This article focuses on building lineups with a quality foundation by utilizing the powerful Groups and Rules/Limits tools within the industry’s optimization tools. All of the concepts and pairings included below can also apply to hand-building. The goal is to create lineups with strong correlations among likely point-scorers to maximize the gains from infrequent scoring events within stacks while limiting the likelihood of building inefficient or negatively correlated entries for a full slate of NFL DFS lineups.
This video was made in a former life and features a detailed demonstration of how to apply these concepts in one leading optimizer tool: Fantasy Cruncher – How-To Video
All references to Sims were done via friends of the site: acemind.io
Don’t miss the Above/Below feature article for a few of our top picks, coming Sunday morning
Game notes are updated during the week and initially posted as “work in progress” as they take a long time to create, if teams are missing notes simply check back later in the day/week and they should be updated.
2026 Week 5 DraftKings & FanDuel NFL DFS Stack Rankings
The following stack rankings were created by pairing each team quarterback with his top three scoring options, whether they are three wide receivers, two wide receivers and a tight end, a wide receiver, tight end, and running back, or any viable combination. In some cases, an expensive running back can push the overasll price point of his team stack in the value rankings.
| TEAM | OPP | FD$ | FDpRank | FDvalRank | DK$ | DkpRank | DKvalRank | Vegas |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DAL | ARI | $32,200 | 1 | 1 | $28,300 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| CIN | TEN | $31,200 | 2 | 3 | $27,700 | 2 | 4 | 2 |
| DET | MIN | $31,900 | 3 | 7 | $30,100 | 3 | 14 | 8 |
| LAR | LAC | $30,200 | 4 | 5 | $27,500 | 4 | 12 | 5 |
| BUF | BAL | $30,100 | 5 | 6 | $26,600 | 5 | 10 | 3 |
| ATL | TB | $28,700 | 7 | 11 | $25,300 | 6 | 9 | 16 |
| BAL | BUF | $30,200 | 6 | 10 | $24,600 | 7 | 6 | 6 |
| ARI | DAL | $26,500 | 9 | 4 | $24,700 | 8 | 8 | 9 |
| JAC | IND | $26,500 | 8 | 2 | $23,100 | 9 | 3 | 4 |
| KC | DEN | $29,200 | 10 | 14 | $26,200 | 10 | 18 | 14 |
| LV | NYJ | $27,900 | 11 | 12 | $25,300 | 11 | 15 | 12 |
| NE | MIA | $26,400 | 12 | 8 | $22,300 | 12 | 5 | 6 |
| NYJ | LV | $27,600 | 13 | 13 | $23,600 | 13 | 13 | 10 |
| MIN | DET | $26,900 | 14 | 15 | $23,500 | 14 | 17 | 13 |
| TB | ATL | $24,500 | 15 | 9 | $19,800 | 15 | 2 | 11 |
| PIT | CLE | $26,600 | 16 | 18 | $22,200 | 16 | 19 | 14 |
| IND | JAC | $26,200 | 17 | 21 | $21,900 | 17 | 20 | 20 |
| DEN | KC | $24,500 | 18 | 19 | $19,500 | 18 | 11 | 17 |
| CLE | PIT | $25,400 | 20 | 22 | $20,800 | 19 | 22 | 21 |
| MIA | NE | $23,700 | 19 | 17 | $19,100 | 20 | 16 | 19 |
| LAC | LAR | $23,700 | 22 | 20 | $20,000 | 21 | 21 | 18 |
| TEN | CIN | $22,500 | 21 | 16 | $17,600 | 22 | 7 | 22 |
Get a 100% FREE zero-commitment required first week on a weekly plan at any time with promo code: TryMe
Week 5 DraftKings & FanDuel NFL DFS Stacks & Optimizer Groups
Overview
Rules and limits are powerful tools for lineup creation for NFL DFS, where our primary focus is creating highly correlated lineups via stacking players from the same game. Lineups will typically be coordinated around the quarterback selection, which informs at least one pass-catcher choice, establishes a budget, eliminates a defense, and sets the tone for the lineup. We will typically look to correlate a quarterback and at least one of his pass-catchers in every lineup, with many of those including a skill player from the opposing team. This player is included to support the stack in a high-scoring game that drives offense on both sides, creating additional correlated scoring potential. Stacking multiple pass-catchers in the same lineup is a sound approach, though there are typically overall ceilings on how much volume is available at any given position. While pass-catching running backs can be prioritized in stacks and group tools, including running backs who are not involved in the passing game is less important at this stage; they will fall naturally into shares as needed. High-volume backs and pass catchers out of the backfield can be included in the groups utilized below, but it is frequently not necessary to do so with the very best players, they arrive in lineups without help.
Rules and limits are typically applied in an optimizer’s Advanced Options menu. Notes are included to illustrate the reasons behind each rule and explain what it does during the lineup creation process. These settings can typically be saved for re-use, which is highly recommended. Saving the groups created below is also a good idea that will save time with updates instead of recreation each week. These groups are created manually, but most optimizers include automated group creators that can help accelerate the curation process.
DraftKings + FanDuel Settings & Advanced Options
Note – Terminology may vary from site to site but these are common functions across most industry tools.
Unique Players Per Lineup– This setting forces the optimizer to utilize at least X new players who were not in Lineup 1 when it creates Lineup 2, and so on. We recommend a setting of at least two unique players, more can be applied depending on the degree of differentiation desired within lineups.
Team Salary– a minimum or maximum salary spend can be applied here as needed, although leaving salary on the table is an easy path toward creating unique lineups while not necessarily making a negative expected value play.
FLEX position– allows restrictions on what positions can be rostered at the FLEX spot. The primary position to restrict is the tight end so that lineups do not include two players from the position. In many industry tools this is a separate option via a checkbox, it can also be handled specifically within groups.
Global Exposure Setting – allows caps on the maximum percentage of lineups a player can appear in within a given pool of lineup construction. This is a powerful tool for shaping lineups but if settings are too low, attempts to build a full set will fall short due to a lack of available players, one of the most common errors in optimizer building. Most optimizers include the ability to calculate ownership caps continuously or at the end of the pool creation process. If caps are calculated continuously, a player with a 25% cap who is utilized in Lineup 1 will not be available for use again until Lineup 5, we recommend turning OFF continuous calculation.
Randomness – provides a random multiplier to each player’s projected point total based on the set values. This valuable tool helps differentiate lineups instead of simply creating them in order of the highest median projected scores. Using some randomness for lineup generation is strongly recommended but the degree to which it is applied is down to personal preference, 15-25% is fine to get started. We suggest heavier randomness to more event-based players like wide receivers while tracking volume-based positions like running backs more toward their median or ceiling projections.
DraftKings + FanDuel Team Stack Rules
This set of rules will force optimizers to build lineups with certain combinations. We are looking to stack at least one skill player, almost always a pass-catcher, with his quarterback while frequently playing a skill player from the opposing team in the lineup. The theory behind this build is that a high-scoring stack will require some response from the opposing team to deliver a ceiling score in most situations. Most optimizers utilize a “complete the sentence” approach for rule creation with selections from drop-down menus following a very straightforward logic. Exceptions to these rules can be added for specific teams and players on most optimizer products.
- QB with at least one WR/TE from Same Team (note: It is fine to set this to two or to utilize two versions of this rule, one with WR/TE and one with RB/WR/TE, but we can also refine this via Groups)
- optional – QB with at least one RB/WR/TE from the Opposing Team (we typically prefer the pass-catchers but high-volume running backs can be effective here)
- QB with at most zero DST from the Same Team (this is a personal preference; high-scoring teams and quarterbacks tend to leave their defenses on the field, exposing them to simple point-scoring negatives)
Limits & Custom Rules and Requirements
Limit rules can be applied to restrict certain combinations from coming together. This is powerful for limiting multiple running backs from the same team or getting overweight to a certain stack within a lineup.
- Limit QB/RB/WR/TE from Same Team to three
- Limit RB/WR/TE from the Same Team to one unless paired with QB from the Same Team OR the Opposing Team (this prevents multiple players from a team that is not a primary quarterback-based stack)
- optional – Limit RB from Same Team to one (we can also do this with WR in a separate rule that adds an “unless paired with QB or opposing QB” but it’s a personal preference for NFL DFS, we typically do not want two pass-catchers from the same team without their quarterback)
We will maintain the list of rules and limits throughout the season, with occasional tweaks. Each week sees another fresh crop of value plays as situations change and injuries create opportunities around the league. These changing roles and emergent value plays are accounted for in creating these groups from week to week. After a large pool of lineups is created utilizing these groups, it is still critical to filter them for factors including ceiling projections and leverage potential. These groups should help ensure that a highly correlated premium set of options that rotates through various combinations is utilized to create the full lineup pool.
Sunday Updates
Any changes and recommended boosts to specific players will be provided in an early morning update each Sunday.
NFL DFS Week 5 Features & Projections
- Week 5 Projections
- Week 5 Above/Below
- Week 5 Quarterback Scoring & Value Rankings
- Week 5 Running Back Scoring & Value Rankings
- Week 5 Pass-Catcher Scoring & Value Rankings
- Week 5 Defense Scoring & Value Rankings
Construction Concept
Team groups are built by utilizing the quarterback as the KEY player in group settings. The quarterback decision is the driving factor in determining which stack the lineup utilizes and which corresponding plays are made to work within the structured requirements. In Fantasy Cruncher, built to specification, each team will have two groups, a team group and an opponent group, both of which utilize the same quarterback as the key player. Each game will have a total of four groups. This is the best approach to truly capture the requirement of playing individual “run-back” plays from the opposing team. A more basic approach would be to include all of the skill players from a game in each quarterback’s group and rely on rules and limits to restrict any potential overflow. It is highly recommended to save the early season groups as a foundation that will be updated for the rest of the season. The recommended groups will include skill players who have an active role in their offense and provide significant correlation with their quarterback’s scoring; often, bell-cow running backs who do not specialize in the passing game will not be included in groups as they are projected highly and appear on their own in basically correct distributions, while also not always providing the strongest positive correlation plays. Stacking quarterbacks with pass-catchers and allowing running backs to fall into the lanes created by settings, available salary, and randomness should create a well-distributed set of quality lineups. These groups are updated weekly to account for changes in utilization, schemes, injuries, target shares, and more.
Team Groups for DraftKings & FanDuel – Week 5
The goal is to create a large pool of well-built lineups that can be utilized in any large-field GPP contest. Our approach is to build far more lineups than needed and utilize a sorting table or sim process to filter to the best set of entries. The lineups created in these crunches should provide a broad distribution that includes some of the lower-owned high-upside skill players from each stack. Applying boosts is critical in pushing and pulling ownership to individual players within their team’s stacked lineups if they appear too much or too little.
The groups below are designed so that each quarterback will have two groups to create, one with his skill players and another with the opposing team. A more basic approach would be to add them all to one large group with an “at least three” and let rules and limits set things, but there is a more granular level of control in creating them separately.
Utilizing two groups also allows us to place running backs into the “run-back” position in certain teams while not including them in the primary stack for their team. This is useful when a situation has an extremely highly projected running back that does not necessarily fit into his team’s passing game. These players are threaded throughout the following construction recommendations.
Note for all optimizers the rules can be utilized to force bring-back plays in some sets of crunches and turned off for others as a global function instead of changing each group to “exactly one” bring-back play, wherever applicable, but it will apply to all teams.
Arizona Cardinals
Game Total: 54.5 (ARI +5.5 / 24.5)
Offense: 3.9 ypa rush (39.54%) / 5.4 ypa pass (60.46%) / 21.8 ppg
oppDEF: 4.4 ypa rush / 6.8 nypa pass / 26.3% pressure / 8.33% sack (15) / 1.21% int (2)
Key Player: Jacoby Brissett
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Trey McBride, Michael Wilson, Jeremiyah Love (on/off), Tyler Allgeier (on/off), Kendrick Bourne, Elijah Higgins (very large field; on/off)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Jahmyr Gibbs, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Sam LaPorta, Jameson Williams, Isaac TeSlaa
Game Notes:
Quarterback
The Cardinals are a hot commodity in the NFL DFS game of the week against the Lions on Sunday, but they are a team in a bit of flux as well. Jacoby Brissett is one of the leading quarterback options on both sites across both scoring and value, at the helm of a top-3 stack across the board. The Cardinals are far from good, but they are a competent-enough offense facing a bad Lions defense in a game carrying a 54.5-point total that is the highest we have seen on a main slate this season. Brissett has thrown for excellent volume, hurling 38.0 passes per game to create an abundance of opportunities for point-scoring events. The quarterback is throwing for just 204.5 yards per game, or 5.4 per pass attempt, but he is completing passes at a 68.0% clip that sits 5.2 points over expectation for the season. Brissett adds very little on the ground, but he has several premium weapons in a now-consolidated passing attack, making him a prime DFS option and a slightly less popular, far less expensive access point to the best game on the slate. Jacoby Brissett is QB3 by points and QB1 by value on both DraftKings and FanDuel in Week 5.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
Jeremiyah Love heads into Sunday without an injury designation after spending the week dealing with an ankle injury that originally had him listed as questionable. The running back has been solid but not special for the team that sunk a first-round pick into him this offseason. Love is gaining 4.1 yards per rush attempt on 13.8 carries per game, but that mark actually sits a tenth of a yard below expectation per attempt. The running back has a rushing touchdown on the board along with a bit of added upside from 3.3 targets per game in the passing attack. Love is gaining just 2.8 yards per target but has seen most of his work in short situations where his target comes around the line of scrimmage. The running back has a touchdown catch to his credit and has drawn three red zone targets in four games. Love is an interesting piece to work into stacks of Cardinals as a differentiation option with some correlated scoring potential, or as a bring-back play against a stack of chalky Lions.
Tier 2:
Tyler Allgeier played 36 snaps with the offense in Week 4, delivering 49 scrimmage yards on eight carries and two catches (two targets) with a rushing touchdown. The running back remains a weekly threat to steal scoring opportunities from his rookie teammate; Allgeier gains 3.5 yards per attempt but has a 12.5% broken tackle rate. The running back is limited primarily by opportunities as the team works Love more into regular touches; he is RB26/28 and RB25/26 across sites, but the talent and the touchdown scoring potential remain strong.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
n/a
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
Trey McBride is drawing 11.5 targets per game, including a 12-target Week 4 over 37 routes run. The tight end sees nearly unrivaled volume for his position and tends to deliver big fantasy scoring performances. While he only came away with seven catches for an empty 31 yards in Week 4, McBride has already caught 33 passes for 242 yards and two scores on his 46 targets over four games. The volume for McBride and the team’s top wide receiver, who is featured next, could potentially go up from already ludicrous numbers with the Cardinals announcing that Marvin Harrison Jr. will sit out in advance of a trade. Trey McBride is easily TE1 across the board as the go-to option in any stack of Cardinals.
Michael Wilson is picking up 11 targets per game and saw 13 in Week 4. The receiver is currently putting up 1.64 yards per route run over his team-leading 39.3 routes per game, and has seized the top spot in this receiver room. Wilson is drawing his average target at about 9.5 yards downfield for a massive 43.35% air yards share that could easily climb in the short term with Harrison Jr. heading out of town. Wilson has only found the end zone once on the season, but the volume puts him among the best options on any given slate, and even more in such a rich game. Michael Wilson is WR6 by points on both sites; he is WR2 by value on DraftKings and WR1 by value on FanDuel and is an utter priority in any Cardinals build. Wilson is also a premium option – as is McBride – in bring-back shares to drive stacks of Lions.
Both of these players will be absurdly popular across a multitude of builds in Week 5.
Tier 2:
Kendrick Bourne ran 30 wind sprints on 42 snaps with an offense that did not look in his direction once in Week 4. The receiver did slightly better in drawing exactly three targets in each of the two previous games, catching two passes for a total of 33 empty yards. Week 1 was by far Bourne’s best of the season; the low-ranked receiver drew eight targets on 31 routes run over a season-high 50 snaps with the offense, catching all eight of them for 75 yards but failing to score. Bourne did draw a target inside the 20-yard line in that game, and saw another in Week 3, but opportunities have been scant in recent weeks. With Harrison Jr. heading out of town, it would be reasonable to expect a bit of an uptick in chances for Kendrick Bourne, whose eight Week 1 targets were actually second behind McBride with everyone active in Week 1. Bourne is quietly WR38 by points but springs to WR15 by value on DraftKings; he is WR37 by points but WR25 by value on FanDuel.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Jalen Brooks has been a part of every Cardinals game this season, but you could be forgiven for not noticing. Brooks has run three routes, drawing a single target that he did not catch over just 13 snaps with the offense, seeing more of his action on special teams. The receiver was capable in limited action in the preseason and could reasonably see an improved role in Week 5, but he has done very little during his four-plus seasons in the NFL, peaking with 12 catches for 177 yards and one touchdown in Dallas in 2024. Brooks is outside of the top-60 across the WR board.
