Fantasy Football Rankings: Week 5 Matchups to Consider
If you were lucky enough to avoid the numerous injuries through the first month of the season, congratulations. If not, hopefully things get better. There have been a lot of fun TDs, but some defenses have been relentless and have allowed very few. The one defense that remains undefeated, and that no one has managed to score on, is the bye week. Yup, we are at that point of the season again where we need to navigate injuries, bye weeks, waivers, and if you are fortunate enough to be in an active league, trades too. In Week 5, we only have two games projected to be shootouts, but the NFL always surprises us.
Here are some matchups and players to consider heading into Week 5:
Quarterbacks
Jalen Hurts
QB - PHI
When we drafted Jalen Hurts over a month ago, we thought we were getting a set-it-and-forget-it type of player. Instead, we have the QB11 on the season, and somehow it feels way worse than that. Normally, Hurts and the Eagles would be heading down I-95 to Jacksonville, but this week they will take their talents across the pond to London. The Jaguars have allowed the fewest passing TDs (3) through the first four weeks. As seven-point underdogs, Hurts may be forced to throw more against the Jags, who lead the NFL in INTs (6).
The Eagles offense, which ranks 29th in yards per game, just behind the Buccaneers and ahead of the Dolphins, simply has not looked like the unit we have seen in previous seasons. Hurts wasn’t playing great when Saquon Barkley and DeVonta Smith were on the field, and now that dynamic duo is trending in the wrong direction for Week 5. With future Hall of Famer Lane Johnson retiring on Tuesday in the middle of the season and the Eagles trading away Cam Jurgens to the Ravens, things do not get any easier for Hurts, who was already on pace to take a career-high 51 sacks.
Brock Purdy
QB - SF
This NFC West showdown is going to be awesome. We go from one of the most sacked QBs to Brock Purdy, who hasn’t been sacked at all in 2026. All of that could change in Week 5 as Purdy faces his toughest defense yet. The Seahawks have the seventh-most sacks and are allowing the fewest passing yards per game.
Meanwhile, Purdy has been slingin’ it, throwing for 11 TDs and only one INT in four games despite all of his weapons going in and out of the lineup with injuries. Blitzing has not exactly been the answer either, as Purdy has a perfect 158.3 passer rating when blitzed. You cannot bench Purdy, but lowering expectations because of the matchup is completely reasonable.
Running Backs
D'Andre Swift
RB - CHI
After singing his praises and devoting your love to D’Andre Swift after his Week 1 performance, he has left you at the altar. Swift’s three-TD game was awesome, but he has failed to reach the end zone since. His running mate, Kyle Monangai, is a bit of a problem, but Swift’s usage is still great. Only seven RBs have 15+ rush attempts in each game this season. All of the others were drafted as a top-12 RB just a month ago, so you are kind of playing with house money with Swift.
The Bears aren’t going to move away from Monangai as long as they are both healthy, especially against the Packers, who are allowing the fifth-most rushing yards per game and the second-most fantasy points to RBs. If you have any questions about whether Ben Johnson wants to run up the scoreboard in Week 5, just look up his postgame locker room speech after they beat the Packers in overtime in the Wild Card round.
David Montgomery
RB - HOU
The 0-4 Texans face the 0-4 Titans in the lowest O/U of the week at 37.5 points. D’Andre Swift wasn’t the only RB to have an explosive, three-TD game in Week 1. David Montgomery followed Swift’s blueprint: an explosive week followed by three disappointing games. It is especially disappointing when two of the three were layup matchups versus the Cowboys and Colts, who are allowing the second-most and seventh-most rushing yards per game.
I can tell you that the Titans are allowing the ninth-most rushing yards per game, but I cannot tell you confidently that Montgomery will have a great game.
Cam Skattebo
RB - NYG
Perhaps I was saved, but I do not have Cam Skattebo in any league. Obviously, the early-season exit by Jaxson Dart hurts the whole offense, but Skattebo hasn’t been great on an individual level. He has fumbled in three of the first four games after fumbling just once during his six-game stretch in 2025, and the Giants haven’t been using him in the passing game remotely close to how they used him last season.
