The Biggest Start/Sit Decisions for Week 5 (Fantasy Football)
Footclan, we’ve made it through a quarter of the fantasy football season and we’re going to continue to help you make the right choice when deciding who to start between closely projected players. For fans of our Start/Sit series, I’ll do my best to fill in for my colleague Peter Chung this week, helping you make those tough lineup decisions, especially with byes starting at this point in the season. Fortunately for you and me, the Fantasy Footballers have developed and perfected the Start/Sit tool, a crucial asset that can help guide us to the right decision for our specific teams. We’ve analyzed and researched the most popular start/sit questions for Week 5, which you will find below, along with the Ballers’ projections and my two cents. Continue to use the Start/Sit tool up until kickoff and make sure to check out the weekly rankings, which are being updated all the time as news breaks.
QB:
Justin Fields (CHI) or C.J. Stroud (HOU)?
The most popular QB start/sit question of the week is between two young quarterbacks coming off their best games of the season. Justin Fields had a disappointing three weeks to start the year but came to life against the Denver Broncos with four passing touchdowns last week. Rookie C.J. Stroud has been climbing up the ranks and looks to be a viable fantasy starter moving forward. Jason is the highest on Stroud, as evident by his ranking and his hunger to see more from the young signal-caller, but the Ballers trio is still higher on Fields this week in a Thursday night matchup against the Washington Commanders. We’ll find out Thursday night if Fields dominated last week because he played a lowly Denver defense, or if he’s found his rhythm again. Fields should take the start in your lineup in Week 5, but keep Stroud in the ready position for next week if he puts up another solid performance.
The Verdict
WR:
Jahan Dotson (WAS) or Michael Wilson (ARI)?
Who would have thought we would be debating a wide receiver start/sit decision between Jahan Dotson and Michael Wilson at the start of the season? But alas, that’s how the fantasy football landscape shakes out sometimes. Dotson, a popular breakout candidate, is currently the WR62 through four weeks. Michael Wilson, who went mostly unselected in fantasy drafts, is currently the WR28 after a breakout in Week 4 where he scored 28 points. You might be tempted to go with the player coming off a breakout game, but the matchup is as good as it gets for Dotson on Thursday night. This could be the get-right game he needs, facing a Chicago secondary riddled with injuries. Give Dotson another chance in your lineup this time around and keep Wilson on the bench to see if he can replicate the magic from last week.
The Verdict
RB:
De’Von Achane (MIA) or Kyren Williams (LAR)?
De’Von Achane has been burning so hot the last two weeks that it might be fair to adjust the NBA Jam rules for him and say he’s already on fire. Kyren Williams on the other hand has been great three out of four games this season and is currently the RB4. It’s hard to sit a player who has been as productive as Williams, but the Philadelphia defensive front is tough against the run and could bottle up the second-year RB this week. Stay in the flames with Achane who has a great matchup against a New York Giants defense who has struggled to stop everyone they have faced this year.
The Verdict
TE:
Darren Waller (NYG) or Jake Ferguson (DAL)?
Much like the Dotson versus Wilson debate, this is a tough decision between a high-drafted tight end in Darren Waller and an end-of-draft dart throw tight end in Jake Ferguson. It hasn’t been pretty for Waller so far, whose best game in Week 2 equated to 10.6 fantasy points. He’s coming off back-to-back weeks of less than four fantasy points, so it’s tough to trust him. Ferguson on the other hand, has been getting better week after week. The current TE8, he’s coming off his best game of the year, a performance with seven catches for 77 yards. Paying close attention to matchups is key when it comes to these types of decisions. Recent history would suggest that Ferguson should get the start, but remember that Waller was drafted as high as he was for a reason, and he’s got the better matchup. The game against Miami should be high-scoring and the Dolphins’ defense isn’t particularly great at stopping opposing offenses, including the tight end position. Ferguson is facing arguably the best defense in the league after his own team’s defense, the San Francisco 49ers. In what is a very close call, matchups dictate the decision this week.
The Verdict
Flex:
Zay Flowers (BAL) or Jahmyr Gibbs (DET)?
Both of these players belong in lineups this week, but if you have the luxury of having a loaded team and can only start one, it could be a tough decision to make. Zay Flowers has a pretty safe floor, but his ceiling isn’t maybe as high as we hoped it would be with Lamar Jackson not slinging the ball as much as advertised in the Todd Monken offense. Jahmyr Gibbs also hasn’t exploded onto the scene yet with a high-scoring game, but every time he touches the ball in space it feels like he can house it. His breakout game is coming, it’s just a matter of when. In this instance, Gibbs has to contend with David Montgomery, whereas Flowers doesn’t have much competition behind Mark Andrews because Odell Beckham Jr. and Rashod Bateman are dealing with injuries. Both players can be in lineups this week, but Flowers has a slightly higher ceiling due to opportunity.
The Verdict
Good luck with your start/sit decisions this week Footclan! And make sure to tune in Sunday morning where Mike will go on tilt with all of you, making last-minute decisions for your lineups!