Fantasy Football Panic Meter After Week 5: A.J. Brown, Alvin Kamara and More

Let's continue turning the page on week 5 of the season, while looking ahead to week 6, by diving into the panic meter series.

We'll offer up a panic meter ranking from 1-10 to let you know how worried you should be about certain guys - 10 is the highest level of concern.

Let's dive right in!

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Wide Receivers

A.J. Brown and Jakobi Meyers are the two wide receivers I want to talk about after week 5.

Brown's disappointing start to the season continued on Sunday when he only went for 43 yards on five catches and eight targets.

That was actually one of his better fantasy showings of the season, which says a lot on how he's performed to this point. What's weird is that he's received at least eight targets in four straight weeks, but he's only gone for 186 yards and a score on 18 catches over 35 targets.

The Eagles' offense looks a touch off so far this season, and it's hurt a few players. Brown is one of the more notable names who has struggled so far, and it's really hurting the fantasy owners who spent an early pick on him.

It's hard to give up on Brown completely, but he's really hard to trust right now in standard leagues. Most weeks, he's not a locked-in starter. He still should be starting in deeper leagues though.

His panic meter is way up at a 7. There's time for Brown to get rolling, but with one good fantasy outing in five tries, there's a ton of reasons to be worried about Brown.

I'd look to cut ties with him, even though his trade value is way down right now. I simply don't trust him inside this Eagles' offense, and I'd be happier to rid myself of the weekly headache. See what kind of offers trickle in, and hope you have some decent starting options if you get stuck with him, as I'm going to be against starting Brown more times than not right now.

Meyers only had 32 yards on four receptions and six targets in week 5. He had 30 yards on four catches and seven targets in week 4, so he's been down the past two weeks.

The Raiders' offense has been below average most of the season (more on that later), and it's hurting the team's top wideout. He's getting enough targets to do some fantasy damage, but not racking up enough yardage, or any scores yet, so he's a below-average fantasy asset.

Meyers wasn't as big a fantasy draft asset as Brown, but his panic meter is still high at a 6. He started the year pretty well, so there's hope he can get back to that level of play. For now though, he's tough to trust in standard leagues, and is a much better deep-league starter.

Running Backs

Alvin Kamara and James Cook are the two backs we'll discuss going into week 6.

Kamara was limited to 27 rushing yards on eight carries in week 5. He caught four of his six targets for an additional 28 yards. Maybe more alarming is that he only played 56% of the team's offensive snaps, while backup Kendre Miller played 39% of the snaps and had 11 touches of his own.

I never thought Kamara would split the backfield in New Orleans, but that appears to be coming true now. It's also concerning that Taysom Hill is now back, so he's going to gobble up some touches as well.

It's just one poor showing, but I'm really concerned about Kamara as a fantasy asset. I'd have his panic meter way up at an 8.

I'd look to sell high now before his value potentially drops off more. Most fantasy owners could chalk last week up to an outlier, and still would pay a good price for Kamara.

Sure, his involvement could increase going forward, but I think the touches will be distributed to Miller and Hill enough to sap some of Kamara's value away. So I'd look to sell Kamara before things get any worse basically.

Cook had a rare poor fantasy showing in week 5. He only rushed for 49 yards on 15 carries, while failing to haul in his only target.

Cook had a season low in touches, and finished below 100 total yards for the first time. He'd been one of the top fantasy backs in the league through four weeks, so this dud came out of nowhere.

His value definitely will drop going into week 6, so now would be a time to buy low on him. I expect Cook to bounce back going forward.

His usage (72% offensive snaps played) was good, and I'm not worried about him too much. I'd put his panic meter at a 2, which is why I'm saying to buy low on him instead of panicking because of one down showing.

Tight Ends

T.J. Hockenson and Trey McBride are the tight ends we'll discuss today.

Hockenson finished with 38 yards on six receptions and targets. That was one of his top PPR performances this season, which shows he's struggled most of the season.

He has at least five targets and four catches in each of the past three games, but between 38-49 yards in those contests. With just one score in that span, and for the season, his fantasy value is way down from where he was drafted.

Justin Jefferson is still the stud in Minnesota, and with Jordan Addison now back, Hockenson is the third offensive weapon at best. Things might get worse when Aaron Jones Sr. is ready to return to the field too.

I'd put Hockenson's panic meter at a 7 as well. I'm more inclined to sell him while he still has some value, instead of holding out hope for him. I just don't see him consistently performing this season, so I'd bail while I could before he's a guy to drop.

McBride only went for 41 yards on five catches and seven targets. He's been between 41-52 yards over the past three weeks, and with just one score on the season, his overall value is down a bit.

He's still a highly-ranked fantasy tight end every week, and is still plenty involved offensively to start confidently, but his fantasy owners are probably not super thrilled with his showings of late.

That might make him a bit more available in a trade. I'd also be looking to buy a bit lower on McBride.

I'd put his panic meter at a 3, and that's just because it's a multi-week struggle. He's still doing enough to outscore a lot of fantasy team's tight ends, so see what his asking price is and see if you can land an elite TE for the stretch run.

Quarterbacks

Geno Smith and Justin Herbert are the two fantasy quarterbacks worth discussing today.

The Raiders' offensive woes can be tied back to Smith. He had 228 passing yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions on 25-of-36 passing in week 5.

Smith has 1,176 passing yards, but just six touchdowns and nine interceptions through five games. He doesn't add enough as a runner to offset his poor passing performances.

Smith is more a streaming option than a locked-in fantasy starter, but with his results so far, it's going to be really difficult to trust him until further notice. 

His panic meter is at an 8 right now, meaning I'm only starting him in the deepest leagues, and if I absolutely had to. Otherwise, I'm skipping Smith until he shows me something positive. 

Herbert threw for 166 yards, a score and a pick in the team's lopsided loss to Washington on Sunday. That was a pretty favorable matchup too, although he helped his fantasy score by rushing for 60 yards on four attempts.

Herbert was really good in week 1-3, but has just 369 passing yards, two touchdowns and three picks over the past two weeks. He looked like a weekly starter in all leagues, but is trending toward streaming value again.

His panic meter is at a 5 after his past two showings. Herbert could turn things around with one good showing, but I'm definitely concerned about him right now. 

We'll see if he can ease the mind of fantasy owners with a good showing his next time out. Right now, he looks more like an average-level fantasy QB, which means he's a better deep-league starter.