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Week 5 Waiver Wire for Fantasy Football
What’s up, RotoBallers. Below, I will highlight some fantasy football waiver wire sleepers for Week 5 of the NFL season. Week 4 was a fun-filled and action-packed week of fantasy football action. We saw a lot of great performances, a few more injuries (as usual), and some players who either broke out are on the verge of breaking out for fantasy football owners. In turn, there are some waiver wire pickups and sleepers for Week 5 that can have a huge impact on your team. I have them covered here!
Note that in order to make this weekly waiver wire pickups column, a player has to be owned in fewer than 50% of Fleaflicker leagues at the time of this article’s writing. Additionally, be sure to check out many more great RotoBaller articles and waiver wire analysis pieces at each position throughout the week, including risers/fallers, deeper league sleepers, rankings and more. Good luck in Week 5, RotoBallers!
Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2025:
- 2025 fantasy football rankings
- Running back (RB) fantasy football rankings
- Wide receiver (WR) fantasy football rankings
- Tight end (TE) fantasy football rankings
- Quarterback (QB) fantasy football rankings
- FLEX fantasy football rankings
- Defense (D/ST) fantasy football rankings
- Kicker (K) fantasy football rankings
- Dynasty fantasy football rankings
Quarterback Waiver Wire Pickup Options
1. Mike Glennon @ Saints - 9% Owned on Fleaflicker
Glennon stepped in and immediately looked pretty much like his old self, a decent but not great fantasy quarterback. He now gets the Saints, who so very kindly showcased their terrible defense to the world on Sunday night. Playing in the Superdome is not the easiest, but Glennon did it last year and scored 14 points. He should be a safe play this week.
2. Blake Bortles vs Steelers - 23% Owned on Fleaflicker
The Steelers were missing three defensive starters last week, and it showed. Two of them, Ike Taylor and Jarvis Jones, will definitely not be returning for Week 5, and Ryan Shazier's status is up in the air. The Steelers D was questionable to begin with, and Mike Glennon drove down the field for the game-winning score in less than a minute. Bortles will have his struggles, but he should be able to put up a nice game here.
3. Geno Smith @ Chargers - 25% Owned on Fleaflicker
Smith is coming off a tough game against the Lions that really highlighted some of the bad in Geno. He had a typical bad interception and some really bad decision making. Despite all that, the Lions have been a really good defense having already shut down Aaron Rodgers and an improved (?) Eli Manning. The Chargers are nothing special, though, and Eric Decker should finally be fully healthy again. Geno isn't someone I want to rely on, but he'll probably be fine here.
Other QBs to consider: These two didn't quite make the cut in terms of ownership, but Eli Manning vs. Falcons (54%) has a great matchup and has really turned the corner. Carson Palmer @ Broncos (60%) has been dropped in many leagues following two inactive weeks and a bye. He's looking like he'll start this week and it's a nice matchup. Teddy Bridgewater (22%) looked like the real deal in Week 4, but left Sunday's game with an injury and is playing on a short week. This may not be the best week to start him, but he should definitely be considered off all Week 5 waiver wires as a bench stash at the very least.
Running Back Waiver Wire Pickup Options
1. Jerick McKinnon @ Packers - 14% Owned on Fleaflicker
I had pretty much given up on McKinnon for now after he failed to do much with his touches in limited snaps, but he had a huge game here. Matt Asiata looks like he'll be the goal line back, but McKinnon is very talented and he should be owned. I'm hoping he can carve out a role as a receiver, as well.
2. Lorenzo Taliaferro @ Colts - 32% Owned on Fleaflicker
I talked about him last week, but Taliaferro needs to be owned in more leagues. I expected Bernard Pierce to get most of the carries given that he was active, but supposedly the Ravens decided to hold him out for precautionary reasons. Well, they did so, and both Taliaferro and Justin Forsett looked decent here. Taliaferro got a score for the second straight week, and it's looking like he'll be very hard to bench. Forsett (50%) is also worth consideration in PPR leagues.
