Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen to Week 5 of the 2022 NFL season!
There’s a lot of injury updates and news to sort through and some key players are going to be out today. If you have questions – and I know you do – make sure that you’re tuning in to the Youtube Livestreams this morning over on The Fantasy Playbook Youtube Channel!
In the meantime, grab that cup of coffee, settle in, and let’s get the information we need to dominate our matchups here in Week 5!
The Injury Hub
Each week, you’ll find a section of the cheatsheet providing the latest injury updates to key players.
Kadarius Toney (OUT)
Wan’Dale Robinson (OUT)
Kenny Golladay (OUT)
D’Andre Swift (OUT)
Keenan Allen (OUT)
Kyle Pitts (OUT)
Michael Thomas (OUT)
Jahan Dotson (OUT)
Tua Tagovailoa (OUT)
Dawson Knox (OUT)
DJ Chark Jr (OUT)
Jamison Crowder (OUT)
Cameron Brate (OUT)
Laviska Shenault (OUT)
Dak Prescott (OUT)
Rashod Bateman (OUT)
Gus Edwards (OUT)
Jameis Winston (Doubtful)
Mac Jones (Doubtful)
Daniel Jones (Expected to Play)
Tyreek Hill (Expected to Play)
Amon-Ra St. Brown (Expected to Play)
Jaylen Waddle (Expected to Play)
David Montgomery (Expected to Play)
Jakobi Meyers (Expected to Play)
Russell Gage (Expected to Play)
Zay Jones (Expected to Play)
CeeDee Lamb (Expected to Play)
Tony Pollard (Expected to Play)
Rondale Moore (Expected to Play)
Tee Higgins (Expected to Play)
Hayden Hurst (Expected to Play)
Alvin Kamara (Expected to Play)
Jarvis Landry (Expected to Play)
Hunter Renfrow (Expected to Play)
TJ Hockenson (Game Time Decision)
Ken Walker (Game Time Decision)
Isaiah McKenzie (Game Time Decision)
Joshua Palmer (Game Time Decision)
Julio Jones (Game Time Decision)
Logan Thomas (Game Time Decision)
The Starts of the Week
Each week, you’ll find a section of the cheatsheet providing Kyle Yates’ Starts of the Week. These are released on Thursday on the podcast & on Youtube.
QB: Carson Wentz (Washington Commanders)
For QB, let’s talk about someone that I think you can roll out as a streamer this week and that’s Carson Wentz. I don’t like it whenever that phrase comes out of my mouth, but this is a very favorable matchup for opposing QBs. If you need a QB this week, Wentz is out there for you.
RB: Alvin Kamara (New Orleans Saints)
First player – and I’ll start somewhat near the top and then make sure to hit some players further down into the FLEX territory – is Alvin Kamara. We have not seen Kamara a ton this year with him battling this rib injury, but we need to remember the talent level. We play with very short memories in fantasy football and there are people who are completely ready to ship off Kamara after four weeks into the season. Don’t. Kamara’s reportedly planning to play this week and he gets a matchup against Seattle. The Seahawks are allowing the fourth most fantasy points per game to opposing RBs. They are allowing an insane 30.5 touches per game to RBs, 133.8 rushing yards per game and 5.3 yards per carry. On top of all that, they’re allowing 5.5 receptions per game to opposing RBs. This is quickly becoming a matchup that we need to target when considering RBs and Kamara is 4 spots higher in my rankings than the consensus and he’s at RB8 for me currently.
RB: Melvin Gordon (Denver Broncos)
The second player at RB that I’m higher on than consensus – which I was actually really surprised at – is Melvin Gordon for tonight’s (this was written on Thursday for the podcast) matchup. RB17 on the week for me and that’s currently six spots higher than consensus. We know the talent level of Gordon. We talked about him this off-season as one of the best insurance RBs in all of football and now that he has this backfield, we don’t want to rank him as anything more than a low-end RB2? The matchup isn’t as great as Alvin Kamara’s against the Seahawks with the Colts just allowing 3.1 yards per carry, but the volume’s going to be there and he’s going to unquestionably get the goal-line work. Latavius Murray isn’t stealing a ton of work away from Gordon after just signing two days ago and Mike Boone is nothing more than a 3rd down back. He has an excellent chance to find the end zone in this one and if you’ve been holding onto Gordon on your bench this whole time, you should be starting him here.
