Commanders rookie RB Brian Robinson checked in 3rd among the team's RBs in playing time in his 1st NFL action Sunday, but he immediately claimed the lead in carries. Robinson rushed 9 times for 22 yards in Sunday's loss to the Titans, tripling Antonio Gibson's 3 carries (for 6 yards). Gibson added 3 catches for 33 yards among 4 targets but also trailed J.D. McKissic in playing time and targets. McKissic caught 5 balls for 37 yards among 7 looks, which ranked 2nd on the team. Gibson looks like no more than a handcuff going forward -- and a weak one at that. Washington's running game hasn't been very good so far, and Gibson would still have to share receiving work with McKissic even if Robinson were to go down again. As for the rookie, we'd bet on his role growing from here. We'll see just how much receiving work he can claim. No Washington RB looks truly attractive for fantasy use at the moment.
Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown returned from his ankle sprain for Sunday's loss to the Patriots but played at limited role. He checked in just 4th among Detroit wideouts in playing time for the game, trailing Josh Reynolds (10 targets), Kalif Raymond (7) and Tom Kennedy (1) in playing time. St. Brown did still claim 6 targets to rank 3rd on the team, catching for for 18 yards. He drew a target on 37.5% of routes for the game, pointing to the opportunity upside that awaits as St. Brown works back to full health. A Week 6 bye should help.
Lions RB Jamaal Williams once again easily led the team in rushing in Sunday's loss to the Patriots, taking 15 carries for 56 yards. Craig Reynolds and Justin Jackson combined for another 9 carries. Reynolds gained 24 yards on 6 rushes while also leading the backfield in routes (17) and targets (3). Jackson garnered 3 carries and 1 target, while also running 1 more route than Williams. Detroit now gets a Week 6 bye, and then RB D'Andre Swift is expected to be ready to return. Expect Williams to remain a rushing factor beyond Swift's return. But he doesn't look like a great bet to own the receiving work if Swift goes down again.
Patriots WR Jakobi Meyers returned from 2 games missed with a knee sprain to rack up a 7-111-1 receiving line in Sunday's win over the Lions. He drew a team-high 8 targets (38.1% of team pass attempts), as rookie QB Bailey Zappe filled in for Mac Jones Zappe proved efficient, completing 17 of 21 passes for 188 yards (8.95 per attempt). Meyers has now drawn a target on 31.4% of Patriots pass attempts. He looks like at least a weekly WR3 for PPR lineups going forward.
Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson took advantage of a league-worst Lions run defense and Damien Harris' early hamstring injury to deliver a big rushing line Sunday: 25 carries, 161 yards. He also caught both targets for 14 yards. Stevenson would obviously be set up for another workhorse role in another upside matchup at Cleveland in Week 6, if Harris isn't ready to return. Ty Montgomery is eligible to come off IR, but HC Bill Belichick said he doesn't expect Montgomery to be ready to practice this week.
Bengals RB Joe Mixon posted 14 carries for 78 yards in Sunday’s loss at Baltimore. He finally found some room to run, leading to a season-best 5.5 YPC. His passing-game contributions remained minor, though. With 3 catches for 10 yards, he’s now been held under 15 receiving yards in 3 straight. Backup Samaje Perine beat Mixon in targets (4-3), although Perine did trail Mixon in routes run (12-20). Despite a league-high 15 carries inside the 10, Mixon remains stuck on 1 total score. Week 6 turns up a road matchup with New Orleans.
Panthers QB Baker Mayfield suffered a high-ankle sprain in Sunday's loss to the 49ers, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. "That means he’ll miss time, but how much will be determined by more tests and opinions," Rapoport adds. With QB Sam Darnold still out with his own ankle injury, Carolina will turn to QB P.J. Walker. The 27-year-old owns a 57% completion rate and 6.2 yards-per-attempt average on 128 NFL passes. So, as bad as Mayfield has been, don't expect Walker to be an upgrade.
Seahawks HC Pete Carroll confirmed Monday that RB Rashaad Penny needs season-ending surgery. He broke his fibula and damaged his tibia in the loss to the Saints. It's another tough break for a guy who's struggled with a plethora of injuries over the past 5 seasons. Penny will turn 27 in February and is scheduled to hit free agency in March. His absence leaves 2nd-round rookie Kenneth Walker as Seattle's clear lead back. We'll see how much passing-game work he's able to garner. But rushing production alone should make him at least a weekly RB2 in fantasy lineups.
The Panthers fired HC Matt Rhule. His former team is sitting at 1-4 after going 10-23 over his first 2 seasons. Carolina's ranks in total yards: 21st, 30th and 32nd. Defensive Pass Game Coordinator/Secondary Coach Steve Wilks will take over as interim HC, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. He was HC for the Cardinals' 3-13 2018 season. It sounds like OC Ben McAdoo will be sticking around. We're not expecting the change to help Carolina's floundering offense (although it can't hurt).
Stepping up for an injured Rashod Bateman, Ravens WR Devin Duvernay totaled 5 catches for 54 yards. He added 24 rushing yards on 3 attempts, including one 12-yard burst where he picked up a fumble that hit him when in motion. Overall, he handled a 21.8% target share -- a clear 2nd on the team behind Mark Andrews. Duvernay’s dynamic skill set should keep him on the fantasy radar going forward, at least in deep formats. Consider Bateman questionable for Week 6 (at Giants) with his foot injury.
