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Who Should I Drop for Week 5? Fantasy Football outlooks for Dontayvion Wicks, Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Wright, Kyle Pitts Sr., Kenny Gainwell, Kaelon Black, Adonai Mitchell, Jordan Addison, Tank Bigsby.
Who Should I Drop? Who Should I Keep? Some of the most common Week 5 fantasy football cut candidates include players like Dontayvion Wicks, Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Wright, Kyle Pitts Sr., Kenny Gainwell, Kaelon Black, Adonai Mitchell, Jordan Addison, and Tank Bigsby. However, don't worry, we are here to help you make the right waiver wire decisions and winning moves for Week 5. Once you decide who to drop, find your optimal fantasy football pickups for Week 5 of the 2026 NFL season. Our free Who Should I Pickup? tool helps make your fantasy football waiver wire decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to add... all free!
Compare up to four players and we'll tell you who to pickup...
Fantasy Football Drop Candidates
Read about fantasy football players to consider dropping for Week 5:
Adonai Mitchell, New York Jets
New York Jets wide receiver Adonai Mitchell (finger) has been ruled out for Sunday's game against Cleveland, according to ESPN's Rich Cimini. It'll be his third straight missed game, although head coach Aaron Glenn offered some encouraging news about his recovery. Glenn confirmed Mitchell hasn't undergone surgery and said he's "progressing faster than we thought," but declined to clarify whether the injury is a sprain or fracture.
Mitchell suffered the injury during practice ahead of Week 3 and hasn't played since. He was starting to establish himself as a bigger part of New York's passing attack, catching six of 12 targets for 63 yards against Green Bay in Week 2.
The 24-year-old has nine receptions for 123 yards through two appearances this season. Isaiah Williams has been getting more opportunities in Mitchell's absence, including a 58-yard touchdown against Chicago last week. Mitchell remains week-to-week, with his next chance to return coming against New England in Week 6.
For now, he's only worth stashing in deeper 12+ team formats.
Kyle Pitts Sr., Atlanta Falcons
Four games into the 2026 season, Atlanta Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts Sr. has been one of the biggest disappointments in fantasy football. The 26-year-old is coming off a 2025 campaign where he finally had the breakout that many had been looking for, recording 88 catches for 928 yards and five touchdowns on 118 targets across 17 games.
However, Pitts Sr. has only hauled in five catches for 67 yards on nine targets across the first four weeks of 2026. Two of those games came without Falcons QB1 Michael Penix Jr. under center, which provides some excuse for Pitts Sr.'s underwhelming production. Still, Pitts Sr. has logged just four catches for 52 yards on five targets in the two games where he has shared the field with Penix Jr.
Atlanta's run-heavy offense filters through running back Bijan Robinson, and wide receiver Drake London is the clear number one option when the Falcons do turn to the air. Particularly in shallower leagues, fantasy managers are justified in dropping Pitts Sr. and looking elsewhere on the waiver wire.
Tyreek Hill, Free Agent
Free-agent wide receiver Tyreek Hill (knee) took the stand in his assault and battery civil trial on Thursday and denied allegations that he ever physically abused his estranged wife while also saying he was "deeply ashamed" for having threatened his wife's safety by saying he was "able to get people to hurt her," according to ESPN's Xuan Thai.
The NFL is reviewing Hill's personal conduct, and his agent said that Hill could be close to negotiating a new NFL contract after recovering from knee surgery that ended his final season with the Miami Dolphins early in 2025. Reports have suggested that Hill is most likely to rejoin the Kansas City Chiefs, who are on bye in Week 5, after they drafted him in the fifth round in 2016 out of West Alabama.
Hill repeatedly denied abusive behavior and claimed most of their disagreements surrounded financial concerns he had with respect to a post-nuptial agreement that he claims she would not sign.
It remains to be seen if Hill will face any discipline from the league if he signs with a new team, but for now, with his return to the NFL potentially coming soon, the Cheetah is worth stashing, especially if he rejoins the Chiefs and head coach Andy Reid. The 32-year-old eight-time Pro Bowler has six 1,000-yard seasons, including a league-high 1,799 receiving yards in 2023 with Miami.
Tank Bigsby, Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles running back Tank Bigsby (core) has officially been placed on injured reserve. This move was widely expected, according to a report from NFL.com's Ian Rapoport, but the Eagles made it official on Tuesday. Bigsby picked up a core muscle injury during the final minutes of Sunday's Week 4 loss against the Los Angeles Rams. He suffered the injury while handling a larger workload (48% snap share, 14 carries, and 55 rushing yards) in the aftermath of an injury to teammate Saquon Barkley (hamstring).
Landing on IR will require Bigsby to miss a minimum of four games, but Rapoport reported that the 24-year-old will undergo surgery and has a timeline closer to six weeks. With Bigsby and Barkley both sidelined, the injury-plagued Eagles will now turn to Will Shipley to lead their backfield against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 5.
Jaylen Wright, Miami Dolphins
Miami Dolphins running back Jaylen Wright (foot) was added to the Week 5 injury report with a foot injury on Thursday and was listed as a limited participant in practice, according to David Furones of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
It remains to be seen if Wright had a setback with a foot injury that caused him to miss the Week 3 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, but we should have a better idea of his status for this weekend's contest at home against the Cincinnati Bengals. The Dolphins are already without starter De'Von Achane (knee) for the rest of the season due to a torn ACL, so if Wright cannot play this weekend, Ollie Gordon II should handle a hefty backfield role as the Dolphins look for their first win of the season.
Although the 23-year-old Wright only has eight carries for 17 yards and no receptions through three games, he is a worthwhile fantasy handcuff who could eventually have a bigger role alongside Gordon if he can stay healthy. Wright is currently rostered in just under 20% of Yahoo leagues and remains a target best suited for deeper leagues.
Who Should I Pickup Tool
Trying to decide who to pick up off the waiver wire instead? Check the Who Should I Pickup tool here.
Week 5 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on finding replacements for specific players like Emanuel Wilson, Kenyon Sadiq, Ollie Gordon II.
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 Pickup? button to see who the recommended waiver wire pickups are based on fantasy football rankings, projections, and more.
Improvements For Who Should I Pickup? You may have noticed, our Who Should I Pickup? tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win on the waiver wire in 2026. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, stats, projections, strength of schedule, enhanced search results with data to compare, and a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football waiver wire rankings and projections based on their research, and updates them constantly throughout the week. 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.
Popular Player Comparison Searches - Who To Pickup
Once you decide who to drop, find your optimal fantasy football waiver wire replacements. Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Pickup tool for Week 5 for Emanuel Wilson, Kenyon Sadiq, Ollie Gordon II:
More Waiver Wire Analysis
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