RB: Raheem Mostert (Miami Dolphins)
And for the final RB, let’s go a little bit further down the rankings to Raheem Mostert. He’s just at RB31 on the week for me, so he’s not someone that I believe you have to start. But the matchup’s one that we should take advantage of. The Jets tightened things up last week against Pittsburgh in the run defense department, but they were the last ranked team in Football Outsiders’ DVOA just one week before. Mostert’s coming off a game in which he just dominated the backfield touches with 15 carries and without Tua here, the Dolphins could look to lean even more on the ground game. He’s just a few spots back in consensus, but if I’ve got Mostert on my roster I’m considering him as a FLEX option in Week 5.
WR: Chris Godwin (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
Why is Chris Godwin at WR19 in consensus right now? He’s at WR14 for me and I might move him up higher than that by the time we get to rankings locking at 1:00. He had essentially zero limitations last week coming off of the hamstring injury and he gets to take on Atlanta. Tom Brady’s about to go scorched earth here and Godwin proved that he’s back to being a top-tier fantasy option when he’s out there. There’s a possibility that his ranking is due to the fact that he was limited in practice on Wedensday, but he should play here and he belongs in your starting lineups if you’ve got him.
WR: Curtis Samuel (Washington Commanders)
Curtis Samuel is going to be my next WR here and this has a lot to do with Jahan Dotson’s injury clearing up some of the target uncertainty in this offense. He’s still attached to Carson Wentz, so we have to be concerned with that. But this matchup against the Titans is one of the best in fantasy football right now for opposing WRs. They’re allowing the 4th most fantasy points per game and they’re surrendering 1.5 receiving touchdowns on average. We’ve seen the target volume for Samuel at earlier points this year, so without Dotson there to cloud things up I believe both Samuel and McLaurin are solid plays in Week 5.
WR: Romeo Doubs (Green Bay Packers)
And finally, I think we’re at the point where we can confidently play Romeo Doubs. 8 targets each of the past two weeks and he’s showing chemistry with Aaron Rodgers. We saw Doubs reel in one of Davante Adams’ patented back shoulder catches this past week and that shows you that Rodgers is starting to trust the rookie wideout. I wanted to wait a week last week before I recommended Doubs as anything more than a FLEX play, but we’re there now. You can start him as a mid-range WR3 with upside.
TE: David Njoku (Cleveland Browns)
David Njoku is now confidently in starting lineups for me. The matchup against the Chargers signals to me that the Browns are going to have to throw the ball and Jacoby Brissett’s locking onto Njoku. He’s at TE9 on the week for me right now.
Players To Fade
Each week, you’ll find a section of the cheatsheet here with players that Kyle Yates has concern over their matchups, etc. and you should look to avoid if you can.
QB: Matthew Stafford (Los Angeles Rams)
For QB that I’m fading this week, it has to be Matthew Stafford, right? QB15 in consensus and QB18 in my rankings and I’m trying to find a way to work him even lower. This offensive line just ain’t getting the job done for the Rams offense to be able to get anything going and we have to be concerned with starting Stafford until we see that change.
RB: Austin Ekeler (Los Angeles Chargers)
One of the players that I’m lower on than consensus this week is the person that I just talked about as a sell high option and that’s Austin Ekeler. Before last week against Houston, Ekeler hadn’t crossed over the 40 rushing yard threshold in any game. He’d been heavily targeted as a receiving option, but we all know about the inefficiency. Now, he gets a matchup against Cleveland who should get Myles Garrett back this week and the Chargers offensive line is banged up. The efficiency should come back down and the Browns also allow just 23.2 receiving yards per game to opposing RBs. He’s still a must-start option due to the fact that he’s at RB9 for me, but that’s 5 spots lower than consensus. Everyone seems to think that he’s back to being 2021 Ekeler and I’m not ready to crown him as that just yet.
RB: James Conner (Arizona Cardinals)
The second RB that I’m lower on than consensus is James Conner. Conner’s been dealing with the injury, but he has not been getting the job done for fantasy the past three weeks. Fantasy finishes of RB40, RB35, and RB29 in that stretch and no touchdowns. We knew this going into the year, right? If Conner doesn’t score a touchdown, you’re going to be disappointed you started him, but due to how high-powered the Cardinals offense is he had a very good chance of scoring every single week. We know now that the Cardinals offense ain’t that high-powered and the production just hasn’t been there for Conner. He’s at RB24 in my rankings, which is just a couple of spots lower than consensus right now, but I view Conner as a touchdown-or-bust RB2 and I think there are some better options you can look at like either Patriots RB this week up against Detroit.
