The mid-round tight ends have been the cause of pain for just about every fantasy manager this season. But tight ends aren’t the only position that’s on the hook for causing frustration in fantasy football. There are underperformers at each position every week, and there’s nothing we can do about it. All we can do is analyze each player’s weekly outlook and look to avoid the players who are set up to disappoint.
Last week, we gave you names like Derek Carr, J.K. Dobbins, Garrett Wilson, Zay Flowers, and Mark Andrews as players to avoid in lineups. If you started any of these five, chances are that you were disappointed by their performance. Week 5 is a clean slate with new matchups to analyze. It may be a new week, but the goal remains the same – avoid the landmines.
We’ll be using a roundtable style article for our Week 5 fantasy football busts. Three of our fantasy football analysts will be taking a look at the slate and covering one player who they will be shying away from at each position. Fantasy managers could be in line for a frustrating Sunday afternoon if they choose to start any of these players.
WEEK 5 FANTASY RANKINGS
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Fantasy QB Busts Week 5
Michael O’Hara: Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys — The Pittsburgh Steelers have had their way with just about every quarterback they’ve faced this year. They have not yet allowed a 250-yard passer and have surrendered just four passing touchdowns on the year. The Steelers have also yet to allow an opposing quarterback to finish inside the weekly top-12. Pittsburgh is one of the toughest matchups for quarterbacks this season, and Dak Prescott will be the next signal caller to struggle against T.J. Watt, Joey Porter Jr., and company.
Ed Williams: Derek Carr, New Orleans Saints — Ah, the beauty of fantasy football. One week, you’re being touted as a surprising MVP candidate, and then the next, fans are clamoring for Spencer Rattler to get a look at QB. That’s the roller coaster Derek Carr has been on for the 2-2 Saints. After racking up 91 points against the Panthers and Cowboys in the first two weeks of the season, the Saints could only muster 36 the last two weeks against the Eagles and Falcons. While the calls for Rattler are extremely premature, the MVP chatter was equally premature. Look for Carr to fulfill more of the game manager role that he’s filled over much of his career, which may be disappointing to hear for fantasy managers who thought they may have stumbled upon a steal in their leagues.
Vinnie Iyer: Sam Darnold, Minnesota Vikings — The revenge game vs. the Jets also means he’ll be facing a tough pass defense in London that can pressure him and force turnovers while limiting the downfield damage to Justin Jefferson and others. Minnesota has been running more this season than last, and that’s the better way to attack the Jets’ defense.
WEEK 5 WAIVER WIRE ADVICE
Full Waiver Wire list | Top Players to Target | How to spend FAAB
Fantasy RB Busts Week 5
O’Hara: Zack Moss, Cincinnati Bengals — There are two reasons to be hesitant about Zack Moss’s outlook this week. First, Chase Brown began the process of chipping away at the backfield work in Cincinnati. Brown was on the field for 40 percent of snaps and saw one fewer opportunity than Moss last week. This was the closest the gap had been all season. The second cause for concern is the matchup. The Bengals’ defense has been carved up by Andy Dalton and Jayden Daniels in recent weeks. Lamar Jackson shouldn’t have an issue following suit, and Cincinnati will need to score in droves to keep up. Bengals vs. Ravens is setting up to be a high-scoring game where Cincinnati leans on Joe Burrow’s arm, not the running backs.
Williams: Zamir White, Las Vegas Raiders — Two weeks ago, we said it was now or never for Zamir White when the Raiders took on the Panthers. Well, it looks like the answer may be never as he only tallied 34 yards on 10 carries against Carolina. He did follow it up with a season-high 50 rushing yards against the Browns last week, but it was on 17 (!!!) carries for an average of just 2.9 yards per attempt. Plus, head coach Antonio Pierce continues to tout the abilities of backup Alexander Mattison. With the stingy defense of the Broncos up next, leave White on your bench.
Iyer: James Cook, Buffalo Bills —The game got out of hand against the Ravens’ run defense, and Cook couldn’t see enough touches to have a fantasy-relevant night in Week 4. The Bills will be set up to be pass-happier downfield again vs. the Texans, and if Cook can’t be in there for key receiving chances, his managers would be headed for more disappointment. Plus, the Texans have been tough overall on backs early.
