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Who Should I Start for Week 5? Fantasy Football outlooks for Garrett Wilson, Chase Brown, Chris Olave, Ashton Jeanty, Nico Collins, Justin Jefferson, Kyren Williams, Drake London, Brian Thomas Jr.
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some of the most common Week 5 fantasy football lineup decisions involve players like Garrett Wilson, Chase Brown, Chris Olave, Ashton Jeanty, Nico Collins, Justin Jefferson, Kyren Williams, Drake London, Brian Thomas Jr. However, don't worry; we are here to help you make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 5. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 5 of the 2026 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.
Compare up to four players and we'll tell you who to start...
Week 5 Fantasy Football Outlooks
Below are some fantasy football outlooks written by our NFL team here at RotoBaller, bringing you their fantasy football analysis and advice on which players to consider starting in Week 5:
Garrett Wilson, New York Jets
New York Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson was unable to carry his momentum from Week 3 into this weekend's matchup against the Chicago Bears. Wilson was quiet with three receptions on four targets for 27 yards in the loss. It wasn't all his fault, as the Jets only possessed the ball for 17 minutes in this game.
His four targets actually led the team, with quarterback Geno Smith only attempting 15 total passes. Fantasy managers should expect better days ahead for Wilson with a matchup against the Cleveland Browns in Week 5. Wilson should bounce back into WR1 territory for that one.
Chris Olave, New Orleans Saints
New Orleans Saints wide receiver Chris Olave was rested in practice on Wednesday but was not listed with an injury designation, according to Saints sideline reporter Jeff Nowak. Olave took a hard shot in the Monday night loss to the Atlanta Falcons to close out Week 4, but his absence on Wednesday was not related to that hit. The 26-year-old should be just fine to play this weekend against the visiting Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, and he should be locked into all starting fantasy lineups despite the difficult matchup against the Vikings' defense.
The former first-rounder is the team's unquestioned WR1 and has a great connection with second-year quarterback Tyler Shough. After reaching the third 1,000-yard season of his career in 2025 with a career-best nine touchdowns, Olave leads the NFL in targets (48) through four games in 2026 and has added 35 receptions for 491 yards and one touchdown to begin his fifth year in the league. He already has three 100-yard games this season after catching eight of 12 targets for 116 yards on Monday night. Olave has at least 10 targets in all four games in 2026.
Nico Collins, Houston Texans
Houston Texans wide receiver Nico Collins absolutely dominated in fantasy football in Week 4, catching seven of his eight targets for 118 yards and two touchdowns. The only negative of his day was that he wasn't targeted more, as he was extremely productive and efficient in a game that turned into a shootout. Texans offensive coordinator Nick Caley is a major cap to Collins' ceiling -- his day could have been much bigger if the offense was force-feeding him the ball.
But Caley ensures the ball is spread around to the likes of TE Dalton Schultz and WRs Xavier Hutchinson and Kayshon Boutte rather than hyper-targeting his most explosive playmakers. The results show in the final score, which was another loss for Houston.
Their offense looked better than usual against a weak Cowboys defense. Collins was still absolutely dominant, and should continue to be so moving forward, but his production last week was unsustainable long-term on such a paltry amount of targets, considering Collins' talent and the game script. He's still a must-start fantasy WR1 for Week 5, when the Texans will take on the struggling Tennessee Titans.
Justin Jefferson, Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell said that wide receiver Justin Jefferson (ankle) is "doing well" and will be limited in Wednesday's practice. Jefferson sprained his left ankle in the Week 3 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and did not practice last week before being ruled out for the Week 4 win over the Miami Dolphins. The All-Pro receiver is not a lock to return for a Week 5 tilt on the road against the New Orleans Saints, but the fact that he is back at practice early in the week is a good sign.
Fellow receiver Jordan Addison is nursing a hamstring injury this week as well, so Minnesota's receiving corps could be short-handed against New Orleans. Jefferson is a must-start in all traditional fantasy football leagues when he is active, but we will need to keep a close eye on his status over the next two days.
With Jefferson out and Addison getting injured on Sunday, tight end T.J. Hockenson had a big game through the air. Jefferson has caught 13 passes for 179 yards and two touchdowns in three games this year, and he has yet to really develop chemistry with quarterback Kyler Murray, with the two players already missing time with injuries in 2026.
Kyren Williams, Los Angeles Rams
Los Angeles Rams running back Kyren Williams had his second-biggest fantasy finish as a pro in his team's Week 4 comeback win over the Philadelphia Eagles, rushing 16 times for 80 yards and two touchdowns and catching 10 of his 13 targets for 67 yards. It was unusual pass-game usage for the RB, as it was easily his career-high in targets, despite him not being an elite pass-catching RB. The rushing volume left a bit to be desired, but the Rams have been dominated by the Eagles ever since Rams head coach Sean McVay began his tenure there.
The Eagles dropped back their defenders into coverage at a high rate and left Williams open in the flat and up the middle far too often for receptions. Wide receivers Puka Nacua (hip) and Davante Adams were the major drivers of this defensive game plan, as they are a nightmare for defensive backs to cover.
Williams' role as the lead back is safe, though in blowout wins, he often cedes touches to backup RB Blake Corum. This is a load-management system that hurts the RB1's upside when the Rams face bad teams. But in Week 5, they'll face the Buffalo Bills, so that won't be an issue. Start Williams in all leagues -- he has massive upside in competitive Rams games, and the Bills have a long history of being gashed by running backs on the ground and through the air.
Who Should I Start Tool
You can also see the Who Should I Start tool here.
Week 5 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Garrett Wilson, Chase Brown, Chris Olave, Ashton Jeanty, Nico Collins, Justin Jefferson, Kyren Williams, Drake London, 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 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, players 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 to select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circle), 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 Garrett Wilson, Chase Brown, Chris Olave, Ashton Jeanty, Nico Collins, Justin Jefferson, Kyren Williams, Drake London, Brian Thomas Jr.
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