• Aaron Jones injured: The Minnesota Vikings star running back was off to a great start with over 50 yards in the first quarter, but a hip injury kept him out for the rest of the game.
• New York Jets continue new tight end trend: A growing number of teams are using a committee at tight end, and the Jets are the newest team to jump on the bandwagon.
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Estimated Reading Time: 40 minutes
PFF's fantasy football recap focuses on player usage and stats, breaking down all the vital information you need to achieve fantasy success in 2024.
New York Jets @ Minnesota Vikings
- Garrett Wilson: 11 receptions, 76 yards, 1 touchdown
- Justin Jefferson: 6 receptions, 92 yards
Monitor Aaron Jones’ health: Jones suffered a hip injury in the first half and was ruled out during halftime.
Jones started the game by playing 16 of the first 19 snaps. In the first four weeks, he played 94% of Minnesota's offensive snaps on the first two drives of games while he and Ty Chandler split snaps on the team’s third drives, so this game started very similar to every other game.
After Jones’ injury, Chandler took over as the main running back for the rest of the game. C.J. Ham has taken some of the third-down snaps over the last two seasons, which continued to happen in this game. Myles Gaskin was called up from the practice squad to be the team’s third running back, and he played a few offensive snaps. Gaskin has been on the team’s practice squad or active roster for over a year, so the Vikings should be relatively comfortable with Gaskin in a backup role.
Chandler should be a waiver-wire target in case the Jones injury lingers. The Vikings have their bye week next week, so Jones has plenty of time to recover, but it’s better to pick Chandler up now just in case than wait and give your league-mates time to scoop him up.
Jalen Nailor finally wins the WR3 job: Nailor didn’t see a target but ran more routes than usual this week.
Nailor received a lot of praise throughout training camp but only had the fourth-most offensive snaps among Vikings wide receivers in Week 1. Typically, Brandon Powell was the third wide receiver in three-receiver sets because he’s primarily a slot receiver, while Nailor, Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison are primarily outside wide receivers.
The Vikings didn’t have Addison in Weeks 2 or 3, allowing Nailor to lead the wide receiver room in routes. He caught six passes for 85 yards in that time. The Vikings were back to full strength in Week 4, leading Powell to run more routes and have more snaps.
This week was the first time Nailor was the No. 3 receiver, running significantly more routes than Powell. Nailor had the 15th-highest PFF receiving grade among those with 50 or more routes over the first four weeks, so getting him on the field more often made sense. Nailor was Minnesota's primary slot receiver. That didn’t lead to any fantasy production, but it could take some time for Nailor to be more productive out of the slot. There is a good chance Nailor will make some more big catches this season.
Don’t add Tyler Conklin: For the first time this season, Conklin failed to play 90% of New York's offensive snaps.
Last season, over the first four weeks, there were 19 games where the primary tight end in 11 personnel wasn’t one of the two primary tight ends in 12 personnel. This year, over the same period, there have been 31 such games. The Bengals, Titans, Broncos and Commanders have done this regularly, while the Steelers and Seahawks have joined them when all of their tight ends are healthy.
The Jets nearly made this the 32nd game of the season, as Conklin played just nine snaps in 12 personnel to Brenden Bates‘ eight in 12 personnel, while Jeremy Ruckert took all 17. Bates had played each of the first five snaps out of 12 personnel, and after that point, the Jets were down 17-0 and largely abandoned the run. Conklin had played 60-of-67 12 personnel snaps over the first four weeks. Conklin was among the bottom-10 tight ends in run block grade over the first four weeks, so it’s understandable the Jets were trying to make a change.
Conklin caught six passes for 55 yards, but that was largely a product of the Jets falling behind by three scores early. In most games, the Jets will be running the ball more, which means Conklin won’t be on the field as much. The only reason Conklin had been worth considering is because he led all tight ends in routes from Weeks 1-4, but fewer snaps in 12 personnel going forward will mean fewer routes run.
Miscellaneous Notes
- Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson returned to practice this week, but he was not activated to the 53-man roster. The Vikings have their bye week this upcoming week, so it wouldn’t be surprising if Hockenson is back in their next game in Week 7.
- Jets third-round rookie Malachi Corley was a healthy inactive for the first time this season. He played one snap in the slot in both Week 1 and 2, and his only snap in Week 3 was on special teams. He didn’t see the field on offense or special teams in Week 4, leading him to be inactive this week.
- Garrett Wilson was targeted 21 times, which is tied with Cooper Kupp in Week 1 for the most targets by a player in a game this season.
- Breece Hall played a higher percentage of New York's offensive snaps compared to the last three weeks, but that’s because Hall plays the vast majority of third-down and two-minute drill snaps. The Jets played 28 snaps in those situations in this game. Expect a little more Braelon Allen when the Jets aren’t consistently playing from behind like the last few weeks.
Carolina Panthers @ Chicago Bears
- D.J. Moore: 5 receptions, 105 yards, 2 touchdowns
- D’Andre Swift: 21 carries, 73 yards, 1 touchdown, 2 receptions, 47 receiving yards
Monitor Xavier Legette’s health: Legette suffered a shoulder injury late in the first half and didn’t return.
Legette had emerged as a clear starter for the Panthers prior to the injury. He was on the field for each of the Panthers’ first 21 snaps prior to the injury. He had played 87% of Carolina's offensive snaps last week. While part of his increased role has been from Adam Thielen’s injury, Legette has overtaken Thielen in 12 personnel before Thielen’s injury.
