Week 5 Wide Receiver & Tight End Starts & Sits: More of D.J. Moore?
Should fantasy owners start or sit Panthers WR D.J. Moore in Week 5?
We’ve covered quarterbacks and running backs this week, so I wanted to make sure we showed the wide receivers and tight ends some love.
If you’ve never read this article before, here’s a quick primer. We’re here to dig into the start/sit decisions that are keeping you up at night. Do you bench your struggling second-rounder struggling in favor of a waiver wire guy with increased opportunity? Or do you “start your studs” and ignore the streaming noise you’re seeing on Twitter?
And with that in mind, let’s dig into some Week 5 start/sit recommendations for wide receivers and tight ends!
Wide Receivers
Start ‘Em
START OF THE WEEK: DJ Moore, Carolina Panthers
Moore is the poster child for my “should I bench a guy I took in the early rounds?” question from above. My answer here is no. While Baker Mayfield is absolutely brutal, the Panthers are trying to force the ball into Moore’s hands, and that should end up being a good thing for fantasy purposes. Moore saw 11 targets last week and has carried the ball three times in his last two games. I still think Mayfield limits Moore’s upside, but he’s worth starting as long as the Panthers are making an effort to get him the ball as much as possible.
George Pickens, Pittsburgh Steelers
As a Patriots fan, I have a feeling I’m going to have a pit in my stomach every time I see Pickens’ name (they passed on him for Tyquan Thornton). My personal issues aside, Pickens’ stock is rising as he’s now seen 15 targets over his last two games that have turned into nine receptions for 141 yards. The rookie has yet to find the end zone this season, but he gets a quarterback upgrade with rookie Kenny Pickett this weekend and should be a weekly fantasy starter moving forward.
Robert Woods, Tennessee Titans
Bobby Trees hasn’t had a great start to his Titans tenure, but I’m going to cut him a little slack as he’s coming off a brutal knee injury and is still adjusting to his new surroundings. While he hasn’t broken out just yet, he’s seen 13 targets over his last two games and has put up 115 total yards and a touchdown in those two games. I’m also buying into a quote he had earlier this week about developing a better rapport with Ryan Tannehill – especially as Treylon Burks deals with a toe injury. Not to mention, the Titans face a Commanders secondary in Week 5 that is allowing the third-most fantasy points to opposing wideouts. Lock and load Bobby Trees!
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Sit ‘Em
SIT OF THE WEEK: Allen Robinson, Los Angeles Rams
There’s a chance Robinson gets some love this week as his lack of usage has become a topic, but nevertheless, his lack of usage has been real. While Robinson has seen an average of just over five targets per game over his last three games, they haven’t been high-value targets and he’s only turned those targets into an average of 2.7 catches for 27.7 yards over those three games. Will Sean McVay unlock Robinson at some point this season? Probably. But I’m done using my fantasy lineup as a proving ground.
JuJu Smith-Schuster, Kansas City Chiefs
Before the season started, Patrick Mahomes made a comment about how the Chiefs' receiving corps would be annoying for fantasy football because we wouldn’t know who would go off from week to week. Well, none of the Chiefs receivers have really gone off at all, so they’re making our decisions a little easier. Now, I’m not saying JuJu has been a bust (he’s averaging 4.75 receptions, 6.75 targets, and 56 yards per game so far), but he isn’t exactly winning anyone’s fantasy matchup for them either. While Smith-Schuster isn’t an automatic sit in deeper leagues, there are better options than him in most leagues.
Chase Claypool, Pittsburgh Steelers
Pickens’ rise has to come at someone’s expense, right? This isn’t the Steelers offense of old and it can’t sustain multiple fantasy producers. Sadly for Claypool, he seems to have fallen to fourth on the Steelers pecking order behind Diontae Johnson, Pickens, and Pat Freiermuth. The Steelers tried to get him the ball a lot in Week 1 (including six carries!), but he only saw two targets last week. While one week doesn’t make a trend, Claypool belongs on fantasy benches until he can prove otherwise.
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Tight End
Start ‘Em
START OF THE WEEK: Logan Thomas, Washington Commanders
Thomas was a forgotten man in fantasy drafts, but I think his time is now. Coming off an injury-plagued season, Thomas is averaging five targets per game this season and is coming off a five-catch performance in Week 4. The Commanders will be without Jahan Dotson this weekend (who is tied for the league-lead in touchdowns), so Thomas should see increased targets – and opportunities in the red zone. Get him off the waiver wire and in your lineups!
Tyler Conklin, New York Jets
Raise your hand if you had Tyler Conklin as top-10 fantasy tight end through four weeks… Ok, no one has to put their hand down now. Surprisingly, Conklin has been a consistent fantasy option to start the season and hasn’t seen less than five targets in a game. The one semi-negative here is that he saw his season-low in targets with Zach Wilson under center last week, but he has a fantastic matchup against the Dolphins this week and should be in your Week 5 lineup.
Sit ‘Em
SIT OF THE WEEK: Dalton Schultz, Dallas Cowboys
We’ve come a long way from when I was seeing people on Twitter saying Schultz has a shot at finishing the season as a top-three tight end. The injuries (both to himself and to Dak Prescott) aren’t his fault, but we are where we are. While Schultz is seemingly healthy, he gave us a goose egg last week and it looks like Prescott will miss another game this weekend. I like Schultz as a buy-low candidate for season-long fantasy, but he belongs on your bench for Week 5.
Daniel Bellinger, New York Giants
I keep seeing people on Twitter hype up Daniel Bellinger, and I’m not really sure why. Bellinger is a good player and has been seeing an increasing amount of targets, but he’s still only seen nine passes come his way all season. Furthermore, the Giants offense outside of Saquon Barkley is a bit of a dumpster fire – and may be without Daniel Jones this week too. Bellinger isn’t a horrible desperation play, but I wouldn’t be seeking him out.
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