FanDuel NFL: Week 5 Breakdown

This article is part of our FanDuel Fantasy Football series.

Week 5 presents the first opportunity for a week to be truly dominated be chalk. Four teams are on bye — including attractive offenses like the Chargers and Seahawks — and there's also a London game. Add the two traditional primetime games and we have only 10 games on the main slate. Five teams stand out as potential high-scoring options, and roster rates are likely to center around them. That doesn't mean building through those games is a bad idea, but building with right pieces around them will be key.

The Games

A lot of the focus of DFS picks is on individual players. Skills certainly matter, but finding game environments that are likely to promote a lot of points scored is a way to narrow the focus of our player pool.

• Using the betting lines, the Eagles-Rams and Chiefs-Vikings matchups are the obvious games to target.
• Excluding those teams, Miami and Detroit also have strong implied totals.

Value Options

This section will highlight players that project well on a point-per-dollar basis. DFS analysis will often focus on getting 3X return on a player's salary, or another similar mark. This is only a part of the analysis but can help identify potential salary savers or building blocks for lineups.

Gus Edwards at PIT ($6,000)

The Ravens are set for an AFC North showdown against one of their most bitter rivals. That hasn't been a setting to look for offensive outbursts in recent seasons, and that doesn't look likely to change this weekend with the lowest game total of the slate. However, Edwards emerged with a clear hold of the backfield coming out of Week 4 against the Browns, handling 15 of 21 carries by running backs. His line doesn't stand out from there, but this week's matchup against the Steelers is much softer. Pittsburgh has allowed a running back to reach double-digit FD points in three of four games this season, and given the aggressive pricing at the position that would be a win at cost for Edwards.  

Tyler Boyd at ARI ($6,200)

The Bengals offense has been among the biggest disappointments of the season, but they keep getting put in good spots to snap out of it. Arizona has played better than expected, but that's still relative, as it's allowed the sixth-most fantasy points to quarterbacks and have given up at least 89 yards at least one receiver on three of four opponents. Meanwhile, I'd pretty strongly lean on the side of Tee Higgins (ribs) not playing. Even if he does, he disappeared entirely in a couple games last season when he was playing through injury. In theory, we'd say that should lead to increased volume for Boyd, but his problem has been more about efficiency rather than volume. His last three games, he has eight, nine and seven targets, respectively. That leaves him in an ambiguous position to benefit from Higgins' absence or ineffectiveness, but betting on a bit of a boost in volume and some better efficiency could mean a significant value at his price point.

Other Value Options

QB C.J. Stroud at ATL ($7,200)
QB Matthew Stafford vs. ($6,800)
RB James Conner vs. CIN ($6,500)
RB Dameon Pierce vs. ATL ($6,200)
WR Marquise Brown vs. CIN ($6,400)
WR Josh Reynolds vs. CAR ($6,300)
WR Jordan Addison vs. KC ($5,900)
WR Wan'Dale Robinson at MIA ($5,400)
WR Michael Wilson vs. CIN ($5,300)
TE Jonnu Smith vs. HOU ($5,000)
TE Connor Heyward vs. BAL ($4,700)

Stacks to Consider

Philadelphia Eagles at Los Angeles Rams

This is the first of the two pretty obvious stacking choices this week. Philadelphia is pretty straightforward when considering a stack, as A.J. Brown ($8,200) and DeVonta Smith ($7,500) account for a combined 80 percent of air yards and 59 percent of targets. Brown has both volume and efficiency on his side early this season, and he's topped Smith by more than four FanDuel points per game. It is worth noting that passing offenses and top wide receivers in particular have had boom-bust results against the Los Angeles secondary early this season, though relatively comparably talented receivers such as DK Metcalf (12.2), Deebo Samuel (19.1) and Ja'Marr Chase (20.1) have all experienced some degree of success. Dallas Goedert ($5,500) has been among the biggest disappointments at tight ends, and there's not much in the matchup or usage to suggest his results will change. On the other hand, his price has dipped to the point that he's a decent buy-low option. There's been a lot hand wringing about Jalen Hurts ($8,600) early this season. Overall, he's delivered between 21.88 and 26.22 FD points in three of four games. The problem is that he's failed to top 200 passing yards twice. In this matchup, he'll likely have to take to the air more, so I'm willing to set aside his slow start through the air.