In the second half, Jonathan Mingo took over as an every-down receiver for Carolina. Jalen Coker became the primary third wide receiver in 11 personnel. Coker made his NFL debut last week after being an undrafted rookie from Holy Cross, and he immediately caught four passes for 68 yards. Mingo only has one game with more than 68 yards in his career, and that was a 69-yard performance in Week 13 last season. Coker could be worth considering in very deep leagues, particularly if Legette misses time. It’s also possible that once the Panthers wide receivers are healthy, Mingo could fall to fifth on the depth chart.
Bears’ backfield gains stability: The Bears stuck with their two-man rotation of D’Andre Swift and Roschon Johnson.
The split was very similar to a week ago when Swift was the clear early-down back, playing over 75% of Chicago's offensive snaps in those situations, and Johnson took both third downs and short-yardage situations. Both running backs saw time at the goal line and during two-minute drills.
Swift can safely be put in fantasy starting lineups. Johnson’s fantasy value isn’t as secure. He ran 10 times and scored two touchdowns, but that was largely because the Bears were winning. Because he’s getting a lot of the goal-line and short-yardage work, there will always be the chance he scores a touchdown, but it’s unlikely he will consistently receive double-digit touches in this role.
It’s fine to add him or to keep him on your fantasy roster in a handcuff role or a desperation play during bye weeks. Still, it’s unlikely you can safely start him unless Swift suffers an injury or becomes less efficient again.
Miscellaneous Notes
- Keenan Allen played eight snaps in 12 personnel to Rome Odunze‘s three, outside of kneel downs, which didn’t matter much considering the Bears ran 53-of-74 plays out of 11 personnel despite the decisive victory.
- Bears quarterback Tyson Bagent, running back Khalil Herbert and wide receiver Tyler Scott only played offensive snaps during the three kneel downs to end the game.
- Panthers tight end Ian Thomas returned to practice this week, but he was not activated to the 53-man roster.
- Tommy Tremble left the game in the first half and didn’t return due to a likely concussion. Ja’Tavion Sanders took over for the rest of the game. It’s likely this will be a heavy rotation once Tremble or Thomas returns.
- The Panthers have not opened Jonathon Brooks‘ practice window.
Baltimore Ravens @ Cincinnati Bengals
- Ja’Marr Chase: 10 receptions, 193 yards, 2 touchdowns
- Tee Higgins: 9 receptions, 83 yards, 2 touchdowns
Sell high on Mark Andrews: Andrews caught four passes for 55 yards, but if anything, there was more reason to be concerned about his role going forward.
Over the first four weeks, Andrews had been on the field for 63.8% of the Ravens’ plays out of 11 personnel, 100% of 12 personnel, 30.8% and 0% out of 22 personnel. The variation in his playing time from one week to another has largely depended on the game script and how much the Ravens needed to use each personnel group.
This week, the Ravens were playing from behind, so they ran more 11 and 12 personnel than most weeks and less 21 and 22 personnel. This meant Andrews was on the field more than usual.
He only played in 56.5% of 11 personnel snaps this week, losing more time to Isaiah Likely. When Likely was on the field in 11 personnel, the Ravens passed the ball 90% of the time compared to 61.5% for Andrews. He also lost four snaps out of 12 personnel after taking all of those snaps in the last four weeks. His lack of snaps out of 22 personnel was a problem this week, as Charlie Kolar caught two passes for 62 yards on four routes out of 22 personnel. Kolar also caught a touchdown out of 21 personnel, which ideally Andrews would have been on the field for an caught.
Going forward, we can expect the Ravens to be winning more often, leading to fewer snaps for Andrews than he received in this game and more snaps for Kolar than Kolar had in this game.
Monitor Zack Moss’ health: The Bengals' starting running back injured his ankle late in the fourth quarter.
Moss was the Bengals' primary running back throughout the game in terms of playing time, but Chase Brown ran the ball more often. Brown has graded better as a rusher this season and has more yards on fewer attempts. Brown’s good play has generally led to more opportunities as the season progressed. Similarly, Moss has been given the ball less often. Even without the injury, we were reaching the point where Brown might be the player to start over Mixon despite the playing time.
Moss returned very briefly after the ankle injury, but Brown played the rest of the two-minute drill as well as all of overtime. If Moss misses time, it will be much safer to put Brown in fantasy starting lineups. Trayveon Williams hasn’t played on offense all season, but he’s the other running back on the Bengals roster. He would likely take most of the third-down snaps if Moss misses time, while Brown would get the majority of the early-down and short-yardage work.
Erick All Jr. sees a slight increase in role: The Bengals rookie tight end only caught two passes for 10 yards, but his playing time is slowly but surely on the rise.
Throughout the season, All’s primary role has been one of the two tight ends in 12 personnel. He’s played 88.8% of the possible snaps there this season, largely playing with Drew Sample as the other tight end.
His playing time in 11 personnel has risen each week. He played 27.9% of those snaps this week compared to 22.8% last week. Similarly, he ran 25% of the possible routes out of 11 personnel after seeing 18.5% last week. While these are minor changes, they have happened each of the last four weeks.
All had the eighth-highest receiving grade among tight ends with at least 10 targets over the first four weeks. Six of the seven ahead of him are among the top eight tight ends in fantasy points over those four weeks — Noah Gray as the one exception. At this point of the season, there aren’t many tight ends who are available off the waiver wire to be optimistic about, but All is one of those tight ends.
