As If the Injuries are Not Bad Enough, Here Come the Bye Weeks – Week 5 Waivers

I am not going to bore you with any flowery intro this week.  Simply put, I do not want to waste your time nor insult your fantasy intelligence.  You can see, as we all can, that injuries are piling up faster than we can insulate our rosters.  Week 4 saw another group of major fantasy players miss significant time due to injury.  Some will not be back in 2026.  Some might be back in 2026.  Another group could suit up for Week 5.  Let’s look at the next list of fantasy casualties.

Week 4 players lost to injury: Lamar Jackson (ankle, left stadium in walking boot; MRI Monday). Saquon Barkley (hamstring; this marks two straight weeks he has gone out of the game early), Ja’Marr Chase (in concussion protocol), Tee Higgins (abductor), Rashee Rice (non-contact, hamstring), DJ Moore (shoulder reaggravation), Tyquan Thornton (ankle, probably done for the year), Kyle Monangai (thumb), Pat Bryant (ankle, did not return), Ladd McConkey (foot, did not return), Mack Hollins (calf, did not return), and former Oregon Ducks Heisman winner, Marcus Mariota.

With that list out of the way, we need to decide how we are going to handle these injuries.  Both the Chiefs and Panthers are off in Week 5 with the former probably needing to work the trade lines to have serviceable options at WR come Week 6.  I wonder, out loud, if the Chiefs will reunite with Tyreek Hill or consider dealing a Day 3 pick to acquire Quentin Johnston (LAC) or Brian Thomas Jr. (JAX).  Stranger things have happened so I will be glued to the NFL news wire.

Do not forget the @Razzball NFL writers team will be hosting our Sunday Morning Start/Sit podcast every week starting three hours before kickoff all the way up to the official start of the early games.  Sky – @SkyGuasco, Derek – @Derek_Favret, Jeff @Jefferson__21, Dave @crewswe128 and me/Matt – @stiles08, will be answering all your questions to help you win your weekly matchups.  Come for the analysis and stay for the laughs!

WAIVERS:

ADD OF THE WEEK = Emmanuel Wilson – 49% rostered absolutely smashed in Week 4 with 120 total yards and 2 TDs.  For a team that wants to establish the run, Wilson made the most of his start this past week.  On paper, he faces two solid defenses in Week 5-6, but if Zach Charbonnet is not back to full strength, I am confident in running Wilson out there in all formats.  With the litany of injuries, Wilson is by far the top target for Week 5!

QB: Jameis Winston – 4% rostered did Jameis Winston things on Sunday connecting with Malik Nabers (6-112-1) while putting up 36 points against a lackluster Cardinals defense.  What can we expect from Jameis moving forward?  We will see the highs (250 yards, 3 TDs) and the lows (2 INTs).  If your league scoring does not significantly penalize for INTs, then Jameis could be a bye week replacement for Marcus Mariota, Lamar Jackson, Patrick Mahomes, and/or Bryce Young.

Honorable Mention/Cheaper Options:

Kirk Cousins – 23% rostered: Three games, 11 touchdowns.  Not bad for a guy brought in to mentor the Heisman winner.  Seriously, what more could you ask for from a guy that is free on your waiver wire?  Cousins’ just hung in the pocket and delivered passes, mostly to his TE group, to the clip of 30+ points in Week 4.  There is no reason to think he cannot and will not continue to throw in the coming weeks.

Deshaun Watson – 9% rostered looked good on Thursday Night Football against a Steelers defense that got him moving out of the pocket with pressure.  I am not here to talk about the off-field issues and will only speak to Watson’s play on the field.  Throughout four games, Watson is averaging almost 20 fantasy points per game.  His rookie WRs look legitimate.  He has a solid TE and running game to support him as well.

RB: Will Shipley – 1% rostered is someone you need to keep an eye on as the week moves forward.  He could end up being the next man up for the Eagles should with Tank Bigsby headed to IR and Saquon Barkley’s injury still up in the air.

Honorable Mention/Cheaper Options:

Keaton Mitchell – 36% rostered just out-touched Omarrion Hampton 15-11 in Week 4.  We need to pay attention to those numbers.

Alvin Kamara – 11% rostered and Kendre Miller – 1% rostered.  I do not need to see anything else from the Saints.  When healthy, Kamara is the RB to roster in New Orleans.  Miller fumbled and did not look good otherwise.  Kamara got all the goal line work, and the two rushing TDs while reeling in all but one target.

Austin Ekeler – 3% rostered.  The old man looked good in limited action.  His performance did not equate to a ton of fantasy points (5.00 PPR) but he could be in for an expanded role in Rachaad White misses additional time and game script forces more passing for the Commanders.  Large leagues only.

Emmett Johnson – 36% rostered: Deep stash only.  Johnson is the one RB I would consider adding as a just in case insurance policy for the Chiefs.  He is not a player you can start now but could return massive numbers should Kenneth Walker III miss time.

WR: Keon Coleman – 4% rostered: Much of this recommendation comes down to the status of DJ Moore.  Early reports are that Moore will not miss significant time.  Coleman stepped in and stepped up with 6-116-1 with Moore’s absence.  Keep an eye on the injury reports beginning Thursday to get a better handle on Coleman’s value.  Also consider Khalil Shakir – 42% rostered if available in your league.  He could be the cheaper option over Coleman.

Roman Wilson – 3% rostered is probably worth an add in most leagues at this point.  He has 15+ PPR points in two straight weeks and appears to have a nice connection with QB Aaron Rodgers.  With Michael Pittman Jr. not looking like the player his was in Indy, Wilson is a nice compliment to D.K. Metcalf for the Steelers.

Tyreek Hill – 23% rostered is a name the clickbait types have been pushing out there for about a week.  They must know the NFL script because the Rashee Rice and Tyquan Thornton injuries open the door for Hill to slide back into the Chiefs WR rotation.

Honorable Mention/Cheaper Options:

Rather than bore you with invented explicative comments about middling WRs, I will simply give you a list to consider.  These are players that stepped in, possibly stepped up (a little) for their team in Week 3: Romeo Doubs, Laquon Treadwell, Tre Harris, Malachi Fields, and Xavier Hutchinson.  As noted with other players in this column, these are all ‘in case of emergency, break glass’ players versus anyone you want to rely on long-term.

TE: Mike Gesicki – 7% rostered seems to have a 3-4 game stretch each season where he is fantasy viable.  With the injuries to Chase and Higgins, Week 4 may have started that clock in 2026.  Coming off a 3-40-1 line, he will be in line for additional targets should those top two WRs miss time.

Tyler Higbee – 2% rostered will put up points in this offense especially with Terrance Ferguson on IR.  Good bye week coverage.

As mentioned above, it has only been one week, so if you lost, got blown out even, relax.  It will be OK.  There is no need to rush to drop any specific player.

Follow me @stiles08 on X and send questions comments at the bottom of this article.  Make sure you jump around the Razzball site for all your fantasy football needs.  We have a ton of free content to include our Slot Versus Wide tool additional articles from our crack team of writers. 

-Stiles-