Studs and Duds: Week 5

Mon Oct 6 10:36am ET
By JEFF PAUR
Sr Fantasy Writer

Dowdle runs wild in Week 5

Well, that was certainly an interesting week of football. There weren’t a ton of big fantasy scores but certainly some intriguing outcomes. This was a week of upsets with the Broncos and Patriots pulling off two of the biggest. You just never know what you are going to see from week to week, which is what makes this game so great to watch.

49ers 26, Rams 23

Fantasy Stud: Matthew Stafford. Stafford had a huge game against a 49ers secondary that had played well this year. He was 30-of-47 for 389 yards and three touchdowns without an interception. Stafford scored 30.45 fantasy points, giving him two straight games with 30-plus points. His back injury was a concern to start the year but hasn’t seemed to bother him at all. He is having another big season

Fantasy Dud: Demarcus Robinson. Robinson got some starts with the 49ers all banged up at receiver, but he was not a help to any fantasy teams that used him. He had three receptions for 39 yards. Robinson got some looks but showed he is going to be a risk to use for fantasy teams - even in an expanded role.

Game Notes: Kendrick Bourne had 10 receptions for 142 yards. He had a huge game, serving as the top target in the 49ers passing game.

Puka Nacua finished with 10 receptions for 85 yards. Nacua has double-digit receptions three straight and four of five games.

Vikings 21, Browns 17

Fantasy Stud: David Njoku. Njoku led the way in the passing game for the Browns. He had six receptions for 67 yards and a touchdown. These were his best numbers of the season across the board, finishing with 18.7 fantasy points. He was targeted a season-best nine times, giving him at least five targets four of five games. Njoku remains a big part of this passing game, even with the emergence of rookie tight end Harold Fannin

Fantasy Dud: Jerry Jeudy. Jeudy continues to do very little, catching just two passes for 15 yards. You hoped things might have changed for him with a new starting quarterback this week, but that wasn’t the case. Jeudy has not had double-digit fantasy points since Week 1 of the season. He has less than 50 yards three straight games.

Game Notes: Quinshon Judkins had his first 100-yard game as a pro. He ran 23 times for 110 yards. Judkins has double-digit fantasy points all four games he has played.

Dillon Gabriel played alright in his first NFL start. He was 19-of-33 for 190 yards and two touchdowns without a turnover.

Texans 44, Ravens 10

Fantasy Stud: C.J. Stroud. Stroud had another big game, going 23-of-27 for 244 yards and four touchdowns without a turnover. He also ran once for 30 yards. Stroud scored a season-best 31.2 fantasy points. He has 20-plus fantasy points two straight games

Fantasy Dud: Derrick Henry. Henry scored a touchdown but still managed to finish with fewer than 10 fantasy points. He ran 15 times for just 33 yards and a score. He has fewer than double-digit fantasy points two straight and three of four games. He has 50 or fewer rushing yards four straight games. Henry is not having near the season fantasy owners hoped.

Game Notes: Cooper Rush had a rough first start with the Ravens. He was 14-of-20 for 179 yards with three interceptions. He failed to score a touchdown.

Xavier Hutchinson had three receptions for 18 yards and two touchdowns. He scored his first touchdown in the NFL.

Colts 40, Raiders 6

Fantasy Stud: Jonathan Taylor. Taylor continued his huge season, rushing 17 times for 66 yards and three touchdowns. He had three receptions for 20 yards. Taylor has three touchdowns in two of his last three games. He has seven total scores for the season. Taylor has 12-plus fantasy points every game

Fantasy Dud: Jakobi Meyers. You thought Meyers might have a big game with a lot of injuries at tight end for the Raiders. But that wasn’t the case, catching four passes for 32 yards. Meyers has three straight games with fewer than double-digit fantasy points. He just hasn’t gotten on the same page with his new quarterback, Geno Smith, this season.

Game Notes: Daniel Jones was 20-of-29 for 212 yards and two touchdowns without a turnover. Jones has touchdowns every game this season, totaling nine total touchdowns.

Ashton Jeanty topped 100 total yards. He ran 14 times for 67 yards and caught five passes for 42 yards. He had 109 total yards in the game.