Miscellaneous Notes
- Ravens running back Rasheen Ali returned to practice this week, but he was not activated to the 53-man roster.
- Bengals tight end Tanner Hudson was a full participant in practice all week but was still inactive. The Bengals may want to give him more time to recover from his knee injury, but it’s also possible they are comfortable with their three tight ends.
- Andrei Iosivas was playing more often than Tee Higgins in 12 personnel — 11 snaps to nine — but it was a pass play 77% of the time Higgins was in for 12 personnel compared to 27% for Iosivas.
Buffalo Bills @ Houston Texans
- James Cook: 20 carries, 82 yards, 1 touchdown, 2 receptions, 17 receiving yards
- Nico Collins: 2 receptions, 78 yards, 1 touchdown
Dare Ogunbowale takes a larger role: Ogunbowale ran the ball 15 times for 30 yards and caught six passes for 57 yards.
The Texans were without Joe Mixon due to an ankle injury and Dameon Pierce due to a hamstring injury for a third-straight game. Cam Akers had started the last two games while Ogunbowale served as the third-down back. Last week, J.J. Taylor cut into Akers’ playing time a little bit.
This week, Ogunobwale started the game. He kept his usual role as the receiving back but also took over as the short-yardage back and half of the early down role. Akers saved his fantasy value with a 15-yard touchdown run but still only gained 12.7 PPR points.
Considering Akers played better, it’s possible Akers would take more of a lead next week if Mixon and Pierce are out again. Pierce was limited in practice on Friday. Considering how unsettled the Texans’ backfield has been, it wouldn’t be surprising if Pierce is the primary early-down back if he’s ready to go next week and Mixon isn’t. Once everyone is healthy, there is a chance Akers won’t be kept on the 53-man roster.
Monitor Nico Collins’ health: Collins suffered a hamstring injury on his 67-yard touchdown reception. He was later ruled out.
The Texans started their game with their usual wide receiver rotation, where Collins and Stefon Diggs played most snaps, Tank Dell primarily played in 11 personnel, and Robert Woods and Xavier Hutchinson also played a snap each in run situations.
After the injury, a rotation replaced Collins in 12 personnel. Luckily, Dell’s increase in snaps meant an increase in routes run. Woods and Hutchinson both played more snaps but more so on run plays.
In 11 personnel, Hutchinson almost completely took his time. Collins has been the Texans’ X receiver all season, and that is the role Hutchinson focused on during the preseason. Woods has more so been a backup for Diggs and Dell.
If the injury is serious, Dell will be the primary beneficiary with more routes run and a higher target share. In deeper leagues, it appears Hutchinson would be the waiver target. It’s at least possible they move Diggs out of the slot and to the X spot and make Woods the primary slot, but Hutchinson being the third receiver is more straightforward.
Bills struggle without Khalil Shakir: Buffalo’s top receiver was inactive due to an ankle injury.
Shakir had been the Bills' most effective receiver over the first four weeks with 18 receptions for 230 yards, which was nearly 100 more yards than any other Bills player. Every other wide receiver had less than half the number of receptions.
The Bills’ passing game couldn’t get anything going without Shakir, as Josh Allen completed nine-of-30 passes.
The Bills had largely used Keon Coleman, Mack Hollins and Marquez Valdes-Scantling in a rotation on the outside in both two- and three-receiver sets all season. Shakir primarily played in 11 personnel. Curtis Samuel took most of Shakir’s snaps in this game, but Tyrell Shavers also played 16 snaps, all in 11 personnel.
If there was any game for Samuel to have fantasy value this season, it would have been this week with Shakir out. Samuel lost a yard over his two touches in the game. He is a clear play to drop for anyone who was holding on to him.
Miscellaneous Notes
- Texans running back British Brooks suffered a knee injury and was ruled out. The undrafted rookie has primarily played fullback for Houston.
- Dalton Schultz played over 90% of Houston's offensive snaps for the second time this season. He never reached 90% with Houston in any game last season.
- Dalton Kincaid has generally played more when the Bills are losing while Dawson Knox has played more when the Bills are winning this season. The Bills spent most of this game losing, so Kincaid played more snaps. He caught two targets for 34 yards.
Indianapolis Colts @ Jacksonville Jaguars
- Tank Bigsby: 13 carries, 101 yards, 2 touchdowns, 1 reception, 28 receiving yards
- Brian Thomas Jr.: 5 receptions, 122 yards, 1 touchdown
Colts adjust without Jonathan Taylor: Trey Sermon started the game as the Colts’ clear running back.
Taylor missed this week due to an ankle injury. There were reports this would be a committee, but for the early parts of the game, Sermon was the clear main man. He played in 17 of the first 19 snaps. Goodson took over in the last parts of the second quarter as the team was often passing the ball.
Sermon and Goodson split snaps throughout the second half because the Colts were often passing and playing from behind. There was a general tendency for Sermon to be on the field on run plays and Goodson on pass plays. Despite this, Sermon had the most carries at 10 as well as the most receptions at six.
If Taylor misses another game, Sermon can safely be put in fantasy starting lineups.
Adonai Mitchell and Alec Pierce re-emerge: Mitchell’s role in the Colts’ offense was much larger than in recent weeks, and Pierce rebounded after two quiet games.
Mitchell was drafted to compete with Pierce for the X-receiver spot. Once Josh Downs was injured early in training camp, Mitchell became the Colts’ primary slot receiver.
