How’d your fantasy team do in Week 4? Were you happy with the results? If not, well don’t worry because there’s still more than enough time for changes and improvements to bolster your respective lineups. As we head towards the fifth week of the 2015 NFL campaign there will be four teams on bye: Dolphins, Jets, Panthers and Vikings.Fortunately, the experts have got you covered as to which players from each position are worth the pick up to add that much-needed depth into your roster.
Fantasy Football Expert Guide Pickups for Week 5 of the 2015 NFL Season
ESPN
Position
Pick 1
Pick 2
Pick 3
Pick 4
Quarterback
Josh McCown
Kirk Cousins
Running Back
Duke Johnson
Darren McFadden
Boobie Dixon
Ronnie Hillman
Wide Receiver
Leonard Hankerson
Allen Hurns
Tavon Austin
DeVante Parker
Tight End
Richard Rodgers
Gary Barnidge
ESPN.com’s Field Yates shares us his top pickups or replacements for the upcoming week of the NFL. He covers on almost position from quarterback to tight end. Yates seems to be very optimistic with how the pair of Josh McCown and Kirk Cousins has been performing of late, as he’s expecting the two to continue being a factor and put a smile to fantasy owners again.
[sc:NFL240banner ]McCown looks to have secured (for now) the starting quarterback role for the Cleveland Browns after two-straight weeks of stellar numbers. He’s completed 60 of his 99 passes for 697 yards along with four touchdowns and has 41 fantasy points in that stretch. Cousins, meanwhile, has been subtly making some noise of his own in his last two games as well, owning a passer rating 69 percent passer rating and is coming off a 21-point explosion.
Another player that Yates is pretty high on is running back, Duke Johnson, who started off the season slowly due to injuries. But after his Week 4 performance opposite San Diego, the rookie generated a lot of buzz as he had 17 touches and hauled in nine receptions for and a phenomenal touchdown. Johnson’s bound to build on this momentum for his next game against the Ravens.
The wide receiver position is looking really stacked but Yates also has really high hopes on the Falcons’ Leonard Hankerson to be worth the pickup. Hankerson has a good chance on becoming the main running mate of Julio Jones thanks to big time output in the past week, wherein he had six catches for 103 yards.
As for the tight end position, the other Richard Rodgers of Green Bay is your guy, says Yates. The absence of Andrew Quarless (knee) gives Rodgers more opportunity to shine and play with arguably the best quarterback in the world right now.
FanSided
Position
Pick 1
Pick 2
Pick 3
Quarterback
Josh McCown
Running Back
Duke Johnson
Ronnie Hillman
Andre Williams
Wide Receiver
Allen Hurns
Kamar Aiken
Leonard Hankerson
Tight End
Gary Barnidge
Like Camp, Zachary Thompson of FanSided is all in for Josh McCown mentions the likes of Josh McCown, Duke Johnson, Leonard Hankerson, Allen Hurns and Gary Barnidge. But Thompson also points out a worthy pickup in, Kamar Aiken of the Ravens, who he dubs as one of the few true No. 1 WR options lingering on the fantasy waiver wire or free agent list.
Aiken has been forced to become his team’s main receiving target following a number of injuries, including one to Steve Smith Sr. last week against the Steelers. The 26-yearold wideout finished with five catches for 77 yards and his first touchdown of the 2015 regular season to help the Ravens emerge victorious in the previous week. For as long as Smith continues to be out, Aiken is bound to surprise many fantasy owners.
Thompson also has his mind made up on Gary Barnidge of Cleveland, as the best waiver wire grab for the tight end position this coming week. He has been a beneficiary of McCown’s recent rise the past two weeks, registering 12 catches for 180 yards and a pair of touchdowns to his name. Barnidge seems to have formed a strong trust with the quarterback already and is reliable red zone option without a doubt.
Sports Illustrated
Position
Pick 1
Pick 2
Pick 3
Quarterback
Jay Cutler
Running Back
Duke Johnson
Ronnie Hillman
Wide Receiver
Nelson Agholor
Tavon Austin
Ted Ginn
Tight End
Vernon Davis
Sport Illustrated’s Michael Beller provides us different options for his top pickups in the upcoming week. He still seems unconvinced with the recent rise of quarterback Josh McCown as he’s actually thinks Jay Cutler of the Chicago Bears is a more viable option.
Cutler’s consistency remains to be a problem for most fantasy teams, but when he gets his groove on, it’s relatively hard to pass on him. The 32-year-old Indiana native gave fantasy owners a reason to put him in consideration as he threw for 281 yards and two touchdowns to beat the Raiders last Monday, 22-20. Cutler is on track to build on this solid performance when he tries to take advantage of a Kansas City defense—that allows a league-high 11 passing touchdowns and 8.25 yards per attempt—in their Week 5 clash on Monday.
Speaking of passing yards, Beller has the Eagles’ wide receiver in Nelson Agholor to be a worthy pickup that can provide you some crucial fantasy points. Agholor had a very inspiring performance last week, hauling in three catches for a career –high 64 yards and has been playing far more snaps than the pair of Riley Cooper and Tavon Austin.
Regarding the tight end position, Washington’s Vernon Davis has gotten the thumbs up of Beller for Week 5. The reason for this, though, is only the fact that they’ll be opposing the Giants. No starting tight end has scored fewer than 7.7 points against them, which makes Davis a really cheap and safe risk to take for fantasy owners, who are looking for temporary starting replacements for Jordan Cameron or Greg Olsen.
