Top Fantasy Football Stories for Week 5: Josh Allen, C.J. Stroud Battle, Backup RBs Continue to Play Big Roles, and More

Josh Allen and C.J. Stroud face off in the game of the week

When football kicks off on Sunday afternoon, all eyes will be on the marquee matchup between the Buffalo Bills and the Houston Texans. These are two of the top teams in the league led by two of the top quarterbacks.

This will be a major test for Buffalo on the road after they got embarrassed by the Baltimore Ravens last week. The Bills started off the first three weeks red hot, however, when you look at their opponents they played, some of the worst teams in the entire NFL to inflate their resume. 

If the Bills can go into Houston and beat the Texans, they will have to be considered a real threat to dethrone the Kansas City Chiefs and finally hold up that Super Bowl trophy. On the other hand, if the Texans make them look like the Ravens did last week, it's time to start considering that they are a fraud who only beat up on bad team - that maybe the loss of their top receivers and key defensive pieces is a big deal after all. 

Backup running backs continue to be the focus of fantasy football

There are a ton of starting running backs sidelined this week with injury and fantasy owners are continuing to try to find value in these backfields off the waiver wire. This started in Week 1 with Jordan Mason's coming out party, and the trend is hitting its highest heights this week.

Important fantasy assets like Joe Mixon, Jonathan Taylor, Devin Singletary, Zamir White and Isiah Pacheco have all joined Christian McCaffrey on the shelf and it opens up opportunities for the backups.

In Week 5, fantasy owners will be rolling the dice on risky running back options like Cam Akers, Trey Sermon, Tyrone Tracy Jr, Alexander Mattison and Kareem Hunt.

If nothing else, it will be exciting if crippling anxiety from fantasy football is fun to you. It will be very interesting to see who shines and who flops. We also are curious if any of these backs can change the dynamic of their current backfield by showing out. 

Wide receivers are hard to come by in Week 5

There are a crazy amount of top wideouts unavailable this week for fantasy owners and they are scrambling to find replacements. We could run off a ton of names, but just to name a handful, A.J. Brown, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Devante Adams, Cooper Kupp, Puka Nacua, DeVonta Smith, Malik Nabers and Rashee Rice are all unavailable for one reason or another.

Then you have guys like Tyreek Hill, Garrett Wilson, Brandon Aiyuk and Jaylen Waddle who have all been pretty useless when they are on the field. Check out the lineups in your league this week and you are going to see some obscure players because owners are running out of options. 

Players are now eligible to come off injured reserve and the PUP list

Now that Week 4 has passed, every player who started the season on injured reserve is now eligible to return when they are ready. We saw a bunch of difference makers open up their 21-day practice window this week. That list was headlined by Cleveland Browns running back Nick Chubb and Minnesota Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson.

Be sure to monitor who is being activated each week and understand how it can impact your fantasy team. Returning players could help your team, but they can also hurt other players on your teams. You'll also have to manage your IR slots. Don't get stuck starting a guy who has been replaced by a returning player because you weren't paying attention. 

Trade talk is beginning to heat up and wide receivers are the focus

Rumors are swirling and big names are being discussed as potential trade targets. Wide receivers have been the hot topic lately. Some of these rumors have more validity than others.

Davante Adams has demanded a trade out of Vegas. In all likelihood, he's played his last snap with the team. The Browns also converted most of Amari Cooper's contract to a signing bonus to potentially make him a more desirable trade target. Is it true? We don't know but it makes sense.

Then you have rumors like Tyreek Hill to the Chiefs that don't seem to have any real basis. All the rumors and talk are fun, but be sure to take it all with a grain of salt. Never make drastic fantasy decisions because you heard a rumor either.