Pierce caught eight passes for 181 yards and two touchdowns over the first two weeks. Mitchell caught two passes for 32 yards in that time and then Downs returned in Week 3. Mitchell only played 20 offensive snaps in the last two games, leading to no receptions and one carry. Pierce kept his role as the X receiver but only caught two passes.
This week, Mitchell was on the field more often early in the game, leading to four receptions for 38 yards. Pierce and Mitchell split time in 12 personnel in the first half. Most of Mitchell’s work in 11 personnel also came at Pierce's expense, but there were still a few plays with Pittman and Pierce on the outside and Mitchell in the slot while Downs took a break. As the game progressed, the team stuck with Pierce on the field. Mitchell only played one snap in the fourth quarter.
It initially seemed like Mitchell would be earning a bigger role next week, but in the last five minutes of the game, Pierce caught a 24-yard pass and a 45-yard pass on the following play, setting up a one-yard touchdown run and a 65-yard touchdown on the following drive.
It will be hard to trust either wide receiver for fantasy football purposes as long as they are competing for snaps.
Tank Bigsby leads the backfield: Bigsby led the Jaguars in rushing yards for a second-straight week
Last week, Bigsby ran seven times for 90 yards, largely thanks to a 58-yard run, while Travis Etienne had a fine day with 11 carries for 50 yards.
In the first six drives for the Jaguars, the running back rotation was relatively normal. Etienne played 20-of-37 snaps, while Bigsby played 11. If anything, it was a little more split than usual. Neither running back had done much to this point, as both averaged less than three yards per carry.
To start the seventh drive, Bigsby ran for a 19-yard touchdown on the drive’s only play. That was seemingly enough to give Bigsby the primary job for the rest of the game. He played 11 snaps from that point on compared to Etienne's two. Bigsby ran six times for 76 yards and another touchdown to end the game, while Etienne didn’t run again. D’Ernest Johnson was used in a receiving role throughout this time.
Bigsby should be a priority waiver-wire target. He’s been the better runner so far this season. There’s a chance the Jaguars go back to the normal rotation next week, but based on the fourth quarter of this game, it’s also possible Bigsby will be the primary running back going forward.
Christian Kirk sees a season-low in snaps: Kirk only played in 53% of Jacksonville's offensive snaps
Kirk luckily caught four passes for 88 yards, 61 of those yards came from a single catch. That saved fantasy managers who started him, but his decreased role is starting to become a concern.
Throughout this season, Brian Thomas Jr. and Gabe Davis have been the primary wide receivers in 12 personnel, as Kirk only played 17-of-51 snaps in 12 personnel over the first four weeks. Kirk didn’t play a single snap out of 12 personnel in this game (out of a possible 18 snaps). He similarly didn’t play at all in 13 personnel and took just a few plays off in 11 personnel.
Kirk’s lower snap total hasn’t hurt his fantasy production the last few weeks because the Jaguars have often played from behind, but if this game sparks the Jaguars to start being more competitive, this could lead to fewer snaps for Kirk. It’s also possible it just takes Evan Engram‘s return to lead the Jaguars to use more 12 personnel, which would also mean fewer snaps for Kirk. He’s a clear sell-high candidate at the moment.
Miscellaneous Notes
- For a second straight week, the Colts had four active tight ends, leading to all four running a route on 18-32% of pass plays.
- Brenton Strange has remained the Jaguars leading tight end in place of the injured Evan Engram. Strange can remain a borderline fantasy starter for as long as Engram is out, especially after he scored a touchdown this week.
Miami Dolphins @ New England Patriots
- Rhamondre Stevenson: 12 carries, 89 yards, 1 touchdown, 4 receptions, 3 receiving yards
- Tyreek Hill: 6 receptions, 69 receiving yards
Monitor De’Von Achane’s health: Achane suffered a concussion late in the first quarter and didn’t return.
The Dolphins were very briefly at full strength at running back. Raheem Mostert returned to the Dolphins after missing the last three weeks due to a chest injury.
This led Jeff Wilson Jr. to be inactive. He was limited in practice on Wednesday due to a knee injury but was a full participant on Thursday and Friday. In Weeks 2 and 3, he and Jaylen Wright split time. Wright got most of the backup snaps last week while Wilson was hurt during warmups. There is a chance Wilson being inactive was injury-related, but there is a stronger chance he’s fourth on the depth chart.
Over the first 14 plays of the game, Achane played 11 snaps, Mostert took four, and Wright played two. There were multiple plays with multiple running backs on the field. After the injury, Mostert was the feature back while Wright got some of the work on early downs. The Dolphins have their bye week, so that will ideally be enough time for Achane to recover.
Wright ran 13 times for 86 yards. He’s gained a first down on 20.7% of his runs this season compared to Achane's14.3% and Mostert's 12.0%. He has the most yards per carry and most avoided tackles per carry. While that might not be enough for Wright to be the Dolphins' lead running back going forward, it might be enough to make this an ugly three-man rotation once everyone is healthy
Antonio Gibson starts for the Patriots: Rhamondre Stevenson was pulled from the starting lineup after fumbling four times in the first four games.
Over the first four games, Stevenson was the clear lead running back. He played 40-of-49 snaps on the first two drives of those games. This week, Gibson took the first and third drives while Stevenson took the second and fourth. This didn’t have a major impact on the stat sheet because Stevenson broke a run for a 33-yard touchdown on his first drive, while Gibson’s first drive was a three-and-out where Jacoby Brissett was sacked twice. Two offensive penalties derailed Gibson’s second drive.