Elijah Higgins is TE27/28 and TE26/26 across sites; he is no more than a dart throw who runs 7.3 routes and sees 1.3 targets per game, but he does have a red zone target and a touchdown catch on the board this season. Higgins is almost certainly a better Showdown format option, even if he finds the end zone at a low price and no popularity it may not be enough.
Simi Fehoko did not play an offensive snap in Weeks 3 or 4, but he was active on special teams for both games. The receiver played six snaps on offense in each of the first two games, running one route and going untargeted. There is very little appeal here, but there are a few loose targets available upstream.
Devin Duvernay is yet to play a snap with the offense but has been active on special teams in all four games. Duvernay was last loosely relevant in 2022, catching 37 passes for 407 yards and three touchdowns for Baltimore. Now 28 years old, the receiver has caught 17 passes for 123 yards and zero touchdowns over 43 active games in the last three seasons.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 3 points / 2 value; FanDuel: 3 points / 2 value
Best Stacking Options: Brissett-McBride-Wilson +/- Love
Best One-off: Trey McBride
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Jeremiyah Love
Wildcard: Kendrick Bourne / Tyler Allgeier
Chicago Bears
Game Total: 46.0 (CHI -1.0 / 23.5)
Offense: 4.9 ypa rush (53.36%) / 7.4 ypa pass (46.64%) / 28.0 ppg
oppDEF: 4.2 ypa rush / 5.8 nypa pass / 27.1% pressure / 7.87 % sack (10) / 3.42% int (4) / 26.3 ppg
Key Player: Tyson Bagent (Caleb Williams is listed as questionable, but Bagent has been named the starter for Sunday until further notice)
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: D’Andre Swift, Luther Burden III, Rome Odunze, Kalif Raymond, Colston Loveland, Cole Kmet (large field; on/off), Zavion Thomas (very large field), Roschon Johnson (on/off)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Christian Watson, Matthew Golden, Tucker Kraft, Skyy Moore, Jonnu Smith (on/off), MarShawn Lloyd (on/off), Kaleb Johnson (on/off)
Game Notes:
Quarterback
Tyson Bagent has been confirmed as the starter for Week 5 despite Caleb Williams’ return to practice on Friday. Williams is technically still listed as questionable for Sunday, but the Bears have repeatedly confirmed that Bagent is taking the ball for at least one more week. The quarterback was not good last time out, throwing for 268 yards but zero touchdowns with an interception on 25-of-34 passing. Bagent threw an additional nine passes before getting hurt in the Week 2 game, putting him at 7.5 yards per pass attempt overall on the season. Against a Green Bay defense that has been steady, allowing a fourth-best 5.8 net yards per pass attempt, the quarterback slots in as a low-end QB15 by points but QB3 by value on DraftKings for just $4,700. As a $6,700 option on FanDuel, Bagent rates as just QB13/QB7 across points and value.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
D’Andre Swift sits as a prized running back option at great pricing across both sites in Week 5. Swift will see a Green Bay defense that allows a mid-level 4.2 yards per rush attempt and a bottom-end 1.8 rushing touchdowns per game. As minor underdogs in a 46-point game, there should be plenty of touches available for the running back. Swift picks up 17.3 carries per game and sees another three potential touches from targets in the passing attack, putting him over the precious 20 potential target line. With understudy Kyle Monangai out of action in Week 5, Swift could even see a few added opportunities. The capable player is gaining a steady 4.5 yards per rush attempt, though that sits 0.1 yards below expectation per attempt. Swift is similarly productive on his targets, picking up his looks behind the line at a -1.6-yard ADOT and gaining 7.0 yards per target. While he has not hit paydirt in the passing game, Swift has been targeted twice in the red zone and punched the ball in for three rushing touchdowns in four games. D’Andre Swift is RB6 by points and RB2 by value on DraftKings; he is RB5 by points and RB2 by value on FanDuel.
Tier 2:
n/a
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Roschon Johnson is outside of the top-45 across the board at running back in Week 5. Johnson played 10 snaps with the offense in Week 4, carrying the ball four times for 16 yards and catching his lone target for another seven. His Week 5 opportunity is unlikely to be more significant than last week’s action. It is of minor note that Johnson did score six rushing touchdowns in this offense in 2024, despite carrying the ball a total of just 55 times for 150 yards over 14 games. Johnson did see two of his carries inside the 20-yard line last week, with one coming inside the 5-yard line.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
Luther Burden III is an emerging talent drawing steady volume as the now top option in the Bears passing game. Burden is WR14 by points but WR3 by value on DraftKings and WR14/WR8 on the FanDuel board. Burden has one of the team’s four touchdown catches this season and leads the pass-catching group with 7.3 targets per game, though that comes on just 27.3 weekly routes. Burden gains an excellent 2.01 yards per route run and has done a lot with just a 68.97% catchable target rate from three different quarterbacks. The receiver is a strong after-the-catch option who picks up 0.7 yards over expectation after the catch each time he hauls one in. Burden is carrying a 21.05% explosive play rate on receptions over his 27.49% air yards share; he is the top option when this team takes to the air. No one else has been targeted more than 5.8 times per game over four weeks.
Tier 2:
Rome Odunze sees five targets per game but outdrew Burden seven to six in Week 4. The talented receiver is picking up the deep looks and creating big scoring play opportunities, though he has failed to find a touchdown over four weeks. Odunze had a near miss, making a great catch but landing outside the back of the end zone two weeks ago; he has been targeted twice in the red zone and can conjure fantasy points at a 15.3-yard average depth of target for 35.9% of the team’s air yards. Odunze is an underappreciated WR23/13 on DraftKings. He is less impactful for value but still rates well as WR24/27 on the FanDuel board.
Kalif Raymond is delivering well beyond anyone’s reasonable expectations with 2.20 yards per route run over 25.0 routes per game in four contests this season. The veteran receiver leads the team in the category while picking up 5.8 targets per game, second to only Burden. Raymond sees most of his chances in short-to-mid range at a 5.7-yard average depth that is a match for where tight end Colston Loveland catches his passes. Raymond has been more involved than the tight end, though that did change with Loveland’s team-leading nine targets in Week 4 with Bagent at the helm. Raymond slots in as yet another quality value play on DraftKings, where he is WR33 by points but WR17 by value. On FanDuel, the receiver is WR27 by points and WR18 by value, showing strong potential to create some leverage.
Loveland has been a gigantic disappointment in early action, gaining a mere 0.78 yards per route run over 29.3 weekly routes. The tight end sees 4.5 targets per game, but did double that mark in Week 4. Loveland had his best game of 2026, catching six of those nine passes for 57 yards but failing to score for the fourth straight game. With Bagent driving once again, the tight end could play a safety valve role; the young quarterback targeted his tight end three times in the red zone in Week 4, including once inside the 5-yard line. Loveland is just TE10/15 and TE12/16 across sites in Week 5, but the Bears are too invested in the talent for him to miss big fantasy days all season.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Cole Kmet runs 15.8 low-value routes per contest, gaining just 0.76 yards per route run on a 5.7% target share. Kmet has not been targeted in the red zone but he does have a touchdown catch to his credit and has seen a few interesting looks at a 10.1-yard average depth of target that can get him into big play range at times. The tight end caught two passes for 13 yards in Week 4, his other two catches and his touchdown came in Week 1, he failed to catch either target in the two games in between.
Zavion Thomas can fly downfield and create space, thus far that has had zero value to Bears quarterbacks. Thomas has one catch on five routes run over 19 snaps with the offense in four games, gaining one yard. Thomas needs an uptick in chances before he is anything more than the most extreme of dart throws, he ranks outside of the top-75 wide receivers in Week 5.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 12 points / 3 value; FanDuel: 11 points / 4 value
Best Stacking Options: Bagent-Swift-Burden +/-Odunze +/- Raymond +/- Loveland
Best One-off: D’Andre Swift
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Rome Odunze
Wildcard: Kalif Raymond
Cincinnati Bengals
Game Total: 43.5 (CIN -6.5 / 25.0)
Offense: 3.6 ypa rush (33.33%) / 7.5 ypa pass (66.67%) / 24.3 ppg
oppDEF: 3.6 ypa rush / 7.7 nypa pass / 20.0% pressure / 3.42% sack (4) / 2.65% int (3) / 25.3 ppg
Key Player: Joe Burrow
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Ja’Marr Chase (Q), Tee Higgins (Q), Chase Brown, Mike Gesicki, Dohnte Meyers, Colbie Young (Q), Mitch Tinsley (large field), Samaje Perine (on/off), Drew Sample (on/off)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Ollie Gordon II, Malik Washington, Chris Bell, Greg Dulcich, Kevin Coleman Jr., Jaylen Wright (on/off)
Game Notes:
Quarterback
The Bengals are a leading scoring option across sites against a terrible pass defense in Week 5. Joe Burrow should have both of his premium weapons at hand. Ja’Marr Chase practiced in full and has but to clear the final review in concussion protocol before game time on Sunday. Tee Higgins is dealing with a few lingering ailments but was a full practice participant at the end of the week and is slated to play despite carrying a questionable tag into Sunday morning. With Burrow throwing the ball nearly 40 times per game (39.25 pa/g) and completing 71.0% of his passes, good for 4.5 points over expectation, and gaining 7.5 yards per pass, the Bengals have been on the attack early in 2026. Burrow has seven touchdown passes against three interceptions in early action, and the concentrated volume with premium targets in his offense makes for ideal NFL DFS stacking. Joe Burrow is QB2 by points on both sites, but he becomes a value challenge at $6,900 on DraftKings, where he rates as just QB17 by value. For a more manageable $8,700 price on FanDuel, Burrow is QB9 by value.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
Chase Brown has been held to just 3.6 yards per rush attempt on 14.5 carries per game on the ground, but his value in the passing game remains strong. The running back is third on the team with six targets per game, including a big 11-target Week 4. With catches on each of those targets, Brown actually ended Week 4 with more touches on receptions than carries (11-10), gaining far more with 71 yards through the air and only 10 on the ground. Brown is gaining 4.3 yards per target with the average opportunity starting 0.8 yards behind the line of scrimmage, though his lone touchdown was on a rushing play. His 5.17% broken tackle rate and limited output on the ground are uninspiring, but there are limited chances in the red zone, including three carries inside the 5-yard line in Week 1. Brown needs to maintain his role in the passing game to keep his value; he rates as RB4 by points and RB5 by value on DraftKings and RB4 by points and RB11 by value on FanDuel, but that could be regarded as somewhat fragile placement by comparison to running backs with better volume or efficiency marks.
Tier 2:
n/a
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Samaje Perine is just RB38/37 and RB37/38 across sites. The veteran gains 3.2 yards per rush on 3.3 carries per game, adding 6.4 yards per target on limited chances with two weekly targets. Perine needs to see action in the passing game to find much value, but that is where Chase Brown is extracting his upside this season, limiting chances and quality for NFL DFS action for the backup.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
Ja’Marr Chase seems likely to play after getting a full practice in this Friday. Chase is gaining 1.75 yards per route run over 30.3 routes per game (skewed by the short Week 4), working at a 7.8-yard average depth of target for 20.73% of the team’s air yards and three touchdown catches over three contests and just 15 Week 4 snaps. The superstar has a special connection with his quarterback; he was targeted 21 times across Weeks 2 and 3 combined, and saw three targets over the first 15 plays last week before his concussion. Chase is an elite scoring option who ranks as WR3 by points and WR8 by value on DraftKings; he is WR4 by points and WR11 by value as an $8,900 receiver on the blue site.
While Chase has been the flashier option early in 2026, excellent 1A receiver Tee Higgins has been tremendous both alongside his partner or in his place. With Chase exiting early in Week 4, Higgins stepped up to run a season-high 45 routes over 60 snaps, catching 11 of his 16 targets for 157 yards. While he did not find the end zone in the slightly frustrating final line, Higgins did catch a touchdown pass while hauling in six of seven targets for 90 yards in Week 3, and had a 95-yard game on five catches the week before. For the season, the second star in this passing game is outgaining Chase rather badly, putting up a whopping 2.80 yards per route run on 35.8 routes per game. Higgins has seen just a 64.1% catchable target rate from Burrow this season, working downfield at an excellent 13.4-yard ADOT for a gigantic 45.64% air yards share. Higgins is WR11 by points but a misaligned $7,100 price tag has him as WR32 by value on DraftKings. The receiver is WR11/16 on the FanDuel slate for $7,500.
Tier 2:
Mike Gesicki has three touchdown catches on the board this season. The tight end had his best game in Week 1, catching five of seven targets for 78 yards and a score. He faltered in Week 2, playing just 21 snaps and going untargeted over 19 routes in Week 2, but then came back with a touchdown catch among his three grabs in each of the past two games. Gesicki played a season-high 47 snaps last week and would presumably see a bit more involvement if either of the star pass-catchers is absent or limited in Week 5. As a wildcard option for touchdown potential, Gesicki is very much in play to differentiate a stack of Bengals; he is TE16/23 and TE14/15.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Dohnte Meyers is WR55/56 and WR50/54 and is not much more than a wildcard play. Meyers runs 22.5 routes per week, gaining 1.43 yards per route run in limited action, drawing four targets per game for a 10.3% share. The receiver did spike to nine targets last week with Chase dipping out of action and Colbie Young also out. Young is questionable again with a knee injury; Meyers could see something more like the 32 snaps and 24 routes run with three catches on five targets that he drew in Week 3 if Young does not suit up.
Drew Sample, Erick All Jr., and Tanner Hudson all see under two targets per game on a handful of routes run each week, with only limited chances in the red zone. The offense is concentrated among the stars, these are nothing more than darts at cheap, low-volume scoring plays, all of them are better for Showdown formats.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 2 points / 12 value; FanDuel: 2 points / 9 value
Best Stacking Options: Burrow-Chase-Higgins +/- Brown
Best One-off: Ja’Marr Chase or Tee Higgins (either / the active one)
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Chase Brown
Wildcard: Mike Gesicki
Cleveland Browns
Game Total: 40.0 (CLE +2.5 / 18.75)
Offense: 3.7 ypa rush (44.54%) / 7.4 ypa pass (55.46%) / 20.3 ppg
oppDEF: 4.3 ypa rush / 5.7 nypa pass / 18.2% pressure / 6.62% sack (9) / 0.79% int (1) / 21.0 ppg
Key Player: Deshaun Watson
Setting: exactly one
Team Group: Denzel Boston, Harold Fannin Jr., Quinshon Judkins, KC Concepcion Jr., Jerry Jeudy, Raheim Sanders (on/off), Isaiah Bond (very large field)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Garrett Wilson, Braelon Allen, Kenyon Sadiq, Isaiah Williams, Sterling Shepard, Mason Taylor, Isaiah Davis
Game Notes:
Quarterback
The Browns are averaging 20.3 points on offense, gaining 3.7 yards per rush and 7.4 yards per pass, putting any semblance of quality mostly in the hands of Deshaun Watson. The quarterback has developed an early connection with rookie receiver Denzel Boston, who is an emerging talent, but the Browns are so bad that the Jets are favored by 2.5 points. The 40-point total in this game does not offer much; Cleveland picks up just an 18.75-point implied team total as one of the lowest-end NFL DFS offenses of the week. Watson has thrown 28.75 passes per game this season, completing 70.0% of them but sitting 2.6 points below expectation by CPOE, working at a limiting 6.7 intended air yards per attempt with quality after the catch pushing him to 7.4 yards per attempt overall. Watson has been serviceable, throwing six touchdowns and only two interceptions, and he can add quality on the ground with at least six rushing attempts in each of the first four games, peaking at 11 for 45 yards in Week 3. Watson does not have a rushing touchdown to his credit this year, but he carries the ball frequently in the red zone and should eventually find six points. Watson is QB12 by points but leaps to QB6 by value on DraftKings; he is QB15 by points and QB12 by value on FanDuel, where his quality is more limited.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
n/a
Tier 2:
Quinshon Judkins is gaining an anemic 3.0 yards per rush attempt on 14.8 carries per game. The running back is seeing another handful of chances coming from 4.0 targets per game, putting up 6.0 yards per target but just a 3.39% explosive play rate on receptions. Judkins drops into Week 5 as RB13 by both points and value on DraftKings and is RB13/12 on FanDuel.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Raheim Sanders sees more action through the passing game than on the ground; he has not carried the ball more than twice in any of the team’s four games this season, but he has run double-digit routes in three of four contests. Sanders sees opportunities in short yardage, drawing 11 targets combined, with a high of five in Week 3. The running back gained 25 yards on three catches in Week 1 and 34 on four Week 3 grabs, but that is about the extent of his quality. Sanders is a very limited lottery ticket at an oddball touchdown; he rates as RB40/41 and RB38/37 across DraftKings and FanDuel.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
Denzel Boston leads the team with an excellent 2.12 yards per route run over 33.5 routes per game. The second-round rookie receiver has been outstanding and has badly outplayed first-round rookie teammate KC Concepcion Jr. Boston sees 5.5 targets per game and does far more with them than Concepcion has with his 7.0 weekly targets, despite similar catchable target rates. With just 63.64% of his chances rating as catchable, Boston has been even better than the surface numbers suggest. The rookie currently puts up an explosive 8.5 yards after the catch per reception, good for a ridiculous 4.3 yards over expectation after the catch per catch. His 17.5-yard ADOT leads the team by a wide margin, giving him a star-making 51.98% air yards share. Boston’s two touchdown catches are second to only the team’s tight end, who has three. Denzel Boston is the team’s best skill player, he ranks as WR21/21 on DraftKings and WR21/15 on FanDuel, where a $5,800 price tag catches the eye.
