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| Sunday, October 8, 2023 |
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I'm in a rough spot in that league, and I'm sure plenty of you are in similar spots with injuries and bye weeks causing attrition at every single position. The good news is, at least we are getting Jonathan Taylor and Cooper Kupp back this week, and in my last updated rankings, both are starting-caliber players for me. I sure wish I had them both in that league. |
In addition to my updated ranks, I also have the answers to some of your #AskFFT questions this morning and thoughts on the latest injury news from around the NFL. Of course, you might need more specific help, and the FFT team is here for you. Go to Twitter and use the hashtag "#AskFFT", where our whole team will be answering questions all morning; and go to the FFT YouTube channel to chat with Adam and I starting at 11:30 a.m. ET . We'll be there right up until kickoff answering as many questions as we can, so make sure you're in the chat early to get your questions in. |
| Now, here's everything you need to set your Week 5 lineup, plus the latest on injuries and more: |
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| Injury report updates |
| We're publishing earlier than usual this week, so I don't have quite as much information on injuries as on a typical Sunday. Here's what we do know, or what we think we know based on reports: |
| Likely to play |
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Outside of the two running backs, you probably shouldn't be planning on using any of the players here. Williams is a top-12 RB with how much he's been dominating touches for the Rams, while I have Sanders ranked not far from there. I know he's been a pretty huge disappointment, but I still believe he's a talented runner and I'll write off the more even split between him and Chuba Hubbard last week as being a result of the injury; Sanders did more in practice this week and doesn't carry an injury designation into today, so I'm hopeful he'll be the clear lead back for Carolina. It's not a great matchup, but he's a top-20 RB for me. |
The other thing I'll note here is that I'm wary of trusting the Steelers or Saints offenses, with Pickett and Carr dealing with their injuries. Carr was clearly significantly less than 100% healthy last week, and it showed as he completed 4 of 16 passes beyond 5 yards from the line of scrimmage. As for Pickett, he's struggled even when healthy, and now he'll likely be playing at less than 100%. I could see a very ugly game for the Steelers offense; not that it would be out of the norm at this point. |
| Legitimately questionable |
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I think Stevenson is probably more on the probable side of that "questionable" designation, but since this is a new injury and it's the Patriots, I'll list him here for now. The good news is, it's an early game, so we should know his status by 11:30. For what it's worth, if you need to make the call on him vs. Travis Etienne or James Cook in the morning game, I'll just throw both of them out there; that also goes for those two against Barkley, who looks more legitimately questionable after missing the past two games. Coach Brian Daboll told reporters Friday that Barkley would be a game-time decision today, but I'll rank him as a top-12 RB if we learn he's playing. If we don't know by the time of the Bills-Jaguars game, I'd just go with Cook and Etienne ahead of him. |
The status of Williams and Adams are less clear, since they play later – Williams at 4:25, Adams on Monday night. I think I'm leaning toward just sitting Williams, who might be in a legitimate three-way split backfield with Jaleel McLaughlin looking solid last week. I'm not giving up on Williams as the Broncos likely lead back in the long run, but given the later start time, he hasn't shown enough upside to roll the dice on. |
That's obviously much less true for Adams, who is officially questionable. I'd go see if Jayden Reed is available just so I have someone to slide into my lineup if Adams is ruled out Monday, but I'd absolutely be willing to take the chance on a surprise inactive for Adams' upside. |
And, obviously, Jones might be the toughest call of them all here. I'd bet on him playing, but it doesn't seem like an absolute certainty. If you have AJ Dillon, you could pivot if Jones is ruled out, though he was so bad with Jones out – 96 yards, one catch, no touchdowns in two games Jones missed – that he certainly wouldn't be a sure thing. If I don't have Dillon, I'm probably just steering clear, and if I have a viable alternative – say, someone ranked him my top 30 this week – I might just avoid Jones altogether just in case he can't go. |
| Out or probably out |
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The Lions downgraded Gibbs to doubtful Sunday, a designation shared with St. Brown. As of Saturday night, neither is expected to play, unfortunately. We should see a ton of David Montgomery in this one, and Sam LaPorta figures to be Jared Goff's primary short-area target without St. Brown. It's possible this whole offense struggles to do much without its best player, but I'm still starting Montgomery and LaPorta in all leagues; Josh Reynolds is a boom-or-bust WR3/4, while Jameson Williams seems likely to be in a limited role in his season debut and is not a recommended starter. |
According to one Sunday morning report, the Giants aren't expected to have Barkley available. It'll be his third straight game missed as a result of his ankle injury, and should once again put Matt Breida in the lead role in the backfield. That has resulted in 23.6 PPR points over the past two games, so he's a low-end, fringe starting option. |
| #AskFFT Mailbag |
In Friday's Newsletter, I dropped my email address to take some questions. For the ones not featured here, I try to respond personally, so if you want your questions answered, send them to Chris.Towers@Paramount.com with the subject line "#AskFFT." Here are my answers to some of your tough questions: |
Cheryl: Michael Wilson or Jordan Addison, and Jaleel Mclaughlin or Breece Hall?
