Biggest Fantasy Football Busts of the Week - Fantasy Outlooks for Tyler Shough, Chase Brown, Jeremiyah Love, Carnell Tate

October 12, 2026

Several NFL players underwhelmed in Week 5 of the 2026 fantasy football season. Andersen Pickard identifies busts at each position and if they'll bounce back.

Week 5 of the 2026 NFL season had a little bit of everything, from two previously winless teams getting their first victories to a pair of exciting overtime finishes. We continued to see several big performances from top players, as well as some huge bounce-back showings from players who disappointed last week.

However, Week 5 wasn't a positive experience for every player. A common trend was that many notable NFL players drastically underperformed. These "busts" failed to meet their fantasy expectations and may have cost their managers an opportunity to win their matchups in Week 5.

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. Players who were limited due to injury are exempt from being featured.

Fantasy Football Quarterback Busts

Tyler Shough, 1.8 FPTS

This was one of the worst performances we have seen all year from a quarterback who is normally very fantasy relevant. Shough threw two interceptions and didn't even reach 100 passing yards as the Saints were embarrassed by the Vikings' phenomenal defense. The road gets much easier from here, as Shough will return to the mid-range QB1 tier for Week 6 against the Giants.

Fantasy Football Running Back Busts

Tony Pollard, 5.2 FPTS

The Titans are in shambles on both sides of the football, and that was reflected in Pollard's Week 5 fantasy performance. He had just 52 rushing yards on 14 carries while failing to carve out a role in the passing game. Pollard's rushing volume remains respectable, but managers really need him to catch more passes if he wants to avoid the "busts" list.

Chase Brown, 7.0 FPTS

Brown rushed for just 39 yards on 13 carries, caught three passes for 21 receiving yards, and lost a fumble. The 26-year-old had an uncharacteristically frustrating day that resulted in the Bengals utilizing him less than Samaje Perine. He'll look to get back on track as a fringe top-12 fantasy running back on the other side of Cincinnati's Week 6 bye.

Chase Brown fantasy managers can’t be feeling great going into the Bengals’ Week 6 bye

In Week 5, Brown played a season-low 59% of the snaps

He still had a route participation rate of 69%, but his RB opportunity share fell to a season-low 51.5%

Samaje Perine got 16 touches

— Adam Koffler (@AdamKoffler) October 12, 2026

Alvin Kamara, 2.6 FPTS

Kamara continues to handle relatively modest volume, but this time around, he wasn't able to replicate last week's two-touchdown performance. He had fewer carries, rushing yards, and touchdowns than Kendre Miller, indicating that Kamara may be slipping to the No. 2 role on the depth chart — or 1B to Miller's 1A, at best — heading into Week 6 against the Giants. He's a very risky fantasy option.

Tyler Allgeier, 3.6 FPTS

Allgeier had his worst fantasy performance of the season, totaling just 16 yards on three carries and two receptions. The Cardinals went extremely pass-heavy on Sunday, resulting in minimal fantasy production for both Allgeier and Jeremiyah Love. The former should be benched in most fantasy leagues against the Rams next week.

Rachaad White, 3.0 FPTS

Between Jacory Croskey-Merritt struggling in Week 4 and inclement weather impacting Sunday's Giants-Commanders game, it seemed like White was due for a solid fantasy performance. Instead, he returned from a one-week absence and mustered just 18 rushing yards on seven carries. He can be benched in most fantasy leagues next week against San Francisco's strong defense.

RJ Harvey, 0.7 FPTS

One week after catching a whopping 10 passes, Harvey's volume was scaled back drastically as he rushed for just seven yards on three carries this Sunday. He also failed to haul in his lone target as a receiver. It seems like this backfield could continue to be plagued by inconsistent, rotating volume. As a result, Harvey is a low-floor RB3/flex for Week 6 against a strong Seahawks defense.

Omarion Hampton, 4.9 FPTS

Hampton led the team in carries on Sunday, but it resulted in just 2.4 yards per carry. He was also targeted just once in the passing game. The Chargers seem to be inching closer to a three-headed backfield, which drops Hampton to the low-end RB2 or high-end RB3/flex tier for Week 6 in Kansas City.

#Chargers Week 5 RB Usage

- Kimani Vidal: 42% snaps, 8 carries, 11 routes, 2 targets (56 yds, TD)
- Keaton Mitchell: 32% snaps, 6 carries, 11 routes, 4 targets (29 yds)
- Omarion Hampton: 32% snaps, 14 carries, 2 routes, 1 target (39 yds)

Hampton remains highly inefficent

— Michael F. Florio (@MichaelFFlorio) October 11, 2026

Jeremiyah Love, 2.2 FPTS

Love had absolutely no answer for the Lions, averaging just 1.8 yards per carry and failing to haul in his only target. He has now scored fewer than 7.6 fantasy points in three of his last four games, casting doubt on the first-round pick's ability to perform as a flashy fantasy option in his rookie season. He's a low-floor RB2 for Week 6 against the Rams.

Cam Skattebo, 7.1 FPTS

For the second week in a row, Skattebo turned in a fantasy performance that is right on the fringe of "bust" territory. Fantasy managers surely would have liked to see the 24-year-old handle a little more than 13 carries in the sloppy rain, and a late lost fumble also hurt his final stat line.

Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Busts

Jaylen Waddle, 4.8 FPTS

For the third time this season, Waddle has been outperformed by Courtland Sutton in fantasy football. The two have yet to coexist as fantasy-relevant receivers in the same game this season. So far, when one performs well, the other one struggles, and vice versa. As a result, Waddle is a risky low-end WR2 play Week 6 as the Broncos host the Seahawks.

Are we allowed to start the bust talk on Jaylen Waddle yet?

He's been held to 35 yds or fewer in 4 of 5 games with just 1 TD on the season

— Michael F. Florio (@MichaelFFlorio) October 11, 2026

Michael Wilson, 7.4 FPTS

With Marvin Harrison Jr. scratched and ultimately traded to Houston, it seemed like Wilson might have an opportunity to break out in fantasy football. Wilson already had a big role offensively, but the Harrison trade had a chance to strengthen his role further. Instead, he posted a modest 30 receiving yards. He'll now look to bounce back against the Rams next week.

DK Metcalf, 5.3 FPTS

Metcalf had his worst outing of the season, catching just three passes for 12 receiving yards. It seemed like the 28-year-old would handle increased volume with Michael Pittman Jr. (foot) sidelined, but in reality, that couldn't have been further from what actually happened. Metcalf is a low-end WR2 or high-end WR3 heading into Week 6 against the Buccaneers.

Rome Odunze, 5.0 FPTS

The Bears' offense stalled in Week 5, ultimately resulting in the benching of quarterback Tyson Bagent. The offensive struggles rubbed off on Odunze, who caught just three of nine targets for 40 yards and also lost a fumble. He has been held to fewer than 7.5 fantasy points in four of five games this year, dropping him outside the top 36 fantasy receivers for Week 6 against the Falcons.

Carnell Tate, 1.6 FPTS

Just one game removed from a nine-catch, 145-yard performance, Tate turned in a dud. He was targeted five times against the Texans and ultimately caught just one pass for six yards. The 21-year-old should bounce back as a low-end WR2 or high-end WR3 for Week 6 against the Colts, especially as the Titans continue to frequently operate in a negative game script.

Buy low on Carnell Tate

— Adam Koffler (@AdamKoffler) October 12, 2026

Romeo Doubs, 2.6 FPTS

Doubs' upward trajectory came to an abrupt halt on Sunday. Quarterback Drake Maye had 374 passing yards and four passing touchdowns, but he was only able to connect with Doubs for one 16-yard completion. This performance showed that Doubs is not immune to an occasional dud, but we'd still roll him out as a WR3/flex in deeper leagues for Week 6 against the Jets.

Isaiah Williams, 2.9 FPTS

Entering Week 5, Williams had scored double-digit fantasy points in two of his last three games. It seemed like he was still trending up with Adonai Mitchell (finger) sidelined, but that didn't end up being the case. With just one catch on two targets, Williams will drop in the Week 6 fantasy rankings while offering a much lower floor than we previously anticipated.

Fantasy Football Tight End Busts

Jake Ferguson, 4.9 FPTS

For the third week in a row, Ferguson was held to just three catches. He continues to handle short-yardage targets, leaving him with very little room to produce in fantasy football. If you throw out his two-touchdown game from Week 2, he's averaging just 5.2 fantasy points per game. He should be benched in all fantasy leagues ahead of Week 6 against Green Bay.

Colston Loveland, 3.9 FPTS

Loveland continues to be one of the most disappointing picks from 2026 fantasy football drafts. He has been held to fewer than 7.2 fantasy points in four of his five games so far this year, despite consistently handling enormous snap shares. His ceiling will increase when quarterback Caleb Williams (hamstring) returns, but he ranks outside the top 12 fantasy tight ends for now.

Michael Mayer, 1.2 FPTS

Mayer is a rare example of a tight end who is second on his team's depth chart, but still has streaming appeal in redraft leagues. Streaming Mayer this week backfired, as he caught just one pass for two yards. We would recommend starting another team's No. 1 tight end, rather than Mayer, in Week 6.

Mark Andrews, 4.8 FPTS

Andrews had a costly drop and a costly fumble in the Ravens' Week 5 loss to the Falcons on Sunday Night Football. The veteran tight end has definitely been trending downward in fantasy football over the last handful of months, but Sunday's single-game performance represented a new season-low mark for the 31-year-old in PPR leagues.

FUMBLE!!!

That's a @jlbiii3 touchdown 😮‍💨

NBC | NFL+ https://t.co/k5bVMSwAxD

— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) October 12, 2026

Juwan Johnson, 5.6 FPTS

The Saints' offense had seemingly no answer for a very aggressive, talented, and well-coached Vikings defense. Johnson still managed to catch four passes, but it resulted in just 16 yards. Not only was this his worst fantasy performance of the season, but it was also his first time posting single-digit fantasy points since Week 18 of the 2025 season.

Harold Fannin Jr., 1.4 FPTS

Fannin turned in his worst fantasy performance of the season, catching just one of his four targets for four yards. The 22-year-old's streak of double-digit outings ended at three games, and he'll look to start the streak back up in Week 6 against Baltimore. This is just a bump in the road, and Fannin should return to the TE1 range very soon.

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