The Fantasy Footballers’ Starts of the Week for Week 5
October has arrived, and while stores prepare for the spooky season and the holiday rush, fantasy football managers have been navigating some spooky NFL seasons since August. I’m looking at you Bengals players! Quit ruining my fantasy rosters. The good news is the season is about to pass the point of average players. There are going to be people in your league who will start giving up and stop setting lineups or making waiver claims. That is especially important now that the bye weeks have started. Auto-start players might be missing and out for a week, and you can take advantage of these types of managers who aren’t paying attention, so do not give up. Regardless of the hole you might feel like you are in, you can fight your way into the playoffs. Reading this article is a good start! Use Andy, Mike, and Jason’s advice in each episode to get your team back on the right track. One of the most helpful tips The Ballers bring each week is the Starts of the Week. You need good targets to get in your lineup, in particular when your go-to options are on a bye. To check out the entire episode with the Starts of the Week for Week 5, check the link below.
Of course, if you are desperate for more Fantasy Footballers, you must go to jointhefoot.com and join our community. That way, you can access the exclusive footcast and our discord community. Now, let’s break down The Fantasy Footballers’ Starts of the Week for Week 5.
Andy’s Starts of the Week
QB – Sam Howell vs. CHI
The matchup is as good as it gets for Sam Howell. The Bears’ defense(?) is abysmal. They are 31st against QBs on the season, and there is a good chance the game is relatively competitive, which means Howell will have to keep throwing the ball. Howell has also been an effective runner throughout the season. Maybe starting him on a Thursday night feels risky, but last week against Denver should tell you always to start the QB playing Chicago.
RB – Joe Mixon vs. ARI
This matchup is an excellent opportunity for Mixon against the Cardinals, who rank 30th against fantasy running backs. The Bengals are going to be without Tee Higgins. Mixon has not been great, but he hasn’t been bad. Especially when you factor in that the Bengals have been awful and cannot get into the red zone for Mixon to score; despite that, he is the RB19 on the year. If the offense can start to get its legs back and put Mixon in some goal-to-go situations, then it could be a big week against a bad opponent.
WR – Garrett Wilson vs. DEN
The stack you never thought you would see, Garrett Wilson with Zach Wilson. The signs of life from the Jets’ offense last week have inspired everyone. The targets have increased weekly from five to eight to nine to 14. He is demanding targets like the squeaky wheel. Now he is due for one of those big-time games, one of those weeks where great talents do great things for fantasy could be here. Andy guarantees a touchdown for Wilson this week, mainly because the Broncos are begging teams to score this year.
TE – Zach Ertz vs. CIN
He is seeing so many targets you can’t ignore it anymore. The Bengals are one of the worst teams at stopping TEs. Zach Ertz is on pace for over 120 targets on the season, and while you may not want to watch the game, Ertz should provide plenty of fantasy relevance for you to put in your lineup. It only feels terrible if it doesn’t work.
Jason’s Starts of the Week
QB – Jordan Love vs. LV
Over the first month of the season, Jordan Love is averaging over 20 fantasy points per game. In that same time frame, his opponent averages giving up over 20 fantasy points per game. If that isn’t a fantasy love story, I don’t know what is. Love has been running the ball reasonably and all his receivers are healthy. So, there are a plethora of ways for him to score fantasy points.
RB – Breece Hall vs. DEN
Start your Jets! Jason loves Breece Hall, and he feels super confident this week. He is exceptionally explosive, which the Broncos like to let opponents utilize against them. In Week 3, the Broncos allowed the Dolphins’ running backs to score 97 fantasy points against them. In Week 2, Washington scored 34.7 points against the Broncos, and last week, they gave up over 20 points to Khalil Herbert. Head Coach Robert Saleh said Breece is no longer on a snap count, and if he gets an actual workload, he could rip off something big. The Dalvin Cook fear needs to go away because last week, with Hall limited, Cook only had 25% of snaps and five carries. Wheels up for Breece, and the runway should be clear against Denver.
WR – Michael Pittman Jr. Vs. TEN
He is an excellent start off of a bad week. People ask if they can trust Pittman, and Jason thinks you can. 11 targets in Week 1, 12 in Week 2, 11 in Week 3, and only five targets last week. However, that target share was still 37% of the WR targets. The game became the TE show for the Colts. Anthony Richardson only completed 11 passes, and they didn’t go to the WRs. Tennessee, meanwhile, is a pass funnel defense, meaning they want teams to try and throw on them more. In schedule-adjusted points per game, Tennessee is 31st against WRs. They are giving up 37 fantasy points per game to the WR positions. Pittman should receive the largest share of those points, which means you need him to start on your roster.
TE – Tyler Higbee vs. PHI
Higbee is the guy if you are looking for the low percentage roster TE to pick up and play this week. He should see plenty of volume, and the matchup at home against the Eagles is good for TEs. The Eagles’ offense will score points, forcing Matthew Stafford to throw the ball a lot. Higbee just got a big contract and then had 11 targets last week. He is a significant part of the game plan for the Rams. The Eagles’ defense ranks 30th against TEs, and even schedule-adjusted fantasy points to the TE, the Eagles are bad. This matchup is exploitable, and Jason expects Higbee to be a TE1 on the week.
Mike’s Starts of the Week
QB – Zach Wilson vs. DEN
It is gross! However, put your titanium underpants on because it is the play you must be aware of this week. The Broncos allow the most points per game to the QB position. Denver is the best schedule-adjusted matchup for the position. Against the Chiefs’ defense, Wilson was 28 of 39 attempts, which is a 72% completion percentage; with that, he went for 245 yards and two touchdowns. People are asking permission if they can play Zach Wilson this week. To that question, Mike says. “WE RIDE!”
RB – David Montgomery vs. CAR
The Panthers are the third-best matchup in schedule-adjusted fantasy points to the running back. It’s a home game for the Lions. Detroit is a 10-point favorite over Carolina, which means the game should be in another positive game script for Montgomery to grind out the game once Detroit is up, and that is where he makes his money in fantasy.
WR – Tutu Atwell vs. PHI
This week could be the final week for Tutu. We will have to see what happens with Cooper Kupp, but this week should be a good week for Tutu. Wide receivers have been running hot against the banged-up Eagles secondary. The Eagles are the second-best schedule-adjusted fantasy points per game matchup for WRs. Tutu has been a focal point of the passing game and should have at least one more week of relevance you can predict.
TE – Darren Waller vs. MIA
The Walrus is taking on the Dolphins, and the Miami rank doesn’t tell the entire story. In the first two weeks, the TEs scored and had solid performances. In Week 3, the Broncos didn’t have a TE to get the job done, and Buffalo gave all the passing work to Stefon Diggs. The Giants need to lean on Waller; this is a week he should pull through. If he doesn’t, it might be time to panic.