Stevenson took the two-minute drill snaps as usual. In the second half, Gibson played 20 snaps to Stevenson’s 15 — both ran the ball six times.
Stevenson is still the running back to have in this backfield because of his two-minute drill work, but this is the third straight game where his role has been much smaller than the first two weeks and all of last season. Gibson has graded better as both a runner and receiver. It’s possible that Gibson takes over at some point, even if his “start” this week didn’t amount to much. This also makes Stevenson a sell-high contender.
The Patriots wide receiver room continues to evolve: Kendrick Bourne was active for the first time while K.J. Osborn was inactive.
Kendrick Bourne was activated off the PUP list on Saturday after missing the first four weeks of the season. He was the Patriots' highest-graded wide receiver last season but missed half the year due to an ACL injury. K.J. Osborn was inactive after missing all week of practice due to a shoulder injury.
Kayshon Boutte joined Ja’Lynn Polk in the Patriots' starting lineup. Tyquan Thornton was the Week 1 starter, but his playing time has declined by at least 10% each week. He only played one snap this week.
Bourne rotated in for Boutte for part of the second drive. Boutte and Bourne continued to rotate for the first eight drives. Boutte played 21 snaps to Bourne's 15. Most of the difference came from run plays, as there was a near-even split in routes. In the fourth quarter, the Patriots stopped their rotation and stuck with Boutte. Bourne only played one snap in the quarter. It’s hard to read too much into the fourth quarter considering this was Bourne’s first game back.
This was good news for Polk because he played 100% of New England's offensive snaps for the first time. He hasn’t produced much so far this season, but a quarterback change may be all Polk needs. It was also good for Demario Douglas, who caught six passes for 59 yards. Thornton is clearly the odd man out at this point, and once Osborn is back, we could see some kind of three-man rotation between Osborn, Bourne and Boutte.
Miscellaneous Notes
- Odell Beckham Jr. was elevated off the PUP list on Saturday. His 11 snaps came exclusively in three-receiver sets, where he played 11 of a possible 23 snaps. These snaps largely came at Braxton Berrios‘ expense.
- Jonnu Smith had only played four-of-25 snaps out of 12 personnel in the first two weeks but increased that to 20-of-27 over the last three weeks, taking time from Durham Smythe. Unfortunately, 21 personnel has been the Dolphins' primary early-down personnel grouping with 97 snaps out of 21 personnel over the last three weeks. Smith has only played 14 of those 97 snaps, which is why his route run rate is relatively low. He has two games with 50-plus yards and three games with less than 20.
Cleveland Browns @ Washington Commanders
- Terry McLaurin: 4 receptions, 112 yards
- Dyami Brown: 2 receptions, 57 yards, 1 touchdown
David Njoku returns in a limited role: Njoku missed the last three games due to an ankle injury.
He was limited in practice at best this past week, and there were multiple reports that Njoku would not play his usual number of snaps. Those reports turned out to be true.
In 11 personnel, he played in 15-of-21 snaps in the first half. On most of the plays he was off the field, the Browns were passing, but the tight end on the field was much more likely to stay in and block compared to if Njoku was on the field.
The Browns used four different tight ends in 12 personnel. Generally, they used Njoku with Jordan Akins if they wanted to pass and Blake Whiteheart and Geoff Swaim if they wanted to run.
The Browns were down 24-3 at halftime, which didn’t give them much reason to keep using Njoku. He only played seven-of-32 snaps in the second half. Njoku caught one pass for 14 yards, but ideally, he can get healthier for next week so he can be more involved in the offense.
Browns continue shenanigans at running back: Jerome Ford only ran twice in the first half despite being the feature back the last two weeks.
Ford has three games this season with over 75% of the Browns' offensive snaps, double-digit carries and 25-plus receiving yards. In the other game, D’Onta Foreman was the primary runner. Week 2 seemed like the anomaly, but Foreman was the lead rusher for Cleveland for most of the game this week.
Ford ended up playing most of the third quarter, which helped him pull even with Foreman in terms of rushing attempts. Foreman ended up with more total yards in the game thanks to a 16-yard reception. It’s also worth noting that Pierre Strong Jr., who had missed time recently due to injury, also played five snaps.
This backfield is about to get significantly more complicated. Nick Chubb and Nyheim Hines returned to practice this week, but they were not activated to the 53-man roster. Either player may be ready for Week 6. We could see a four-man rotation at the position when that happens.
There might not be another week this season where Ford is worth starting because Chubb could take some of Ford’s playing time, and there will always be the possibility the Browns decide it’s a Foreman week.
Austin Ekeler returns to the Commanders: Washington spent the first half in a two-man rotation at running back.
Ekeler missed last week due to a concussion, leading to a strong game for Jeremy McNichols. This week, the Commanders started with their usual rotation. Brian Robinson played 22-of-41 snaps in the first half while Ekeler played 18. McNichols snuck in for four plays in the half as well. This split was very similar to the first three weeks but with a little bit more of McNichols.
Robinson wasn’t very effective on the ground but found the end zone twice. In the second half, Robinson didn’t play at all, while Ekeler and McNichols split time. Robinson didn’t practice on Wednesday or Thursday and was limited on Friday due to a knee injury. The injury likely impacted his quality of play and was the likely reason why he didn’t play in the second half. There was no report of him re-aggravating the injury, so ideally the team was just being cautious and knew they didn’t need him anymore up 24-3. Robinson can safely remain in fantasy starting lineups going forward.
Commanders adjust without Noah Brown: The Commanders starting wide receiver was out due to a groin injury.