3. Branden Oliver vs Jets - 4% Owned on Fleaflicker
This is a terrible matchup and I would not consider it unless you're desperate, as the Jets have completely shut down opposing running backs. That said, Donald Brown looked terrible against the lowly Jags in a game in which I assume the Chargers would have preferred to run a lot more with a lead. Oliver actually had more yards (by a small margin) on one fewer touch this week. There is a good chance that he continues to get 12+ touches next week, and he might even see more time than Brown. Again, it's a super tough matchup, but the waiver wire for RB is weak this week, so it's worth a consideration.
Other RBs to consider: Denard Robinson (4%) received more snaps than Toby Gerhart, and will continue to receive carries and receptions in the Jacksonville backfield. He looks like the more talented runner as well. Darrin Reaves (1%) received carries as the lead running back after DeAngelo Williams was forced from the game with injuries. The Carolina backfield is in shambles with injuries to Jonathan Stewart, Mike Tolbert and DeAngelo Williams.
Wide Receiver Waiver Wire Pickup Options
1. Jarius Wright @ Packers - 1% Owned on Fleaflicker
As we all wondered whether Greg Jennings or Cordarrelle Patterson would be the favored receiver for Teddy Bridgewater, Wright caught eight passes for 132 yards on ten targets. It makes some sense-- these two probably practiced together as backups, so the chemistry was there, but I'd be lying if I said I saw this coming. Is it just a one game outlier? That's certainly possible, but if I am WR needy, I'm not going to wait to find out. Bridgewater looked really good, and if Wright is going to be Teddy's guy, then I want him on my team.
2. Malcom Floyd vs Jets - 22% Owned on Fleaflicker
Floyd always seems to fly under the radar, but it is Floyd and not Royal who remains the #2 on this depth chart. He now has back-to-back weeks of 9 points, and that is much likelier to continue than Eddie Royal's two scores a game. In fact, besides being shut down against Seattle (and who is going to hold that against him?), Floyd has at least 9 points in each of the other three games. The Jets secondary is pretty bad, as we well know. The Lions just carved them up with Calvin Johnson as a decoy. Floyd will never be an exciting play, but Philip Rivers is playing great and Floyd is a part of that.
3. Louis Murphy @ Saints - 0% Owned on Fleaflicker
Murphy is owned in zero percent of leagues, and rightly so. He was released by the Bucs earlier in the year, only to be signed again this past week following the release of Chris Owusu. Murphy immediately stepped in and led the team in targets and yards with a strong six catches for 99 yards. I hasten to add that I would only consider Murphy if Mike Evans is out (he left Week 4 with a groin injury), as Vincent Jackson is still also around. As I mentioned with Mike Glennon, the Saints are a great matchup. I'd probably have to be desperate to take the plunge on Murphy, but hey, isn't that the fun in fantasy football?
Tight End Waiver Wire Pickup Options
1. Heath Miller @ Jags - 43% Owned on Fleaflicker
I talked Miller up last week, and he delivered a strong performance against the Bucs. He gets another good matchup here, though the Chargers tight ends let me down this past week. I'll keep the faith with Miller, who Ben Roethlisberger trusts, and he should be a great stream option.
2. Garrett Graham @ Cowboys - 9% Owned on Fleaflicker
Graham hasn't been heavily involved in the passing game, but he gets consistent targets from Ryan Fitzpatrick every week. The Cowboys have now allowed six touchdowns to opposing tight ends in four games. For whatever reason, it's just a complete mismatch. Graham might be the one to end the streak of success, but anyone streaming tight ends week to week knows it's a fickle game. Even with DeAndre Hopkins and Andre Johnson getting targets, the upside here is enough, especially considering the dearth of alternative options.
3. Clay Harbor vs Steelers - 0% Owned on Fleaflicker
Another rare recommendation with 0% ownership, and I can't say I feel too strongly about this one. For the truly desperate, or in very deep leagues, Harbor makes a nice gamble. Even with Allen Robinson, Allen Hurns, Cecil Shorts, Toby Gerhart and Denard Robinson in the mix - Harbor led the team in targets, yards and receptions this past week, finishing with a nice eight receptions on eight targets for 69 yards. That performance should be good enough for Harbor to maintain the starting job while Marcedes Lewis (IR designated to return) is out.
Other TEs to consider: Rookie Eric Ebron (20%) turned in a decent performance with three catches on four targets and a touchdown. He is a big boy, and is playing in a high-powered offense with an expanding role.