Tier 2:
Harold Fannin Jr. leads the shaky passing attack with three touchdown catches; he and Boston account for five of Watson’s six, with an outlier going to Blake Whiteheart. Fannin runs 30.3 routes each week but gains just 1.26 yards per route run on his 6.1-yard ADOT and 18.47% air yards share. The clipped opportunities put a bit of an artificial cap on Fannin’s output at times; his 5.88% explosive play rate on receptions does not come screaming off the page, but he has seen three red zone chances and has a knack for finding the end zone in this offense. Fannin is an interesting wrinkle at tight end, ranking as TE8 by points and TE6 by value on DraftKings and showing similar potential at a thin position as TE8/TE7 on FanDuel.
KC Concepcion is delivering just 1.22 yards per route run on 29.5 routes per game, despite leading the group with seven weekly targets. Concepcion has seen just a 60.71% catchable target rate from Watson while operating at just a 6.3-yard average depth of target; the connection has simply been lacking over four games. Concepcion caught five passes for 64 yards in his best game last week, and has seen 17 targets over the past two games, volume that should push production slightly going forward. KC Concepcion Jr. is WR32 by points but WR20 by value on DraftKings. He is more limited as WR33/34 on FanDuel.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Jerry Jeudy runs 23.5 routes per game and gains a lowly 0.66 yards per route run while drawing a 62.5% catchable target rate at his 9.1-yard ADOT. The veteran’s involvement and production have fallen off badly in 2026, Jeudy has very little value as WR49/47 and WR51/50 across sites.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 16 points / 6 value; FanDuel: 17 points / 13 value
Best Stacking Options: Watson-Boston-Fannin Jr. +/- Concepcion Jr.
Best One-off: Denzel Boston
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Harold Fannin Jr.
Wildcard: KC Concepcion Jr.
Denver Broncos
Game Total: 41.5 (DEN -3.5 / 22.5)
Offense: 3.6 ypa rush (39.13%) / 6.1 ypa pass (60.87%) / 18.5 ppg
oppDEF: 3.8 ypa rush / 6.8 nypa pass / 27.3% pressure / 8.06% sack (10) / 3.51% int (4) / 26.5 ppg
Key Player: Bo Nix
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Jaylen Waddle, RJ Harvey (on/off), JK Dobbins (on/off), Courtland Sutton, Evan Engram, Troy Franklin, Marvin Mims Jr. (large field), Tyler Badie (large field; on/off)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Omarion Hampton, Keaton Mitchell, Tre’ Harris, Oronde Gadsden II, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Derius Davis
Game Notes:
Quarterback
The Broncos get a good get-right spot for the passing game with a mid-level Chargers defense on the other side of their 41.5-point game. An additional shot in the arm is expected from coach Sean Payton’s return to playcalling, after four woeful weeks produced just 18.5 points per game. Bo Nix has been no help to the cause, completing passes at a 60.0% rate that sits 5.3 points below expectation, and gaining just 6.1 yards per pass attempt on a limiting 5.4 intended air yards per attempt. Nix has thrown five touchdowns and three interceptions and has been below 220 passing yards in three of four games. Nix has one rushing touchdown on the board, a Week 3 score, and has been held to just 1.8 yards per rush attempt on the year. The quarterback remains playable, if not interesting, as an inexpensive QB9 by points and QB7 by value on DraftKings. Nix is QB9/8 on the FanDuel slate and could form a compelling mini-stack with his affordable top receiver in a decent spot.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
n/a
Tier 2:
n/a
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
RJ Harvey gains 4.1 yards per attempt on 4.0 carries per game but picks up 7.0 weekly targets out of the backfield to keep him relevant in what has been the Broncos offense to date. Harvey gains a solid 6.3 yards per target for 44.0 per game but gets the ball mostly behind the line of scrimmage rather than downfield in big play range. Harvey has not made an explosive play on a reception and gains just 4.0 yard per attempt on the ground, limiting the overall output in a timeshare in which he has also contributed zero touchdowns.
JK Dobbins is the second-initialed running back in this offense; like RJ Harvey, Dobbins is also not a desirable NFL DFS play in Week 5. Dobbins sees more carries, picking up 11.5 rushing attempts per game, but does less with them at 3.5 yards per attempt for -0.6 yards against expectation per attempt, and zero explosive gains. Dobbins is uninvolved in the passing attack and has failed to score in 2026.
Neither of the Broncos’ running backs lands inside the top-20 options at the position this week.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
Jaylen Waddle clings to relevance with the hopes of an upswing for this offense across the board. Waddle is WR12 by points on both sites. He is WR19 by value at $6,100 on DraftKings but stays strong as WR11 by value for just $6,600 on the FanDuel slate. Waddle gains 1.64 yards per route run on 28.3 routes per game this season, but has been somewhat limited by a 65.38% catchable target rate from Nix. The quarterback has struggled to connect regularly with Waddle at his 10.7-yard average depth of target. The receiver is the primary option on most passing plays; his 20.80% target share on routes run easily leads this group, but he has only caught one touchdown pass in the limited early season for the entire offense.
Tier 2:
Evan Engram is TE22 by points but TE13 by value on DraftKings for just $2,800, an objectively cheap price for a talented player. Engram is a $4,900 tight end on FanDuel, where he rates as just TE23/23. Like his tier 1 teammate at wide receiver, the tight end has been extremely cut down in quality by seeing just a 53.85% catchable target rate in early action from Nix. One would expect a change of playcalling to deliver an uptick in quality of chances, as well as volume, for the involved pass-catcher. Engram runs 23.8 routes per game and has seen just 3.3 weekly targets.
Courtland Sutton has been a big disappointment after several productive years in this offense. Sutton gains just 0.69 yards per route run on his team-leading 31.3 weekly routes. The receiver is drawing 5.5 targets per game but has suffered from a terrible 45.45% catchable target rate. Sutton sees his chances at an 11.5-yard ADOT that leads the primary pass-catchers by a fair spread, giving him a still-relevant 34.76% air yards share that is nearly identical to Waddle’s mark. A turnaround for a talented veteran role receiver is not out of the question; the winless Chargers could contribute to that upside as the Broncos return to what has worked in the past.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Troy Franklin is a low-ranked WR50/44 and WR58/51 across sites. The receiver draws just 1.5 targets per game, with one in each of Weeks 1 and 3 and two in Week 2, but he went untargeted in his most significant action in Week 4. Against the 49ers, Franklin ran a season-high 14 routes on 32 snaps with the offense, twice as much action as he had seen in any of the first three games, but did not see a chance to contribute. Franklin has two catches, one for 27 yards and the other for 21 yards, and provides big play lottery ticket potential at an 18.0-yard average depth of target, but he is an unlikely contributor, even with Pat Bryant out in Week 4.
Marvin Mims Jr. is another potential downfield bomber in this offense. Mims has been on the field for 27 plays this season, nine in Week 1 and 18 in Week 4; he has one catch on three total targets over 18 routes run. The receiver has been utilized for big plays in this offense in the past; he drew a 14.9-yard ADOT as a rookie in 2023, catching 22 passes for 377 yards and a single touchdown. Mims put up 503 yards and a surprising six touchdowns over 39 catches in his second season, but his chances came way in at just a 7.4-yard average depth of target, changing his role in the offense before it expanded back to 9.2 yards over 51 targets last season. Mims is a wildcard who should see limited action in an offense looking for answers; there are worse lottery tickets.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 15 points / 14 value; FanDuel: 16 points / 16 value
Best Stacking Options: Nix-Waddle-Sutton +/- Engram
Best One-off: Jaylen Waddle
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Jaylen Waddle
Wildcard: Courtland Sutton
Detroit Lions
Game Total: 54.5 (DET -5.5 / 30.0)
Offense: 4.2 ypa rush (36.7%) / 7.5 ypa pass (63.3%) / 29.8 ppg
oppDEF: 4.2 ypa rush / 8.0 nypa pass / 21.1% pressure / 6.84% sack (8) / 2.75% int (3) / 29.3 ppg
Key Player: Jared Goff
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Jahmyr Gibbs, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Sam LaPorta, Jameson Williams, Isaac TeSlaa, Brock Wright (on/off), Sione Vaki (on/off)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Trey McBride, Michael Wilson, Jeremiyah Love (on/off), Tyler Allgeier (on/off), Kendrick Bourne, Elijah Higgins (very large field; on/off)
Game Notes:
Quarterback
The Lions are the easy chalk of the week; they look unstoppably fantastic atop the board, drawing a 30.0-point implied team total as 5.5-point favorites in a 54.5-point game. Detroit does not have a good defense this season, which should allow plenty of opportunity for the capable Cardinals offense to hang in the game and push scoring beyond the point where anyone would suffer from blowout garbage time impact. Both teams are likely to deliver scoring and fantasy quality in this one, making for a dynamite combination of stacking opportunities across positions and constructions in both directions. The Lions side of the board offers the top-ranked skill player at both running back and wide receiver in fantasy points on both sites, and the team’s quarterback is the number one player at his position in Week 1. Jared Goff slots in as QB1 by points and QB2 by value on both sites; he looks like an excellent play against a defense that allows an unsustainably bad 8.0 yards per pass attempt, good for worst in the NFL. With gobs of scoring available both through the air and on the ground, everything is fair game in this Week 5 matchup, pairing Goff with underappreciated options at tight end or down the board, or using Detroit skill players in bring-back shares of lower-owned Cardinals stacks is entirely within reach, but building around Goff is the “safe” approach.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
Jahmyr Gibbs is RB1 across the board on both sites in Week 5, which is good because he costs a wild $9,800 on DraftKings and $10,000 on FanDuel. For perspective, our measured QB+3 price for the stack rankings for four players from the Dolphins on DraftKings is just $18,100, less than twice the price of one Gibbs share. And he is somehow worth it. Gibbs has been outrageous in 2026, gaining 4.4 yards per rush attempt on 20.0 carries with 3.1 yards per attempt coming before contact, and five rushing touchdowns. Gibbs sees major involvement in the passing game as well, drawing seven weekly targets for league-best positional volume. The running back gains 6.7 yards per target, or 46.8 per game, and has a 15.0% explosive play rate on receptions with two touchdowns through the air. Gibbs is the A+, top-notch, number one chalk of the week in Week 5, outside of staggering popularity, there is no reason to avoid him.
Tier 2:
n/a
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
n/a
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
Amon-Ra St. Brown is WR1/1 on DraftKings and WR1/2 on FanDuel in Week 5; he is as good an option as Gibbs is on the ground. St. Brown has five touchdown catches in four games this season, while seeing targets at an 8.1-yard ADOT for a 29.36% air yards share. St. Brown gains 1.85 yards per route run over 41.0 routes per game. The receiver’s 11.5 weekly targets and ridiculous route-running allowances give him premium potential on volume alone; his talent drives the rest. St. Brown is actually sitting slightly below expectations after the catch this year but has a 12.9% explosive play rate with the skills to push for far more.
Sam LaPorta is not to be denied his shares in stacks of Lions; he is TE4 across the board on both sites and deserves plenty of consideration as an alternative access point to the best offense of the week. LaPorta will not be individually unpopular, but he seems likely to be lower-exposed than at least Gibbs and St. Brown, if not the team’s other premium pass-catcher. LaPorta has a pair of touchdown catches on the board while drawing 17.64% of the team’s air yards in a moderate depth role typical of the position. LaPorta shines in the red zone; he has been targeted nine times in scoring range already this season and could have more scoring plays on the board with ease. A big game is easily in reach with the team likely to spend most of their time in Arizona territory. LaPorta gains 1.54 yards per route run over 37.0 routes per game; he is a major weapon in this offense but does not draw nearly the attention of his big-play teammates.
Tier 2:
Jameson Williams is WR17 by points and WR31 by value on DraftKings at a hefty midboard price. Williams slots in as WR19/WR21 on the FanDuel slate where the quality comes off slightly better. The receiver operates far downfield in this offense, drawing a 14.1-yard average depth of target and a 27.9% air yards share that ranks second on the squad. Williams has not found paydirt this season but the big play shots are there from game to game; he will deliver for those who continually include him for differentiation and value. Williams will be either third- or fourth-most popular in the top offense of the week. An offbeat approach to stacking this game could be using Williams as a bring-back play in a stack of Cardinals; he functions in any role across all constructions.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Isaac TeSlaa has been interesting in this offense in 2026. The lightly-targeted receiver draws just 4.3 targets per game on the whole, but sees occasional upticks like with Week 4’s eight-target performance. TeSlaa is another downfield weapon; he sees a 12.8-yard ADOT that is surpassed only by Jameson Williams in this offense, but his limited chances cut down the potential for anything better than wildcard scoring. A classic hero-or-zero option, TeSlaa will make a few big catches for touchdowns this season, paying off nicely in those few instances while drawing more bust feelings in other games.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 1 points / 1 value; FanDuel: 1 points / 1 value
Best Stacking Options: Goff-Gibbs-St. Brown +/- LaPorta +/- Williams
Best One-off: Jahmyr Gibbs or Amon-Ra St. Brown
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Sam LaPorta or Jameson Williams
Wildcard: Isaac TeSlaa
Green Bay Packers
Game Total: 46.0 (GB +1.0 / 22.5)
Offense: 3.2 ypa rush (31.06%) / 6.8 ypa pass (68.94%) / 18.3 ppg
oppDEF: 4.9 ypa rush / 6.6 nypa pass / 35.3% pressure / 9.17% sack (10) / 3.03% int (3) / 16.3 ppg
Key Player: Jordan Love
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Christian Watson, Matthew Golden, Tucker Kraft, Skyy Moore, Jonnu Smith (on/off), MarShawn Lloyd (on/off), Kaleb Johnson (on/off)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: D’Andre Swift, Luther Burden III, Rome Odunze, Kalif Raymond, Colston Loveland, Cole Kmet (large field; on/off), Zavion Thomas (very large field)
Game Notes:
Quarterback
Green Bay quarterback Jordan Love has a pair of 300+ yard performances over the first four games of 2026. Love completed 21 of 42 passes for a huge 387 yards with two touchdowns and an interception in Week 1 and put up another 312 yards on 28-of-53 passing in Week 3 with another two touchdowns and one interception. He fell below the 200-yard mark in the other two games. Love has been up and down with a 56.0% completion rate, sitting 6.9 points below expectation per CPOE. With strong volume at 38.5 pass attempts per game on a significant 8.5-yard intended air yards per attempt and a few premium deep-target receivers to work with, Love is easily capable of the big game on a weekly basis. He is also capable of throwing it away or limiting his own weapons, and is only connecting with one of his pass catchers at better than an 80.0% catchable target rate. Love is QB6 by points on both sites in a 46.0-point division game that has a good chance to shootout. The Packers’ quarterback is QB4 by value on DraftKings and QB3 by value on FanDuel.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
n/a
Tier 2:
n/a
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
MarShawn Lloyd and Kaleb Johnson have very little appeal for NFL DFS action; they are essentially splitting 12-15 carries and doing very little with them. Lloyd is the nominal top option and sees slight involvement in the passing game, but Green Bay is committed to getting the ball out downfield, and the backup running backs have done little to change that over four weeks in the absence of veteran Josh Jacobs. Neither running back ranks inside the top-25 this week.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
The receiving group is where the Packers stand out, all of those deep targets have to go to someone, after all. Leading the way is capable Christian Watson, who gains a team-best 2.43 yards per route run on 34.0 routes per game. Watson picks up opportunities at a 10.2-yard average depth for a 25.72% air yards share, and sees a 21.3% target rate on routes run. The receiver slots in as the top option in a high-volume passing game and he already has four touchdown catches and a 25.0% explosive play rate on receptions. Watson is a big scoring play waiting to happen; he is WR9 by points on both sites and looks solid as WR11 for value on DraftKings and WR7 in the points-per-dollar category on FanDuel.
