Welcome back to Week 5 of Fantasy Football! After another week of football, we’ve reached the quarter season landmark. MVP candidates and other standout players have begun to emerge. Don’t fear if your fantasy football team is looking a little weak, The Lance is here to help.

Injuries: 

Noah Fant (Broncos, TE) – Fant was carted off the field on the Thursday night game against the Jets. The Bronco’s up-and-coming tight end was having a great start going into his sophomore year this season. Fant suffered a mild high ankle sprain, and is doubtful to play on Sunday. 

Cam Newton (Patriots, QB) – One of the NFL’s most popular stars contracted Covid-19. This contraction led to an outbreak among the Patriots team, forcing them to lose many key players in the coming weeks. Newton is currently on a one year contract with the Patriots to prove he’s good enough to be a starting quarterback in the league. He’s performing well in New England, proving many of his doubters wrong. It’s a shame to see Cam down right now, but we expect to see him step up as soon as he’s healthy. 

Starts:

Kareem Hunt (Browns, RB) – After a good portion of the season splitting carries with Nick Chubb, Hunt has finally been given the chance to solidify himself as the prominent RB1 in this league for the first time since his Kansas City days. After Chubb went down with a minor MCL injury, the Browns placed him on the IR with reports saying he will be out for several weeks. Hunt, who already had a great start to the season has an even bigger chance to perform at a much higher level.

Todd Gurley (Falcons, RB) – Gurley has been able to revive his career at his new home in Atlanta. The Falcons are facing off against the Panther defense, which has been horrendous against running backs. Although the Falcons are winless, look for Gurley to shine once more as he scored two touchdowns last week and continues to prove to the league why he’s a great running back. This game will be a shootout, so placing Gurley in your lineup will be in your best interest.

Sits: 

David Montgomery (Bears, RB) –  Montgomery took part in 85% of Chicago’s snaps this past week in the 19-11 loss to the Colts. With a total of 57 yards, don’t expect Montgomery to shine this Sunday, as he has another tough matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers who have allowed the second fewest yards per carry. 

A.J. Green (Bengals, WR) – Green’s time might be finally up. In last game’s win, he tallied five targets for only three yards. He is now the third-highest scoring receiver in fantasy for the Bengals, as Tyler Boyd and Tee Higgins have shined more throughout the season. This week, Green will be going against a lockdown Ravens defense with cornerbacks looking to shut down every one of the Cincinnati receivers. 

Miles Sanders (Eagles, RB) – Since week two when Sanders tallied 23 touches, 131 yards, and a touchdown, he has progressively been scoring lower points in fantasy every week. With Philadelphia’s weak receiving core, defenses have been able to load the box and stop the run game. Don’t look for Sanders to bounce back, as they are going against the Steelers, who have allowed 2.3 yards per carry and have not let a running back surpass 70 yards. 

Waiver Wire:

Deebo Samuel (49ers, WR) – After a foot injury during the past preseason, Samuel saw his first action back on the field last week with a limited workload. Good news is that he is fully recovered and with the 49ers starting quarterback coming back, look for Samuel to boost this 49ers offense back on its feet. 

Teddy Bridgewater (Panthers, QB) – If your team is looking for a QB because you are on a bye or going up against a strong defense, look to pick up Bridgewater. Bridgewater has been noticeably productive and quite underrated this season. He is going up against a run down and terrible Atlanta defense, who have allowed many scores to opposing teams. With the speed and athleticism that Carolina has, like RB Christian McCaffery, Bridgewater will look to put up big numbers for fantasy owners.