Running Back (RB) Fantasy Football Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Picks for Week 5 (2026)

October 6, 2026

Matt's running back (RB) fantasy football start 'em, sit 'em picks for Week 5 of 2026. His RB lineups advice for Week 5 fantasy football start/sit decisions.

Running back is all about opportunity, but opportunity means a lot more when the matchup is right. In Week 5, several backs are walking into situations where volume, game script, and defensive weaknesses could create monster fantasy performances. Jaylen Warren and Chase Brown are two names I’m especially interested in this week, and both have the workload and matchup to make a serious impact.

But not every big-name, heavy-usage running back belongs in your lineup. Some backs face defenses that have been downright miserable for fantasy production, while others face workload concerns that make their floor much shakier than their name suggests.

This is where we separate the obvious plays from the potential landmines. The numbers matter, the matchup matters, and most importantly, the opportunity matters. Let’s dive into the Week 5 running backs who could boom—and the ones who could leave fantasy managers wondering why they ever trusted them.

Week 5 - Potential Fantasy Football Booms

Jaylen Warren - RB, Pittsburgh Steelers vs Indianapolis Colts

Remove Rico Dowdle from the equation, and you have a workhorse running back averaging 18.1 fantasy points per game and the RB9 over the last two weeks. Over the last two games, Warren has 34 rushing attempts for 220 yards (6.5 yards per attempt) and 10 receptions for 72 receiving yards. That’s back-to-back 20-touch performances with 100-plus scrimmage yards.

Jaylen Warren takes the pitch and picks up 24

@PITvsCLE on Prime Video
Stream on @NFLPlus https://t.co/xvHkQVoiTf

— NFL (@NFL) October 2, 2026

In Week 4, Warren posted a 97% snap rate, the highest among running backs, and over this two-week sample he's seen a 93.5% snap share, a 70.4% route share, a 14.3% target share, and he's handled 85% of Pittsburgh's rushes. At the same time, Kenneth Walker III remains the staple in missed tackles forced this season (43); Warren's 19 ranks in the top five and has driven much of his production lately.

Even if Dowdle returns, Pittsburgh has to keep feeding Warren, who is taking advantage of his opportunity. Obviously, if Dowdle remains out, Warren is a smash play, especially considering the Colts defense is allowing 28.1 fantasy points per game to opposing backs, the sixth-most, and that after facing Jacory Croskey-Merritt in London, which helped bring that number down.

Chase Brown - RB, Cincinnati Bengals at Miami Dolphins

Remember last season when Brown started slow, and everyone forgot him and either dropped him or sold him at pennies on the dollar. Then Brown came back with vengeance and won fantasy managers' championships who kept the faith. Well, brace yourself; history is about to repeat itself, and it starts here in Week 5.

Brown currently sits at RB14 in fantasy, averaging 14.5 fantasy points per game, but over the last two weeks he has fallen to RB21 status, opening a great buy window for savvy managers. Opportunity leads to production in most cases, and with Ja'Marr Chase (concussion) and Tee Higgins (abductor) dealing with injuries, Brown is the top option in the Bengals' passing game.

Miami is bad. The game scripts are always positive for fantasy backs against Miami. The Dolphins are allowing 98 rushing yards and 40.7 receiving yards per game to opposing running backs. The biggest takeaway is the 2.3 touchdowns per game afforded to the position, leading to a league-high 32.9 fantasy points per game.

Matchup plus opportunity could end up leading Brown to an RB1 fantasy week here in Week 5.

Kyle Monangai - RB, Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers

Kyle Monangai stole the Bears' starting running back job in broad daylight, and no one reported it to the police. What’s going on, people?

D'Andre Swift failed to convert three goal-to-go carries, fumbled early in the third quarter, and did not see the field again. He finished with 7.4 fantasy points and has now scored fewer points over his last three games (31.1) than he did in Week 1 alone (32.4).