Saints 26, Giants 14

Fantasy Stud: Rashid Shaheed. Shaheed had four receptions for 114 yards and a touchdown. It was his first 100-yard game of the season. Shaheed has at least four receptions every game this season. He has two games with 15-plus fantasy points

Fantasy Dud: Darius Slayton. There was hope Slayton might produce big in an expanded role but he had a rough game, catching three passes for 31 yards. He also lost a fumble. He scored just 5.1 fantasy points, his lowest total since Week 1. Slayton showed he is a tough fantasy player to trust.

Game Notes: Taysom Hill made his season debut for the Saints. He ran six times for a negative yard. He didn’t catch a pass but was 1-of-1 throwing the ball for 19 yards.

Kendre Miller led the Saints in rushing. He had 10 carries for 41 yards while Alvin Kamara ran eight times for just 27 yards.

Panthers 27, Dolphins 24

Fantasy Stud: Rico Dowdle. Dowdle got the start because of injury and responded with the best game of his career. He ran 23 times for 206 yards and a touchdown. Dowdle had three receptions for 28 yards, giving him 234 total yards. Dowdle proved that as long as Chuba Hubbard is sidelined, he might be a must-start for fantasy teams. This was quite the performance

Fantasy Dud: Tommy Tremble. Tremble looked great last week in a starting role, so he got some play this week. Unfortunately, that did not turn out well for fantasy owners. He caught just a pass for seven yards. It was a disappointing showing in what might be his last chance to start this season with Ja’Tavion Sanders back soon.

Game Notes: Darren Waller had five receptions for 78 yards and a touchdown. Waller has touchdowns each of his first two games this season.

Jaylen hit the 100-yard mark for the first time this year. He had six receptions for 110 yards and a touchdown.

Cowboys 37, Jets 22

Fantasy Stud: Javonte Williams. Williams continued his great play. He rushed 16 times for 132 yards and a touchdown. William also caught a pass for a four-yard touchdown. Williams scored a season-high 26.6 fantasy points. He has three games with 20-plus fantasy points

Fantasy Dud: Jalen Tolbert. Tolbert was targeted just once and didn’t catch a pass. It was a really disappointing showing after getting 10.1 fantasy points the previous game. He had multiple receptions three straight games before this down showing. You just aren’t sure what Tolbert will do at this point.

Game Notes: Mason Taylor had nine receptions for 67 yards. Both totals were career highs. Taylor has at least four receptions three straight games.

Ryan Flournoy emerged as the top target next to George Pickens in the Cowboys passing game. He had six receptions for 114 yards, leading the Cowboys in both categories.

Broncos 21, Eagles 17

Fantasy Stud: DeVonta Smith. Smith had eight receptions for 114 yards. It was his first 100-yard game of the season. He did not have more than 60 yards in a game before this big performance. He has 19-plus fantasy points two of his last three games, starting to produce better for his fantasy owners

Fantasy Dud: A.J. Brown. Brown had another poor game, catching five passes for 43 yards. He failed to hit double-digit fantasy points for the fourth time in five games. The only positive was he was targeted nine times, giving him at least eight targets four straight games.

Game Notes: JK Dobbins scored a touchdown for the fourth time in five games. He ran 20 times for 79 yards and a touchdown.

Dallas Goedert found the end zone once again, giving him touchdowns three straight games. He had three catches for 19 yards and a score on nine targets.

Bucs 38, Seahawks 35

Fantasy Stud: Emeka Egbuka. There were a lot of big performances in this one, but Egbuka gets the honor. He had another one of his huge games, catching seven passes for 163 yards and a touchdown. He scored 31.3 fantasy points in the game. Egbuka has three games this season with 20-plus fantasy points. He has touchdowns four of five games

Fantasy Dud: Chris Godwin. Godwin still hasn’t gotten into the flow of things just yet since returning from his ankle injury. He had three receptions for 26 yards in an offense that threw for nearly 400 yards. Godwin has six receptions for 52 yards on 14 targets in two games.

Game Notes: Sam Darnold had an unfortunate interception late in the game when his pass hit off a helmet but was fantastic besides that play. Darnold was 28-of-34 for 341 yards and four touchdowns with an interception.

Rachaad White handled most of the load at running back for the Bucs with Bucky Irving out. He ran 14 times for 41 and two touchdowns. White also had four receptions for 30 yards.

