Week 5 Start 'Em, Sit 'Em: Play-or-Bench Tips for Fantasy Football Owners
The arrival of Week 5 means that bye weeks begin in earnest, which changes the complexion of the fantasy football landscape.
This week, owners will have to do without New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Allen Robinson and Seattle Seahawks tight end Jimmy Graham, to name a few.
Sometimes the bye week makes a situation downright funny. You're already down star power, and other top-tier players seem like guys to ignore because of terrible matchups. When you combine byes and bad matchups, it can seem like your fantasy roster is the equivalent of the Cleveland Browns instead of the New England Patriots.
To help fight off the first major wave of byes, let's compare fantasy matchups and zoom in on a few stars.
Quarterback
| Matt Ryan (at DEN) vs. Derek Carr (vs. SD) | Derek Carr |
| Ben Roethlisberger (vs. NYJ) vs. Joe Flacco (vs. WAS) | Ben Roethlisberger |
| Philip Rivers (at OAK) vs. Andrew Luck (vs. CHI) | Andrew Luck |
| Jameis Winston (at CAR) vs. Marcus Mariota (at MIA) | Jameis Winston |
| Andy Dalton (at DAL) vs. Carson Palmer (at SF) | Andy Dalton |
Start 'Em: Andy Dalton, CIN (at DAL)
It's time to unleash Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton.
He has been a major disappointment for fantasy owners so far this year by not reaching 20 points in a game, but losing wide receiver Marvin Jones in free agency and not having injured tight end Tyler Eifert on the field haven't helped.
This weekend, the TCU product will put it all together in a somewhat friendly environment. The Dallas Cowboys defense has already allowed two multi-touchdown outings to quarterbacks this year—one from New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning took all of 28 attempts to produce three scores.
With A.J. Green on the field, Dalton projects for a huge day.
Sit 'Em: Matthew Stafford, DET (vs. PHI)
Detroit Lions wideout Matthew Stafford laid one of the biggest eggs of all last week, posting seven points despite an incredible matchup against the Chicago Bears.
Now Stafford heads into perhaps the worst matchup of his season.
The Philadelphia Eagles might not strike much fear into an owner, but the defense has allowed the fewest points on average to opposing signal-callers. Sure, one of the opponents was the Cleveland Browns, but the Eagles also held Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to six points.
Granted, Stafford has a pair of outings of 25 or more points. But after last week and given this matchup, it's best to look elsewhere for help.
Running Back
Start 'Em: Terrance West, BAL (vs. WAS)
| DeMarco Murray (at MIA) vs. Ezekiel Elliott (vs. CIN) | Ezekiel Elliott |
| Isaiah Crowell (vs. NE) vs. Le'Veon Bell (vs. NYJ) | Le'Veon Bell |
| Matt Jones (at BAL) vs. Melvin Gordon (at OAK) | Melvin Gordon |
| LeSean McCoy (at LA) vs. Frank Gore (vs. CHI) | Frank Gore |
| Carlos Hyde (vs. ARI) vs. Devonta Freeman (at DEN) | Devonta Freeman |
The Baltimore Ravens pulled a fantasy stunner last week, handing the keys of the ride over to running back Terrance West.
West responded, rumbling for 113 yards and a score on 21 carries, good for 17 points. He did so well, in fact, that the team let former starter Justin Forsett go.
Now West gets the Washington Redskins. NFL.com's Matt Harmon pointed out that it's a great situation while replying to quite the interesting stat:
The Redskins have allowed the second-most points to backs on average this year, coughing up a pair of rushing touchdowns in three of four games already. Every opposing backfield has hit 20 or more points against the unit.
Given the volume and his ability to catch passes if necessary, West could flirt with hitting 20 points on his own in what might be the top matchup of the week.
Sit 'Em: Carlos Hyde, SF (vs. ARI)
Starting any running back against the Arizona Cardinals isn't the best idea.
It shouldn't come as a surprise, then, to see Carlos Hyde of the San Francisco 49ers as a sit option.
He has been a nice surprise this year and sits sixth in scoring at the position. He's totaled five rushing scores over four games and has a pair of outings of 20 points or more.
The problem with Hyde, though, is what happens when he faces an elite defense. In Week 2, when the Carolina Panthers kept him in line, he mustered only two fantasy points.
