Start Romeo Doubs vs. Jakobi Meyers vs. Christian Watson vs. Aaron Jones vs. Jayden Reed | Fantasy Football Week 5 Start Decision
Week 5 is almost in the books, but a Monday night matchup between the Green Bay Packers and Las Vegas Raiders is still on the way.
FantasySP’s “Who Should I Start?" tool is full of Packers and Raiders, so let’s dive into some of the trending players and determine which ones should be starting.
Tough start decision? We have you covered. Find out in depth stats, red zone opportunities, projections, breaking news, and crowdsourcing real fantasy owners faced with the same start/sit decision. Check out our Who Should I Start tool.
Why You Should Start Romeo Doubs
We’ll kick things off with Doubs, who is the highest-scoring fantasy player to this point of the season in this discussion.
Doubs battled an injury in the first couple weeks, but has still turned in a solid statline of 20 catches, 224 receiving yards and three touchdowns so far. He leads the team’s pass catchers in snaps (185) and targets (33) as well.
In the couple weeks Doubs was at full health, he’s been targeted early and often. He got 12 targets in week 3 and 13 more in week 4. Unfortunately, quarterback Jordan Love hasn’t been super accurate in the early going, otherwise Doubs’ numbers might be quite a bit better.
This week should tell fantasy owners what kind of season Doubs might be in store for, as Christian Watson is closer to 100% health. He didn’t have an injury designation going into the game. When healthy, Watson is the team’s No. 1 option, while Doubs was set to fill the No. 2 role.
Why You Should Start Jakobi Meyers
Meyers is the Raiders’ No. 2 option in the passing game, behind only star wideout Davante Adams.
You’ll want to keep an eye on news surrounding Adams as kickoff nears, as Adams is questionable with a shoulder injury. If he can’t go, Meyers will be the focal point of the Raiders’ offense and likely be shadowed by Packers’ cornerback Jaire Alexander, who is also questionable. Signs point to Adams playing though.
Meyers has been solid as the secondary option in the passing game, catching 18 passes for 199 yards and two scores in three games so far. He’s been targeted at least four times in each game, but already has games of 10 and 12 targets too.
Even while missing a game, Meyers only trails Adams in snaps played among the team’s pass catches. His 26 targets are also second on the team to just Adams.
The Packers’ defense has been strong in defending opposing wideouts, allowing an average of just 28 fantasy points a contest. Meyers still has a chance to shine if the Packers match Alexander with Adams.
Why You Should Start Christian Watson
Watson had a pretty below-average performance in his return to the field in week 4. A touchdown reception bailed out some fantasy owners that started him.
Watson finished with two catches on four targets, going for 25 yards. He played just 26 snaps.
As mentioned before, Watson didn’t have an injury designation prior to the game, but he was still limited in practices. I’d expect him to see an increase in snaps, but probably only play around 50% of the total snaps.
Watson showed big-play potential a season ago, so he could still lead the team in fantasy points with just a couple grabs. A touchdown reception would be a nice bonus.
Las Vegas is in the bottom half of the league when it comes to stopping wide receivers, with an average of 36 fantasy points allowed per contest. The 142.5 yards a game is better than average, but the 1.5 touchdown receptions a game boosts the point value way up.
Why You Should Start Aaron Jones
Jones returned to the field in week 4 after missing a couple contests, and is now unlikely to play again in week 5.
In his first game back, Jones played just 20 snaps, rushing five times for 18 yards. He caught one of his two targets, but lost 4 yards on the reception. Jones was great in week 1 before his injury, getting 11 touches and going for 127 total yards and two scores.
If Jones were to be able to go, he’d be taking on a Raiders’ defense that’s in the bottom half of the league in stopping opposing running backs. Las Vegas is allowed 22 fantasy points to backs a game, with most of the damage coming in the running game.
If Jones cannot play, AJ Dillon should get the majority of the snaps and touches.
Why You Should Start Jayden Reed
The final Packer in this discussion is the rookie Reed. The youngster has been the team’s second-best pass catcher so far, albeit without Watson in the picture, hauling in 12 passes on 25 targets.
Reed has 203 yards and two touchdowns to his name, making him the second-most productive pass catcher in terms of fantasy points so far.
Reed has at least five targets in every game and could be utilized heavily again if Jones weren’t able to play, especially in the short passing game. With Watson back in week 4, Reed still played in 67% of the team’s offensive snaps, which was a new high percentage for the season.
[projection="Jayden Reed”]
Final Numbers and the Recommended Start
This is a fascinating start/sit discussion, mostly because we’re talking about several players from one team and just one player from another. The injury to Jones essentially turns this into a four-player, wide receiver discussion.
The news about Jones is still fresh, so it makes sense why he’s still the preferred starter over anyone else in this conversation. With Jones out of the picture, Watson takes over the spot of most-preferred player, just ahead of Doubs and Meyers.
Meyers is currently preferred over Doubs, although I could see those numbers changing as kickoff approaches. Keep checking out the start/sit tool as kickoff approaches for the latest numbers.
For my preferred guys, let’s start with Jones, since he looks unlikely to play. Obviously you wouldn’t start him if he doesn’t play, but I also wouldn’t start him if he somehow does suit up. He’d been on a heavy snap restriction and probably barely see the field. You'd be banking on a couple of long runs in his limited action, or need a couple short touchdowns. Hopefully the team rules Jones out early enough to where you still have time to find a replacement.
As for the top option among these players, I’ll take the one Las Vegas player, Meyers. Regardless of whether Adams plays or not, Meyers has a much better chance of producing in the Raiders’ offense than the Packers players who will be splitting targets and touches. With Adams at less than 100%, I could see Meyers even more involved.
That leaves the Packers’ three wideouts, Doubs, Watson and Reed. That’s the order I would take them in too.
Doubs has been the top Green Bay passing target so far and I’d continue to treat him as such until someone else surpasses him. Watson should be more involved this week, and if the Pack can break off a long pass play or two, it’s likely that Watson is on the receiving end of things. Reed is still a solid option, in my opinion, so if you are stuck with Jones and him, you should feel confident that Reed can still put up a decent fantasy score.