Matthew Golden does everything that Christian Watson does, only slightly less often at a slightly deeper spot on the field. Golden runs 35.5 routes per game and actually outdraws his teammate with a team-leading 9.3 weekly targets. The second-year receiver gains 1.93 yards per route run while seeing his looks at a 13.4-yard ADOT for a huge 40.60% air yards share. Golden has a 22.2% explosive play rate on receptions and has found paint twice already this season. The highly capable 2025 first-round pick is so far going underappreciated by the field, even among those drawing one-offs from this Packers offense. Golden is a premium receiver and a strong 1A with Watson in stacks; he deserves attention and will bend slates if he connects more than once at light popularity in a premium Week 5 game. With an abundance of receivers in the most significant games of the week, it seems probable that all Packers pass-catchers will go under-exposed, creating significant potential for both stacking and individual shares. Matthew Golden is WR10 by points on both sites, but he is WR4 by value on DraftKings and WR3 by value on FanDuel.
Tier 2:
Tucker Kraft is TE6/TE10 on DraftKings and TE7/TE8 on the FanDuel board. Kraft is a good weapon at a moderate depth in this high-flying offense, preferring to take his targets in the 5.5-yard range for just 9.48% of the air yards despite his six targets per game. The tight end picks up quality in scoring territory; he already has four red zone targets and a touchdown on the board this season. Kraft is putting up 1.26 yards per route run on 29.3 routes per game; he is easily the third-most involved receiver in this offense and deserves consideration in stacks, where he is probably more valuable than in standalone shares.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Skyy Moore slots in as just WR64/65 and WR60/63 across sites; he has limited appeal while working at just a 5.5-yard ADOT and looking to do his work after the catch. Moore caught three of seven targets in Week 3, his most involved outing, gaining a season-high 31 yards in the process. The receiver caught one pass for -2 yards last week and had two catches for six yards in Week 2, to say he has not done much while playing half of the team’s snaps this season is an understatement.
Jonnu Smith ranks outside of the top-40 tight ends across the board on both sites. The veteran has five catches on seven targets over 43 routes run in four games this season, with one red zone target in the mix. Smith is not more than a lottery ticket for an unlikely, inexpensive touchdown.
Bo Melton has been targeted once a week through four games, but only ran more than six routes in Week 3 (17). Melton should see a chance here and there while working way downfield on an 18.5-yard average depth of target but he is a very unlikely option, as is J. Michael Sturdivant, who does the same thing in this offense in limited action.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 5 points / 4 value; FanDuel: 6 points / 3 value
Best Stacking Options: Love-Watson-Golden +/- Kraft
Best One-off: Christian Watson
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Matthew Golden
Wildcard: Matthew Golden
Houston Texans
Game Total: 37.5 (HOU -7.5 / 22.5)
Offense: 3.5 ypa rush (35.43%) / 7.5 ypa pass (64.57%) / 21.0 ppg
oppDEF: 3.7 ypa rush / 7.0 nypa pass / 19.5% pressure / 6.67% sack (8) / 1.79% int (2) / 20.8 ppg
Key Player: CJ Stroud
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Nico Collins, Dalton Schultz, David Montgomery (on/off), Woody Marks (on/off), Kayshon Boutte, Jaylin Noel, Xavier Hutchinson, Foster Moreau (on/off), Jared Wayne (large field; on/off)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Tony Pollard, Carnell Tate, Wan’Dale Robinson, Tyjae Spears, Elic Ayomanor, Calvin Ridley, Chimere Dike, Gunnar Helm
Game Notes:
Quarterback
CJ Stroud has been hot to start the 2026 season, posting a pair of 300+ yard games and a 274-yard performance to average 285.25 yards per game and 7.6 per pass attempt for the year. Stroud is completing passes ahead of expectations by 5.3 points while throwing 37.75 passes per game, delivering five touchdowns without throwing an interception yet this season. That some of the work came in the absence of star receiver Nico Collins makes the performance somewhat more impressive. Stroud is firing the ball downfield for 9.8 intended air yards per attempt, with multiple receivers operating in double-digit depth of target on average. The quarterback is connecting regularly with Collins when available, and he draws a compliant defense that yields 7.0 net yards per pass attempt to rank 27th in football this season. Stroud slots in as QB8 by points and QB9 by value on DraftKings; he is QB8 by points and vaults to QB4 by value for just $7,300 on FanDuel.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
n/a
Tier 2:
David Montgomery is RB12/14 on both sites; he is on the board for shares as a mostly touchdown-dependent player who is not even a true “RB2” in a traditional season-long sense. Montgomery is limited in both opportunity and output, gaining just 2.7 yards per attempt on 11.8 carries per game with only 1.1 yards after contact per attempt. The veteran has a pair of rushing touchdowns that came in what looked like a statement first game in Houston; he has done little since. Montgomery has barely been involved in the passing game, drawing just 1.8 targets per game with one red zone opportunity, and catching a Week 1 touchdown pass. The running back is a low-quality dart, nothing more.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Woody Marks is gaining steam for touches, but not by distinguishing himself for overall quality with just 3.1 yards per rush attempt, 0.5 yards per attempt below expectation. Marks sees 2.3 targets per game and gains 3.4 yards per target, providing limited quality in the pass-catching arena as well. Neither of the Houston running backs is showing much; the team is happy to leave them behind and take to the air in most contests anyway, and Marks falls outside of the top-25 at his position on both sites.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
Nico Collins is a primetime option in a pass-happy offense that likes to feed him the ball; when he is on the field, he is electric with 2.88 yards per route run over 33.5 routes per game. The receiver is a downfield weapon drawing a 12.9-yard average depth of target and has three touchdown catches in just two games. Collins has been over the 1,000-yard mark for three consecutive seasons while playing 15 games twice and just 12 in 2024; he is on track for that type of year once again if the heavy concentration of volume and depth of opportunity continue. The receiver sees a terrific 77.78% catchable target rate despite the steady depth of his opportunities; he has a strong connection with CJ Stroud and makes for a go-to option in any stack of Texans. Collins also plays up for plenty of scoring potential in standalone shares; he is WR5 by points on both sites, WR7 by value on DraftKings, and WR4 by value on FanDuel.
Tier 2:
Dalton Schultz is a solid pass-catching tight end who sees 6.8 targets per game overall, drawing a 19.6% target share on routes run over his 32.0 routes per game, but his numbers are somewhat skewed by a 12-target, 140-yard performance with Collins absent in Week 2. Schultz drew eight targets in Week 1 and caught four of them for 35 yards but was limited to just five targets combined over the two games since, despite running 43 combined routes in those games. With Collins in the mix in Week 4, the tight end picked up just two catches, bringing in both of his targets, while running 23 routes, down from the 43 he ran in the big Week 2 game and 30 in Week 1. Schultz is more of a mixer and differentiation option than a true go-to, but he does have uptick games, and this is an easily beatable defense, pushing him to TE12 by points but TE9 by value on DraftKings and TE11 across the FanDuel board.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Kayshon Boutte has topped out at three catches twice this season, and has yet to break even the 40-yard mark despite ongoing involvement in the offense. Boutte sees just a 9.4% target rate on routes run, delivering 0.90 yards per route over 32.0 routes per game, putting him at the same level of participation as the two pass-catchers above him in this space. Boutte has not caught a touchdown pass, but he has a 33.3% explosive play rate on receptions while working at a 12.3-yard ADOT and seeing reliable targeting from Stroud. There is big play potential here and there, but it has gone largely unrealized in early action. Boutte is a believable lottery ticket but also a likely 0-to-5 point day.
Xavier Hutchinson runs 28.5 routes per game on the whole this season and fewer when everyone is in action. Hutchinson has been targeted regularly in limited action, seeing 6.5 weekly targets, including five last week even with Collins active, though those came on just 10 routes run, down from 21 the week before, which was already half of what he ran in Week 2. Hutchinson’s involvement is trending in the wrong direction in terms of routes, but he sees his number called when he runs them and makes big downfield plays for Stroud at a 12.6-yard ADOT, leading to a 25.0% explosive play rate on his low reception total. Hutchinson is WR47/51 and WR49/52 but has a bit more appeal for low-owned access to this passing game and some big play potential for a low price.
Jaylin Noel runs 22.8 routes per game but delivers an excellent 2.04 yards per route run for his limited targeting. Noel has a 12.6-yard ADOT that matches the big-time high-fliers in this offense, but he is at best the fourth option as a pass-catcher, limiting the quality for NFL DFS to mere dart-throw levels.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 8 points / 5 value; FanDuel: 8 points / 8 value
Best Stacking Options: Stroud-Collins-Schultz
Best One-off: Nico Collins
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Dalton Schultz
Wildcard: Kayshon Boutte
Indianapolis Colts
Game Total: 43,5 (IND +3.0 / 20.25)
Offense: 3.9 ypa rush (44.66%) / 5.7 ypa pass (55.34%) / 25.5 ppg
oppDEF: 4.3 ypa rush / 6.8 nypa pass / 20.8% pressure / 8.06% sack (10) / 3.51% int (4) / 21.8 ppg
Key Player: Daniel Jones
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Jonathan Taylor, Tyler Warren, Josh Downs, Keenan Allen (Q), Laquon Treadwell, Seth McGowan (on/off), Darius Slayton (Q; very large field), Mo Allie-Cox (on/off)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Jaylen Warren, DK Metcalf, Roman Wilson, Pat Freiermuth, Darnell Washington, Rico Dowdle (Q; on/off), Germie Bernard
Game Notes:
Quarterback
Daniel Jones has done a lot early in the season to prove that last year’s mini-breakout was simply an illusion and the quarterback that we saw in New York is his true nature. Jones has delivered a lousy 188.5 yards per game, or 5.7 per pass attempt, with three touchdown passes, four interceptions, and a lone rushing touchdown this season. The quarterback is lacking options with Alec Pierce on IR, but he has only found limited success with his premium tight end, instead allowing their superstar running back and emergent kicker to do most of the scoring over four weeks. Jones slots in as a low-end QB20/QB18 and QB20/QB22 across sites in Week 5.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
Jonathan Taylor is a no-brainer on most slates. The running back slots in as RB2 by points on both sites; he is RB3 by value on DraftKings and RB4 by value on the FanDuel slate. Taylor’s immense volume and touchdown-scoring potential drive quality through essentially any price; he is an expensive $8,600 option who still draws excellent points-per-dollar ratings on the blue site, for example. Taylor carries the ball 21.5 times per game, posting 4.1 yards per rush attempt with 2.3 coming before and 1.8 after contact. He has six rushing touchdowns in four games and extracts additional upside from 3.8 weekly targets in the low-end passing attack. Taylor is the go-to scoring option in this offense, and he is an easy-to-use running back across NFL DFS sites, primarily as a standalone player that one uses in a “pay up to be different” approach as the public spends on stars under brighter Week 5 spotlights.
Tier 2:
n/a
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
n/a
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
Tyler Warren is the presumptive top option in the low-end passing attack once again in Week 5. Warren draws 6.8 weekly targets, returning 1.02 yards per route run for his 31.8 routes per game, and picking up his chances in extreme short-yardage looks at just a 1.7-yard ADOT. Warren has found the end zone twice or, put another way, the tight end accounts for 66.6% of his team’s touchdown catches this season. Warren is TE5 by points and TE8 by value on DraftKings; he is TE5 by points but leaps to TE2 by value at an inexpensive $5,500 on the FanDuel slate.
Tier 2:
Josh Downs is WR20/WR33 and WR18/17 across sites, despite going without a touchdown over the first four games of the year. Downs gains 1.55 yards per route run on 32.5 routes per game and draws a 36.47% air yards share at a 9.8-yard ADOT that represents the best downfield weapon for Jones. The receiver sees just a 60.71% on-target rate from the lousy quarterback, limiting the quality of his opportunities. Downs is loosely playable across sites and rates better for big play potential on the FanDuel board than he does at a bad value point on DraftKings.
Keenan Allen is still questionable overnight on Saturday but looks likely to suit up after a full Friday practice. Allen ranks outside the top-35 at wide receiver for both points and value on both sites. Simply put, the veteran has not been good in limited action this season. Allen gains just 1.28 yards per route run on just 26.0 routes per game, seeing most of his chances at a 6.3-yard average depth of target. The veteran has the remaining touchdown catch in this offense but, again, only three have been thrown in four weeks. An injured Allen offers very little for NFL DFS reliability or ceiling; he is simply a mix-and-match option in Week 5.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Laquon Treadwell draws 2.8 targets per game but saw a big uptick to six last week, giving him a chance to better a lousy 1.17 yards per route run overall in 2026. Treadwell caught five passes for 42 yards in Week 4; he had a 61-yard game on three catches over just 24 routes in Week 2. The receiver is unlikely to become a suddenly reliable target, but if one is blindly throwing darts at this offense, he should be in the spread of options if nothing else. Treadwell is WR52/53 and WR45/43.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 7 points / 10 value; FanDuel: 7 points / 5 value
Best Stacking Options: Jones-Taylor-Warren
Best One-off: Jonathan Taylor
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Tyler Warren
Wildcard: Josh Downs
Los Angeles Chargers
Game Total: 41.5 (LAC +3.5 / 19.0)
Offense: 4.3 ypa rush (46.12%) / 6.8 ypa pass (53.88%) / 16.8 ppg
oppDEF: 4.8 ypa rush / 6.2 nypa pass / 21.5% pressure / 5.37% sack (8) / 2.84% int (4) / 23.5 ppg
Key Player: Justin Herbert
Setting: exactly one
Team Group: Omarion Hampton (on/off), Tre’ Harris, Keaton Mitchell (on/off), Oronde Gadsden II, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Derius Davis, Kimani Vidal (on/off)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Jaylen Waddle, RJ Harvey (on/off), JK Dobbins (on/off), Courtland Sutton, Evan Engram, Troy Franklin, Marvin Mims Jr. (large field), Tyler Badie (large field; on/off)
Game Notes:
Quarterback
The Chargers come into action as one of the lowest-end plays on the Week 5 slate, drawing just a 19.0-point implied team total as the winless squad checks in as 3.5-point underdogs in a 41.5-point contest. Los Angeles has been inept in 2026, posting just 16.8 points per game with a lot of blame falling on the shoulders of quarterback Justin Herbert. With a 60.0% completion rate sitting more than three points below expectation, Herbert has been a limiting factor in the team’s production. His four touchdown passes against an atrocious six interceptions in only four games have been even more negatively impactful. The Chargers’ signal caller is averaging 6.9 yards per pass attempt despite heaving the ball out to 8.4 intended air yards per attempt, and he only finds Ladd McConkey with better than an 80.0% catchable target rate. Herbert is QB16/11 and QB16/17 across sites, rendering him a lousy NFL DFS option at the head of an even lousier stack in Week 5.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
n/a
Tier 2:
Omarion Hampton carries the ball 14.8 times per game for 4.0 yards per rush attempt. The running back has been slightly below expectation on the limited volume, but he does have a 15.25% broken tackle rate and three rushing touchdowns in four games, despite the limitations of his surrounding offense. Hampton is uninvolved as a pass-catcher, drawing just 1.3 targets and gaining 5.8 yards per target each week. The running back is a lousy mixer for NFL DFS but is one of the better plays if one is forced to draw shares from the Chargers for sadistic reasons. The running back is RB15/18 and RB17/23 across sites; he is less valuable for FanDuel gamers by a fair margin.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Keaton Mitchell picks up 6.8 carries per game and delivers a solid 4.6 yards per rush attempt with a 14.81% broken tackle rate so far this season. The running back also sees 2.5 targets per game and picked up six last week; he gains value when scoring in the passing game, as he did in Week 3. Mitchell picked up 10 carries for 39 yards while adding 24 yards on five-of-six receptions in Week 4, he remains no more than a low-value dart in a bad offense.