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There was some excitement in the Fantasy Football world when Robert Saleh was quoted as saying, "There is no pitch count with him anymore" when talking about Hall this week. Hall has been limited to 90 snaps over four games this season, but the hope all along has been that he'd see his role increase as the season goes on. I don't think we're at the point where you can just expect 15-plus touches for Hall, but he's looked clearly better than Dalvin Cook , and I do expect him to be the lead back in what looks like a great matchup, and I'm going with him ahead of McLaughlin with Williams expected to play. And I know Addison was a disappointment last week, catching no passes on just one target, but I'm not even close to ready to write him off; the Vikings threw just 19 passes last week, and they might triple that against the Chiefs . Addison isn't a sure thing by any means, but I want him in my lineup this week for the upside. |
Joe: How should I handle starting Ridley vs Kirk moving forward and is it too risky to play both when my other flex options are Michael Thomas, Mattison, Flowers, Pacheco, Tank Dell?
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Generally speaking, I'm not afraid to start multiple receivers in the same offense, especially if it's a good offense. The problem is, we're not sure if that's actually what the Jaguars are right now. I'm still willing to bet on them getting there, and there's no reason there shouldn't be plenty of room for both of them to be significant parts of the offense. The matchup against the Bills is tough, but it could also lead to a pass-heavy script, which we certainly wouldn't mind. I have both as top-24 WRs this week, and I'd roll with them both over the other options mentioned here. |
Mary: I need to know who to put in my flex. My options are Raheem Mostert, James Conner, or Tank Dell. Mostert got me four points last week and my gut is telling me to put in Dell but he didn't produce last week either. Should I do Mostert and Conner or swap out one for Dell?
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Mostert was a significant disappointment last week, and De'Von Achane's rapid ascension makes Mostert feel much less like a sure thing than he did even a week ago. However, I don't think Achane is necessarily the lead back here already, so Mostert should still have plenty of opportunities in a game the Dolphins should win fairly easily. I like Dell, but he's coming off a sobering performance, as he couldn't build on his breakout in Week 3. WRs are inherently more volatile than running backs, all else being equal, and Dell looks more volatile than most, so I'll go with Mostert here. |
Tom: Short and sweet: Chris Olive or Gabe Davis?
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| Olave is coming off a miserable game in Week 4, catching one ball for 4 yards. That he's still a top-10 WR for me this week tells you all you need to know about my level of concern. Carr's shoulder is an obvious concern, especially given how much Olave relies on winning downfield for his Fantasy production. However, I'm hopeful Carr will be better this week than he was last, and Olave did still have the fourth-most targeted air yards last week, so the role remains very, very valuable. There's no way I'm sitting him, especially not for a guy in Davis who is no sure thing himself despite three games in a row with a touchdown; he has just one game out of four with more than four targets and remains a touchdown-or-bust WR3/4. |
| Week 5 rankings updates |
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| Flex top 125 rankings |
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