RADIO
The fifth Sunday of the 2023 NFL season has come and gone. Hopefully, you woke up on Monday morning feeling very good about how your matchup went. However, this week's slate of games was certainly stress-inducing for many fantasy football managers.
Part of that stress was caused by a group of players who drastically underachieved in Week 5. These players simply did not meet fantasy expectations, and it cost their managers in a big way.
Let's take a look at the biggest busts from Week 5, as well as whether or not we can still have some trust in these players moving forward. All point totals are based on the PPR scoring system.
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Fantasy Football Quarterback Busts
Lamar Jackson, 9.94 FPTS
Jackson had another turnover-riddled week as he threw an interception and lost a fumble. The mobile quarterback now has seven fumbles (four lost) through the first five weeks of the season. He also took four sacks and failed to score a touchdown in Sunday's loss. Quite simply, the turnovers are shutting down potential scoring drives and limiting Jackson's upside. He needs to play better in Week 6 versus Tennessee.
Joshua Dobbs, 8.74 FPTS
Dobbs looked like the 2023 version of Geno Smith from Weeks 2 to 4, but he was underwhelming from a fantasy perspective this past Sunday. The 28-year-old completed just 15 of 32 passes for 166 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions. These were his first picks of the year. He also lost a fumble, took three sacks, and had his lowest rushing total (one yard) since Week 1. He'll look to bounce back against a sneaky good Rams squad next weekend.
Fantasy Football Running Back Busts
James Cook, 5.1 FPTS
Cook was barely utilized in the running game Sunday, carrying the ball five times for negative four yards. He did, however, catch three passes for 25 yards through the air. The Bills fell behind early in London, forcing them to pass a lot, which pretty much took Cook out of the running game entirely. He's an intriguing buy-low ahead of a phenomenal matchup against the Giants next week.
Rhamondre Stevenson, 2.4 FPTS
Stevenson had another poor game on Sunday, rushing for 24 yards and failing to catch a pass. His struggles are likely a product of the Patriots' overall offensive woes, but with no resolution in sight, the young running back will remain tough to trust in fantasy football. He has one last chance to get things right against the Raiders next week, ranking as an RB3.
Miles Sanders, 1.2 FPTS
A combination of negative game script, poor offensive line play, and a strong Lions defensive front made it nearly impossible for Sanders to get anything going on Sunday. He had his worst game as a Panther, rushing for 32 yards, catching zero passes, and losing a fumble. He's an RB3 versus a scorching-hot Miami team in Week 6.
Jonathan Taylor, 4.4 FPTS
Taylor was relatively quiet in his return, totaling 18 rushing and 16 receiving yards. The expectation was that he and Zack Moss would split snaps, but in reality, Taylor was on the field for just 15 percent of plays while Moss played 80 percent. Moss would go on to total a whopping 25 touches, 195 scrimmage yards, and two touchdowns. Taylor is going to be phased into the offense slowly, so while he should earn some more snaps next week, he's still an RB3/FLEX play.
Tony Pollard, 8.4 FPTS
Pollard had his worst fantasy production of the season on Sunday, struggling to get things going against a strong 49ers defense. He had 29 rushing yards and 35 receiving yards while also losing a fumble. The 26-year-old should bounce back and will rank as an RB1 against the Chargers' suspect run defense next week.
Kyren Williams, 7.7 FPTS
With Cooper Kupp back, the Rams had a lot of mouths to feed, and Williams suffered as a result. His 15 opportunities were a season-low while his 57 scrimmage yards finished second-lowest (to his 54 yards in Week 1, when Cam Akers was still a factor). With that said, Williams is primed to bounce back against the Cardinals in Week 6.
Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Busts
Nico Collins, 6.9 FPTS
Even as Robert Woods (rib) spent time on the sideline and Tank Dell (concussion) was ruled out, Collins failed to emerge as a top receiver in Week 5. He finished with just three catches for 39 yards despite playing a season-high 88 percent of snaps. It has been tough to find a reason or pattern behind Collins' inconsistent play so far, but nevertheless, he's a risky option for Week 6 versus the Saints.
DeVonta Smith, 1.6 FPTS
Week 5 belonged to A.J. Brown and Dallas Goedert, leaving Smith to clean up the scraps with five targets, one catch, and a season-low 94 percent snap share. One must understand that in a deep, talented offense, not every player is going to have a big game every week. Smith could get back on track in Week 6 versus a Jets secondary that is suddenly banged up.
Courtland Sutton, 2.3 FPTS
Sutton caught a touchdown in three of his first four games and had yet to score less than 11 points in a single game all season, but he could not get things going against the Jets on Sunday. Denver emphasized the rushing attack, leaving Sutton with just one catch for 13 yards. He'll rank as a WR3 against the Chiefs in Week 6.
Fantasy Football Tight End Busts
Hunter Henry, 0.0 FPTS
Henry had an opportunity to prove that his relatively quiet Weeks 3 and 4 performances were a fluke. Instead, he delivered his worst outing so far, catching zero passes on two targets. Mac Jones has looked like one of the worst quarterbacks in football, dropping Henry to the mid-range TE2 tier for Week 6 versus Vegas.
Dalton Kincaid, 3.9 FPTS
Kincaid has not been utilized like a first-round tight end over the last three weeks. This Sunday, he played just 53 percent of snaps, hauling in two passes for 19 yards. He'll rank as a TE2 against the Giants in Week 6.
Jake Ferguson, 5.8 FPTS
Ferguson looked great from Week 2 to Week 4 but underwhelmed against a strong 49ers defense this past Sunday. The 24-year-old caught three passes for 28 yards on a 69 percent snap share, his second-highest mark of the season. Ferguson didn't have a bad game by any means, but fantasy managers trusting him as their starting tight end were likely disappointed. He'll get a more favorable matchup against the Chargers in Week 6.
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