Here’s a look at our waiver wire rankings, along with feedback from our experts, Dan Harris, Kyle Yates, Joe Pisapia, and Pat Fitzmaurice.
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Week 5 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Rankings
Here’s a look at our waiver wire rankings, along with feedback from our experts, Dan Harris, Kyle Yates, Joe Pisapia, and Pat Fitzmaurice.
Import your team to My Playbook for instant Waiver Wire advice
Week 5 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Rankings
Q1. Who is your top waiver wire option of the week, and why?
David Montgomery suffered a knee sprain that is going to sideline him 4-5 weeks, which leaves Damien Williams as a likely starting running back and the obvious top pickup. Williams himself dealt with a quad injury in the game but right now, there’s nothing to suggest it’s serious. Next week, the Bears take on the Raiders, who have allowed at least one touchdown to a running back in each game thus far, and the following week they meet the Packers, who have allowed four touchdowns to running backs through four games (the schedule admittedly toughens up after that, but still). Williams has shown pass-catching chops in the past, so he’ll be a locked and loaded RB2 so long as Montgomery is injured.
– Dan Harris (@danharris80)
At the top of the list is the QB that we were pounding the table for all off-season, Trey Lance. With Jimmy Garoppolo likely to miss the next couple of weeks – there’s no clarity on his injury at the time of writing – Lance has the potential to step in and completely take over this job. We got to see him on the field last week for just two quarters and he put up 20 fantasy points! With his arm strength, incredible mobility, and the playmakers that he has at his disposal, Lance has top-5 upside as early as next week against Arizona. He’ll make mistakes – like all rookie QBs do – but if you’re looking for a league-winner this year on the waiver wire, Lance has the best chance of being that player for you. He needs to be rostered everywhere.
– Kyle Yates (@KyleYNFL)
Darnell Mooney had his breakout game of the season, and it’s no surprise that it was with Justin Fields under center. Fields has the deep ball ability to get the most out of Mooney’s skill set. There are some other pickups this week with more short-term appeal, but I believe Mooney has the most “rest of season” upside.
– Joe Pisapia (@JoePisapia17)
With David Montgomery sustaining a knee injury in Week 4, Damien Williams will be a coveted asset this week. Montgomery suffered a knee sprain and is going to miss 4-5 weeks, so Williams will have some time atop the depth chart. Williams is a versatile run-catch threat who had brief stretches of significant fantasy value when he was in Kansas City. The Bears don’t have a good enough passing game to be one-dimensional. They’ve leaned heavily on Montgomery, and while he is out, Williams figures to get 15-20 touches a week.
– Pat Fitzmaurice (@Fitz_FF)
Q2. Which high-end waiver wire option for Week 5 was the most difficult to rank?
DeVante Parker. I imagine I’ll be higher on Parker than most, but he’s a little hard to ignore. Not only did he lead the Dolphins in snaps, routes run, targets, and yards against the Colts, but because
Will Fuller got injured again, he may continue to see a high usage. He’s seen no fewer than seven targets or reeled in fewer than four receptions in any game. Still, the Dolphins’ offense lacks explosiveness, which puts a cap on Parker’s value. Other receivers like
Darnell Mooney and
Rashod Bateman have more upside, so placing Parker in the right spot is a difficult chore.
– Dan Harris (@danharris80)
Kenneth Gainwell emerged last week with a monstrous performance, but the matchup was a pretty good one against a reeling Chiefs defense. Additionally, the game script played out perfectly where Philadelphia was playing from behind for the majority of the game, which meant that Gainwell would be out there more as the pass-catching option. Moving forward, Gainwell’s going to have big games because he’s an incredibly talented RB. However, trying to predict when those games are going to come is going to be a bit of a headache for fantasy managers. He’s worth rostering everywhere, but we shouldn’t take this game to mean that this is what we can expect from him week in and week out.
– Kyle Yates (@KyleYNFL)
Josh Gordon has more returns than Vin Diesel has Fast and Furious films. There’s temptation for folks to add Gordon based on the simple fact he’s going to play with Patrick Mahomes. However, his last great season was 2013 and he hasn’t played at all since 2019. I don’t want any part of this sequel.
– Joe Pisapia (@JoePisapia17)
Darnell Mooney. I may have him ranked too high, but he’s become almost a co-equal with Allen Robinson in the Bears’ passing game, and the Bears have a very skinny target tree. Even though Chicago’s passing game is below average, Mooney could be a useful asset.
– Pat Fitzmaurice (@Fitz_FF)
Q3. For managers renting a D/ST in Week 5, what readily available option (under 40%) should they target?
It’s not the best week for streaming defenses, but I would go with
Minnesota taking on the Lions.
Jared Goff is obviously liable to turn the ball over, and he’s been sacked 10 times through four games. That is where the Vikings can do some damage, as they’ve tallied 13 sacks already, and should put Goff under constant pressure. At home in a must-win game, I expect the Vikings to put up a strong effort against the Lions, starting with their defense.
– Dan Harris (@danharris80)
There aren’t many great options available on the waiver wire, but the Minnesota Vikings DST has a chance of returning value this upcoming week against Detroit. The Lions’ offense isn’t putting up points at a ridiculous pace and there’s a very good chance that Jared Goff turns the ball over once or twice. They’re worth taking a shot on in week five.
– Kyle Yates (@KyleYNFL)
As I’ve been discussing for weeks now on the IDP podcast, the Cowboys are much improved defensively year over year. They’re not perfect but improved. They’re also creating turnovers. Enter Daniel Jones and the Giants this week, who may be down multiple receivers again in Week 5. In division matchup, at home, with the Cowboys currently a top 12 fantasy unit, yes, please!
– Joe Pisapia (@JoePisapia17)
It’s never a bad idea to target turnover machine Daniel Jones with a streaming defense. He draws Dallas this week, and the Cowboys’ defense has been better than expected thanks largely to emerging stars Trevon Diggs and Micah Parsons.
– Pat Fitzmaurice (@Fitz_FF)
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Notable Week 5 Waiver Wire FAB Recommendations (in %)
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Q4. Which Week 5 waiver wire option carries the biggest risk of being a waste of FAB dollars?
Damien Williams. Depending on the severity of
David Montgomery's injury, Williams may have extremely limited value. It's always worth it to add and spend what is necessary on a potential starting running back, but there's always a risk of wasting FAB entirely.
- Dan Harris (@danharris80)
People are most likely going to rush after Mo Alie-Cox after his two-touchdown performance in week four, but we need to remain cautious with the talented TE. Jack Doyle was questionable coming into the game and there's the possibility that we see him more involved next week as he has time to heal up. This would put Alie-Cox back into a complementary role rather than a featured option in the offense. He could remain a focal point in the red zone, but that simply puts him into a touchdown-or-bust category for fantasy lineups and that's a dangerous place to live.
- Kyle Yates (@KyleYNFL)
The Detroit trio of wide receivers is tricky. Personally, I prefer Kalif Raymond over Quintez Cephus and Amon-Ra St. Brown. The risk comes in bidding on the "wrong one" for Week 5 because there is no clear-cut favorite target for Jared Goff.
- Joe Pisapia (@JoePisapia17)
Kadarius Toney's performance in Week 4 was attention-getting. He doesn't have a clear path to every-week usage, and he was a polarizing prospect. But Toney is electric with the ball in his hands, and there's at least a tiny chance he could be the 2021 version of rookie-year Odell Beckham Jr. An investment in Toney may well be a complete waste of FAB money, but I think there's at least a small degree of jackpot potential.
- Pat Fitzmaurice (@Fitz_FF)
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