Week 5 Fantasy Busts: Popular waiver pickups Jaylen Samuels, Golden Tate among risky 'starts'

Billy Heyen

Week 5 Fantasy Busts: Popular waiver pickups Jaylen Samuels, Golden Tate among risky 'starts' image

No one ever wants a bust in their lineup, but there's one thing you can take solace in no matter how bad your lineup does this week -- at least you didn't fly to London and spend less than 24 hours there before flying right back like Vontaze Burfict had to do once his season-ending suspension was handed down. Maybe he didn't get jet lag because of how quick the turnaround was, but that's a lot of time on a plane. Whether you follow our start 'em, sit 'em advice and apply appropriate risk to Jaylen Samuels and Golden Tate, the worst thing that happens is you lose your Week 5 fantasy matchup.

Samuels' placement here has to do with whether James Conner plays, as you obviously shouldn't view him as a bust if Conner is out. But it's unlikely Pittsburgh is able to execute the same gimmicky gameplan that worked against the Bengals and gave Samuels a strong statline. We're also just not sure whether Golden Tate can return from his suspension to immediately thrive against a tough Vikings defense.

WEEK 5 NON-PPR RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker

Aaron Rodgers continues his trend of being on the bust list for more than half the season so far. What are the odds he has a strong game without Davante Adams and Jamaal Williams against a Cowboys defense that's been good at bending but not breaking? We also have Jameis Winston on here after a career day because, frankly, it's just tough to believe Winston does it twice in a row.

One of our boldest calls last week was Tom Brady as a bust, and that totally delivered. He had the worst passer rating he's ever accrued in a win in his career. That meant the call that Josh Gordon would have a down game was accurate, too. Greg Olsen was as quiet as could be, another positive tally for the bust tracking.

On the flip side, Matt Ryan garbage-timed his way into a decent yardage day, but with no TDs, we feel it's fair to still call him a disappointment. Baker Mayfield was solid albeit without the scores that would've gave him a huge day. We also weren't totally off base on Michael Thomas and DJ Chark, but both had OK days.

For our Week 5 sleeper picks, click here.

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Week 5 Fantasy Busts: Running backs

Josh Jacobs, Raiders vs. Bears in London (Billy Heyen). It's not hard to recommend sitting players against the Bears, but they really proved how shutdown they can be by slowing down Dalvin Cook and holding him to 35 yards on 14 carries (although he did score). Jacobs shouldn't find much more success than that.

Wayne Gallman, Giants vs. Vikings (Vinnie Iyer). He’ll crash down to earth against the Vikings’ run defense.

Jaylen Samuels, Steelers vs. Ravens (Matt Lutovsky). If James Conner's ankle injury keeps him out of this game, Samuels would be a legit RB2, but as long as Conner plays, it's tough to trust Samuels in standard leagues. He was ultra productive last Monday night as a runner, passer, and receiver, but that was while running a gimmicky Wildcat offense that likely won't work nearly as well against a defense that's prepared for it. Further, as much as Baltimore has struggled against some RBs this year (namely, Nick Chubb in Week 4), it's not as bad as Cincinnati. Samuels still has some PPR appeal because of how often Mason Rudolph checks down, but don't expect huge numbers.

WEEK 5 DFS LINEUPS:
Y! cash | Y! GPP | FD cash | FD GPP | DK cash | DK GPP

Week 5 Fantasy Football Busts: Quarterbacks

Jameis Winston, Buccaneers @ Saints (Heyen). It feels like we've gotta be facing a huge Winston come-down-to-earth game. A lot of the Saints' poor showing against fantasy QBs this year has been due to allowing four QB rushing touchdowns. I just don't believe in Jameis, and sure, it could blow up in my face.

Philip Rivers, Chargers vs. Broncos (Iyer). L.A. keeps losing pass-catchers and should be able to beat up on the Broncos better with plenty of Melvin Gordon and Austin Ekeler.

Aaron Rodgers, Packers @ Cowboys (Lutovsky). Hey, Rodgers did something in Week 4 -- good for him. That was at home against a porous Philadelphia pass defense on short rest. This week he'll be facing a much better defense on the road, and he'll likely be doing it without his stud WR, Davante Adams (toe) and top pass-protecting/receiving back (Jamaal Williams). Rodgers is talented enough to still produce, but if his Weeks 1-3 are any indication (average of 215.7 yards, four total TDs), you shouldn't expect much.

WEEK 5:
Top waiver pickups | FAAB planner | Trade valuesSnap counts

Week 5 Fantasy Football Busts: Wide receivers

John Brown, Bills @ Titans (Heyen). The Titans have been a good pass defense and could be tough to handle for Brown even if Josh Allen plays. If it's Matt Barkley? Run far, far away. He'll never be able to link up with Brown on one of his patented deep routes that make or break his fantasy outings.

Amari Cooper, Cowboys vs. Packers (Iyer). You’ll play him again in seasonal leagues, but avoid him in DFS, as he could easily put up another dud with Jaire Alexander mostly covering him.

Golden Tate, Giants vs. Vikings (Lutovsky). Tate is a complete wild card in his first game back from suspension. Daniel Jones has only faced bad pass defenses so far (and looked bad while doing so last week), so it's anyone's guess as to what he'll look like against a good one. There is garbage-time potential for Tate here, but with Sterling Shepard and Evan Engram also commanding targets, it's probably best to give the veteran at least one game on your bench before starting him. 

WEEK 5 PPR RANKINGS: Running backWide receiver | Tight end

Week 5 Fantasy Football Busts: Tight ends

Austin Hooper, Falcons @ Texans (Heyen). The Texans have allowed the third-fewest fantasy points to tight ends in 2019, and they just held Greg Olsen to five yards receiving in Week 4. This early success doesn't feel sustainable for Hooper as soon as Calvin Ridley returns to heavy involvement.

Darren Waller, Raiders vs. Bears in London (Iyer). The Bears have erased the position since the Jimmy Graham score in Week 1.

Delanie Walker, Titans vs. Bills (Lutovsky). Walker is playing fewer and fewer snaps, and this week he's facing a Bills team that's shut down tight ends this year, including Evan Engram in Week 2 (six catches, 48 yards) and Tyler Eifert in Week 3 (one catch, 18 yards). He's becoming a boom-or-bust play even in PPR leagues.

MORE WEEK 5 DFS: Stacks | Values | Lineup builder

Week 5 Fantasy Busts: Defenses

Minnesota Vikings @ Giants (Heyen). Attacking the rookie quarterback-led and Saquon Barkley-less Giants feels easy with a good defense, but Golden Tate is back and I feel like Jones should have a decent day throwing the football. Wayne Gallman is no slouch, either.

Baltimore Ravens @ Steelers (Iyer). This is nothing close to an old-school Baltimore defense, and this isn’t an incompetent Pittsburgh offense with Mason Rudolph, especially at home.

Green Bay Packers @ Cowboys (Lutovsky). Green Bay was among the top D/STs through three weeks...and then it faced a real quarterback. Carson Wentz and the Eagles scored 34 points and didn't allow a sack or takeaway despite playing a Thursday road game in Week 4. Dallas was surprisingly sloppy last week, turning it over three times, but that was in the noisy Superdome. For the season, the Cowboys have allowed just three sacks, giving Green Bay an even lower floor than usual.

Billy Heyen