Kimani Vidal ranks outside of the top-35 running backs on light volume and limited opportunities in the passing game. The running back should not be expected to touch the ball even five times in any given week, unless something happens above him on the depth chart.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
Ladd McConkey is questionable to play while dealing with a foot injury that held him out of practice this week. McConkey is trying to suit up while teammate Quentin Johnston has already been ruled out, rendering an already ineffective passing game even worse. If McConkey gets into the game at all, he is unlikely to be at 100%, given the nature of the injury. The receiver is easily Herbert’s favorite weapon; he sees 4.3 targets per game and an 82.35% on-target rate from the low-end signal caller. McConkey turns that action into 2.10 yards per route run over 21.8 routes per game, and his 13.4-yard average depth of target with reliable looks adds general appeal, despite just one touchdown on the board so far this year.
Tier 2:
Tre’ Harris could see major gains in the absence of Quentin Johnston, and “could” will change to “should” if McConkey is also out of action. Harris has so far been held to 5.3 targets per game but gains 1.82 yards per route run on 28.8 weekly routes despite seeing just a 61.9% catchable target rate from Herbert. Harris is another downfield weapon who could step into a significant role in place of the team’s primary bombers; he operates at a 12.0-yard ADOT for a 23.67% air yards share and could soar toward double-digit targeting if everything breaks correctly. With McConkey projected IN, Harris ranks as WR34/28 and WR31/30, he will climb, particularly for points-per-dollar potential, if his teammate is absent.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Oronde Gadsden II has a touchdown on the board while operating at a 6.3-yard ADOT and under a 10.0% air yards share in a limiting role that restricts him to touchdown-dependent play. Gadsden is just TE17/16 and TE17/17 across sites and does not provide much outside of dart-throw caliber potential, and even then not at a good price point.
Marquez Valdes-Scantling signed to the Chargers from the practice squad ahead of Week 4 and played 26 snaps, running 17 routes and drawing a single target that he failed to catch. Buying shares of “MVS” seems likely to deliver zero DFS points in Week 5, he would see limited added quality with teammates out of action.
Derius Davis has one catch this season, gaining six yards on the Week 4 grab. The receiver played 10 snaps with the offense in Week 1 and eight in Week 2, drawing a target in each game but delivering no NFL DFS points, a trend that seems likely to continue.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 21 points / 22 value; FanDuel: 20 points / 22 value
Best Stacking Options: Herbert-McConkey-Harris
Best One-off: Tre’ Harris
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Tre’ Harris
Wildcard: Tre’ Harris
Las Vegas Raiders
Game Total: 45.0 (LV +3.5 / 20.75)
Offense: 3.1 ypa rush (44.4%) / 7.1 ypa pass (55.6%) / 28.8 ppg
oppDEF: 4.4 ypa rush / 5.7 nypa pass / 22.1% pressure / 5.97% sack (8) / 2.38% int (3) / 19.3 ppg
Key Player: Kirk Cousins
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Ahston Jeanty (Q), Brock Bowers, Tre Tucker, Michael Mayer, Cody White, Mike Washington Jr. (on/off), Malik Benson (large field), Dareke Young (very large field)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Rhamondre Stevenson (on/off), TreVeyon Henderson (on/off), Romeo Doubs, Hunter Henry, DeMario Douglas, Efton Chism III, Kyle Williams (large field), Eli Raridon (large field; on/off)
Game Notes:
Quarterback
Kirk Cousins’ scorching hot return to action continued in a big Week 4 performance, with the veteran hurling 52 passes and connecting 31 times for 365 yards and a pair of touchdown passes. Cousins threw an interception in the game as well, his fourth in as many games, but he was mostly outstanding for NFL DFS scoring once again and is beginning to gain faith, given an eye-popping 11 touchdown passes in four games. The capable passer drops into action against a New England defense that has limited opposing passers to just 5.7 net yards per attempt while applying fair pressure and defending the pass well overall. Cousins is knocked down as an individual, slotting in as just QB17/21 and QB17/18 across sites this week, but he has demonstrated the ability to beat the odds, and his strong weapons can float his quality in stacks to a degree. Despite the mediocre individual rankings, Cousins is still driving Stack 10 by points and Stack 15 by value on both sites, which can be enough.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
Ashton Jeanty is questionable overnight heading into Sunday after heading in the wrong direction with his foot injury throughout the week. Jeanty did not practice on Friday and should be expected to take on a slightly reduced role even if he is in action. The running back carried the ball 15 times for 58 yards and caught six passes for another 68 yards from scrimmage in another strong performance in Week 4; he is seeing premium potential touch numbers each week and stands tall on the back of volume alone; his 3.4 yards per attempt on the ground is less than impressive. Jeanty is RB5/7 and RB6/10; keeping an eye on his injury status will be paramount on Sunday morning.
Tier 2:
Mike Washington Jr. has turned limited action into interesting output, gaining five yards per rush attempt on six carries per game to start the season and punching in an inexpensive low-owned rushing touchdown in a big spot. Washington slot in as just RB31/29 and RB31/30 in Week 5 and is only of limited quality if Jeanty suits up, but would take a large step forward if his high-volume teammate is forced to miss the game. Washington is a name to be aware of when it comes to standalone shares for value play at running back; he will get popular if Jeanty misses but could deliver quality if he picks off a touchdown even with Jeanty active.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
n/a
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
Brock Bowers has provided strong returns in his first two games this season, delivering on heavy expectations after missing Weeks 1 and 2. Bowers gained 1,194 yards and caught 112 passes, including five touchdowns, in his rookie season in 2024, then followed it with seven touchdown catches in just 12 games last year. One of the best at his position on any given slate, Bowers has a pair of touchdowns on the board in two games, connecting for 10 catches and 116 yards with a touchdown on 14 targets and 35 routes in Week 3, then expanding to 47 routes over 68 snaps in Week 4, catching six of 11 targets for 86 yards and the other score. Bowers is a go-to who should see chances in every version of this game; he draws 12.5 targets per game and sees a 10.4-yard ADOT, putting him among the top options for big plays at the position. Bowers is an easy TE2 by points on both sites; he is TE11 by value on DraftKings and TE5 by value on FanDuel.
Tier 2:
Tre Tucker slots in as WR31/39 and WR28/33, far more “playable” than “priority” range. The receiver draws 5.8 targets on 29.8 weekly routes and has been solid with 1.96 yards per route run on the season. With a 15.5-yard average depth of target pushing him to a 28.52% air yards share, there are plenty of big plays waiting to happen for Tucker; he simply needs to capitalize on the limited chances and lousy 65.22% on-target rate he has seen from Cousins to date. Tucker is a mixer across lineups; he plays up for quality in Raiders stacks.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Michael Mayer is TE20/24 and TE20/20; he is loosely playable in a touchdown-dependent sense on main slates and has more value in Showdown formats where low-volume touchdown catches can drive points-per-dollar scoring. Mayer sees quality chances while operating underneath Bowers in the offense at just a 4.8-yard average depth of target. The tight end picked up 10 targets in Week 4 and has run more routes with Bowers in action than while his teammate was out. Mayer caught eight of those 10 Week 4 passes for 82 yards but did not score in a surprising burst of quality last week. He had a low-cost, low-owned touchdown catch as one of three catches for 32 yards on three targets in Week 3.
Cody White is WR56/54 and WR52/55 across sites; his value is difficult to register given uniquely low volume for someone with three touchdown catches in four games. White played a season-high 51 snaps with the offense in Week 4, running 28 routes but drawing just four targets after he had been targeted three times on just six routes run the week before. The two catches for 36 yards and zero touchdowns represented a three-week low point for White, who had a touchdown on his lone four-yard catch in Week 3 and two touchdowns on two catches for 24 yards in Week 2. Given the mismatch of added snaps and routes but no added chances, it is difficult to have much faith in an uptick, but White has been an outlier oddball opportunist already this season.
Malik Benson and Dareke Young round out the pass-catching group, though they both rank outside of the top-70 wide receivers in Week 5.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 10 points / 15 value; FanDuel: 10 points / 15 value
Best Stacking Options: Cousins-Jeanty-Bowers +/- Tucker (Washington Jr. if Jeanty is out)
Best One-off: Brock Bowers
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Brock Bowers
Wildcard: Tre Tucker
Miami Dolphins
Game Total: 43.5 (MIA +6.5 / 18.5)
Offense: 4.3 ypa rush (45.71%) / 6.9 ypa pass (54.29%) / 11.5 ppg
oppDEF: 4.5 ypa rush / 6.4 nypa pass / 27.6% pressure / 9.03% sack (14) / 0.71% int (1) / 21.3 ppg
Key Player: Malik Willis
Setting: exactly one
Team Group: Ollie Gordon II, Malik Washington, Chris Bell, Greg Dulcich, Jaylen Wright (Q; on/off), Kevin Coleman Jr. (large field)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Ja’Marr Chase (Q), Tee Higgins (Q), Chase Brown, Mike Gesicki, Dohnte Meyers, Colbie Young (Q), Mitch Tinsley (large field), Samaje Perine (on/off), Drew Sample (on/off)
Game Notes:
Quarterback
The Dolphins are scoring 11.5 points per game over four contests, with quarterback Malik Willis averaging just 178.0 passing yards per game, or 6.9 per attempt. Willis finds that output on 9.7 intended air yards per attempt, connecting on just 56.0% of his passes to sit 4.2 points below expectation in Miami’s terrible passing game. The loss of the team’s superstar running back has been somewhat offset by an emergent Ollie Gordon II but that has done nothing at all to help Willis and this team’s lackluster cadre of pass-catchers. The quarterback has thrown one touchdown pass and two interceptions in four games, adding a rushing touchdown to the mix while gaining 5.9 yards per attempt on 4.8 attempts per game. Also known as not nearly enough. Willis is QB18 by points but does land as QB5 by value because he costs just $4,600 on DraftKings. The quarterback is $6,600 on FanDuel, where he lands more appropriately as QB18/15 across points and value.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
Ollie Gordon II takes a bit of a step forward after a quality performance in Week 4 amidst heavy expectations as a popular pickup in season-long leagues. Gordon carried the ball just nine times but gained 100 yards and scored a rushing touchdown on an explosive day. He caught two of two targets for no gains in the passing attack but was limited on the whole by the Dolphins’ lousy output and matchup against the Vikings’ premium defense. 11 total touches is a bit of a concern, but the Bengals have been wide open at 4.5 yards allowed per rush attempt, while zeroing in on quarterback pressure and sacks, which could create opportunities for the running back to pop for quality as RB21/19 and RB16/16. Gordon sees a minor added nudge forward if teammate Jaylen Wright is out of action in Week 5.
Tier 2:
n/a
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Jaylen Wright is questionable after playing just a dozen snaps, his current season-high, in Week 4. Wright carried the ball five times for seven yards and went untargeted over four routes run. The running back is not truly on the board outside of extreme longshot darts.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
n/a
Tier 2:
Malik Washington ranks as WR24/WR18 and WR23/WR19 across sites, putting him on the board for standalone shares where he plays up for quality detached to a degree from his lousy offense. The Bengals have been good at pressuring the quarterback but their 6.4 yards allowed per pass attempt is just 17th-best in the league and they have only picked off one pass in four games, putting receivers in the mix if Willis is able to buy himself a bit of time. Washington has the best connection with the quarterback, though the lone touchdown pass of the season went to tight end Ryan Miller. Washington gains by far a team-leading 1.9 yards per route run over 28.8 routes, also a team-leading figure, and works at an 11.1-yard average depth of target that keeps him in big play range at all times. He is the best of a bad bunch in Week 5.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Chris Bell is WR41/34 and WR41/38 across sites, drawing just 3.5 targets per game and delivering just 1.16 yards per route run over 19.8 routes per game. Bell has a 40.0% explosive play rate on receptions this season while operating at a 17.0-yard average depth of target, but that number is as reflective of catching just five passes in four games as it is of any depth-or-explosiveness lurking in the player. Bell is a dart throw at a big play or two, nothing more.
Greg Dulcich is TE21/17 and TE21/21. The tight end has zero touchdowns in four games and went untargeted over just 10 routes run on 20 snaps in Week 4. Dulcich did draw seven targets and caught five passes for 55 yards over 51 snaps in Week 3, all season-highs. Dulcich is a low-end, inexpensive dart at a touchdown from an unlikely, unnecessary offense in Week 5.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 22 points / 16 value; FanDuel: 22 points / 21 value
Best Stacking Options: Willis-Washington-Gordon
Best One-off: Ollie Gordon II
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Ollie Gordon II
Wildcard: Malik Washington
Minnesota Vikings
Game Total: 42.0 (MIN -2.0 / 22.0)
Offense: 3.7 ypa rush (48.54%) / 6.4 ypa pass (51.46%) / 21.5 ppg
oppDEF: 5.1 ypa rush / 6.5 nypa pass / 21.2% pressure / 6.11% sack (8) / 0.81% int (1) / 32.0 ppg
Key Player: Kyler Murray
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Justin Jefferson (Q), Jordan Addison (Q), Aaron Jones Sr. (on/off), TJ Hockenson, Jauan Jennings, Demond Clairborne (on/off), DeeJay Dallas (on/off)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Chris Olave, Alvin Kamara, Juwan Johnson, Devaughn Vele, Noah Fant, Bryce Lance, Kendre Miller (on/off)
Game Notes:
Quarterback
Veteran signal-caller Kyler Murray has been lousy across two-and-a-half games and a concussion for the Vikings in 2026. On the plus side, Murray is completing passes slightly ahead of expectation at 63.0%, but that comes with just 6.1 yards on 6.8 intended air yards per attempt in the limited approach. Murray has one touchdown pass and a pair of interceptions, and failed to connect for a touchdown despite 37 pass attempts in Week 4. Murray did throw for 247 yards while continuing his connection, for a while, with Jordan Addison, while Justin Jefferson was out of action. Addison caught five of six targets for 52 yards but did not score in Week 4, he had 90 yards and a touchdown on five-of-nine receptions the week before when Jefferson was forced out after just a handful of snaps. With both Jefferson and Addison questionable overnight on Saturday, Murray could be going into action with no weapons in his holster. If both receivers take the field, Murray could deliver a bit of quality as a two-point favorite against a defense that is at best middling. Murray is just QB13 by points but lands as QB8 by value on DraftKings; he is QB12/QB11 on FanDuel.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
Aaron Jones Sr. checks into action as RB9 by points but RB16 by value on DraftKings and RB10 by points and RB9 by value on the FanDuel slate. Jones sees steady volume with 18.0 carries for 4.1 yards per rush attempt each week, though that amounts to 0.4 yards below expectation per attempt. Jones gains 2.7 yards before contact but only 1.5 yards per attempt after the first hit, breaking tackles at just a 1.39% rate. The veteran is an established pass-catcher who draws 3.8 weekly targets and can spike larger chances, as he did with eight targets in Week 4. Jones has one rushing touchdown and has not found paydirt in the pass game, limiting fantasy scoring in an already lousy overall offense. However, the opposing Saints are yielding a huge 5.1 yards per rush attempt so far this season; wide lanes can create chances even for lower-end options like Jones, who is on the board for mid-level value shares with touchdown-based ceiling.
Tier 2:
n/a
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Demond Claiborne gains 2.2 yards per attempt on 2.0 carries and adds 4.7 yards per target for his 0.8 targets per game in limited action so far. Claiborne has no appeal unless something happens ahead of him on the depth chart.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
Justin Jefferson ranks as WR7 by points and WR12 by value on both sites, assuming he plays at all. Jefferson is dealing with an ankle injury that forced him to miss last week’s game after playing just seven snaps in Week 3; he remains questionable well into Sunday morning. The star had a big game in Week 1, connecting for eight catches and 92 yards on nine targets over 33 routes run, hauling in a pair of touchdown catches in the mix. Jefferson slipped in Weeks 2 and 3, catching just five passes for 87 yards combined. The receiver is a major weapon in the passing game; in limited action so far this season he gains 3.2 yards per route run, working at an 11.1-yard ADOT for a 26.18% air yards share despite the missed time. Jefferson is a true number one and deserving of shares in any format if he plays.