Brown had emerged as the Coammnders' clear second outside receiver in recent weeks. The Commanders went back to a rotation between Dyami Brown and Olamide Zaccheaus, which they used in Week 1. The only difference is Terry McLaurin was also part of that rotation. In the first half in 11 personnel, McLaurin played 23-of-31 snaps to Zaccheaus’ 21 and Brown’s 18.
McLaurin was among the starters pulled in the fourth quarter, which hurt his playing time even further. While the blowout wins are part of the dip in McLaurin’s playing time, a change in philosophy has also seemed to impact his snap counts. He played 86% of Washington's first-half snaps last season and 86% over the first three weeks. That fell to 68% last week and 76% this week. That change seems to be working because he’s scored at least 16 PPR points each of the last three weeks.
Once Noah Brown is back, we can expect him to return to the starting lineup, but Brown and Zaccheaus will remain in part of a rotation.
Miscellaneous Notes
- Commanders backup quarterback Marcus Mariota returned from injured reserve this week and was the backup quarterback. He played the entire fourth quarter with the Commanders up 34-6. He would be the starter if Jayden Daniels suffers an injury.
- The Commanders have continued their tight end rotation with Zach Ertz being the primary player in 11 personnel, while John Bates and Ben Sinnott are the primary players in 12 personnel.
Las Vegas Raiders @ Denver Broncos
- Brock Bowers: 8 receptions, 97 yards, 1 touchdown
- Javonte Williams: 13 carries, 61 yards, 5 receptions, 50 receiving yards
Alexander Mattison leads without Zamir White: The Raiders' usual starter was out due to a groin injury.
Mattison dominated playing time for the first three quarters, playing 39-of-48 snaps. While Ameer Abdullah has historically been a receiving back, he only played a few snaps at a time during those quarters.
Using Mattison in that role wasn’t working, as he averaged 2.5 yards per carry. In the fourth quarter, the Raiders switched to Abdullah, who played all 22 snaps. Mattison only returned to the game for the two-point conversion when both were on the field.
Dylan Laube was active for the first time but didn’t play a snap on offense. It wouldn’t be surprising if he starts to play some snaps at some point. Mattison is still the Raiders running back who should be rostered the most, but it’s worth picking up Laube in a few leagues in case he earns a role at some point.
Broncos make a change at tight end: Greg Dulcich went from being the team’s leading receiving tight end to a healthy inactive.
The Broncos had been one of several teams to use one tight end in 11 personnel and two other tight ends in 12 personnel. Dulcich had played 91 of a possible 154 snaps in 11 personnel over the first four weeks, while Adam Trautman and Nate Adkins took most of the 12 personnel work. Dulcich played four-of-41 snaps in 12 personnel.
Dulcich ran 87 routes over the first four weeks, the 18th-most for a tight end. While his routes made him an intriguing option in fantasy, his 0.32 yards per route run was second-worst among the 40 tight ends with at least 50 routes.
The Broncos made Dulcich inactive and Lucas Krull active. The Broncos kept with Adkins and Trautman in 12 personnel, and all three played between nine-to-12 snaps in 11 personnel. This three-man rotation with Dulcich inactive makes this the worst situation for tight ends this season. All of them should be avoided for fantasy purposes.
Miscellaneous Notes
- Broncos backup running back Tyler Badie, who collapsed on the sideline last week, was placed on injured reserve on Saturday.
- Josh Reynolds has been a full participant in practice in each of the last five practices that were reported on, but he remains third on the depth chart behind both Courtland Sutton and Lil’Jordan Humphrey. He started the season second behind Sutton.
- For the second straight week, Tre Tucker was the Raiders' clear second wide receiver and DJ Turner was the clear third receiver. They are the players to consider in deeper leagues, assuming Davante Adams is traded.
- Michael Mayer missed his second straight game due to personal reasons. Whatever those personal reasons are, we’re wishing him the best.
- Most of Brock Bowers’ production occurred when Gardner Minshew was at quarterback, but once Minshew was benched, Bowers still maintained a 26.3% targets per route with Aidan O’Connell.
Arizona Cardinals @ San Francisco 49ers
- Brandon Aiyuk: 8 receptions, 147 yards
- George Kittle: 8 receptions, 64 yards, 1 touchdown
Jauan Jennings relegated to 11 personnel: Jennings only caught one pass after two straight strong weeks.
Jennings caught three 11 passes for 175 yards and three touchdowns in Week 3 while starting for Deebo Samuel. In Week 4, he caught three passes for 88 yards despite Samuel returning to the lineup. He caught two of those passes for 77 yards in 21 personnel. The problem is he only ran four routes out of 21 personnel last week.
There was some hope he could see more snaps out of 21 personnel this week. Chris Conley was inactive due to an oblique injury. Conley had the fourth-most snaps for the 49ers wide receivers this season. Instead, Jennings played fewer snaps out of 21 personnel. Ronnie Bell was on the field just as much as Jennings in that personnel grouping.
This week, Brandon Aiyuk, George Kittle and Jordan Mason had good games, while Deebo Samuel also saw a few opportunities. All five can’t do well each week, and it's near-impossible for four. In any given week, Jennings is the least likely one to put up strong numbers despite his two good games.
Cardinals backup wide receivers see more work: Both Zach Pascal and Chris Moore were on the field more this week than in past weeks.
