Still better than Field Yates, Week 5 Fantasy Football Picks

Must Start QBs

Tom Brady, New England: Terrific Tom is back. After being suspended for the first 4 games of the season, perhaps the greatest QB of all time returns to face the Cleveland Browns in a dream matchup for fantasy owners. The Browns have allowed at least 2 passing touchdowns in each game this season. With Gronk back and healthy and newly acquired Chris Hogan beginning to fit in well with the system, Brady and the Patriots are looking extremely dangerous and poised for success this week. Look for Tom Brady to expose the Browns defense all day and fantasy points to come with ease.

Carson Wentz, Philadelphia: The second overall pick from last year’s draft has been nothing short of amazing to start his career, and coming off a bye-week Wentz now gets the Detroit Lions who have given up 12 scores and the second-most fantasy points (24.55 PPG) to opposing quarterbacks this season. The Lions have also allowed either 300-plus yards or four touchdown passes twice this year. Coming off a huge Week 3 where he had 21 points (standard scoring league) in a blowout against the Steelers and an extra week off Carson Wentz is a must start material this week.

Eli Manning, New York: This week Eli plays the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau field for a Sunday night prime time matchup. With the Packers coming off a bye and the Giants coming off consecutive losses after starting off 2-0, Eli and the dynamic Giants offense look to expose the weak secondary of the Packers. I’m expecting an absolute shoot-out in Green Bay, and think there is a very good chance that Eli and Rodgers both throw for at least 3 touchdowns.

Must Start WRs

Julian Edelman, New England: Brady is back.

T.Y. Hilton, Indianapolis: So far this season, there is only 2 players who have had at least 10 targets in every game this season. Those players are Jarvis Landry and T.Y. Hilton. This week, Hilton gets the Bears, who have surprisingly been decent at defending the pass this season. But the Bears are one of the worst run defenses in the league right now, allowing the eighth most yards on the ground in the NFL this season. So expect the pass heavy Colts offense to be throwing the ball early and often to keep the Bears guessing so the run game can open up and be successful as it has in recent weeks.

Emmanuel Sanders, Denver: In his last two games, Emmanuel Sanders has scored a total of 3 touchdowns and a combined 38.5 fantasy points per game (standard scoring leagues) or 55.5 fantasy point per game in ppr (points per reception). Sanders gets the Atlanta Falcons this week, who have allowed a total of 6 touchdowns to wide receivers already this season. On average the Falcons have allowed almost 26 fantasy points per game to receivers this season. In other words they consistently get torched by at least one wideout each and every week. Expect Sanders and Demaryius Thomas to both have their way with the Falcons defense this week.

Must Start RBs

LeSean Mccoy, Buffalo: Shady is coming off a game in which he ran for 70 yards on 19 rushing attempts. This week he gets a St. Louis Rams defense that has allowed over 16 fantasy points a game to opposing running backs. With star receiver Sammy Watkins now out for an extended amount of time, Shady looks to have his usage skyrocketed in the next few weeks. Already with 3 touchdowns in 4 games, I’m expecting Shady to tear up this defense come Sunday.

Jordan Howard, Chicago: Coming off an incredible rushing performance last week in his first career start, Jordan Howard ran for 111 yards. This week Howard is in line for another huge performance as he plays the horrendous Colts defense. The Colts have allowed a 100 or more rushing yards in 3 of their 4 games this season. Expect the explosive rookie to have a very big game yet again Sunday.

Matt Forte, New York: Coming off a hard week where he left early with an ankle injury against the Chargers, Forte faces a favorable Pittsburgh Steelers run defense this Sunday. The Steelers have allowed the sixth most fantasy points to running backs this season. Forte has looked excellent this season, already running for 288 yards with 3 touchdowns. I expect the passing-back specialist to dominate the Steelers questionable defense Sunday and fully advise starting him in any format.

Must Start TEs

Kyle Rudolph, Minnesota: Kyle Rudolph is becoming match-up proof at this point. After scoring touchdowns in his last 3 contests, Rudolph is becoming an elite household name at the Tight End position. This week he plays the Houston Texans, who surprisingly have been pretty solid at covering the opposing tight ends but Rudolph’s connection and chemistry with new QB Sam Bradford has looked incredible so far and it does not look like any NFL defense is really prepared to stop it. I’m expecting yet another TD for Rudolph and win for the undefeated Vikings.

Delanie Walker, Tennessee: Last week Delanie Walker was targeted a total of 8 times, though he only had two 2 catches for 34 yards in a tough loss to the Texans. Marcus Mariota’s favorite target Walker has been disappointing so far this season, but you can expect the Pro-Bowler to get back to his old ways very soon because of his very friendly upcoming schedule. This week he plays the Miami Dolphins who have been very bad at covering Tight Ends so far this season. Miami has allowed at least 20 points in each and every game so far this season. I’m expecting nothing to change this Sunday, and see Walker finding the endzone at least once or twice.

Sneaky Streamer Start

Terrance West, Baltimore: Coming off a huge week, West gained his first opportunity to start for Baltimore so far this season and did not let anyone down. He ended up running for 113 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries. This week, he plays the weak Redskins defense at home in an excellent matchup on paper, making West a very appealing option in standard and ppr scoring leagues. The Redskins are one of the worst defenses in the NFL when it comes to defending the run. With the news of Justin Forsett also being released this week by the Ravens, West is looking like a very good play this week.