Fantasy WR Busts Week 5
O’Hara: Tyreek Hill, Miami Dolphins — We’ve seen how this offense looks without Tua Tagovialoa and it’s not pretty. Tyreek Hill will now draw coverage from Christian Gonzalez, who is emerging as a lock-down corner in his second NFL season. Just last week, Gonzalez held Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk to a combined 12 yards. The Dolphins’ offense is dysfunctional, and Hill has to face off with another elite AFC East cornerback. This is not an indictment on Hill’s talent; the situation on both sides of the ball just paints a not-so-pretty picture for Hill’s Week 5 outlook.
Williams: Garrett Wilson, New York Jets — Wilson managers must be extremely frustrated to see who they likely drafted as their WR1 as a bust candidate for a second-straight week. Wilson has faced a string of formidable defenses so far this season including matchups against shutdown corners in Pat Surtain (Denver) and Christian Gonzalez (New England) the last two weeks. This week, Wilson draws the Vikings’ defense, which is coached by Brian Flores and includes cornerback Stephon Gilmore. Until offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett gets more creative and scheming Wilson open more, it could be a bump road for the very talented pass catcher.
Iyer: Diontae Johnson, Carolina Panthers — Johnson has burst onto the scene for his new team with Andy Dalton at QB but faces a tough outside spot vs. Jaylen Johnson in nasty cornerback coverage on the road. He’ll get the key coverage attention over rookie Xavier Legette to be contained downfield with Dalton under consistent duress.
Fantasy TE Busts Week 5
O’Hara: Mark Andrews, Baltimore Ravens — This is the second straight week that I’ll be going with Mark Andrews, and it really serves as a warning that he belongs nowhere near a starting lineup at the moment. Andrews just put up a second straight goose egg in a game where he had a sub-50 percent route participation and saw just one target. Unless John Harbaugh changes his mind in how he plans to deploy Andrews, he can’t be trusted in starting lineups
Williams: Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons — Mark Andrews wasn’t the only tight end with a goose egg in Week 4. Kyle Pitts actually accomplished that feat earlier in the day when he couldn’t convert any of this three targets into cactches against the Saints. Pitts just isn’t being schemed into advantageous spots, and he’s struggling to create any seperation on the majority of his routes. Until we see something to the contrary, Pitts can no longer be considered a TE1, even with as rough as the position has been so far for fantasy production.
Iyer: Pat Freiermuth, Pittsburgh Steelers — He ended his long touchdown drought (12 games) while catching 5-of-7 targets for 57 yards against the Colts. The Cowboys are a trickier intermediate coverage spot for him as the Steelers should go very run-heavy to try to win the game.
Fantasy Defense Busts Week 5
O’Hara: Cleveland Browns — The Browns have been regarded as an elite defense throughout the Kevin Stefanski era. They aren’t exactly in the elite tier this year, but they still rank in the top-12 of fantasy defenses. Week 5 is a game in which they should not be trusted in fantasy. Cleveland gets Jayden Daniels and the scorching-hot Washington offense that leads the league in nearly every offensive production and efficiency metric. The Cleveland defense belongs on waivers for the week.
Williams: Dallas Cowboys — As if the Cowboys weren’t reeling enough after a 2-2 start including a blowout loss to the Saints and tough defeat to the Ravens, their already banged up defense was impacted even more in Week 4 as All-Pro linebacker Micah Parsons went down with an ankle injury and EDGE DeMarcus Lawrence landed on IR after suffering a Lisfranc injury. The Steelers’ don’t boast the most prolific offense in the league by any stretch, but if Parsons misses time or even if he’s slowed significantly from the ankle injury, it could be tough for the Cowboys to contain the fleet of foot Justin Fields.
Iyer: New Orleans Saints — They have cooled off a bit for Dennis Allen going 0-2 after the 2-0 start and now draw Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs on the road. Although Mahomes is playing shorthanded and there might be some fair pressure to create some big plays, it’s smarter to stay away during the bye.