Jordan Addison is a solid receiver who we liked in this space two weeks ago, even without the foresight about his teammate getting knocked out of action. Addison was badly limited in the team’s first two games and throughout much of his 14 games last year, but he was too significant an option in his first and second seasons in the league to be disregarded entirely. The receiver caught 10 touchdowns as a rookie in 2023 and another nine in 2024 before hauling in just three from extremely limited quarterbacks last year. If Murray can continue to hold up his end of the bargain when looking for Addison, there is quality at low costs and low popularity in play when both receivers are active. Addison becomes more obvious and more popular, but also more likely to deliver, if Jefferson is out. For now, Addison is just WR29/50 and WR30/42, and is out of balance for value on DraftKings.
Tier 2:
TJ Hockenson and Jauan Jennings give the Vikings another solid veteran pair of pass-catchers, though Jennings has had almost no impact on his new team after several successful seasons in San Francisco. Hockenson, the tight end, has been targeted 6.5 times per game but saw a spike to 13 targets with the receivers in and out of action last week. He has been steady with an excellent 2.1 yards per route run on 23.3 routes per game but has only found the end zone once in four contests. Jennings, meanwhile, has two catches in three games all season, despite running regular routes. The receiver caught 55 passes for 643 yards and nine touchdowns last year and had a 77-catch, 975-yard, six-touchdown season in 2024; there is more quality than has been apparent, and Jennings will certainly be unpopular regardless of who is available around him.
Hockenson is TE13/19 and TE13/13 across sites. Jennings is WR44/48 and WR46/47.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Tai Felton and Myles Price are no more than extremely low-probability dart throws in Week 5. Felton played 32 snaps in Week 3 and 46 last week, running 53 combined routes in the two games. He was targeted three times and caught one pass. For 14 yards. Price was worse. Over the same two games, with teammates out of action ahead of him on the depth chart, the receiver played 14 combined snaps and caught two of two targets for just six yards while adding another two yards on one rushing play. Neither receiver ranks inside of the top-75 at the position this week.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 11 points / 21 value; FanDuel: 13 points / 17 value
Best Stacking Options: Murray-Jefferson-Addison
Best One-off: Justin Jefferson
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Jordan Addison
Wildcard: Jauan Jennings
New England Patriots
Game Total: 45.0 (NE -3.5 / 24.25)
Offense: 3.9 ypa rush (47.43%) / 7.3 ypa pass (52.57%) / 16.3 ppg
oppDEF: 5.2 ypa rush / 5.9 nypa pass / 35.6% pressure / 8.70% sack (12) / 3.17% int (4) / 21.0 ppg
Key Player: Drake Maye
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Rhamondre Stevenson (Q; on/off), TreVeyon Henderson (on/off), Romeo Doubs, Hunter Henry, DeMario Douglas, Efton Chism III, Kyle Williams (large field), Eli Raridon (large field; on/off)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Ahston Jeanty, Brock Bowers, Tre Tucker, Michael Mayer, Cody White, Mike Washington Jr. (on/off)
Game Notes:
Quarterback
New England quarterback Drake Maye has had quite the ride early in 2026. The third-year man has thrown just four touchdowns while losing a whopping seven interceptions in just four contests, just one shy of the eight he threw in 17 games in 2025. Maye took a massive leap forward in his second season, so a bit of a regression is not entirely surprising, but no one could have seen this disaster coming. The quarterback has demonstrated very little connection with anyone in the offense while completing passes at a 62.0% clip, good for 0.9 points above expectation. The 7.3 yards per pass attempt comes against 9.1 intended air yards per attempt, so Maye has not been cashing in on the appealing shape of his offense in big ways. The quarterback still has major talent, and he is coming off of his first good performance of the year, a 22-for-37, 269-yard performance that saw him throw three touchdown passes but also an interception against Buffalo in Week 4. Maye is capable of more, but the Raiders have been decent against the pass this season, allowing just 5.9 net yards per attempt while gaining pressure at a 35.6% rate with a dozen sacks and four interceptions collectively (fifth and seventh best marks by rate). Maye could end up slightly over-owned as QB5 by points but QB12 by value on DraftKings; he is QB5 across the board on the FanDuel slate.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
n/a
Tier 2:
TreVeyon Henderson would vault to a lower-end Tier 1 option if Rhamondre Stevenson misses Week 5. Henerson is the more talented running back, though both are gaining just 3.7 yards per attempt thus far on the season. The younger back is also tied with Stevenson with one rushing touchdown each, while the elder statesman picks up a touch of quality for more involvement on his four weekly targets in the passing game. In truth, barring a change or absence, neither running back is of significant NFL DFS appeal, though it is Stevenson who ranks as RB10 by points and RB6 by value on DraftKings and RB11/RB8 on FanDuel. Henderson is RB18 by points but RB12 by value on DraftKings and RB17/14 on FanDuel.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
n/a
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
Romeo Doubs clearly reads this article before taking the field and used it as inspiration in last week’s breakout multi-score performance, and we dare him to do it again. Doubs caught just six-of-nine targets for 58 yards and the pair of scores, running 28 routes on 48 snaps with the offense. The route and target total both fall short of true star-caliber numbers, and Doubs is a shaky-at-best top option in an offense. The receiver had not scored a touchdown or caught more than three passes in any of the three games leading up to last week, though much of that can be directly tied to Maye’s underperformance. Doubs rates well for value in Week 5 action, he is WR19 by points but WR9 by value on DraftKings, floating with a bit of added PPR value; on FanDuel he is more limited as WR17/14.
Tier 2:
n/a
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
DeMario Douglas runs regular routes in the offense, operating as the number two wideout in what has been a mostly limited passing game. Douglas caught five of seven targets over 35 routes run in Week 1, but that somehow turned into just 20 yards. He caught exactly one pass in each of the next two games, though the Week 3 catch at least went for a 38-yard gain. The receiver poked his head up for a second catch but gained just 15 yards over 21 routes run in Week 4; even with Maye playing well, Douglas was mostly uninvolved. The receiver is just WR48/43 and WR47/44 across sites this week.
Hunter Henry is TE11 by points but springs to TE2 by value on the DraftKings board, where he is mispriced against his touchdown value at just $3,700. Henry is a $5,100 tight end on FanDuel where he ranks as just TE10 by points and TE9 by value. The veteran gains 1.34 yards per route run over 24.8 routes per game on the season, pulling in a team-leading 80.0% catchable target rate from the suddenly shaky signal-caller. Henry has not found the end zone in 2026, but he is a regular in the red zone and has seen a look there already this season. Henry caught seven touchdown passes in 17 games with Maye last year, they have not totally lost that connection. The veteran peaked at nine touchdown catches in 2021 but has seen more than one red zone target per game throughout his distinguished career.
Efton Chism III is WR57/55 and WR53/48 across sites despite coming off of his best game, a two-catch, 42-yard, touchdown-scoring Week 4 against the Bills. Chism was floated an opportunity with AJ Brown and Mack Hollins both out of action. While the chances have not amounted to much, the minor uptick and a scoring play are at least slightly encouraging for the limited DFS dart.
Kyle Williams played 18 snaps with the offense in Week 4, running 11 routes and drawing two targets, catching neither. The receiver has two catches on seven targets over the past three games, with one in each of Weeks 2 and 3. The Week 3 grab went for 34 yards but that was the most significant thing Williams has done this season. The second-year player caught 10 passes for 209 yards while seeing just 21 targets as a deep threat last season, putting three touchdowns on the board at the extreme edges of popularity and price for DFS purposes. With two of the team’s big downfield weapons still out of action, it would not be stunning to see Williams make one big play.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 13 points / 7 value; FanDuel: 12 points / 6 value
Best Stacking Options: Maye-Doubs-Douglas +/- Henry
Best One-off: Romeo Doubs
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Hunter Henry
Wildcard: Kyle Williams
New Orleans Saints
Game Total: 42.0 (NO +2.0 / 20.0)
Offense: 3.6 ypa rush (34.02%) / 6.7 ypa pass (65.98%) / 26.3 ppg
oppDEF: 4.2 ypa rush / 5.3 nypa pass / 39.0% pressure / 10.88% sack (16) / 3.05% int (4) / 12.8 ppg
Key Player: Tyler Shough
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Chris Olave, Alvin Kamara (Q), Juwan Johnson, Devaughn Vele, Noah Fant, Bryce Lance, Kendre Miller (on/off)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Justin Jefferson (Q), Jordan Addison (Q), Aaron Jones Sr. (on/off), TJ Hockenson, Jauan Jennings, Demond Clairborne (on/off), DeeJay Dallas (on/off)
Game Notes:
Quarterback
Tyler Shough rates as a playable piece despite facing a challenging defense that leads the league in several areas, including sacks, sack rate, pressure rate, and points allowed per game, while sitting third with just 5.3 net yards allowed per pass attempt. Shough will need to overcome a lot to deliver on his typical quality, primarily in tandem with superstar receiver Chris Olave, who also rates well in the tough spot. This is a fragile ranking for the New Orleans tandem, and the stack as a whole, with the standout Minnesota defense capable of rendering even a reliable offense somewhat lame. For the season, Shough is delivering 300.75 yards per game with nine touchdown passes against just three interceptions in four games, including overtime action in Week 1. Despite averaging more than 300 yards, Shough has actually only cracked through that barrier in one game, the Week 1 overtime thriller in which he put up 410 passing yards with three touchdowns and two of his interceptions. The quarterback has thrown for 252, 255, and 286 yards in three subsequent matchups, putting just one touchdown pass on the board in two of those three games, with four touchdown passes and his third interception coming in the Week 3 shootout against Las Vegas. Shough adds a bit of quality on the ground, rushing for 4.5 yards per attempt on a handful of weekly scrambles, including a rushing touchdown that came in Week 2 when he put up a season-high nine carries but managed just 23 yards. The touchdown itself was the product of a questionable replay overturn where Shough arguably did not get in from extreme short yardage. As QB7/QB10 on DraftKings and QB7/QB6 on FanDuel, Shough is going to have to come up on the strong side of his roller coaster numbers for the season in Week 5.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
n/a
Tier 2:
Old man Alvin Kamara is dealing with a back injury and possibly a lingering knee issue that have him carrying a questionable tag into Week 5. The veteran has been thrust into a more steady role with Travis Etienne Jr. getting knocked out of action. Kamara carried the ball nine times in each of Weeks 3 and 4, adding action in the passing game, but mostly coming up empty for DFS-relevant scoring. Week 4 changed that somewhat, while Kamara carried the ball just seven times for 23 yards, he punched in two touchdown runs and added 35 yards on 5-of-7 receptions. Kamara has been targeted 14 times in three games, he remains an involved pass catcher out of the backfield, adding to his potential touch count and keeping him lurking for value. Kamara is RB22/22 and RB21/21 across sites in Week 5.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Assuming Kamara is active, Kendre Miller remains a reserve dart throw option of limited value. He currently ranks as RB35/36 and RB33/35 across sites. The running back played 19 snaps with the offense in Week 4, carrying the ball six times for nine total yards and adding 10 more yards on two catches over 10 routes run. Miller played a season-high 26 snaps in Week 1, carrying the ball nine times for 30 yards and a rushing touchdown, but that was with Kamara out of action and Etienne playing. If Kamara does not take the field, that type of output is a reasonable expectation even against a good Vikings defense.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
Chris Olave is the top option from the Saints, and one of the top overall options, weekly. The elite receiver gains 2.73 yards per route run on his 45.0 routes and 12 targets per game, pushing the extremes of volume at the star level. Olave has already caught 35 passes in just four games, cracking the 100-yard mark in three of those four contests. The receiver somehow only has one touchdown catch on the season, but more are surely coming, and the sheer volume and yardage have been enough to carry him to multiple elite NFL DFS scoring performances. Olave draws a 13.6-yard average depth of target and a 44.39% air yards share; he is a major weapon for stacking with Shough in large and small builds, though he and the quarterback may play better skinny against a good defense, or his value could spike further in standalone shares. Olave is WR4 by points and WR5 by value on DraftKings; he is WR3 by points and WR6 by value on FanDuel.
Tier 2:
Juwan Johnson is TE9 by points on both sites but falls to TE12 and TE10 in the value categories across DraftKings and FanDuel. The tight end has three touchdown catches on the board while drawing six red zone targets in four games. Johnson caught six passes for 59 yards in Week 4 and had a breakout performance with two touchdowns on 8-of-8 receptions in Week 3. Given the excellent markers for volume, his regular chances in scoring territory, and a major skillset at the position that has led to 17 touchdown catches across the past four seasons, not including this year’s three scores. Johnson is a premium tight end who is rarely owned like one, but the Saints are likely to be checked in some regard as the group expands in a bad spot.
Devaughn Vele remains in the mix for New Orleans after a nine-target day that led to six catches for 54 yards and his second touchdown of the season in Week 4. Vele now has 21 total catches and at least 39 yards in each of the season’s games, good for 1.24 yards per route run on 45.5 chances per game. Vele operates downfield, posting a 10.2-yard average depth of target for a 23.7% air yards share but falling short a bit with just 2.6 yards after the catch per reception. Vele is WR30/41 and WR26/32 across sites in Week 5.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Bryce Lance is WR59/57 and WR59/62 across sites this week. The fourth-round rookie out of North Dakota State drew a season-high five targets over 47 routes and 63 snaps with the offense in Week 4, catching just one of those opportunities for seven yards. Lance has five catches on the season, but three of those and 42 of his 57 yards came in Week 1. The receiver is playing consistent snaps and running routes regularly; his target totals have been up and down, but he has at least three in three of the four games, including the uptick to five last week. Lance is delivering just 0.36 yards per route run, but 39.8 routes per game is significant involvement for such a cheap option. Lance is a reasonable dart throw in a bad spot for the whole team in Week 5.
Noah Fant missed Week 4 but is expected to return against the Vikings. The tight end caught all four of his Week 3 targets for 33 yards and a pair of touchdowns in an upstart NFL DFS performance. He had a similar day with four catches for 33 yards and one touchdown in Week 1, though that came on eight targets. Fant is a talented-enough pass-catcher with a knack for finding a few cheap touchdowns per season, but he is more of a Showdown option than a reliable main slate play as TE25 across the board.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 9 points / 11 value; FanDuel: 9 points / 11 value
Best Stacking Options: Shough-Olave-Johnson +/- Kamara +/- Vele
Best One-off: Chris Olave
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Juwan Johnson
Wildcard: Bryce Lance
New York Giants
Game Total: 42.0 (NYG +3.5 / 19.25)
Offense: 3.7 ypa rush (49.17%) / 6.5 ypa pass (50.83%) / 20.5
oppDEF: 4.0 ypa rush / 6.8 ypa pass / 28.9% pressure / 4.90% sack (7) / 2.21% int (3) / 30.5 ppg
Key Player: Jameis Winston
Setting: exactly one
Team Group: Malik Nabers, Isaiah Likely, Cam Skattebo (on/off), Malachi Fields, Darnell Mooney, Najee Harris (on/off), Theo Johnson (on/off), Tyrone Tracy Jr. (on/off)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Terry McLaurin, Antonio Williams, Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Chig Okonkwo, Rachaad White (on/off), Treylon Burks (large field), Dyami Brown (large field)
Game Notes:
Quarterback
An ugly slate gets uglier with a bad Giants squad facing off against a worse Commanders defense in a spot where nothing necessarily has to give. Both of these options can be bad, and all four corners of this 42-point game can simply come up ugly, they do not demand attention. The Giants rate as just Stack 18/17 on DraftKings and Stack 18/20 on FanDuel, with their quarterback landing as just QB21 by points on both sites. Jameis Winston picks up a tickle of quality as QB16 by value on the DraftKings slate, where his $4,800 price is about right. Winston is just QB21 by value on the FanDuel board, where there are very few signs of life from Big Blue. Winston completes just 55.0% of his passes, more than six points below expectation on the season, and he has three touchdown passes and three interceptions while gaining just 6.1 yards per pass attempt despite slinging the ball for 9.8 intended air yards per attempt. Winston is a low-end play who finds a touch of success from the talents of pass-catchers like Malik Nabers and Isaiah Likely, both of whom are in turn limited by lousy quarterback play.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
n/a
Tier 2:
n/a
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Cam Skattbo gains 3.5 yards per rush attempt on 17.0 carries per game, half a yard below expectation per rush attempt overall this season. Skattebo has a reputation for being more than he is, largely on the force of personality and a willingness to hit things with his head until others cheer. Overall, he gains 1.3 yards before and 2.1 yards after contact with just a 4.41% broken tackle rate, and has one rushing touchdown in four games this season, despite steady premium volume. Skattebo picks up 2.3 targets in the passing game but, predictably, does little with them with just a 5.88% explosive play rate and 7.4 yards per target. The Giants running back is just RB16 by points and RB23 by value on DraftKings, and he rates poorly on FanDuel as well, landing as RB18 by points and RB22 by value on the blue site.
