A Quick Look at Week 5: Tom Brady Returns
Week 4 had its fair share of big performances and surprises. Julio Jones dropping 300 yards on a dozen catches was one of them. And it's not that Julio didn't have a great matchup, its just that 300-yard receiving games are pretty few and far between. If you claim you weren't surprised by that, you're lying.
Matt Ryan parlayed that Julio game into your everyday, run-of-the-mill, 503-yard and 4-touchdown contest. And his reward for his efforts is an upcoming date with the Denver Broncos "No Fly Zone" defense.
Julio's day was so amazing, you might have forgotten A.J. Green went for 10 catches, 173 yards and a touchdown on Thursday night. Le'Veon Bell didn't look rusty at all, breaking 144 yards on the ground to go with 5 catches for 34 yards. And anyone who dropped some serious FAAB on Jordan Howard was not disappointed, as the new Chicago Bears featured back went for 111 rushing yards and caught 3 passes for 21 yards.
Where can we expect some fantasy deliciousness to come from this week? Let's have a quick, early look.
Week 5 Hot Spots
- The San Diego Chargers and Oakland Raiders square off in a game that currently has a 50.5 Vegas total. Derek Carr is coming off a contest in which he threw four touchdown passes, and he's thrown a total of eight touchdowns in his last three games. The Chargers have given up 1,230 passing yards (fifth-most) this season, allowing 17.9 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks. Carr is in a great spot in this potential shoot-out.
- Tom Brady returns from his four-game deflategate suspension to face a Cleveland Browns defense that has allowed 10 touchdown passes already this season. (Brady may throw for 10 touchdowns in the game.) The New England Patriots have a 28.5 Vegas-implied team total, currently the highest of the week. Brady is sure to be a top option in season-long and daily fantasy this week.
- The San Francisco 49ers have allowed 493 rushing yards to running backs (fourth-most) this season, and will now face the versatile stud David Johnson in Week 5, who will more than likely be leaned on more heavily if Carson Palmer can't play due to the concussion protocol. Johnson could have a special Thursday.
- Eddie Lacy and the previously mentioned Bell are both at home and favored by at least seven points. Both players should have a chance to pile on yards and points in the running game as heavy favorites.
- Antonio Brown and Ben Roethlisberger are playing at home where they destroy people on a regular basis. You needn't be concerned with matchups for either player at Heinz Field. That said, the New York Jets have allowed the sixth-most passing yards (1,219), touchdowns (8), and fantasy points (19.8) to quarterbacks this season. Darrelle Revis is a shell of his former self, and the Jets defense as a whole has allowed 25.7 fantasy points per game to wide receivers (10th-most) in 2016. Big Ben and Antonio look poised to get loose once again.
- Odell Beckham, Sterling Shepard, and Victor Cruz should be licking their collective chops to face a Green Bay Packers defense that has been hemorrhaging points to opposing wide receivers this season. The Packers have allowed 30.5 fantasy points per game (third-most) to receivers thus far.
As always, keep reading numberFire as we get closer to kickoff, as we'll have tons and tons of content covering Week 5 in depth. And, of course, good luck!
