Fantasy Football Week 5 Rankings: Each Position's Flex and PPR Projections

Sorry, folks. The Miami Dolphins do not play this week, which means you can't stream your players against them. With the Dolphins and Detroit Lions on byes in Week 5 and some injury questions still unanswered, choosing who to start at the flex positions is getting tough.

Fortunately, we've got larger sample sizes to work with now and the points-per-reception projections to help navigate your lineup decisions. Excluding the players from Thursday's game between the Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks, we'll go through rankings for each position and lend some analysis to some of the debatable projections.

If you want help with deeper rankings, you should check out Boris Chen's visualizations of the FantasyPros tiers. And if you want deeper, albeit safer PPR projections, then check out ESPN's PPR projections.

Top 15 Running Backs

1. Christian McCaffrey, RB, Carolina Panthers (vs. JAX): 27.8 projected fantasy points

2. Dalvin Cook, RB, Minnesota Vikings (at NYG): 27.5

3. Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Dallas Cowboys (vs. GB): 23.2

4. David Johnson, RB, Arizona Cardinals (at CIN): 22.2

5. Devonta Freeman, RB, Atlanta Falcons (at HOU): 21.3

6. Nick Chubb, RB, Cleveland Browns (at SF): 20.8

7. David Montgomery, RB, Chicago Bears (vs. OAK in London): 20.4

8. Le'Veon Bell, RB, New York Jets (at PHI): 19.8

9. Marlon Mack, RB, Indianapolis Colts (at KC): 19.3

10. Leonard Fournette, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars (at CAR): 18.9

11. Alvin Kamara, RB, New Orleans Saints (vs. TB): 18.8

12. Aaron Jones, Green Bay Packers (at DAL): 18.8

13. Joe Mixon, RB, Cincinnati Bengals (vs. ARI): 18.3

14. Austin Ekeler, RB, Los Angeles Chargers (vs. DEN): 16.6

15. Derrick Henry, RB, Tennessee Titans (vs. BUF): 15.6

Running backs with pass-catching acumen get an obvious boost in PPR formats, so it's no surprise that the numbers balloon here for bell-cow backs who get the third-down work too. With Jamaal Williams likely out for Sunday, Aaron Jones is in line to get extra work, and that gets him into the top 15 even against a tough Dallas front.

Elsewhere, David Montgomery received 24 touches last week and should produce elevated numbers if he gets a similar workload against a decimated Oakland defense. Marlon Mack, if healthy, is sure to produce against a Kansas City defense that is leaking 149.8 rushing yards per game in 2019.

Some of the biggest questions at running back this week revolve around committees and matchups. While neither LeSean McCoy nor Damien Williams crack the top 15 because of time-share questions, Austin Ekeler gets a slight nod over Melvin Gordon, with Gordon's season debut expected to take around 40 percent of Ekeler's touches. 

Wayne Gallman (vs. MIN) and Josh Jacobs (vs. CHI) each lose major value this week because they play against top-10 rushing defenses.

Top 25 Wide Receivers

1. DeAndre Hopkins, WR, Houston Texans (vs. ATL): 27.4 projected fantasy points

2. Michael Thomas, WR, New Orleans Saints (vs. TB): 24.8 

3. Marquise Brown, WR, Baltimore Ravens (at PIT): 21.5

4. Chris Godwin, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (at NO): 21.3

5. Josh Gordon, New England Patriots (at WAS): 20.8

6. Julio Jones, WR, Atlanta Falcons (at HOU): 20.7

7. Mike Evans, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (at NO): 19.8

8. Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona Cardinals (at CIN): 19.8

9. Adam Thielen, WR, Minnesota Vikings (at NYG): 19.6

10. Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Green Bay Packers (at DAL): 19.4