The Rams are interesting because we know Cooper Kupp ($8,500) will be in action. He's already the fourth-highest priced wide receiver on FD, taking away any potential upside. The more interesting factor will be how he affects the other pass catchers on the team. It's difficult to see the team move away from prioritizing Puka Nacua ($8,000) after his start to his rookie year, but he's the sixth-most expensive wide receiver — which might not be a ceiling he can reach with Kupp back in the mix. Kupp's return will also shift the role of Tutu Atwell ($5,800), who has run almost half of his routes out of the slot through four games. He's been overshadowed by Nacua, but Atwell has hit double-digit FD points three times. He's a nice price to play as a bring-back option with Hurts and Brown. The last name to consider is Tyler Higbee ($5,300), who checks in at a fairly cheap price but doesn't have a big enough role in the offense and doesn't offer enough salary savings at the position to get significant consideration.

Kansas City Chiefs at Minnesota Vikings

This is the other obvious stack of the day. Let's begin in Kansas City. Patrick Mahomes ($9,200) checks in at an extremely steep price, particularly considering he's topped 25 FD points only once (25.68). Even if he scored at the end of last Sunday's win over the Jets rather than sliding, he'd have between 20.54 and 25.68 FD points in every contest to this point. The rather obvious choice is to switch focus to Kirk Cousins ($7,600), but the case for Mahomes is the matchup. The Vikings allowed Hurts to score 27.2 points and Justin Herbert 29.3. This could be the ceiling game we've been waiting for from Mahomes, and that's the bet to make if rostering him. For those who go that route, Travis Kelce ($8,789) is the obvious stack partner. The problem is that takes up almost a third of the allocated salary cap. Rashee Rice ($5,000) is a viable punt option to balance out that cost. His route participation has jumped in the last two weeks and that should continue in this strong offensive environment.

On the Minnesota side, Cousins has clearly prioritized targeting T.J. Hockenson ($6,800) and Justin Jefferson ($9,200). Jefferson is one of only four players with a price above 9k, but he has proven worthy as has the highest points per game average at wide receiver. Hockenson is a less obvious play because he comes at a premium cost but is far less likely to provide a slate-breaking score as compared to Jefferson. He's also been primarily a compiler, making a better fit on a site like DK (PPR scoring) as compared to FD. For those looking for a peripheral pass catcher to add, Jordan Addison ($5,900) and K.J. Osborn ($5,400) are the potential options. The duo have remarkably similar roles, but Addison has shown a higher ceiling. The Chiefs' defense has quietly been quite good at limiting opponents. Only one quarterback (Zach Wilson) has managed to surpass 14 fantasy points against it. If there has been a relative weakness in the limited sample of the current campaign, it's been tight end.

Also Consider: Miami – QB Tua Tagovailoa ($8,000), WR Tyreek Hill ($9,400), WR Jaylen Waddle ($6,800)

High-Priced Hero

Bijan Robinson vs. HOU ($8,200)

The Texans are developing into a run-funnel defense, which is sharp from a team-building perspective. It benefits us from a fantasy perspective this week, however, as we know the Falcons both want to attack on the ground and have one of the best backs in the league to do that with. While this slate may lack top-end talent that we want to pay up for, the depth in the middle tiers makes it easy to pay up for Robinson even with a premier stack like the Eagles.

The Smash Spot

Breece Hall at Denver Broncos ($6,500)

Hall could have fit under the values section, but we'll project him for a true breakout game. Since earning 10 carries in the season opener, Hall has only 22 rushing attempts in the last three games. He's publicly asked to get the ball more, and the Jets may have received that message. Earlier this week, coach Robert Saleh said Hall is no longer on a pitch count and then followed that up by not listing Hall on the injury report for the first time this season. Hall is talented enough to deliver in any matchup, but that's particularly true against a Broncos defense that has allowed an incredible 40.5 fantasy points per game. That's influenced by the Dolphins' Week 3 outburst, but Brian Robinson tallied 25.9 points and Khalil Herbert 20.2.