Tom Brady, Julian Edelman, Dion Lewis' Post-Week 5 Fantasy Advice

Tom Brady had never been sacked five times in a half in his career until the New England Patriots' pass protection suffered numerous breakdowns in Week 5 against the Dallas Cowboys.

That didn't stop "Tom Terrific" from living up to his moniker and pleasing fantasy owners everywhere. Brady picked apart Dallas in the second half, hit favorite wideout Julian Edelman for a long touchdown and got some assistance from the backfield from breakout fantasy stud Dion Lewis.

The fantasy outlook for each of those three players is promising. Below you'll find Week 5 stats and fantasy advice for all of them.    

Tom Brady

Pass/Att./Yds	Rush/Yds	TD/INT	Fantasy Points
20/27/275	2/3	3/0 (1 rush TD)	25

Champions know how to make adjustments on the fly, weather adversity and perform at an elite level. Few have exemplified that better than Brady throughout his NFL career. Sunday was another vintage Brady performance.

ESPN Stats & Info illustrates how unfazed Brady was, as he came out of the locker room to tear up America's Team at a stadium he'd never played in before:

Brady didn't lose any confidence despite the Cowboys' early ambush. His arm strength is still good enough to make all the throws at this stage of his career—thanks largely to his sound mechanics and ability to manipulate the pocket.

At the risk of stating the obvious, fantasy owners in any league should start Brady if they have him. In daily games, Brady's price tag is going to balloon, but his consistent, monster numbers suggest he's worth it more often than not.

Julian Edelman

Rec/Targets	Yds	TD	Fantasy Points
4/5	120	1	18

The two scoring tosses Brady had on Sunday were largely thanks to the work of his skill players after the catch. Edelman made a myriad of Dallas defenders miss en route to a 59-yard TD.

He isn't often a home-run threat, so the fact Edelman broke loose for a long score in Week 5 should only encourage fantasy owners to play him every week. Edelman had 42 targets through three games before Sunday—and still produced in fantasy despite a fraction of his normal average of chances.

The five targets Edelman got Sunday still tied Rob Gronkowski for the second most on the team. That's probably an aberration, so expect Edelman to continue getting double-digit targets and produce at least at a WR2 level, if not among the NFL's best, as one of the more dependable fantasy receivers.

Dion Lewis

Rush	Yards	TD	Rec./Targets	Yards	TD	Fantasy Points
6	34	0	8/11	59	1	14

Setting the tone in the second half, Lewis weaved his way into the end zone, boosted Brady's fantasy numbers in the process and let a struggling offensive line off the hook.

Lewis has been a revelation in New England to start 2015. Although LeGarrette Blount (6'0" 250 lbs) is indubitably better built to run between the tackles, the explosive plays Lewis can generate and how dangerous he is in the open field will allow him to continue carving out a significant role.

Only in the deepest fantasy formats can Lewis not be considered an RB2 at this point. An argument can be made for Lewis as an RB1 right now, especially in points-per-reception formats. Lewis catches the ball so often that he has to be at least a No. 2 running back option despite how little the Pats run it.