Najee Harris and Tyrone Tracy Jr. have zero appeal outside of extreme low-probability darts at cheap rushing touchdowns, though neither has seen the end zone in 2026. Harris carries the ball 7.3 times per game, gaining 4.0 yards per attempt, by far leading the pair.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
n/a
Tier 2:
Isaiah Likely remains the most appealing pass-catcher in this offense and rates as TE7 by points but TE3 by value on DraftKings, and TE6/TE3 on FanDuel. Likely has a strong 1.83 yards per route run over 26.0 routes per game this season, and spike major chances through heavy volume. The tight end was targeted a dozen times by the low-end offense in Week 4, catching seven passes for 66 yards but failing to score for the third game in a row. Likely put two in the end zone in Week 1, delivering immediate gains for those smart enough to play him in the Showdown contest that week, he has not returned similar value in a game since, but has seen double-digit targets twice and draws ongoing chances in and out of scoring range. Likely works at a 7.0-yard average depth that moves him around the board; his 23.45% air yards share is significant enough given the scoring potential.
Malik Nabers is WR13 by points on both sites, but he slips to WR23 and WR22 when measured for points-per-dollar value. Nabers had by far his best game since returning to action with 112 yards and his first touchdown catch coming on six catches from seven targets over his 31 routes run on 49 snaps. Nabers caught five of six targets the week before but gained only 26 yards for the effort. The receiver is ultimately still dealing with knee issues and is extremely limited in overall potential quality by the quarterback and overall team play. This is a fine spot to find another week of quality against a bad Washington defense, but Nabers is priced up for the opportunity; his $6,300/$7,300 price tags are mismatched with his 2.04 yards per route run on 25.5 routes and 6.5 weekly targets. The efficiency and production are fine, but the lack of scoring plays makes the window narrower than one would expect at that price point.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Malachi Fields is WR46/52 and WR44/46 across sites. The receiver gains 1.42 yards per route run across 22.3 routes and 3.8 targets per game, seeing a 60.0% catchable target rate from the flimsy quarterback option. Fields is a talented rookie receiver worthy of attention in certain situations; his 18.4-yard ADOT and 25.86% air yards share make a compelling case for Showdown quality, if nothing else. With a better option at the helm, or in an “any given slate” sense against a bad defense, Fields is on the board with big play potential, but the truth of the chance is limited at best.
Darnell Mooney is ranked outside of the top-50 positionally; the wide receiver has limited upside with 24.8 routes run per contest and only 0.96 yards per route run coming back. Mooney has not scored this season, though his 11.0-yard ADOT shows big play potential if he were able to connect with Winston for better than the 60.0% catchable target rate he currently sees.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 18 points / 17 value; FanDuel: 18 points / 20 value
Best Stacking Options: Winston-Likely-Nabers
Best One-off: Isaiah Likely
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Isaiah Likely
Wildcard: Malachi Fields
New York Jets
Game Total: 40.0 (NYJ -2.5 / 21.25)
Offense: 3.4 ypa rush (43.42%) / 7.7 ypa pass (56.58%) / 19.0 ppg
oppDEF: 4.6 ypa rush / 6.0 nypa pass / 19.4% pressure / 7.64% sack (12) / 2.76% int (4) / 23.8 ppg
Key Player: Geno Smith
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Garrett Wilson, Braelon Allen, Kenyon Sadiq, Isaiah Williams, Sterling Shepard, Mason Taylor, Isaiah Davis
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Denzel Boston, Harold Fannin Jr., Quinshon Judkins, KC Concepcion Jr., Jerry Jeudy, Raheim Sanders (on/off), Isaiah Bond (very large field)
Game Notes:
Quarterback
The Jets seem unlikely to be favored many times in 2026, but they drop into Week 5 action against a lousy Browns team as 2.5-point favorites in a low-end 40-point game that fits the theme of this slate nicely. In a game that even the Weather Channel’s Twitter handle wanted no part of, New York brings a very limited offense to the table, ranking as Stack 14 by points but better for value across sites. Geno Smith will be the architect of any success that New York is able to find as a collective, though a few standout skill players could provide individual quality in other scenarios. Smith is an accurate passer who is currently delivering a 73.0% completion rate that sits better than 10 points above expectation for the season. That has amounted to just 225.5 yards per game and 7.7 per attempt on his 7.1 intended air yards per attempt, with Smith firing five touchdown passes against zero interceptions in fewer than 30 attempts per game. Geno Smith is QB19/15 and QB19/16 across sites, but a steady connection with his top pass-catcher could float additional quality.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
Braelon Allen is a value running back option who rates as a compelling RB8 by points on both sites. Allen is RB4 by value on DraftKings and RB3 by value on FanDuel, looking to make the best of a matchup against an ugly Cleveland defense that allows 4.6 yards per rush attempt to opposing running backs. The Browns are a bend-don’t-break rush defense that yields 113.3 yards per game but has yet to give up a rushing touchdown, making for an interesting collision of circumstances for the productive inexpensive rusher. While Allen’s 3.6 yards per attempt on 8.3 carries per game seems limited on the surface, he is slightly above expectation per attempt in those chances, and continues in an expanded role that garnered him 14 carries and a pair of targets in the team’s Week 4 game. With Breece Hall out of action, Allen took the lead role and delivered 59 yards on the rushing attempts and another eight yards in the receiving game, though he failed to score. Allen has one touchdown in four games, but his chances before last week were razor-thin; the opportunity is simply different in this matchup. Allen has major potential in a good spot and warrants heavy consideration with stronger value marks at inexpensive rates.
Tier 2:
n/a
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Isaiah Davis is ranked outside of the top-40 positionally. Davis played just two snaps with the offense in Week 4, despite the absence of Hall. Allen simply took all of the oxygen out of the running back room and seems likely to do so again in Week 5.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
Garrett Wilson is the Jets’ leading receiver with 2.16 yards per route run over 31.3 routes per game. Wilson has a solid connection with his quarterback, seeing an 80.65% catchable target rate from Geno Smith at his 10.2-yard average depth of target. Wilson has a pair of touchdowns on the board and soars over the field when considering skill options in this passing game, given his 37.60% air yards share. Until Adonai Mitchell returns, Wilson is the absolute in this passing game; everyone else amounts to an afterthought. Garrett Wilson is WR8 by points and WR10 by value on both sites in Week 5.
Tier 2:
n/a
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Kenyon Sadiq is TE14/14 and TE15/14 across sites this week. As friendly as they are to opposing running backs, the Browns rate as more middle-of-the-pack against the pass, with a demonstrable ability to pressure the quarterback, if nothing else. Sadiq sees 4.5 targets per game and has been terrific with 2.01 yards per route run over just 17.8 routes per game. The first-round tight end has a touchdown catch and another score from a Week 1 rushing play to his credit; he remains not much more than a cheap dice roll, but he is an interesting talent worthy of consideration in large portfolios or in an abundance of Geno and his Jets shares.
Isaiah Williams caught just two passes over 16 routes run in Week 4, but went for 73 yards and a touchdown, breaking the big one for a 58-yard scoring play. Williams is a low-end option who drew just two targets on 41 routes over 58 snaps in Week 3 and peaked with six catches on six targets but just 34 yards, with an added 14 yards on one rushing play, in Week 2. Williams is a dart throw who ranks outside of the top-55 across the wide receiver position on both sites.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 14 points / 8 value; FanDuel: 14 points / 10 value
Best Stacking Options: Smith-Wilson-Allen +/- Sadiq
Best One-off: Braelon Allen
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Garrett Wilson
Wildcard: Braelon Allen
Pittsburgh Steelers
Game Total: 43.5 (PIT -3.0 / 23.25)
Offense: 4.4 ypa rush (33.86%) / 6.4 ypa pass (66.14%) / 19.3 ppg
oppDEF: 4.8 ypa rush / 7.2 nypa pass / 17.8% pressure / 6.21% sack (9) / 0.74% int (1) / 26.0 ppg
Key Player: Aaron Rodgers
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Jaylen Warren, DK Metcalf, Roman Wilson, Pat Freiermuth, Darnell Washington, Rico Dowdle (Q; on/off), Germie Bernard
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Jonathan Taylor, Tyler Warren, Josh Downs, Keenan Allen, Laquon Treadwell
Game Notes:
Quarterback
The screaming that can be heard at times from the Pittsburgh area is not the elation of fans; it is the desperate sound of the damned as they careen around the edges of anguish on Mr. Aaron’s Wild Bandwagon, in constant danger of flying off the rails with no notice. The veteran quarterback has thrown for 249.75 yards per game, including more than 290 yards in each of the last two contests. Rodgers totaled 292 yards on 19-of-34 passing in Week 3 and 299 yards on 22-of-40 passing in Week 4. The quarterback has six touchdown passes and three interceptions across those two contests, one against the Bengals and the other against the Browns. On the whole, Rodgers sits three points below expectation with a 58.0% completion percentage and masks his low-end 6.5 yards per pass attempt with 38.25 attempts per game so far in 2026. Rodgers will continue with reckless abandon and is likely to lead his team to a few more interesting fantasy scoring performances here and there, but he is far more likely to go completely bust, given the poor performance already underway under the surface. Rodgers is QB14/13 and QB14/14 across sites in Week 5.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
n/a
Tier 2:
Jaylen Warren slots in as RB7 by points and RB11 by value on DraftKings and tops those marks as RB7 by points and RB6 by value on the FanDuel board for the same base price against the higher cap but those marks are currently somewhat fragile. Warren gains a stunning 5.6 yards per rush attempt over 13.8 carries per game this season but is likely to land back in a bit of a job share with the return of veteran offseason acquisition Rico Dowdle. With Dowdle active in Weeks 1 and 2, Warren carried the ball just 10 and 11 times, gaining 46 and 43 yards, while Dowdle gained fewer yards in taking the other eight and seven carries of those games, respectively. Dowdle was brought here to share this job and to play; he will see touches when he returns, but his questionable tag could keep him out of action again in Week 5. Most of Jaylen Warren’s value hangs on the status of his teammate.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Even if he returns to action, Rico Dowdle is an unlikely bet with under 10 potential touches available. Dowdle is a talented, explosive rusher who should see quality spots as the season continues. His first game back from a toe injury may not be the spot; he is just RB25/24 and RB27/27 across sites.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
DK Metcalf is easily the top option in the Steelers’ passing game. The veteran gains 1.26 yards per route run over 42.3 routes and 8.3 targets each week, providing limited efficiency but OK totals that align well with his quarterback’s style. Metcalf sees a limiting 54.55% catchable target rate from a quarterback who would give anything to be great again. The receiver has one touchdown on the board but his 35.63% air yards share and 14.2-yard average depth of target, leading to an 18.75% explosive play rate on receptions, at least draw the eye, even if Rodgers can barely get the ball to him. Metcalf slots into Week 5 as WR16/14 and WR16/20 across sites, he is just OK for the salary.
Tier 2:
Roman Wilson is WR39/29 and WR34/35, with an expectation of around six targets each week. Wilson gains 1.77 yards per route run, a leading mark among the team’s regulars, while running 26.5 routes per game in 2026. The receiver draws a 62.5% catchable target rate on a big-play-adjacent 15.1-yard ADOT that lands him with 27.93% of the air yards despite the lighter volume. Wilson is no star, but his two touchdown catches lead the team and Rodgers is at least trying to find him downfield.
Pat Freiermuth is TE18/22 and TE18/18 across sites this week, showing only limited quality with 1.04 yards per route run this season. The 30.0 routes per game lands second among this team’s pass catchers, but Freiermuth sees just a 13.2% target rate on routes run and gains just 6.6 yards per target. He does have two touchdown catches and a bit of open field potential with quality gains after the catch, but like everyone in this offense he is always limited by the quality of pass Rodgers is able to deliver.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Darnell Washington has two red zone targets and a touchdown on the board while working at short yardage for limited chances with 3.3 targets per game this season. The tight end gains 1.57 yards per route run over 19.0 routes per game, but his upside is more present in Showdown formats where a lone touchdown carries far more weight.
Germie Bernard gains just 0.82 yards per route run on 18.3 routes per game in limited action in his first few games as a rookie. The second-round pick is yet to catch five passes in a game; his four catches for 35 yards in Week 2 represent career highs, as do his snap total (55) and routes total (36) from that game. Bernard has not played more than last week’s 28 snaps in any other contest. He drew two targets over 20 routes run, catching them both for 11 yards and nothing more. Germie Bernard ranks outside of the top-50 across both sites this week.
Ben Skowronek is exactly WR100 across the board on both sites in Week 5, essentially valueless in a week when 101 receivers are ranked.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 17 points / 19 value; FanDuel: 15 points / 14 value
Best Stacking Options: Rodgers-Metcalf-Freiermuth +/- Wilson
Best One-off: DK Metcalf
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Pat Freiermuth
Wildcard: Jaylen Warren
Seattle Seahawks
Game Total: 46.0 (SEA -3.5 / 24.75)
Offense: 3.9 ypa rush (47.68%) / 8.4 ypa pass (52.32%) / 26.3 ppg
oppDEF: 3.7 ypa rush / 5.5 nypa pass / 23.9% pressure / 3.97% sack (6) / 0.69% int (1)
Key Player: Sam Darnold
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Rashid Shaheed, AJ Barner, Emanuel Wilson, George Holani (Q; on/off), Cooper Kupp, Tory Horton (large field), Elijah Arroyo (large field; on/off)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle, Mike Evans, Deebo Samuel Sr., Kaelon Black (on/off), Jordan Watkins (large field), Jacob Cowing (large field; on/off), Brandin Cooks (very large field; on/off)
Game Notes:
Quarterback
Sam Darnold came roaring back into action in Week 3 with a 31-of-45, 379-yard, four-touchdown performance that also included a pair of interceptions in a wild one against the Commanders. The Seattle signal-caller slipped to just 168 yards with two touchdowns and an interception on 13-of-22 passing in Week 4 against the Chargers. Darnold is completing 65.0% of his passes, good for 6.1 points over expectation for the season, with six touchdowns and three interceptions to his credit. The quarterback gains an excellent 8.1 yards per pass attempt and has an easy premium connection with his superstar first read option. Darnold slots into Week 5 action against a tough San Francisco defense that has been sharp against both the pass and the run but has largely failed to put the quarterback down despite fair pressure. Overall, Darnold rates as just OK as an individual but gains quality from an uplift by his premium number one receiver. The Seahawks quarterback is QB11/20 and QB11/13 across sites in Week 4.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
n/a
Tier 2:
Emanuel Wilson had a major performance as a heavy pickup on season-long waivers ahead of Week 4 and could be in line for a similar chance in Week 5. The running back now has 21 carries in two of the past three games, posting 92 yards in Week 2 and another 81 yards with a rushing touchdown in Week 3. Wilson added to that total in a monster performance by catching three of four targets over his 11 routes, gaining 39 additional yards and scoring another touchdown in the passing game. Wilson is inexpensive again in Week 5 but the challenge is greater against a 49ers defense giving up just 3.7 yards per rush attempt this season. Wilson is RB14 by points but RB8 by value on DraftKings, he is RB9 by points and RB5 by value on FanDuel.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
George Holani draws the second-string spot behind Wilson with a lack of options in this running back room. Holani gains just 3.2 yards per rush attempt on 5.5 carries per game and sees only limited chances overall, he is no more than a low-probability dart throw in Week 5 action.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
The Seattle offense essentially begins and ends with the quality of Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s performance. The elite receiver is WR2 by points on both sites and lands with quality as WR6 and WR5 across DraftKings and FanDuel in Week 5. “JSN” gains an otherworldly 4.15 yards per route run for his 29.0 routes per game. The superstar sees a 52.86% air yards share at his 9.8-yard ADOT and has already scored six touchdowns this season. Smith-Njigba sees 10.5 targets per game and has already drawn 10 red zone chances with an 80.95% catchable target rate coming his way. There are few better options or safer bets for quality at any price in any format.