The elite Cardinals defense could do much of the same. Only one opposing backfield has totaled more than 20 points against the unit. Hyde has never rushed for more than 51 yards against the NFC West rival.
Wide Receiver
Start 'Em: Michael Crabtree, OAK (vs. SD)
| Julio Jones (at DEN) vs. Michael Crabtree (vs. SD) | Michael Crabtree |
| A.J. Green (at DAL) vs. Antonio Brown (vs. NYJ) | A.J. Green |
| Will Fuller (at MIN) vs, Steve Smith Sr. (vs. WAS) | Steve Smith Sr. |
| Demaryius Thomas (vs. ATL) vs. Brandon Marshall (at PIT) | Brandon Marshall |
| Emmanuel Sanders (vs. ATL) vs. John Brown (at SF) | John Brown |
When asked who is the top wideout for the Oakland Raiders, many might say Amari Cooper and call it a day.
Maybe on an official depth chart, but fantasy owners know it has been the Michael Crabtree show in Oakland for a long time now.
Crabtree enters the weekend as the fifth-best scorer at wideout behind superstars such as Green, Antonio Brown and Julio Jones. He just came off a three-touchdown performance against the Baltimore defense, giving him three double-digit outings on the season.
The fourth looks simple enough. Crabtree gets to beat up on the San Diego Chargers defense, as other No. 1 wideouts such as T.Y. Hilton (23 points) of the Indianapolis Colts and Jeremy Maclin (12) of the Kansas City Chiefs have done.
With 23 targets over the past two weeks alone, Crabtree is in for a huge day.
Sit 'Em: Golden Tate, DET (vs. PHI)
There is so much more to this than Stafford's struggles.
Those don't help, of course, but Golden Tate resides in the doghouse after he goofed on a route last week. The result was a Stafford interception and the quarterback screaming at Tate on the broadcast before the supposed No. 1 wideout was benched after halftime.
In fact, Detroit head coach Jim Caldwell felt it necessary to defend Tate in front of the media this week, as Kyle Meinke of MLive Media Group captured:
Call it a big red flag.
The Lions might still like Tate. Owners shouldn't, though, not going into a game against a Philadelphia defense that has yet to allow a score to a wideout, and especially not with usage and potential trust issues lingering.
Tight End
Start 'Em: Zach Miller, CHI (at IND)
| Jordan Reed (at BAL) vs. Greg Olsen (vs. TB) | Greg Olsen |
| Hunter Henry (at OAK) vs. Jason Witten (vs. CIN) | Hunter Henry |
| Martellus Bennett (at CLE) vs. Zach Miller (at IND) | Zach Miller |
| Charles Clay (at LA) vs. Delanie Walker (at MIA) | Delanie Walker |
| Dwayne Allen (vs. CHI) vs. Dennis Pitta (vs. WAS) | Dwayne Allen |
Another week, another recommendation for Bears tight end Zach Miller.
Finally having a big part in the offense after going unnoticed over the first two weeks of the season, Miller has three touchdowns over his past two games, both of which happened to occur with backup quarterback Brian Hoyer under center.
With how well Hoyer has played, it's hard to imagine the Bears will throw Jay Cutler back under center, should he even be healthy.
That's good news, because the Colts figure to allow solid production to Miller if the volume remains. The matchup isn't the best from a numbers standpoint, but the Colts haven't played tight-end-happy teams yet.
Chicago classifies with a backup under center, and Miller provides the rare attractive floor alongside a huge ceiling.
Sit 'Em: Jacob Tamme, ATL (at DEN)
The Jacob Tamme Show seems over with the Atlanta Falcons.
It was fun while it lasted, with Tamme scoring 13 points in Week 2. He did score a touchdown last week, but so did pretty much every other Falcon. Jones exploded for 300 receiving yards, and Matt Ryan threw for 500 and change. Tamme mustered six points.
The suddenly potent Atlanta offense might find a way to move the ball on the road against the Denver Broncos but doesn't figure to do it through Tamme. Denver has yet to cough up a touchdown to a tight end, let alone a double-digit outing.
Banking on Tamme to be the first is not a risk worth taking.
All scoring info and statistics courtesy of ESPN.com standard leagues, as are points-against info and ownership stats.
Follow Chris Roling (@Chris_Roling) on Twitter.
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