RB: Rashaad Penny (Seattle Seahawks)
The final RB that I’m lower on this week is Rashaad Penny. He’s coming off a game in which he saw 17 carries for 151 yards and 2 touchdowns…against Detroit. The Lions have been absolutely awful this season at stopping opposing RBs and he now gets a matchup against the Saints. The defense that’s allowing the 6th fewest fantasy points per game to RBs and who’s allowing just .2 rushing touchdowns per game. I think we see this whole Seahawks offense take a step back after getting to play Atlanta and Detroit and Penny’s someone I’d prefer to avoid if I can. He’s at RB33 in my rankings and that’s six spots lower than consensus.
WR: Courtland Sutton (Denver Broncos)
Let’s go to another player here in Thursday Night’s matchup (again, this is written on Thursday for the podcast) and I’ll point out Courtland Sutton. Russell Wilson sounds like he’s going to be good to go in this one, but he was dealing with a bit of soreness in his shoulder earlier this week and I wonder if that could affect his willingness to chuck it deep for Sutton. He’ll still see a steady target share and he’s at WR17 on the week for me, so not a complete fade. But the matchup on paper against the Colts isn’t great with them allowing the 4th fewest fantasy points to opposing wideouts. I’m concerned about Sutton this week and I’d play options like Chris Godwin, Christian Kirk, and Mike Williams over him.
WR: Ja’Marr Chase (Cincinnati Bengals)
For WRs that I’m lower on or fading here in Week 5, let’s start with Ja’Marr Chase up against Baltimore. I like Chase this week. I have him at WR9, but we just have not seen the same fantasy football threat this year as we did last year. He’s finished outside the top-25 WRs each of the past three weeks and that’s even with finding the end zone in Week 3. The matchup’s great on paper against Baltimore’s secondary, but I’m just exercising a bit more caution with Chase and I’m mentioning here because I have Tee Higgins actually ranked one spot ahead of him.
WR: DK Metcalf (Seattle Seahawks)
Finally, I talked about him last week as a WR that I had concerns about and he proceeded to finish as the WR9 on the week. If only I had known that 93 total points were going to be scored in the Seahawks & Lions game, right? DK Metcalf is at WR19 in consensus ranks right now and I have him at 24. Just like with Penny’s matchup, the Saints defense is no joke. He’s going to draw coverage primarily from Marshon Lattimore and I believe the Seahawks offense takes a step back from what we’ve witnessed the past two weeks. I’d play Brandin Cooks, Curtis Samuel, Terry McLaurin and even Drake London over him right now.
TE: George Kittle (San Francisco 49ers)
For the TE I’m fading this week, I’m going to go with George Kittle. This is one that I’ve been talking about recently, but I need to see it with Kittle before I start viewing him as a top-tier option again. He’s at TE8 in consensus and TE11 for me in my rankings, so if I had him and Njoku, I’m playing Njoku at this point. Also, Kyle Pitts deserves an honorable mention here just like every week.
Down The Stream
Each week, you’ll find a section of the cheatsheet with streaming options for the QB, TE, and DST positions in fantasy football that are under 50% rostered in Yahoo leagues.
QB: Carson Wentz (Washington Commanders)
I talked about Wentz in the QB Start of the Week section, but I do think that you can look his way here this week as a streaming option. The Titans are allowing the 7th most fantasy points to opposing QBs this season and that should give Wentz enough space to put up a decent stat line. Of course, it’s Wentz and that means we never truly know what we’re going to get…but if you’re in a pinch, he’s the first option I would turn to on the waiver wire.
TE: Cade Otton (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
No Cameron Brate in this one for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which is going to give Otton the opportunity to be the pass-catching option for Tom Brady here. It is worth noting that Kyle Rudolph is going to be active this week, but we have no idea what he looks like at this stage of his career and he could just be out there as a blocking option. Otton’s the future at the TE position for Tampa Bay and he is currently just 2% rostered in Yahoo leagues. You only need to look his way if you’re truly in a pinch, but this is a fun glory play for Week 5.
DST: New England Patriots
There aren’t a ton of great options out there on the waiver wire this week, but the Patriots are just under the threshold of 50% rostered in Yahoo leagues and they get to take on a banged up Lions offense. Detroit’s been solid so far this season, so there’s a very strong possibility that this doesn’t work out, but the other options are pretty thin on the waiver wire.