Tier 2:
Rashid Shaheed has hidden value in this offense; the speedster sees frequent downfield opportunities, working at an 11.1-yard average depth of target for 18.64% of the air yards, but also working big play potential around the edges with a few touches in the ground game, where he posts a massive 12.3 yards per attempt in limited action. Shaheed has tremendous skills but does not find the end zone frequently; he has one rushing touchdown and zero touchdown catches this season, though there are only four touchdown catches on the board across the whole team that did not go to “JSN.” Shaheed delivers just 0.89 yards per route run this season but the limiting factor is almost certainly the 53.33% catchable target rate delivered from the team’s quarterbacks.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
AJ Barner is the top tight end in the offense, rating as TE15/TE5 for an inexpensive $3,200 price tag on DraftKings. Barner is TE16/TE12 on the FanDuel slate, where the quality is less apparent. The second-year option sees just 3.8 targets per game but has three red zone chances in four games, though he is yet to score in 2026. Barner is not much more than a dart throw, but the value rating on the DraftKings slate injects a bit of individual potential that will swing on a touchdown.
Cooper Kupp runs just 21.8 routes per game, putting up 1.31 yards per route run for the season. Kupp has one of the team’s non-JSN touchdown catches but sees just three targets per game and a 10.4% target rate on routes run overall this season. The veteran rates as just WR45/42 and WR48/49 across sites in Week 5.
Tory Horton draws a premium 12.0-yard average depth of target in the rare instance he sees any chances across his 6.7 routes per game. Horton is an extremely low-probability dart throw, but he has one touchdown catch on the board this season, coming on his one Week 4 catch over 10 snaps and five routes run. Horton was targeted three times on 10 routes in Week 3, coming away with three catches for 48 yards in his most complete performance, if he can blend those two games into a single week, he could make minor value waves.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 6 points / 9 value; FanDuel: 5 points / 7 value
Best Stacking Options: Darnold – Smith-Njigba – Wilson +/- Shaheed
Best One-off: Jaxon Smith-Njigba
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Emanuel Wilson
Wildcard: Rashid Shaheed
San Francisco 49ers
Game Total: 46.0 (SF +3.5 / 21.25)
Offense: 4.8 ypa rush (50.44%) / 8.9 ypa pass (49.56%) / 30.5 ppg
oppDEF: 3.6 ypa rush / 4.3 nypa pass / 30.9% pressure / 8.15% sack (11) / 4.84% int (6) / 18.3 ppg
Key Player: Brock Purdy
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle, Mike Evans, Deebo Samuel Sr., Kaelon Black (on/off), Jordan Watkins (large field), Jacob Cowing (large field; on/off), Brandin Cooks (very large field; on/off)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Rashid Shaheed, AJ Barner, Emanuel Wilson, George Holani (on/off), Cooper Kupp, Tory Horton (large field), Elijah Arroyo (large field; on/off)
Game Notes:
Quarterback
Productive Brock Purdy puts quality on the board each week and sits in a tie with Kirk Cousins with 11 touchdown passes in only four games. Purdy’s total comes against just one interception with a tremendous 8.9 yards per pass attempt on 7.8 intended air yards per attempt. The quarterback is completing 70.0% of his 28.25 attempts per game, good for 4.2 points above expectation, and he is capable of providing an uptick in scoring potential in the ground game. Purdy gains 6.1 yards per rush attempt on his five carries per game, punching the ball in for one rushing touchdown this season. The quarterback is QB4 by points on both DraftKings and FanDuel this week; he slips to QB14 and QB10 by value at mismatched prices but remains a highly playable option atop one of the best stacks of the week in a 46.0-point game, despite the presence of a high-quality Seattle defense. Purdy will be challenged to dominate, but at least a quality performance is easily in reach.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
Christian McCaffrey is RB3 by points on both sites, slipping to RB9 and RB7 by value for $8,200 and $8,400 across DraftKings and FanDuel. McCaffrey sees major gains from his three-down involvement, picking up 12.5 carries and 5.5 targets per game, and gaining 4.4 yards per rush and 5.5 per target on the season. The rushing mark sits 0.3 yards over expectation per attempt, and the veteran star has four rushing touchdowns on the board already this year. McCaffrey has a 16.0% explosive play rate on receptions and has been targeted twice in scoring territory this season. With the team finding major gains through the air, McCaffrey slides down the board slightly for both price and popularity, making him all the more appealing in large field NFL DFS formats.
Tier 2:
n/a
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Kaelon Black picks up where McCaffrey leaves off, but that does not typically offer him much to work with. Black gains a steady 3.9 yards per attempt on 7.8 carries per game, adding minor gains in the passing attack. The running back would need an unfortunate event or two to truly make value, and no one wants that for the veteran star above him on the depth chart. Black rates outside of the top-30 across the board at running back in Week 5.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
Tight end George Kittle’s return to form has been undersold this season; he rates as TE3 by points on both sites while landing as TE7 and TE6 by value across sites. Kittle has already caught four touchdown passes on his 8.4-yard ADOT, putting him in quality big play range with regularity and garnering him 20.75% of the air yards. Kittle gains a team-leading 2.77 yards per route run with just 22.0 routes per game showing in his totals, but 25 and 30 routes run in the last two games, respectively. Kittle maintains massive potential for touchdown scoring and should see the steady volume to drive him to position-leading scoring potential regardless of finding the end zone.
Mike Evans is WR15/36 and WR15/23 across sites. The first-year 49ers receiver is a standout with 2.63 yards per route run and six targets per game, seeing a catchable target rate of better than 70.0% for the season. Evans has been in and out of action somewhat, dealing with lingering pain, but he maintains major scoring potential on a 13.1-yard average depth of target for 37.68% of the air yards. The veteran has a pair of touchdowns to his credit already this season and could expand that total even with a tight Seattle defense in the mix in Week 5.
Tier 2:
Deebo Samuel Sr. is a more limited option in the passing attack, putting up a solid 2.15 yards per route run on 21.5 routes per game, with most of those gains coming after the catch on his 2.9-yard average depth of target. Samuel actually gains 0.2 yards less than expected after the catch per reception, but his explosive play nature is intact, and he sees steady opportunities with 4.3 targets per game and minor unpredictable upticks. Samuel has three touchdown catches on the season and adds potential with 1.8 rushing attempts per game, leading to 10.6 yards per attempt on the ground.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Jordan Watkins and Jacob Cowing do not see many chances with limited meat left on the bone after the big options are satisfied in this offense; they both rate outside of the top-70 wide receiver options on this slate.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 4 points / 13 value; FanDuel: 4 points / 12 value
Best Stacking Options: Purdy-McCaffrey-Kittle +/- Evans
Best One-off: George Kittle
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Christian McCaffrey
Wildcard: Deebo Samuel Sr.
Tennessee Titans
Game Total: 37.5 (TEN +7.5 / 15.0)
Offense: 4.0 ypa rush (41.86%) / 6.1 ypa pass (58.14%) / 13.8 ppg
oppDEF: 3.4 ypa rush / 6.7 ypa pass / 23.4% pressure / 9.03% sack (14) / 0.71% int (1) / 27.3 ppg
Key Player: Cam Ward
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Carnell Tate (Q), Tony Pollard, Wan’Dale Robinson, Tyjae Spears, Elic Ayomanor, Gunnar Helm, Calvin Ridley, Chimere Dike (large field)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Nico Collins, Dalton Schultz, David Montgomery (on/off), Woody Marks (on/off), Kayshon Boutte, Jaylin Noel, Xavier Hutchinson, Foster Moreau (on/off), Jared Wayne (large field; on/off)
Game Notes:
Quarterback
The Titans are a terrible offense, scoring just 13.8 points per game. At the wheel of this car crash, second-year quarterback Cam Ward enters Week 5 with three touchdown passes and two interceptions in his ledger. Ward’s 6.1 yards per pass attempt on 6.4 intended air yards per attempt across 29.75 attempts per game are limiting for the team’s offense as a whole. Ward completes passes at a rate 1.9 points below expectation (63.0%), and has been over two hundred passing yards just once this season, in last week’s game against the Ravens. Ward completed 20-of-31 attempts for 222 yards with a touchdown and an interception last week, and had a 23-for-36 performance for 181 yadrs with a touchdown and an interception in Week 3 against the terrible Giants. Overall, there is not much to believe in, but Ward did have a good Week 2 with a pair of rushing touchdowns padding his lack of scoring on just 20 attempts in the passing game. Ward is QB22/22 and QB22/20 across sites in Week 5, with the Titans landing as Stack 20/20 and Stack 21/19.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
n/a
Tier 2:
Tony Pollard is RB19/21 and RB20/17 across sites. The veteran gains a steady 4.1 yards per rush attempt, good for 0.2 yards over expectation per attempt, but sees just 13.5 carries per game in the limited offense. Pollard sees another 2.8 chances per game coming from targeting in the passing attack, putting up 2.2 yards per target with lackluster production through the air. The running back is a low-probability, low-volume option at a position with far more quality from other teams.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Tyjae Spears gains 4.3 yards per attempt on 3.8 carries per game and draws another 1.8 targets per game in the passing attack but is yet to find the end zone. Tony Pollard has one rushing touchdown on the board, the only one this team has scored from the running back position. Spears is just RB29/31 and RB32/32 in Week 5.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
Carnell Tate is a fair play from this team, one of the few that the Titans offer, slotting in as WR18/16 and WR20/13, with better rankings for value than points on both sites. Tate has not caught an NFL touchdown in his first four games, but his 2.16 yards per route run easily leads this lousy group and stands out as star-caliber in general. Tate was taken early in the draft to be a true number one for Ward and has largely delivered on that promise early, seeing a 29.6% target rate on routes run over his 31.0 routes per game, and pulling in a 75.0% catchable target rate from his quarterback in one of the few positives for this offense. Tate works at an 11.5-yard average depth of target as well, so this is not cheap accuracy, there is legitimate big play potential waiting to pop, and Tate sees 49.77% of the air yards in this offense. He will score and bend a slate eventually, though that value is more likely to come in a standalone share than as part of a misguided Titans stack.
Tier 2:
Wan’Dale Robinson is a PPR receiver with shaky volume on just 5.8 weekly targets. Robinson delivers 4.0 catches per game; he has sure hands but limited chances, and provides a mere 1.16 yards per route run on 26.5 routes each time out. The receiver is WR28/24 and WR32/24 across sites; he is inexpensive but needs a heavy-target game or to improve on his two total touchdowns in Week 5 if he is to make value.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Gunnar Helm is TE24/21 and TE24/24 across sites in Week 5. The tight end draws just three targets per game for 0.65 yards per route run on his 23.0 routes per game. Helm is not a premium pass catcher in this or any offense.
Elic Ayomanor catches oddball touchdowns and not much more. The receiver has one such grab on the board this year while picking up 2.5 targets per game but seeing five early red zone targets to lead the team. Ayomanor is an oddball play from outside of the top-50 by points on both sites, but his number does come up in scoring territory in a bad offense.
Calvin Ridley has fallen outside of a reasonable quality range in Week 5, as has Chimere Dike, with neither receiver seeing regular volume. Ridley runs 16.3 routes per game while Dike runs just 2.3, neither player averages more than two targets per game.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 20 points / 20 value; FanDuel: 21 points / 19 value
Best Stacking Options: Ward-Tate-Pollard
Best One-off: Carnell Tate
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Carnell Tate
Wildcard: Elic Ayomanor
Washington Commanders
Game Total: 42.0 (WAS -3.5 / 22.75)
Offense: 4.2 ypa rush (45.38%) / 5.7 ypa pass (54.62%) / 22.0 ppg
oppDEF: 4.7 ypa rush / 5.9 ypa pass / 13.2% pressure / 2.16% sack (3) / 4.41% int (6)
Key Player: Jayden Daniels
Setting: at least one / exactly two (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Team Group: Terry McLaurin (Q), Antonio Williams, Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Chig Okonkwo, Rachaad White (on/off), Austin Ekeler (on/off), Treylon Burks (large field), Dyami Brown (large field)
Opposing Setting: at most one / exactly one (these can be alternated in a variety of lineup builds)
Opposing Group: Malik Nabers, Isaiah Likely, Cam Skattebo (on/off), Malachi Fields, Darnell Mooney, Najee Harris (on/off), Theo Johnson (on/off), Tyrone Tracy Jr. (on/off)
Game Notes:
Quarterback
Jayden Daniels makes a triumphant and surprisingly fast return from a dislocated left elbow in Week 5, ultimately missing just two games after what appeared to be a devastating injury. Daniels returns to action with three touchdowns and zero interceptions in his ledger this season, passing for just 5.1 yards per attempt but that mark comes on 8.6 intended air yards per attempt that at least carry the suggestion of added potential. Daniels is a big-play quarterback with rushing ability to help pad scoring for NFL DFS gamers; he carried the ball five times for 31 yards in Week 1 and seven times for 69 yards in Week 2, gaining an excellent 8.3 yards per attempt overall, though he is yet to return to the lofty days of his rookie season in which he scored six times while gaining 891 yards on 148 rushing attempts. Daniels is QB10 by points on both sites, but his QB19 rating lacks value despite an easily beatable Giants defense on the other side of the contest.
Running Backs
Tier 1:
n/a
Tier 2:
Jacory Croskey-Merritt could benefit from facing a Giants defense allowing a league-worst 4.7 yards per rush attempt on the ground. While “Bill” is currently gaining just 2.8 yards per rush attempt over 14.0 carries per game, the running back has lost some big gains to penalties this season, and should look somewhat better on the whole. His -1.3 yards against expectation per attempt, however, is of great concern in the grander scheme. Croskey-Merritt loses a few touches downstream with Rachaad White in play, and a few more potentially with the return of Austin Ekeler, but he has explosive play potential and could find paint at limited popularity in Week 5 against the lousy opposing defense.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Rachaad White lands as RB36/38 and RB40 across the board from DraftKings to FanDuel, giving him essentially no appeal in NFL DFS play in Week 5. White is putting up 4.5 yards per attempt on 7.3 carries per game and adds another three chances on 3.0 targets each week; he is a quality performer whose output is artificially limited by volume as long as Croskey-Merritt lingers ahead of him on the depth chart. With Ekeler looking for chances behind him, this becomes a tight running back group in a limited offense.
Austin Ekeler returned to action for 17 snaps last week, carrying the ball four times for 29 yards with another 11 yards added on 1-for-2 receptions. Ekeler is a low-end dice roll for NFL DFS purposes, but he is worth monitoring for added opportunities with no one truly seizing the top spot in this offense.
Receivers & Tight Ends
Tier 1:
n/a
Tier 2:
Terry McLaurin gains 1.41 yards per route run on a team-leading 33.3 routes per game, good for a 22.18% air yards share over his 11.6-yard average depth of target. McLaurin has one touchdown on the board this season with part of the blame falling on a lousy 59.09% catchable target rate from the team’s quarterbacks. With Jayden Daniels returning to action, one would hope for more catchable chances to head in the top receiver’s direction. McLaurin is WR25/38 and WR25/26 across sites with potential for added gains, though the Giants are better at limiting output against the pass at just 5.9 net yards per attempt. New York also has six takeaways on interceptions in just four games, creating an impactful swing in their defensive numbers.
Reserves/Very Large Field Darts
Antonio Williams brings good points-per-dollar rankings to the table in Week 5, landing as WR36/22 and WR35/29 across sites. Williams has one touchdown on board this season while drawing 4.8 targets per game and seeing a 63.16% catchable target rate on an 11.7-yard average depth that rivals the shape of McLaurin’s targeting. Williams’ 17.37% air yards share is a significant option that puts him on the board as a second man in stacks of Commanders or as a value-based standalone play in any lineup.
Treylon Burks is outside of the top-65 across both sites at the wide receiver position. Burks comes up with 1.11 yards per route run on his 18.0 routes per contest, but he has managed to find paydirt twice in four games, providing a bit of NFL DFS upside at extremely low popularity in those spots.
Chig Okonkwo ranks outside of the top-15 tight ends in Week 5. Okonkwo sees 3.5 targets per game on a 9.6-yard average depth of target that puts him into decent chances for big gains to make up for the lack of chances. Okonkwo has not scored this season; he is a limited option overall and rates closer to TE20 than TE15.
Stack Ranks: DraftKings: 19 points / 18 value; FanDuel: 19 points / 18 value
Best Stacking Options: Daniels-McLaurin-Williams
Best One-off: Terry McLaurin
Best Value/Upside/Ownership Play: Terry McLaurin
Wildcard: Jacory Croskey-Merritt
Follow Us on Twitter. Join us in Discord. Subscribe to the YouTube Channel.