Ravens TE Mark Andrews rebounded from a Week 4 dud to post 8-89-1 against Cincinnati. Curiously, he was left wide open for his 4th TD of the year. His 10 targets represented an excellent 31% team share. It was the type of usage you'd expect, especially with Rashod Bateman (foot) sidelined. Of course, regardless of Bateman’s Week 6 status vs. the Giants, Andrews will remain an elite TE1. He’s 2nd at the position in PPR points per game.
Bengals TE Hayden Hurst found the end zone and led the team with 53 yards on 6 catches. Hurst scored on an awesome individual effort where he was able to extend the ball right at the goal line. Missing Tee Higgins (ankle, 10 snaps played) helped, but the former Raven has now seen 7+ targets in 3 of 5 appearances. Hurst will get another boost if Higgins is unable to suit up for Sunday’s game at New Orleans.
Ravens RB J.K. Dobbins took a step back in Week 5 with 8 carries for 44 yards. He didn’t draw a target in the passing game, despite 32 Lamar Jackson passes and an inactive Rashod Bateman. Plus, even in a close game throughout, he played only 40% of the snaps a week after handling 50% against Buffalo. Of course, we’re still only 3 games into Dobbins’ season following the 2021 ACL tear. We’ll continue to track his workload closely. Next up is a road matchup with the Giants.
Buccaneers QB Tom Brady attempted 52 passes for the 2nd straight game in Sunday's win over the Falcons. He completed 35 (67.3%) for 351 yards (6.75 yards per attempt) and 1 TD. Brady targeted RB Leonard Fournette most, throwing his way on 21.2% of pass attempts (11 targets) -- including his only TD toss. WR Mike Evans ranked 2nd with 8 targets, catching 4 for 81 yards. TE Cade Otton (6-43) and WR Scotty Miller (4-35) tied with 7 targets. WR Chris Godwin (6-61) and WR Russell Gage (2-20) each drew 6 looks. The Bucs now rank 4th in the league in pass attempts and have run on just 33% of offensive snaps for the season to date.
RB Leonard Fournette led all Buccaneers in targets (11), receptions (10) and receiving yards (83) and scored both of the team's TDs in Sunday's win over the Falcons. He added 56 yards on 14 carries, easily outpacing rookie RB Rachaad White in work. White carried 5 times and drew 4 targets, collecting 42 total yards. But his playing time again sat closer to Fournette than it did through the season's 1st 3 weeks. White played 39% of offensive snaps (compared with 62% for Fournette) and ran just 6 fewer routes (41.5% rate vs. 52.8% for Fournette). The disparity in touches highlights how risky a standalone option White will be in fantasy football lineups as long as Fournette stays healthy. But the narrowed gap also points to how close to a direct replacement the rookie would be if Fournette goes down. White should be rostered wherever possible.
Bucs WR Chris Godwin delivered a fine outing for fantasy owners in the Sunday's win over the Falcons: 6 catches for 61 yards. But he played just 52% of the offensive snaps -- way down from last week's 83%. Godwin, of course, is returning from ACL and hamstring injuries, but there was no injury announced during or after the game. The Athletic's Greg Auman speculated that the Bucs just wanted to get Godwin some rest after taking a 21-0 lead midway through the 3rd quarter. We'll keep a close eye on Godwin's practice participation this coming week.
Falcons RB Tyler Allgeier led the backfield in playing time and rushing work in the 1st game since RB Cordarrelle Patterson landed on IR. Allgeier drew 13 of the team's 24 RB rushes, totaling 45 yards but losing the only rushing score to Avery Williams. That came on 1 of 3 attempts for Williams. Caleb Huntley took the other 8 carries for 34 yards. Williams also claimed the backfield's only 2 targets, but Allgeier beat him 19-8 in routes run, according to Pro Football Focus. Week 6 brings another difficult RB matchup in the 49ers. Allgeier should be the RB target if you need someone from the Atlanta backfield, but don't expect him to crack the top 24 in our Week 6 RB rankings.
Falcons WR Drake London posted just a 4-35 receiving line in Sunday's loss to the Buccaneers. He did lead the team in targets, though, claiming 28% of QB Marcus Mariota's pass attempts. Mariota also took 5 sacks and turned another 4 dropbacks into scrambles. London's situation was complicated by a 4th-quarter knee injury, according to Josh Kendall of The Athletic. London reportedly never entered the sideline injury tent but did wind up playing his smallest snap share of the season (67%). He trailed WR Olamide Zaccheaus in snaps and routes. Assuming there's no lasting damage to London's knee, he'll face a 49ers defense in Week 6 that just lost CB Emmanuel Moseley to a likely ACL tear.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports that the Browns are trading for Falcons LB Deion Jones. The veteran brings a wealth of starting experience and a big contract with him. Terms of the trade, though, point to how far his status has fallen. Cleveland is sending just a 6th-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft to Atlanta for Jones and a 7th-rounder in the same draft. Atlanta has been rumored to be selling Jones since the offseason, primarily seeking to unload his contract. The Browns likely view Jones as a chance worth taking in a LB corps that lost Anthony Walker for the season and just got abused by Austin Ekeler and the Chargers. We'll see whether and how soon Jones gets a shot at significant playing time. He has yet to take the field this year following offseason shoulder surgery and an August hamstring issue.
Cardinals HC Kliff Kingsbury said RB James Conner's ribs are "OK" after he was knocked out of Sunday's loss to the Eagles. "We're checking everything out," Kingsbury added. "It's something in the rib area and they're just being very cautious with him right now." We should get a more concrete update on Conner by Monday night.
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