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Should I start Brian Thomas, Keon Coleman, Courtland Sutton for Week 5? Fantasy football start 'em, sit 'em picks and recommendations for the 2025 NFL season.
We are already a month into the NFL season. That gives us a small but decent enough sample size to help us guide our lineup decisions in fantasy.
Bye weeks have officially hit, and that will, of course, limit weekly options. Stacking enough depth to withstand and navigate the bye weeks is a crucial piece of fantasy.
This article will examine whether Courtland Sutton, Keon Coleman, or Brian Thomas Jr. is worth starting in fantasy football for Week 5. Let’s dive in.
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Should I Start Courtland Sutton for Fantasy Football?
Sutton has been one of the more consistent fantasy producers at wide receiver since the start of last season. He's racked up 18 receptions on 27 targets for 266 yards and three touchdowns over the first four games. That's an average of 15.7 PPR points per game, which is WR12 at the moment.
Over his last 10 regular-season games, Sutton is averaging roughly eight targets per game with five receptions for 70 yards per game and eight total touchdowns. He's just been remarkably consistent, outside of a stinker in Week 2 this season, where he caught only one ball for six yards.
Courtland Sutton is a top __ WR? 👀 pic.twitter.com/eY5POrcxuq
— NFL GameDay (@NFLGameDay) September 30, 2025
Sutton is fresh off a ho-hum six catch, 61-yard, touchdown performance against the bad Bengals defense. He draws a much stiffer challenge when Denver travels to Philadelphia in Week 5, where he is likely to see a heavy diet of cornerback Quinyon Mitchell. The Eagles' defense is middle of the pack in terms of opposing wide receiver fantasy production, but they've continued to do a good job in limiting explosive plays. They've only allowed nine explosive pass plays this season, tied for the seventh fewest, per FTN Fantasy.
Sutton should still be inserted into lineups with confidence despite the tougher matchup. He'll rank right on the WR1/WR2 line this week and should be in line for an entertaining battle with Mitchell.
Should I Start Keon Coleman for Fantasy Football?
After going ballistic to open the season on Sunday Night Football, catching eight of 11 targets for 112 yards and a touchdown. Coleman has settled back down to earth in the next three. In the last three weeks, he's seen a total of 11 targets, and he's caught nine of them for 91 yards.
Coleman is still running the most routes on the team, but this is how it will be for most Buffalo pass catchers. They will be volatile due to how run-heavy they are, as well as having an "everybody eats" mentality as a team.
The passing attack lacks a true alpha, but they've been highly successful with their quick-hit passing game with Khalil Shakir and have gotten tight end Dalton Kincaid involved more. However, if there were to be a player to emerge as the guy, it would likely be Coleman.
Keon Coleman (0) as the 1 to the top of the screen and using a rocker step to create separation at the top of his route
— Anthony Cover 1 (@Pro__Ant) October 1, 2025
Buffalo draws New England at home on Sunday night, where Coleman will face a tough test. Patriots shutdown corner Christian Gonzalez returned to action last week after missing a lot of time with a hamstring injury. He primarily operates on the outside, also where Coleman is aligned roughly 90% of the time.
In two games against the Patriots last year, Coleman caught just three of 12 targets for 48 yards. There's a big caveat with that, as one of them came in Week 18, where Mitchell Trubisky started. The Patriots have been exploited by WRs in the first four games, conceding the ninth most PPR points per game. Coleman sits on the WR3/WR4 line this week and is likely best kept on the bench if there are other options available.
Should I Start Brian Thomas Jr. for Fantasy Football?
Thomas has been one of the more frustrating players in fantasy through the first month. He's caught only 12 of 32 targets this season for 164 yards and no touchdowns. His 37.5% catch rate is the lowest in the league among receivers with at least 20 targets. After one of the best rookie WR seasons ever, Thomas' second season hasn't gotten off to the best start.
He hasn't gotten as many layup catches as he did last year. Thomas was one of the most efficient players in the league on screens last season, and that was also a staple of Liam Coen's offense in Tampa Bay. But we haven't seen much of that yet, and it feels like an easy way to get your best player the ball in his hands and into the flow of the game.
Puka Nacua fantasy points last week: 36.0 pts
Brian Thomas Jr. so far this entire season: 36.0 pts pic.twitter.com/yJ7MrasY4j
— NFL Fantasy Football (@NFLFantasy) September 30, 2025
Thomas' usage is still encouraging and should signal better days. His 14.2 half-PPR expected points per game are 18th among wide receivers. As he continues to settle into the offense along with Trevor Lawrence, things should start to click here soon. He's just too talented not to.
He draws a tough matchup on Monday night against Kansas City, but perhaps this game becomes a shootout. Thomas has yet to have a blowup game in 2025, and doing it on an island game against the Chiefs would be pretty nice to see. Thomas can be started as a WR2 with upside this week.
Who Should I Start Tool
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Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some common Week 5 fantasy football lineup decisions are regarding players like Courtland Sutton, Keon Coleman, and Brian Thomas Jr. But not to worry, we are here to help make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 5. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 5 of the 2025 NFL season. Our free Who Should I Start? tool will help make your fantasy football lineup decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to start... all free! Get your winning lineups set, and make the right decisions.
Week 5 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Courtland Sutton, Keon Coleman, and Brian Thomas Jr. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 5.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player's name. In the second box, search for the second player's name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed our Who Should I Start? tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, enhanced search results with data to compare, and a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week, our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do is to select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circles), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 5 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 5 (2025)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 5 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular Week 5 searches and comparisons from our 'Who To Start' tool for Courtland Sutton, Keon Coleman, and Brian Thomas Jr compared to others:
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