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Weekend Waiver Wire Stashes: Week 5 (2022 Fantasy Football)

Weekend Waiver Wire Stashes: Week 5 (2022 Fantasy Football)

Week 5 is here, and the NFL fantasy season is quickly sliding through our fingers. Week 6 is just around the corner, and the bye weeks will be here to make decisions trickier. These are the players you should be picking up now to get ahead of your league mates.

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Quarterbacks

Carson Wentz (QB – WAS) | 47% Rostered

It has been an up-and-down start for Carson Wentz as he tries to take command in Washington, with Week 1 being the highlight of his season so far. Since then, Wentz’s completion rate has decreased weekly, from 65.9% in Week 1 to 59.5% in Week 4. Likewise, Wentz’s yards per attempt have dropped from 7.6 to 4.0. After back-to-back weeks where Wentz failed to score double-digit fantasy points, he now has two friendlier matchups: the Tennessee Titans and the Chicago Bears. The Titans have allowed the eighth-most fantasy points to quarterbacks, and if Wentz has a good week, it might be too late to try and pick him up as managers scramble to stash players with the bye weeks starting in Week 6.

Geno Smith (QB – SEA) | 28% Rostered

The Geno Smith Express is rolling right now, making Seahawks fans’ lives fun in a season where everyone expected pain. Week 5 sees the Seahawks travel to New Orleans, where things might not be quite as easy as Week 4’s points bonanza against the Lions. Still, Week 6 will bring a matchup with the Arizona Cardinals, who have yielded an average of 26.9 points to opposing quarterbacks, the second-highest in the league. Not every week will be like Week 4, but it’s unlikely Geno Smith loses control of the starting job anytime soon, and he’s shown he can support DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett in the right matchups.

Running Backs

Kenneth Walker (RB – SEA) | 44% Rostered

The Seahawks have slimmed down their running back by committee approach to just Walker and Rashaad Penny at the moment, and that can be a good thing for fantasy football managers. Penny is still commanding the larger share of the workload, but Walker’s usage has been steady, and yearly we see rookies gain bigger opportunity shares as the season progresses. Walker should be rostered because at a bare minimum, running back injuries can occur easily. If anything happened to Penny, Walker would be the clear lead back in Seattle.

Gus Edwards (RB – BAL) | 13% Rostered

The Gus Bus’s arrival into the 2022 season has been slightly delayed, but it is rolling now. Gus Edwards has been training without setbacks for the first time this week, and the Ravens would be very pleased to get him back on the field shortly. Mike Davis and Kenyan Drake have been awful for the Ravens this year, and it wouldn’t be at all surprising to see one or both of them cut in the coming weeks. Edwards will never be a three-down running back, but he consistently sees 10 touches a game and is a good goal line back when called upon. The Ravens likely let Edwards take his time getting back to full strength, as they’ve been cautious with other players returning, but sooner or later, the Bus will be back on the field, and perhaps we will see the Ravens start to return to their heavy running ways.

Damien Williams (RB – ATL) | 4% Rostered
With the news that Cordarelle Patterson is headed to IR, the Falcons are left counting on Caleb Huntley and Tyler Allgeier. Damien Williams will be eligible to return after Week 5, and the Falcons might look to lean on his experience over the two rookies. In deeper leagues, he’s worth considering.

Wide Receivers

George Pickens (WR – PIT) | 54% Rostered

In Week 4, Mike Tomlin finally saw what was clear to many others and pulled Mitch Trubisky in favor of Kenny Pickett. Amongst the misery of a poor loss to the Jets was a glimmer of light for George Pickens believers, as Pickens saw five targets on Pickett’s 14 attempts. Pickett seems comfortable trusting his receivers to go up and make catches, which should benefit Pickens, who has been mainly spending his gamedays working on his cardio.

Michael Gallup (WR – DAL) | 49% Rostered

Michael Gallup played 64% of snaps in Week 4, in a game where Dallas never trailed and perhaps didn’t need him to do more. In Week 5, the Cowboys travel to Los Angeles for a must-see matchup against the Rams. The Rams rank 32nd in DVOA against WR2s, and unless they can get some players healthy, it could be a big spot for Gallup. After Week 5, Gallup has a potential shootout with the Eagles and then a friendly matchup with the Lions. He should be rostered in all formats.

Isaiah McKenzie (WR – BUF) | 49% Rostered

Jamison Crowder left the Week 5 game with the Ravens with an ankle injury. It sounds likely he’ll miss extended time, allowing Isaiah McKenzie to take control of the slot receiver position for the Bills, which has been fruitful in recent years. McKenzie needs to overcome a concussion to play in Week 5. But regardless, it is likely he can vault into a near-every-down role for a large part of the season, and we should be looking to roster players on this explosive offense.

Joshua Palmer (WR – LAC) | 30% Rostered

Joshua Palmer hasn’t lit up the world over the last few weeks with Kennan Allen out since Week 1, but it sounds possible that Allen has suffered a setback in his recovery from a hamstring injury and may miss more time going forward. If Palmer continues to see snaps over DeAndre Carter, then a spike week is likely coming.

Tight End

Irv Smith Jr. (TE – MIN) | 39% Rostered

Over the Vikings’ last three games, Irv Smith has averaged six targets per game, which ranks ninth-highest amongst tight ends. At this mess of a position, sometimes volume is all we can hope for, and Smith is a consistent part of this team’s offense. Smith runs a route on 61% of dropbacks. While the touchdowns have been lacking, he trails only Justin Jefferson and Adam Thielen in red zone targets.

Robert Tonyan (TE – GB) | 33% Rostered

In back-to-back weeks Robert Tonyan has scored double-digit PPR points, and at tight end, that’s not to be sniffed at. Over the next three weeks, the Packers will play the Giants, Jets and Commanders, not exactly a frightening schedule. Aaron Rodgers has shown frustration with the ways the Packers are winning games, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him turn to a player who he trusts.

D/ST

New Orleans | 50% Rostered

Over the next three weeks, the Saints play host to the Seahawks and Bengals before visiting the Cardinals. So far this season, the Saints’ defense hasn’t been great for fantasy and isn’t turning the ball over regularly. Yet, there are some good players on this unit. With bye weeks coming, you can plug and play them, hoping for better days.

Cleveland Browns | 17% Rostered

In Week 6, the Browns will play the New England Patriots, who will be playing either Bailey Zappe at quarterback, or Mac Jones, who may still be feeling the effects of a high ankle sprain. Myles Garrett and Jadeveon Clowney should regain fitness soon, and that pass rush is frightening for any offensive line in the league.

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If you want to dive deeper into fantasy football, be sure to check out our award-winning slate of Fantasy Football Tools as you navigate your season. From our Start/Sit Assistant – which provides your optimal lineup based on accurate consensus projections – to our Waiver Wire Assistant – which allows you to quickly see which available players will improve your team and by how much – we’ve got you covered this fantasy football season.

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