Fantasy football rankings, Week 5: Quarterbacks

Matt Ryan lit up the Carolina defense in Week 4. He passed for 503 yards and four touchdowns. The Atlanta passing game is certainly rejuvenated this season. Another reason was the poor pass defense by Carolina. He faces a much tougher opponent in Week 5, when they travel to Denver. He should have a good outing but I’m only expecting around 240 passing yards and two touchdowns.

Cam Newton and Carson Palmer were forced to leave their respective games with concussions. Newton has an extra day to recover because Carolina doesn’t play until Monday. That also leaves us in a tough spot because we need to decide on Sunday whether we can start him. Monitor his progress through the concussion protocol and if you have a roster spot, pick up Jameis Winston or Derek Anderson. Arizona plays on Thursday, which is a quick turnaround. If Carson Palmer is held out, Drew Stanton will get the start. They face the San Francisco defense in a favorable matchup.

Trevor Siemian is day-to-day with a sprain of his non-throwing shoulder. It sounds like he is already feeling better. Paxton Lynch came in and finished the game in Week 4. Siemian has been confirmed as the starter, as long as he is healthy. Continue to monitor the practice reports but this looks to be a minor injury.

Jacksonville, Kansas City, New Orleans, and Seattle have their byes in Week 5. That means we’ll be without Drew Brees, Russell Wilson, Blake Bortles, and Alex Smith this week. Andy Dalton and Ryan Tannehill would make for adequate bye week replacements. They will have had 10 days since their last game, so they’ll be rested. I also think they match up well against Dallas and Tennessee, respectively.

My sleeper this week is Carson Wentz. He’ll be coming off a bye week and is playing a struggling defense in Detroit. I have no doubt that Philadelphia will have prepared new twists for him to incorporate into the offense. I think he’ll pass for 290 yards and two touchdowns. He’s my top pick for replacing a bye week quarterback in Week 5.

(ZS: Zach Senvisky, JM: Jason Marcum, AP: Adam Patrick, SK: Scott Kaliska, JG: Jeff Goldberg, KB: Kyle Bennett)

Editor’s note: Cam Newton has been ruled OUT for Monday Night Football. Derek Anderson will replace him. We would list him on the low end, but he’s a decent option against a bad Buccaneers defense.