Titans 22, Cardinals 21

Fantasy Stud: Calvin Ridley. Ridley finally showed some signs of life, catching five passes for 131 yards. He did not have more than 60 yards in a game all season before this big game. His previous season high for fantasy points was 8.7. Ridley scored 18.1 fantasy points, showing you his potential if things start to click between him and rookie quarterback Cam Ward

Fantasy Dud: Trey McBride. McBride had a rare ho-hum performance. He caught five passes for 41 yards, finishing with fewer than double-digit fantasy points. This was his first game all season failing to hit double-digit points. He had at least 12 fantasy points before this one.

Game Notes: Tyjae Spears made his season debut and ran four times for 14 yards. He didn’t play a whole lot, watching Tony Pollard run 14 times for 67 yards and a touchdown.

Emari Demercado made a crucial mistake, letting go of the ball as he was about to cross the goal line. This pretty much cost the Cardinals the game. He ran three times for 81 yards.

Commanders 27, Chargers 10

Fantasy Stud: Jacory Croskey-Merritt. Croskey-Merritt finally got much of the run at running back and had a big game. He ran 14 times for 111 yards and two touchdowns. He also caught two passes for 39 yards, giving him 150 total yards. Hopefully, this is the game that gets him more consistent work in the Commanders offense

Fantasy Dud: Justin Herbert. Herbert was held in check, going 22-of-29 for 166 yards and a touchdown. The only positive was he led his team in rushing, running four times for 60 yards. But even with that said, Herbert scored just 17.3 fantasy points. He has fewer than 20 fantasy points three straight games.

Game Notes: Jayden Daniels returned from his injury and looked good, finishing 15-of-26 for 231 yards and a touchdown without a turnover. He also ran eight times for 39 yards.

Ladd McConkey found the end zone for the first time this season. He had five receptions for 39 yards and a touchdown on seven targets.

Omarion Hampton went to the locker room with an ankle injury and didn’t return. He ran 12 times for 44 yards and caught six passes for 26 yards.

Lions 37, Bengals 24

Fantasy Stud: David Montgomery. Montgomery did a little bit of everything. He led the team in rushing, running 18 times for 64 yards and a touchdown. He also threw a three-yard touchdown pass. Montgomery scored 18.15 fantasy points after having just 1.2 his previous game. It was a nice rebound performance from Montgomery

Fantasy Dud: Jameson Williams. Williams had just a catch for nine yards in a game the Lions threw for nearly 300 yards and four touchdowns. It was another disappointing game from the talented receiver. Williams had just one good fantasy showing all season. He has fewer than seven fantasy points four of five games.

Game Notes: Jared Goff was 19-of-23 for 258 yards and three touchdowns without an interception. Goff has multiple touchdown passes three of four games.

Ja’Marr Chase had six receptions for 110 yards and two touchdowns. He has 100-yard games two of four.

Patriots 23, Bills 20

Fantasy Stud: Stefon Diggs. Diggs has quickly become the go-to target for Drake Maye. He had 10 receptions for 146 yards. Diggs has two straight 100-yard games. He looks healthy and is making big play after big play for Maye. He is going to be a big-time fantasy receiver the rest of the way

Fantasy Dud: James Cook. Cook came back down to earth, rushing 15 times for just 49 yards. He didn’t catch a pass in the game. It was his first game all season without 20-plus fantasy points. Cook also failed to score a touchdown for the first time. He’ll be fine going forward, but this performance likely hurt a lot of his fantasy owners.

Game Notes: Rhamondre Stevenson lost yet another fumble but rebounded to find the end zone twice. He ran seven times for 14 yards and two touchdowns.

Dalton Kincaid hit the 100-yard mark. He had six receptions for 108 yards. Kincaid has 14-plus fantasy points three of five games.

Jeff Paur is a two-time finalist for FSWA Fantasy Football Writer of the Year and won the FSWA award for Best Fantasy Football Article on the Web in 2011. He also was the most accurate expert in 2012, winning the FSTA Fantasy Football Accuracy Award. If you have any questions for Jeff, email him at jeff@rtsports.com. Follow Jeff on Twitter @jeffpaur.

Studs and Duds: Week 5

The Paur Report