Daily Fantasy Football Week 5: Lineup Advice, Matchup Guide for 1-Week Leagues

With only a couple of teams on bye in Week 5, daily fantasy football league players are left with tons of options for their lineups. The question is which stars will be most productive this week.

Few people will miss players from the Oakland Raiders and the Miami Dolphins while they are unavailable, but the wide range of options makes things even more difficult. You are now forced to study the matchups even harder to pick the best possible lineup.

Luckily, all the hard work has been done for you with this list of best and worst options for Week 5.

Quarterbacks

Name	Team	Opp.	Price
Drew Brees	NO	TB	$9,100
Philip Rivers	SD	NYJ	$8,900
Russell Wilson	SEA	WAS	$8,300
Ben Roethlisberger	PIT	JAX	$8,300
Eli Manning	NYG	ATL	$7,300

Although the New Orleans Saints are not playing as well as expected, Drew Brees is putting up big numbers, even if it is sometimes in garbage time. He has thrown two touchdowns in each of the last three games and should be able to keep the streak going against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Meanwhile, there are some enticing matchups this week, including everyone on the Pittsburgh Steelers thanks to this statistic, courtesy of Adam Pfeifer of ProjectRoto:

That should give Ben Roethlisberger a chance to do big things. Ditto for Philip Rivers and Russell Wilson, who are also facing poor secondaries in Week 5.

Eli Manning also represents a good chance to save funds after his five-touchdown performance in Week 4.

Name	Team	Opp.	Price
Andrew Luck	IND	BAL	$10,000
Tom Brady	NE	CIN	$7,900
Cam Newton	CAR	CHI	$7,600
Kirk Cousins	WAS	SEA	$7,600

While Andrew Luck leads all quarterbacks in fantasy points in standard leagues this season, he is not worth spending the most money on this week. The Baltimore Ravens have only allowed three passing touchdowns this season and will do their best to keep the Indianapolis Colts quarterback out of the end zone.

Kirk Cousins also faces a bad matchup against the Seattle Seahawks, who are much better than the numbers indicate at this point in the season. Considering how bad he looked against the New York Giants, he is difficult to trust against a much better opponent.

That leaves Tom Brady, who should not start in any form of fantasy football until he shows some improvement. Whether you blame his offensive line, his targets or just his inability to make throws, things are bad in New England, and you should look toward other options.

Running Backs

Name	Team	Opp.	Price
Matt Forte	CHI	CAR	$8,700
Le'Veon Bell	PIT	JAX	$8,600
Rashad Jennings	NYG	ATL	$7,200
Doug Martin	TB	NO	$7,100
Chris Ivory	NYJ	SD	$6,200
Jeremy Hill	CIN	NE	$5,000

As previously mentioned, all Steelers are top options this week, including the red-hot Le'Veon Bell. As far as other elite players, Matt Forte should be able to have a big day against a suddenly porous Carolina Panthers defense.

Rashad Jennings gave up some of his touches last game to backup Andre Williams, but Eli Manning explained the running back's value to the team in a recent press conference:

"

He’s done a great job obviously running the football and getting us great production in the run game but also catching the football, his pass protection, you can have him in there in all situations and do a lot of different things with him. That’s going to be helpful, continue to grow in some different packages to move him around and to find ways to get him the ball in open space. 

"

He will remain the bell cow in the offense and should have a big game against an Atlanta Falcons defense that has allowed the most fantasy points to opposing running backs.

For those looking to get a cheaper option at running back, Jeremy Hill has scored in each of his last two games and faces a Patriots defense that just allowed big games to both Jamaal Charles and Knile Davis. Even as a No. 2 running back on his own team, he possesses a lot of upside.

Rick Osentoski/Associated Press

Name	Team	Opp.	Price
Jamaal Charles	KC	SF	$8,400
Alfred Morris	WAS	SEA	$7,700
Montee Ball	DEN	ARI	$7,500
Matt Asiata	MIN	GB	$7,100
Stevan Ridley	NE	CIN	$6,100

Despite the impressive performance by Charles in Week 4, he faces a San Francisco 49ers defense that has allowed just 106 rushing yards to opposing running backs in the last two weeks combined. You can start him in standard leagues, but there are better options in weekly leagues.

Alfred Morris and Montee Ball both face difficult matchups in Week 5 and are not worth the risk at their current price.

Meanwhile, Matt Asiata is coming off a huge game with three touchdowns, but Jerick McKinnon also impressed as a change-of-pace back. It would not be surprising to see the Minnesota Vikings start shifting toward the younger running back over the next few weeks.

