Streamers and Sleepers Week 5
8 October 2020 Fantasy Football
If there’s on certainty in the 2020 NFL season, it’s uncertainty. The unanimous top 2 running backs were taken out within minutes of each other, Julio Jones, Michael Thomas and Davante Adams have all barely seen the field. Lamar Jackson is outside the top 10 fantasy QB’s. It’s been absolute chaos and we here at 4th and Jawn thrive among chaos! So with that chaos, here are your week 5 streamers and sleepers. As always, toss me a follow on Twitter @swagman95!
QUARTERBACK
Streamer: Teddy Bridgewater, Panthers
The motto last year was to stream any tight end that was playing against the Cardinals. This year, it’s stream anybody and everybody that is facing off against the Falcons, who own one of the saddest passing defenses that I have ever seen. Teddy has been overachieving this year, and has used the addition of Robby Anderson(WR11 on the year) to actually own a strong downfield passing game, something that offense had been lacking.
Sleeper: Justin Herbert, Chargers
Very quietly, Herbert has averaged 310 passing yards per game this year. The Saints have allowed every quarterback they’ve faced to come away with at least 20 fantasy points. You have to think this is a big matchup for Keenan Allen and Hunter Henry. We are at the point where starting Herbert is no longer a scary play, but a smart play. Don’t forget about him.
RUNNING BACK
Streamer:Chase Edmonds, Cardinals
Chase Edmonds is RB36 on the season. Guess who is RB35?? If you had Kenyan Drake all the way down here when you picked him in the SECOND ROUND this August, shame on you! Okay just kidding, I don’t wish shame on anyone, but come on, you didn’t expect the guy who has bounced from role to role and was benched by ADAM GASE to not be an uneven player? Kyler Murray is RB1 for this team, not Kenyan Drake. It’s the Josh Allen Precedent that I live by, don’t draft the running back in an offense where the quarterback has more of a role! Anyways , Edmonds gets the Jets. The Jets are atrocious, and you can probably still grab Edmonds off waivers. He’s a little bit better of a dart throw at the DFS level, but season-long doesn’t sound too bad either.
Sleeper:Devonta Freeman, Giants
It hurts me to take anyone on the Giants as a fantasy-relevant option, but here I am. The Cowboys have one of the defenses I’ve seen, and as long as Sean Lee and Leighton Vander Esch are out and Jaylon Smith looks like Nate Gerry, I’m picking whoever I can against them. Freeman should be able to catch 5+ passes out of the backfield and produce positive yardage against this team if he isn’t completely cooked yet, and even though they probably won’t win, the Giants can bend this Dallas defense to the breaking point.
WIDE RECEIVER
Streamer: Laviska Shenault, Jaguars
Don’t read too much into this one. Shenault is consistently putting up 6-11 points every week in an offense where he is able to move around a ton, so it’s a no-brainer here that you stream him against a bad Houston Texans defense. Outside of Bradley Roby, who should be shadowing D.J. Chark in this one, the rest of the secondary is less than stellar and Shenault should be able to expose them.
Sleeper: Cole Beasley, Bills
I like Beasley as a sleeper because he’s productive mostly every week as the unsung and under the radar hero of this Buffalo offense in moving the chains. Per ESPN, in his 19 games with the Bills, Beasley has seen at least six targets or scored a touchdown in 16 of them. He’s not a star, but he’s incredibly consistent and it pays off. Josh Allen likes him and this is an attackable Titans defense(if the game gets played).
TIGHT END:
Streamer:Eric Ebron, Steelers
The Eagles allow a league–worst 86% completion percentage on targets to tight ends this year, which should be all the encouragement you need to slot Ebron into your starting lineup if you need to. He is second this year on the Steelers in routes run, so expect him to be the big touchdown catcher that he has always been in the red zone, where Philly has struggled a bit this year.
Sleeper: Greg Olsen, Seahawks
It’s easy to target just about anybody in this Seattle Seahawks offense, because there seems to be so much volume and good will being spread around by Russell Wilson right now. Olsen is no doubt a little down the list below Lockett, Metcalf, and Moore, but there are still opportunities for him against a Vikings secondary that allows nearly a dozen fantasy points per game to tight ends a week after he was targeted on a team-high 35% of his routes. He’s still a good cheap option.
DEFENSE
Streamer: Dallas Cowboys, vs NYG
This one is pretty easy, too. The Giants have struggled to do much of anything since Saquon Barkley went down, so if you’re asking me whether they can string together a competent performance against a QB who is on pace for almost 7,000 yards passing, I’ll politely say no. I think that Daniel Jones has looked flustered, and isn’t quite sure about his receivers to this point. The Cowboys defense is for sure atrocious, but it would be hard for me to say that they aren’t as capable of a streamer as you’ll get, since the Rams D/ST is probably not on waivers at this point.