11. Alshon Jeffery, Philadelphia Eagles (vs. NYJ): 18.7

12. T.Y. Hilton, Indianapolis Colts (at KC): 18.4

13. Keenan Allen, Los Angeles Chargers (vs. DEN): 18.3

14. Allen Robinson, Chicago Bears (vs. OAK in London): 18.2

15. Stefon Diggs, WR, Minnesota Vikings (at NYG): 17.9

16. Tyler Boyd, Cincinnati Bengals (vs. ARI): 17.8

 17. Odell Beckham Jr., Cleveland Browns (at SF): 17.6

18. Amari Cooper, Dallas Cowboys (vs. GB): 17.4

19. Sammy Watkins, Kansas City Chiefs (vs. IND): 17.2

20. Auden Tate, Cincinnati Bengals (vs. ARI): 16.8

21. JuJu Smith-Schuster, Pittsburgh Steelers (vs. BAL): 16.6

22. DJ Chark, Jacksonville Jaguars (at CAR): 15.8

23. Sterling Shepard, New York Giants (vs. MIN): 15.4

24. Emmanuel Sanders, WR, Denver Broncos (at LAC): 13.8

25. Tyrell Williams, Oakland Raiders (vs. CHI in London): 12.7

Davante Adams is out, while JuJu Smith-Schuster and TY Hilton are questionable for this week because of injury. Stefon Diggs, on the other hand, is questionable because of frustrations with his team. When asked if Diggs will play on Sunday, head coach Mike Zimmer told reporters "I don't know, we'll see."

Diggs missed practice on Wednesday for non-injury reasons and later refused to deny rumors he was seeking a trade while talking to reporters.

If Diggs does play, expect him to get the squeaky wheel treatment alongside Adam Thielen, as the Minnesota Vikings get a perfect opportunity against the exploitable New York Giants to satisfy their star receivers. Following the team's loss to the Chicago Bears last week, Thielen complained about a lack of deep passing in the offense.

Some surprises here are Marquise Brown, Josh Gordon and Auden Tate. Brown is in line for another blow-up outing. He's an electric player who averages 8.5 targets per game and will be facing an average Pittsburgh defense. Gordon should bounce back lined up against an unimpressive Josh Norman and Washington secondary. 

Tate is like a combination of the two. The 6'5" behemoth has 16 targets over the past two weeks, and he should earn more now that John Ross is out against a Cardinals secondary that bleeds points to tight ends and slot receivers (read: guys like Tate).

Top 10 Tight Ends

1. Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs (vs. IND): 19.2

2. George Kittle, San Francisco 49ers (vs. CLE): 18.7

3. Mark Andrews, Baltimore Ravens (at PIT): 16.7

4. Evan Engram, New York Giants (vs. MIN): 16.5

5. Jimmy Graham, Green Bay Packers (at DAL): 15.3

6. Darren Waller, Oakland Raiders (vs. CHI in London): 14.8

7. Tyler Eifert, Cincinnati Bengals (vs. ARI): 13.8

8. Zach Ertz, Philadelphia Eagles (vs. NYJ): 13.7

9. Austin Hooper, Atlanta Falcons (at HOU): 12.6

10. Greg Olsen, Carolina Panthers (vs. JAX): 10.3

No Will Dissly here because he played on Thursday, so that leaves us without one of the few tight ends to impress in 2019. Generally, the top 10 goes untouched by risky draft busts such as O.J. Howard, Jared Cook and Eric Ebron.

Graham and Eifert are the most interesting, debatable projections. With just seven targets through the first three weeks, Graham hasn't been the picture of consistency this season. But in Week 4 he earned nine targets (for six catches, 61 yards and a touchdown), and he's likely to be leaned on now that Davante Adams is out.

Eifert, meanwhile, is a matchup play. In four games, the Cardinals have allowed 32 receptions, 431 yards and six touchdowns to tight ends on 40 targets. Eifert is averaging 4.3 targets per game this season and, even if those looks somehow don't bump up with Ross' absence, that should be enough against a porous secondary.