In each of the first four games, Pascal and Moore have combined for five or fewer snaps in the first three quarters. The two occasionally played more snaps in garbage time. This week, both receivers played five snaps in the first three quarters. This largely came at Michael Wilson‘s expense. Wilson caught five passes for 78 yards in this game, but three of those receptions came in the fourth quarter so getting rotated out wasn’t related to him having more receptions and needing a break after the reception.
This is interesting timing, as Zay Jones is eligible to return from his suspension after this game. He was suspended for the first five games for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy. Jones may also cut into Wilson’s playing time as early as next week. It’s also possible Wilson has played well enough that he keeps playing at a high rate.
Wilson could be a waiver-wire target in some leagues, but he is risky.
Miscellaneous Notes
- Isaac Guerendo ran for a career-high 22 rushing yards. He’s the clear backup to Jordan Mason, but it’s unlikely he will see significantly more opportunities than he had in this game without a blowout victory or a Mason injury.
- George Kittle has caught at least four passes for a minimum of 40 yards each game this season and has scored in each of his last three games. He’s been the most consistent fantasy tight end this season.
- Trey McBride was a full participant in practice all week after suffering a concussion. He was added as questionable on Saturday due to a rib injury. Despite this, he played his usual role and posted solid numbers with six receptions for 53 yards, although his backup Elijah Higgins ended up scoring instead of him.
Green Bay Packers @ Los Angeles Rams
- Tucker Kraft: 4 receptions, 88 yards, 2 touchdowns
- Kyren Williams: 22 carries, 102 yards, 1 touchdown, 1 reception, 3 receiving yards
Packers adjust at wide receiver: Green Bay didn’t have either of its top two outside wide receivers this week.
Romeo Doubs was suspended after missing practice on Thursday and Friday, but he is expected to return to the team this upcoming week. Christian Watson missed this game due to an ankle injury and could miss more time.
Dontayvion Wicks was one of the clear replacements at wide receiver, as he took over last week and scored twice. It was less clear who would take over at the other spot. Bo Melton played well to end last season when there were injuries, but instead, Malik Heath was the other primary outside receiver. Melton mixed in significantly throughout the game in place of both Wicks and Heath. Wicks was targeted six times but only brought in two passes for 20 yards.
Jayden Reed led the wide receivers in receptions (four) and receiving yards (78). The loss of Doubs and Watson had no impact on Reed’s playing time, as Reed continues to only play in 11 personnel and hasn’t played a snap in a two-wide receiver set all season. This also didn’t impact tight end Tucker Kraft’s playing time, but it did lead to more targets for Kraft.
Wicks is still worth considering, as he should stay the top outside option for as long as Watson is out. If someone in your league cuts him, feel free to pick him back up.
Blake Corum emerges as the primary Rams backup: Ronnie Rivers was Kyren Williams‘ backup over the first four weeks.
Williams played 212 snaps over the first four weeks. Rivers played 30 snaps and Corum played eight snaps over that span. All of Corum’s playing time occurred in the last five minutes of Week 2 when the Rams were down by 31 points.
This week, Rivers didn’t play any snaps on offense. Corum’s 11 snaps were spread out across the first three quarters, while Williams took the entire fourth quarter. Corum won’t have any standalone value in this role, but he is one of the more valuable handcuffs. Williams’ is tied for the second-most rushing attempts this season, averaging 19 attempts per game. If Williams suffers an injury at some point, it could be Corum seeing at least double-digit carries per game.
Miscellaneous Notes
- Wide receiver Cooper Kupp missed his third-straight game due to an ankle injury this week, but he’s expected to return to the Rams in Week 7 after their bye next week. While a lot of Rams might seem like attractive waiver wire options, they will all see fewer targets once Kupp is back.
- Packers tight end Luke Musgrave was questionable for this game due to an ankle injury. He was active but didn’t play a snap on offense.
New York Giants @ Seattle Seahawks
- Darius Slayton: 8 receptions, 122 yards, 1 touchdown
- Tyrone Tracy Jr.: 18 carries, 129 yards, 1 reception, 1 receiving yards
Tyrone Tracy shines without Devin Singletary: The veteran running back missed this week due to a groin injury.
Tracy didn’t fully take over Singletary’s workload, but he had the best rushing performance by a Giants running back this season.
Tracy was the primary running back on early downs, while Eric Gray played the third-down snaps and most of the goal-line snaps. Ideally, Tracy would have seen some of the third-down work given his history at wide receiver, but it was still good for him to get 18 carries.
His 129 rushing yards was the first 100-yard performance by a Giants running back this season. On the season, Tracy has more yards per carry. A few metrics make Singletary look like the better runner, but he’s also fumbled twice. Tracy may keep playing more snaps even when Singletary is ready to return. Because of that, Tracy is a strong waiver target because Singletary could miss playing time and the situation should be fluid enough for Tracy to potentially win the starting job at some point this season.
Darius Slayton shines without Malik Nabers: Slayton’s big plays helped lead the Giants to an upset victory.
Nabers missed this game due to a concussion. Slayton played plenty of snaps over the first four weeks as the other outside wide receiver but hadn’t been very involved in the passing game with so many targets going to Nabers and Wan’Dale Robinson. This week, he received a lot of the targets that would have gone to Nabers, leading to both a 41-yard catch, a 30-yard touchdown catch, and plenty of shorter receptions.
Slayton can probably be left on the waiver wire despite this performance because it’s unlikely he can maintain a high target share with Nabers and Robinson on the field.
It was primarily Jalin Hyatt who took the vacated snaps, but he didn’t see a target. Isaiah Hodgins was also elevated off the practice squad and rotated in some for Hyatt, but he also didn’t see a target.