Second of the day for @kylemonangai ‼️

📺: FOX https://t.co/VAOecvwzDD

— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) October 4, 2026

Monangai took the rest of the snaps, rushed 30 times (eight of his 30 attempts after the Swift fumble) for 146 yards and two touchdowns, handled seven goal-to-go carries, and scored 28.0 fantasy points. Monangai’s rush share before the fumble was 43%. It was 78% after.

Monangai has 681 career carries between college and the NFL without a fumble, and that is definitely something to monitor. It feels like Ben Johnson will use any excuse not to play Swift, and now he has it with data to back it up.

This week, Monangai faces a Packers run defense that has been Swiss Cheese without Micah Parsons, and I saw that because it is full of holes. Green Bay is allowing 126.3 yards per game to opposing backs and 4.4 yards per carry. For fantasy managers, the important number is 30.7 fantasy points against, the third-most.

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Week 5 - Potential Fantasy Football Busts

Cam Skattebo - RB, New York Giants at Washington Commanders

Jameis Winston is great for Malik Nabers and Isaiah Likely, but not so much for Cam Skattebo. Winston isn’t really what you'd call a checkdown merchant; he wants to push the ball downfield with reckless abandon.

Then there is the Najee Harris factor; before Harris fumbled, this was shaping up to be a split backfield. With Skattebo accounting for a 52% carry share and a single target, and Harris earning a 42% carry share and a majority of the five carries inside the red zone. A 62% snap rate is too hard to trust on a good week, and this upcoming week is far from good.

The Washington Commanders are a lot of things, most of them not great, but one area they have excelled at early on is defending opposing running backs with fantasy aspirations. Washington is yielding just 12.3 fantasy points per game to opposing running backs, the second-fewest, and is surrendering just 56.0 rushing yards per game and 3.3 yards per carry thus far.

Tony Pollard - RB, Tennessee Titans vs Houston Texans

In the best-case scenario, Tony Pollard is a low-end RB2 who could creep into high-end RB2 territory, as he has posted 13-plus fantasy points in each of his last two contests. That’s pretty much where the ceiling ends, I’m afraid.

This week the floor is falling out underneath him, and the ceiling is caving in as the Titans face a Texans run defense that leads the league in rushing futility in terms of fantasy production. Houston has yet to yield a rushing touchdown this season, and the 11.8 fantasy points allowed is the lowest in fantasy football.

Pollard may seem like a guy you want to get in there. But if you do, you become the Mike McDaniel of fantasy football, get too cute, and it will backfire.

Christian McCaffrey - RB, San Francisco 49ers at Seattle Seahawks

From the bold and the beautiful playbook, may I present Christian McCaffrey against the Seattle Seahawks. This matchup could go either way. I either look like the fool or a mad genius. Either way, call me Rod, and I like to party.

CMC touchdown!

DENvsSF on CBS/Paramount+
Stream on @NFLPlus https://t.co/eO7Rd1K71H

— NFL (@NFL) October 4, 2026

Don’t worry, I have actual data here to work with. In three games against the Seahawks last season, McCaffrey produced 127 rushing yards on 41 rushing attempts. Yes, McCaffrey was involved in the passing game, adding 146 receiving yards on 20 receptions; however, even with 61 touches over three games, McCaffrey failed to find the end zone.

Based on last season, we have the McCaffrey floor at around 11.6 fantasy points, well below his seasonal average of 18.5. As for the Seahawks, they are allowing the fifth-fewest fantasy points to running backs this season, which should contribute to a lower-than-expected fantasy outlook this week.

You can also see the Who Should I Start tool here.

Week 5 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Jaylen Warren, Chase Brown, Kyle Monangai, Cam Skattebo, Tony Pollard, and Christian McCaffrey. 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 name. In the second box, search for the second player 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 that 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, stats, projections, strength of schedule, player news, and enhanced search results with data to compare with 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 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 (2026)? 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 searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Week 5 for Jaylen Warren, Chase Brown, Kyle Monangai, Cam Skattebo, Tony Pollard, and Christian McCaffrey.