We just passed the quarter pole of this NFL season (hehehehe, I said pole), and while we have a little better grasp on our fantasy teams, there is still plenty more to learn. We welcome Columbus Day as we enter the second quarter of the NFL season. With four teams on bye and a million injuries, who should you start? Who should you sit? Find out here!
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Fantasy Football Start/Sit Week 5
Quarterback
Start: Carson Wentz, Philadelphia Eagles vs. Detroit Lions. This rookie who was supposed to be a project and maybe the last rookie to see the field has looked like a veteran to start the year. Wentz certainly hasn’t looked like a rookie and is leading the Eagles defense like a Hall of Famer. They are coming off a bye, and to have two weeks to get ready for the pathetic Lions defense should be a recipe for major success. Look for Wentz to top 300 yards and maybe three passing touchdowns as well.
Sit: Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons vs. Denver Broncos. Whaaaaaaaaat? Matt Ryan has had an amazing start to the season with 11 touchdowns in four games so how can you sit him? Well, the Brocnos defense is no freaking joke, and has the teeth to keep Ryan in check. Atlanta hasn’t faced the toughest of defenses so far, and this will be their toughest test to date. I expect Ryan to come up short and have a maximum one touchdown pass this Sunday.
Fantasy football start/sit for Week 5: Matt Ryan has been amazing, but it’s time to sit him https://t.co/CazO29PHAc pic.twitter.com/ezzn1XDNnE
— Neil Greenberg (@ngreenberg) October 5, 2016
Running Back
Start: Frank Gore, Indianapolis Colts vs. Chicago Bears. UGH! I can’t believe I am telling people to play Frank Gore. I hate the guy. He’s old, he’s slow, and he’s on the backend of his career. However, the Colts have been struggling to really get the offense going, and Gore has been a consistent force on the team. The pass game hasn’t been good, but Gore has been pretty good. This week the Colts face the Bears, who are giving up nearly 125 yards per game on the ground and have allowed five total rushing touchdowns in five weeks. The Colts offensive line isn’t great, but I expect Gore to approach 100 yards and get in the endzone as well.
Start: Terrance West, Baltimore Ravens vs. Washington Redskins. With Justin Forsett a healthy scratch and Buck Allen not much of a factor, West had a great game last Sunday. He had 21 carries for 113 yards and a score. People are hoping that Kenneth Dixon is able to come back this week, but even if he does he isn’t going to take the backfield over in his first week. I still look for West to carry the load on Sunday, and the Redskins defense sucks something awful. They are allowing over 130 yards and two rushing touchdowns per game through the first four. If you have West keep him in there for Week 5.
Sit: Theo Riddick, Detroit Lions vs. Philadelphia Eagles. The Lions simply can’t run the ball Ameer Abdullah was fine before he was hurt, now Dewayne Washington is banged up now. Zach Zenner is a big, plodding fullback and not someone you can trust. This really leaves just Riddick, but they are facing a tough Eagles run defense. They are allowing just 71 yards per game, and I expect them to bottle up Riddick and hold him to 50 yards or less with no scores.
Matt Forte started out well, but things have not been well lately
Sit: Matt Forte, New York Jets vs. Pittsburgh Steelers. It has been a mixed bag to start the year for Forte, and it has been more bad than good. The Jets have played an incredibly tough schedule to start the season, and it has shown in their offensive stats. It doesn’t get any easier this week against Pittsburgh who is allowing less than 80 yards per game on the ground and three touchdowns in four weeks. I can see Forte gaining 65 yards on the ground, 35 through the air and unfortunately no touchdowns.
Wide Receiver
Start: Emmanuel Sanders, Denver Broncos vs. Atlanta Falcons. Do the Broncos run the ball a lot? Why yes, yes they do. However, the past two weeks Emmanuel Sanders has certainly picked up the pace. He did even better when rookie Paxton Lynch came into the game. The team is still saying that Siemien may be able to play on Sunday, but I don’t think that’s even remotely possible. Look for Lynch to be the starter this week, and he looked ultra confident, and had impressive arm strength.
Start: Travis Benjamin, San Diego Chargers vs. Oakland Raiders. Benjamin hasn’t had less than four catches in any week so far, but he also has two games under 50 yards. The good thing for Benjamin is he appears to be the guy on the team who will have the most receptions, even if he doesn’t have the most yards or touchdowns. This week the Chargers face the Raiders who have allowed the most passing yards on defense through four weeks of the year. Look for Travis to have eight catches for nearly 100 yards and a touchdown on Sunday.
Sit: Golden Tate, Detroit Lions vs. Philadelphia Eagles. Despite strong statistics from Matthew Stafford, Tate seems to become less and less a part of that attack on a weekly basis. It hit rock bottom last week when he had one catch for one yard. The whole game! Head Coach Jim Caldwell has said that the team still plans to rely on Tate, but what the hell does he know? Actions speak louder than words, and actions say that Tate isn’t being used much at all. The Eagles haven’t given up a passing touchdown yet, so even if the Lions do happen to throw one or two, I wouldn’t want to bet on Tate.
Sit: Will Fuller, Houston Texans vs. Minnesota Vikings. It has been an amazing start to a pro career for Fuller, as he really lit up the highlight reel last Sunday with a punt return and a touchdown reception. As much as I love him, and it would be almost impossible to put him on the bench, I am not expecting a big week from Fuller. The Vikings have shut down receiver after receiver this season, and while I’m not ready to sit DeAndre Hopkins, I’ll say that Fuller is the guy who has the subpar game for once.
Tight End
Start: Martellus Bennett, New England Patriots vs. Cleveland Browns. It was all or nothing for Bennett while Tom Brady was suspended as he had two games over 100 yards and two games under 15 yards. This week Bennett gets Brady back, and he goes against the Cleveland Browns who are among the worst defenses in the NFL. Even If Brady favors Gronk, there should be plenty enough balls to go around to make Bennett a good play in Week 5.
Sit: Kyle Rudolph, Minnesota Vikings vs. Houston Texans. In the three games since Sam Bradford has been the quarterback, Rudolph has a touchdown in each game. He is healthy, and when Rudolph is healthy, he generally produces. He has 12 catches in the last two weeks, and is in a great stretch. However, this week the Vikings will face the Houston Texans who are allowing only 162 yards per game through the air, and just one passing touchdown through four games. Rudolph has been solid, but this is a week you can sit him down.
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