Who Should I Start for Fantasy Football Week 5? Denzel Boston, Michael Pittman, DJ Moore, Dohnte Meyers, Tre Tucker, Jauan Jennings, Davante Adams, Malik Nabers, Terry McLaurin

October 8, 2026

Who Should I Start for Week 5? Fantasy Football outlooks for Denzel Boston, Michael Pittman Jr., DJ Moore, Dohnte Meyers, Tre Tucker, Jauan Jennings, Davante Adams, Malik Nabers, Terry McLaurin.

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Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some of the most common Week 5 fantasy football lineup decisions involve players like Denzel Boston, Michael Pittman, DJ Moore, Dohnte Meyers, Tre Tucker, Jauan Jennings, Davante Adams, Malik Nabers, and Terry McLaurin. 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.

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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:

Malik Nabers, New York Giants

New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers (knee) is dealing with soreness in his surgically repaired right knee and is uncertain if he'll be able to play this week against the Commanders. Nabers said, "We'll see how the next day goes," when asked about his availability after practice on Wednesday. He also discussed his frustrations on the sideline in Sunday's win over the Cardinals.

Nabers said, "I felt like I didn't get targeted much after halftime," which is why he was waving his arms at the Giants' sideline and yelling to the coaching staff several times during the game. He did only get three targets in the second half, but it remains to be seen if coach John Harbaugh and his staff will allow Nabers to behave this way or if it will get him any more work.

If he does overcome his knee issues and plays this week, he will be a solid WR3, according to RotoBaller's rankings, where he is the No. 26 WR for Week 5.

Terry McLaurin, Washington Commanders

Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn said that wide receiver Terry McLaurin (hamstring) will not practice on Wednesday, but he will work off to the side, according to Tashan Reed of The Athletic. McLaurin tweaked his hamstring in practice last week and was unable to play in the blowout loss to the Indianapolis Colts in London on Sunday.

The 31-year-old will have two more chances to return to practice on Thursday and Friday, but as of now, he is very much up in the air to play in Week 5 at home against the division-rival New York Giants.

If Scary Terry misses a second straight game, Antonio Williams will be a sneaky deep-league WR streamer against the G-Men, especially if quarterback Jayden Daniels makes a return from a dislocated left elbow that he suffered in the Week 2 loss to the division-rival Dallas Cowboys.

McLaurin had only four total catches for 64 yards in the first two games of the season, but he rebounded in the Week 3 upset win over the Seattle Seahawks with six catches on nine targets for 77 yards and his first touchdown of the season. He will need to return to practice in the next few days to have a chance at returning this weekend.

Dohnte Meyers, Cincinnati Bengals

Cincinnati Bengals rookie wide receiver Dohnte Meyers had a breakout game in his team's Week 4 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, recording seven catches for 82 yards on nine targets. Meyers got his chance to play after star Bengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase (concussion) was forced to leave the game with a concussion.

Coming out of Week 4, Chase is currently in concussion protocol, and fellow Cincinnati wideout Tee Higgins (adductor) is reportedly battling an adductor strain. If both Chase and Higgins can play in the Bengals' Week 5 matchup against the Miami Dolphins, Meyers may be hard-pressed to see fantasy-relevant target volume.

However, if one or both of Chase and Higgins is inactive, Meyers could be one of Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow's top targets against Miami. Given the injury uncertainty in Cincinnati, Meyers profiles as a top waiver wire target for fantasy managers ahead of Week 5 and potential deep-league streamer.

Michael Pittman Jr., Pittsburgh Steelers

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. (foot) has been limited in practice while dealing with a foot injury, and he hasn't been able to get going this season with his new team. Pittman has been mostly an afterthought since returning from missing Week 2, even though the Steelers have scored 30 and 24 points in the last two weeks and Aaron Rodgers has thrown for over 290 yards and six touchdowns.

Pittman didn't score any of those touchdowns and only had two catches in each game, for 16 yards and 15 yards. In deep leagues, you can hold on to Pittman and hope he overcomes the injury and becomes more productive later in the season, but with the offense going so well without him, that seems like it could be a long way away.

If there are better short-term options on your waiver wire who are on the rise, Pittman is a drop candidate in standard-sized leagues coming into the Steelers Week 5 matchup with his former team, the Colts.

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 - Denzel Boston, Michael Pittman Jr., DJ Moore, Dohnte Meyers, Tre Tucker, Jauan Jennings, Davante Adams, Malik Nabers, Terry McLaurin. 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 Denzel Boston, Michael Pittman Jr., DJ Moore, Dohnte Meyers, Tre Tucker, Jauan Jennings, Davante Adams, Malik Nabers, Terry McLaurin.