Noah Fant sees increased role: Fant was on the field more often than the last two weeks.
Fant saw an ideal role in the first two weeks of the season with Pharaoh Brown out due to injury. In Weeks 3 and 4, Fant only played in 56% of 11 personnel snaps while both A.J. Barner and Brown split the other snaps. Barner and Brown were also the primary tight ends in 12 personnel, while Fant only played 27.3% of the snaps over those two weeks.
This week, Fant jumped up to 70% of 11 personnel snaps and 66.7% of 12 personnel snaps. While that’s still a little less than ideal, that is good enough for Fant to be a fantasy starter with a higher target share. It might be difficult for Fant to see that target share with D.K. Metcalf, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Tyler Lockett on the field, but this was still a step in the right direction.
Miscellaneous Notes
- Giants rookie tight end Theo Johnson had his best game with four receptions for 42 yards after catching three passes in the first four weeks. His role hasn’t changed, but the Giants totaled 40 passing plays, and his target share reached 13.3% with Malik Nabers out. It’s too early to get overly optimistic, but this was a step in the right direction.
- It’s unclear why the Seahawks abandoned the run immediately, but Kenneth Walker III’s playing time was very similar to other weeks when both he and Zach Charbonnet have been healthy.
Dallas Cowboys @ Pittsburgh Steelers
- Jalen Tolbert: 7 receptions, 87 yards, 1 touchdown
- Rico Dowdle: 19 carries, 90 yards, 2 receptions, 27 receiving yards, 1 receiving touchdown
George Pickens sees a reduced role: Pickens was no longer one of the Steelers’ primary wide receivers in 12 personnel.
Over the first four weeks, Pickens played 124 of a possible 128 snaps in 11 personnel and 74 of 93 in two-receiver sets. Most of the time when Pickens was off the field, it meant three or four tight ends were on the field. Van Jefferson was often the other wide receiver across from Pickens in two-wide receiver sets.
Against the Cowboys, Pickens continued to be on the field in 11 personnel constantly, but he played just one of 19 snaps in two-wide receiver sets. This meant there were eight pass plays from 12 personnel alone where Pickens wasn’t on the field. Calvin Austin III and Scott Miller split time across from Jefferson for most of those plays. There isn’t much difference in the Steelers’ wideouts’ run-blocking grades, so Pickens’ demotion doesn’t seem related to his blocking.
Pickens had averaged 11.4 fantasy points per game before Week 5, which ranked 43rd among wide receivers. He caught three passes for 26 yards in this game. If this role sticks, it will be much harder to put Pickens in fantasy starting lineups.
Najee Harris leads the Steelers without their backups: Running backs Jaylen Warren and Cordarrelle Patterson were inactive this week with knee and ankle injuries, respectively.
The injuries to both running backs led to Harris taking a higher percentage of offensive snaps, including most of the work on early downs. Aaron Shampklin handled the third-down role, like last week. Jonathan Ward was a backup on early downs, but the combination of Shampklin and Ward didn’t cut into Harris’ early-down snaps as much as Warren or Patterson would have.
This didn’t lead to much production for Harris, who ran 14 times for 42 yards and caught two passes for 35 yards. Harris will remain a borderline fantasy starter, regardless of who is healthy in the Steelers’ backfield, thanks to his early-down role. Still, he is not the ideal option among fantasy starters because he hasn’t yet finished among the top 15 running backs. With Justin Fields running more than the Steelers’ quarterbacks last season, Harris might not finish among the top 15 anytime soon.
Jalen Tolbert steps up without Brandin Cooks: Cooks was placed on injured reserve with a knee injury. He missed this game and will miss the next three.
Tolbert had already emerged as a clear receiving option for Dallas. He played 201 of 265 snaps over the first four weeks, and while Cooks had 19 targets to Tolbert’s 17, Tolbert had more receptions (13) for more receiving yards (160).
With Cooks out, Tolbert moved to the second spot on the depth chart. He played more snaps than CeeDee Lamb, thanks to Tolbert staying on the field for more running situations. Tolbert caught six passes for 83 yards and the game-winning touchdown. He also had a six-catch, 82-yard performance in Week 2 and scored a touchdown in Week 3, so he’s scored at least 12 PPR points in three of his past four games. This makes him one of the most attractive waiver-wire options at wide receiver this week.
Jalen Brooks and KaVontae Turpin split time for the other receiver spot, seeing a near-even split in routes run. Because the two are splitting the role, it’s hard to trust either for fantasy purposes.
Miscellaneous Notes
- The Cowboys’ running back rotation was very similar to recent weeks, except Deuce Vaughn was inactive. Dallas spent most of the game with a lead, won the time-of-possession battle and rarely had the ball in clear passing situations. This allowed the offense to run more than usual. Rico Dowdle had the best game for a Cowboys running back this season, both for his rushing volume but also his rushing efficiency and his receiving touchdown.
- Steelers third-string tight end MyCole Pruitt remains out due to a knee injury. Connor Heyward took his place as the third tight end, which led to Heyward scoring a touchdown.
Table Notes
- Snaps include plays called back due to penalties, including offensive holding or defensive pass interference. The other three stats have these plays removed.
- Targets may differ from official NFL sources. The most likely discrepancy would be from a clear thrown-away pass, where the NFL may give the target to the nearest receiver, while this data will not.
- Carries are only on designed plays. Quarterback scrambles won’t count for the total number of carries in the game.
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