Wide Receivers

Name	Team	Opp.	Price
Antonio Brown	PIT	JAX	$9,000
Jordy Nelson	GB	MIN	$8,500
Percy Harvin	SEA	WAS	$7,600
Jeremy Maclin	PHI	STL	$7,600
Vincent Jackson	TB	NO	$6,700
Michael Floyd	ARI	DEN	$6,400
John Brown	ARI	DEN	$5,900
Andrew Hawkins	CLE	TEN	$5,300

Antonio Brown and Jordy Nelson have been the top two wideouts in fantasy football this year, and there is no reason to believe this week will be any different. Meanwhile, Jeremy Maclin has put himself in this category as well with three touchdowns in four games.

Percy Harvin came into the year with high expectations, although Bleacher Report's Michael Schottey notes he has not done much in 2014:

Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell will get his chance to finally unleash his best weapon against a struggling Washington Redskins defensive secondary. This could also be a breakout game for Vincent Jackson, who is getting a lot of targets but not a lot of yards.

For those looking for cheap options, John Brown could keep up his hot start against the Broncos, who sometimes struggle to defend the slot. Andrew Hawkins has also been very consistent, with over 70 receiving yards in each game. If he can get into the end zone, he could be a cheap source of production.

Elaine Thompson/Associated Press

Name	Team	Opp.	Price
Calvin Johnson	DET	BUF	$8,900
Demaryius Thomas	DEN	ARI	$8,600
A.J. Green	CIN	NE	$8,500
Pierre Garcon	WAS	SEA	$7,000
DeSean Jackson	WAS	SEA	$6,900

There are a few tough matchups among top receivers this week, including Demaryius Thomas and A.J. Green facing big-time cornerbacks in Patrick Peterson and Darrelle Revis, respectively. You can start them in regular leagues, but they are not worth the risk in this type of contest.

Calvin Johnson is also risky while he deals with an ankle injury.

Despite the early-season success against the Seahawks, it is still smart to avoid anyone against the Legion of Boom. 

Tight Ends

Name	Team	Opp.	Price
Jimmy Graham	NO	TB	$8,000
Julius Thomas	DEN	ARI	$7,900
Larry Donnell	NYG	ATL	$6,200
Greg Olsen	CAR	CHI	$5,900

It is clear Jimmy Graham and Julius Thomas are a class ahead of the rest of the league at the position, so if you spend the money, it should be worth it.

The good news, though, is there are other options for cheaper. One is Larry Donnell, who scored three touchdowns last week. Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com notes this was not an accident:

Greg Olsen is another top option, even after a down week, basically because he is one of the only options in the Panthers offense. You can never guarantee a touchdown, but he is among those more likely to score each week.

Name	Team	Opp.	Price
Rob Gronkowski	NE	CIN	$7,600
Vernon Davis	SF	KC	$6,000
Jason Witten	DAL	HOU	$6,000

Rob Gronkowski is considered a top option, but he has not looked like himself this season, and it is difficult to trust anyone on the Patriots at this point. He is simply not worth the cost it would take to utilize him.

Vernon Davis is another risky option due to injury, while Jason Witten has not done much this year and faces a difficult matchup against the Houston Texans. 

Defense 

Team	Opp.	Price
Seattle Seahawks	WAS	$5,500
San Diego Chargers	NYJ	$5,400
Pittsburgh Steelers	JAX	$5,400
Detroit Lions	BUF	$4,800

The top three defenses are there for a reason. The Steelers get to face a rookie quarterback with a poor offensive line in front of him, while the Seahawks match their great secondary against a passer coming off a five-turnover game.

If you want to get a cheaper option, the Detroit Lions have the type of defensive line that can make things miserable for new Bills quarterback Kyle Orton.

Team	Opp.	Price
Indianapolis Colts	BAL	$5,400
Carolina Panthers	CHI	$5,200
New Orleans Saints	TB	$5,000

The Colts are coming off a few solid games, but the Ravens have been impressive offensively lately. Ryan Mink of BaltimoreRavens.com notes the unit's efficiency:

At the same time, the Panthers and the Saints look good on paper but have been struggling lately. This might be a good time to pass on them, even at decent prices. 

Pos.	Player	Team	Price
QB	Russell Wilson	SEA	$8,300
RB	Le'Veon Bell	PIT	$8,600
RB	Rashad Jennings	NYG	$7,200
WR	Jeremy Maclin	PHI	$7,600
WR	Vincent Jackson	TB	$6,700
WR	Andrew Hawkins	CLE	$5,300
TE	Greg Olsen	CAR	$5,900
K	Matt Bryant	ATL	$4,900
D/ST	Pittsburgh Steelers	-	$5,400

Note: All player values courtesy of FanDuel.com. 

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