RB Leonard Fournette led all Buccaneers in targets (11), receptions (10) and receiving yards (83) and scored both of the team's TDs in Sunday's win over the Falcons. He added 56 yards on 14 carries, easily outpacing rookie RB Rachaad White in work. White carried 5 times and drew 4 targets, collecting 42 total yards. But his playing time again sat closer to Fournette than it did through the season's 1st 3 weeks. White played 39% of offensive snaps (compared with 62% for Fournette) and ran just 6 fewer routes (41.5% rate vs. 52.8% for Fournette). The disparity in touches highlights how risky a standalone option White will be in fantasy football lineups as long as Fournette stays healthy. But the narrowed gap also points to how close to a direct replacement the rookie would be if Fournette goes down. White should be rostered wherever possible.
Bucs WR Chris Godwin delivered a fine outing for fantasy owners in the Sunday's win over the Falcons: 6 catches for 61 yards. But he played just 52% of the offensive snaps -- way down from last week's 83%. Godwin, of course, is returning from ACL and hamstring injuries, but there was no injury announced during or after the game. The Athletic's Greg Auman speculated that the Bucs just wanted to get Godwin some rest after taking a 21-0 lead midway through the 3rd quarter. We'll keep a close eye on Godwin's practice participation this coming week.
Falcons RB Tyler Allgeier led the backfield in playing time and rushing work in the 1st game since RB Cordarrelle Patterson landed on IR. Allgeier drew 13 of the team's 24 RB rushes, totaling 45 yards but losing the only rushing score to Avery Williams. That came on 1 of 3 attempts for Williams. Caleb Huntley took the other 8 carries for 34 yards. Williams also claimed the backfield's only 2 targets, but Allgeier beat him 19-8 in routes run, according to Pro Football Focus. Week 6 brings another difficult RB matchup in the 49ers. Allgeier should be the RB target if you need someone from the Atlanta backfield, but don't expect him to crack the top 24 in our Week 6 RB rankings.
Falcons WR Drake London posted just a 4-35 receiving line in Sunday's loss to the Buccaneers. He did lead the team in targets, though, claiming 28% of QB Marcus Mariota's pass attempts. Mariota also took 5 sacks and turned another 4 dropbacks into scrambles. London's situation was complicated by a 4th-quarter knee injury, according to Josh Kendall of The Athletic. London reportedly never entered the sideline injury tent but did wind up playing his smallest snap share of the season (67%). He trailed WR Olamide Zaccheaus in snaps and routes. Assuming there's no lasting damage to London's knee, he'll face a 49ers defense in Week 6 that just lost CB Emmanuel Moseley to a likely ACL tear.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports that the Browns are trading for Falcons LB Deion Jones. The veteran brings a wealth of starting experience and a big contract with him. Terms of the trade, though, point to how far his status has fallen. Cleveland is sending just a 6th-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft to Atlanta for Jones and a 7th-rounder in the same draft. Atlanta has been rumored to be selling Jones since the offseason, primarily seeking to unload his contract. The Browns likely view Jones as a chance worth taking in a LB corps that lost Anthony Walker for the season and just got abused by Austin Ekeler and the Chargers. We'll see whether and how soon Jones gets a shot at significant playing time. He has yet to take the field this year following offseason shoulder surgery and an August hamstring issue.
Cardinals HC Kliff Kingsbury said RB James Conner's ribs are "OK" after he was knocked out of Sunday's loss to the Eagles. "We're checking everything out," Kingsbury added. "It's something in the rib area and they're just being very cautious with him right now." We should get a more concrete update on Conner by Monday night.
Browns QB Deshaun Watson is allowed to re-join the team for limited activities on Monday. Per the terms of his suspension, Watson can now attend team meetings and participate in individual workouts with the strength staff. He's still not allowed to attend practices or games. Watson has been throwing for about 90 minutes 3 days per week with his personal QB coach Quincy Avery since his suspension officially started in early September, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Watson will be allowed to practice starting on Nov. 14 and then play in Week 13 vs. the Texans on Nov. 28.
The Buccaneers lost CB Carlton Davis (hip) and S Mike Edwards (arm) to injuries in the 2nd half of Sunday's win over the Falcons. HC Todd Bowles had no insight into either situation immediately after the game, so we'll watch for updates on their statuses this week.
Niners EDGE Nick Bosa left at halftime of Sunday's win over the Panthers with a groin issue. Here's what HC Kyle Shanahan said afterward, according to ESPN.com: "He started feeling it, it was a little tight all day. In the 2nd quarter, you could see him coming off the field. We looked into it at halftime -- he didn't feel like he could go." The team expects to test the injury further on Monday, but it doesn't sound like it's believed to be serious. We'll watch for updates.