The Commanders’ defense is hard to decipher. They have allowed the third-fewest fantasy points to RBs and, on paper, they look like a pass-funnel defense. They allowed Barkley and Taylor to have good games on the ground, while they shut down Javonte Williams and a mixture of Seattle RBs. Skattebo has received plenty of opportunities per game on the ground, but he is averaging just 3.46 YPC with no TDs in three consecutive weeks. Without Dart, it is hard to look at Skattebo with any kind of upside.
Wide Receivers
George Pickens
WR - DAL
In Week 4, I had Jameson Williams in this spot, and then he had his best game of the season. I am not saying my magic will work for George Pickens, but let’s hope so. We saw both CeeDee Lamb and Pickens work well together on the field in 2025, so we have proof of concept. However, if Lamb has 21 targets in a game, it’s kind of hard for anyone else to have much of a game.
Only Carnell Tate has more targets with zero TDs this season than George Pickens. Usually, if you follow the targets, they will lead you to fantasy points. The Cowboys are heavy favorites versus the Buccaneers in a high 47.5-point O/U. I’d be surprised if the Bucs can keep this game close, but I was a bit surprised when the Packers beat them 17-14 in Week 4.
Malik Washington
WR - MIA
If you grabbed a couple of athletic guys off the beach in Miami, you could probably rival the Miami Dolphins’ receiving corps. Jokes aside, Malik Washington has been the one sliver of light in the receiving room. Posting 40+ yards in every game isn’t great, but it is something to work with.
Washington’s ceiling got ripped off by Hurricane Willis and his inability to play QB. With bye weeks here and injuries happening every single week, you might have something in Week 5. The Bengals are allowing the most yards after the catch, and Malik Washington has the sixth-most YAC in the NFL among WRs. In a home game where the Dolphins aren’t favored (because when are they ever), it is at least intriguing.
Devaughn Vele
WR - NO
Some people are calling Tyler Shough “Shough Daddy” while others are calling him “A Garbage Time Merchant.” No matter what you call him, you’ve got to love the pace of play; he is airing it out a ton, and he has capable receivers that can make plays. That led him to be the QB4 through the first month of the season.
Week 5 will be his biggest challenge yet. The Vikings have only allowed three passing TDs this season, tied for best in the league alongside the Jaguars. That brings us to his receiving weapons. The weeks you have been happy with Devaughn Vele, it has mostly been because he has found the end zone. On Monday Night Football versus the Falcons, Vele only saw two first-half targets. It wasn’t until the second half, when the Saints were down 24-7, that Vele got seven more targets.
The game projects to be very close and low-scoring (42.5 O/U), so it would be tough to imagine a fantastic game coming from Vele against one of the toughest pass defenses.
Tight Ends
Isaiah Likely
TE - NYG
Another Giant makes an appearance in this week’s article because people have questions. Isaiah Likely commanded a ridiculous 41% target share in Week 4. While that target share wasn’t expected, the matchup versus Arizona presented itself as an easy spot to target. The Cardinals were bad against TEs in 2025 too. The only team that is worse against TEs in both 2025 and so far in 2026 is the Washington Commanders.
That is clearly the allure to starting Likely, but if Jayden Daniels suits up, which he is trending toward playing, that could keep the game more competitive or even have the Giants playing from behind and throwing more.
Dalton Kincaid
TE - BUF
After finally looking like the player Buffalo thought it was getting when the Bills drafted him in the first round in 2023, Dalton Kincaid hasn’t been a factor in their previous two games. It is difficult to knock him when he’s only seen five total targets in two games. It’s a 54.5-point O/U, so you want players in this game. The tough part is the uncertainty of whether DJ Moore will play, and even if he doesn’t, the Rams have been great against TEs, allowing the third-fewest points to TEs.