 15 and 19 points.
Granted, Rosas has yet to hit the double-digit mark this year, but the Giants aren't scoring much, meaning he should see plenty of chances to post one of the week's bigger performances.
All scoring info, points-against info and ownership stats courtesy of Yahoo standard leagues.