The 49ers lost CB Emmanuel Moseley in the 2nd half of Sunday's win over the Panthers to a left knee injury that they fear is an ACL tear, according to Jennifer Lee Chan of NBC Sports Bay Area. We'll watch for confirmation today. San Francisco also watched S Jimmie Ward break his left hand in his 1st game back of the year (thanks to a hamstring injury). It's not clear yet whether he'll miss further time.
Saints CB Marshon Lattimore left in the 4th quarter of Sunday's game against the Seahawks with an abdominal injury. We'll see about his status leading up to a Week 6 meeting with the Bengals.
Broncos HC Nathaniel Hackett has called LB Josey Jewell "week to week" with the knee sprain that knocked him out of Thursday night's loss to the Colts. Alex Singleton figures to fill in for Jewell while he's out. We'll see whether Jewell has a chance to play in Week 6, but "week to week" from coaches usually means a player is expected to miss at least 1 game.
Browns lead CB Denzel Ward left Sunday's loss to the Chargers with a concussion. We'll see about his status for the Week 6 meeting with the Patriots.
Ravens S Marcus Williams suffered a dislocated wrist in the 1st half of Sunday night's win over the Bengals. HC John Harbaugh told reporters after the game that Williams will miss a "significant" amount of time. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports that Williams is "likely" headed for IR. We'll see about the official return timeline following more testing, but Williams will likely be droppable in redraft IDP leagues. Geno Stone stepped into the lineup after Williams left. Rookie DB Kyle Hamilton, meanwhile, saw no increase in playing time. The 1st-rounder has played fewer than 20 snaps in each of the past 3 games.
Falcons LB Mykal Walker left Sunday's loss to the Buccaneers early in the 2nd half with a groin injury. "Right now, I'm feeling good," he said after the game, per D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I should be ready to play next week." Walker did add that he was headed for further testing of the injury Monday. We'll see about his status leading up to Sunday's matchup with the 49ers.
Jets TE Tyler Conklin remained heavily involved in the offense in Sunday's win over the Jets, playing the 4th most snaps among non-QB skill-position players on offense. The problem is that TE C.J. Uzomah was among the 3 who played more. Uzomah edged Conklin 41-40 in total snaps and also ran 5 more pass routes. Compare that to Week 4, when Conklin doubled Uzomah's routes and played 26 more snaps in all (with QB Zach Wilson back). One game of the depleted receiving role doesn't make Conklin a "must" drop, but he's also not a "must" hold at a position where many fantasy football lineups are desperate for a decent starting option. Don't expect him to be close to our top 12 at the position for a Week 6 visit to Green Bay. We'll see whether the playing-time alterations become a trend.
Miami WRs lost their starting QB for the 2nd straight game Sunday, when Teddy Bridgewater left after his 1st snap with a concussion and an elbow injury. Tyreek Hill still managed to catch all 7 of his targets for the game, though he gained only 47 yards. Jaylen Waddle caught all 3 of his targets for 23 yards. We'll see What the QB situation is for Week 6 against Minnesota.
After nudging ahead of Chase Edmonds in recent weeks, Dolphins RB Raheem Mostert took over in Sunday's loss to the Jets. He played 46 snaps vs. 13 for Myles Gaskin and 10 for Chase Edmonds. That included running 20 pass routes to 14 combined for Gaskin and Edmonds. Mostert claimed 18 of 23 RB carries for the game, delivering 113 yards and a TD. TE Durham Smythe ran for the team's only other TD. Edmonds logged just 1 carry for 1 yard and caught neither of his 2 targets. Gaskin ran 4 games for 9 yards and ranked 2nd on the team with 5 targets. He caught 3 of those for 24 yards. Edmonds looks cuttable in many fantasy football leagues at this point.
Jets RB Breece Hall rushed 18 times for 97 yards and a TD in Sunday's win over the Dolphins. Hall added another 100 yards receiving despite seeing just 2 targets. His 2 catches went for 79 and 21 yards. Hall worked clearly ahead of RB Michael Carter once again, though he watched Carter vulture a pair of rushing scores among 10 carries. QB Zach Wilson also ran for a TD from 5 yards out, and WR Braxton Berrios found the end zone from 15 yards out on his only carry. Hall is looking like a weekly fantasy football starter.
Texans WR Brandin Cooks saw just 6 targets and caught 4 balls for 20 yards in Sunday's win over the Texans. The 6 looks did constitute 25% of Davis Mills' 24 attempts for the game. Cooks' biggest issue was Houston going run heavy (31 rushing attempts vs. 25 dropbacks). WR Nico Collins matched Cooks in targets and receptions, gaining 65 yards on his 4 catches. A Week 6 bye will be followed by a visit to the Raiders and then a home date with the Titans.
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