Week 5 Fantasy Football WR/TE Snap & Target Report: Can Darnell Mooney, Colby Parkinson, Josh Downs and Others Become Weekly Starting Options?

It’s time to take a look at some intriguing usage numbers for pass catchers with week 5 now in the books.

Here’s last week’s story. Also be sure to check out the RB usage story from week 5.

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Target Leaders

New York Jets’ Garrett Wilson was targeted a whopping 22 times to lead all pass catchers in week 5. He’s had a bit of a down season so far, but definitely looked like the top-end fantasy talent we all expected him to be this season. We’ll see if anything changes for Wilson after the coaching change the Jets made.

Atlanta’s Darnell Mooney got 16 targets in week 5. He’s had a sneaky good season, and now is definitely in line to get some standard league starts. Don’t expect him to get that many targets a week, but he is capable of providing some solid fantasy weeks.

Minnesota’s Justin Jefferson and Cincinnati’s Tee Higgins had 14 targets each this past week.

Jefferson is a must-start fantasy player every week, and this showing just solidifies that some more. Higgins is a good fantasy option as well, and has definitely gotten up to speed quickly after missing a couple weeks with an injury. He’s a solid starter now, regardless of his defensive matchup.

Atlanta’s Drake London and Los Angeles Rams’ Colby Parkinson had 13 targets each.

London is a good weekly starting option, but Parkinson is more on the streaming line. The tight end’s role could change with Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua back, but at a weak fantasy TE spot, Parkinson is definitely going to get some starts - unfortunately, the Rams are on a bye this week, meaning he won’t be startable again until week 7, and that’s an extra week for Kupp and Nacua to get back into action.

Baltimore’s Zay Flowers, Las Vegas’ Brock Bowers, San Francisco’s George Kittle and Brandon Aiyuk, Cincinnati’s Ja'Marr Chase and Indianapolis’ Josh Downs all tallied 12 targets in week 5.

Chase and Kittle are must-start fantasy players every week, so this just solidifies their top-end status.

Aiyuk was in that tier last season, but really struggled to get going in the first four weeks. He’s still not a super confident start, but fantasy owners definitely liked his production last week and he’s back to a starter in all league types.

Bowers is an emerging rookie tight end, and could be in line for a ton of targets with Davante Adams likely on the way out of Vegas. The only thing that might hold him back is the uncertain QB situation.

Downs has two straight good fantasy showings, but Joe Flacco has been the one throwing the ball most of those contests. Anthony Richardson has struggled as a passer, and might limit Downs’ ceiling as a fantasy asset.

Flowers has had some really inconsistent showings this season, but last week was a positive for him. He’s a starting option in all league types, but you can’t be super confident in starting him after he got just six targets between weeks 3-4.

New York Giants’ Darius Slayton had 11 targets in week 5. That came with Malik Nabers out of the lineup, so that kind of production going forward seems unlikely. But there’s enough room on the Giants’ offense for another pass catcher to step up, so we’ll see how Slayton builds on the strong showing.

Snap Leaders

Snap counts are obviously dictated by game flow, but it’s important to note who is playing the most, as after all, more snaps played means more chances to produce.

Atlanta had the top four offensive snap counts among pass catchers - Mooney and Ray-Ray McCloud (85 each), Kyle Pitts (74) and London (73). This makes them all solid fantasy options, with London, Mooney and Pitts being standard league options, while McCloud is a better deep league guy.

Rams’ Jordan Whittington and Jets’ Allen Lazard played 72 snaps each.

Whittington is off this week, but has a couple good showings in a row. I’m really interested to see how he performs when Kupp and Nacua return.

Lazard outsnapped Wilson (69) for the Jets, continuing to serve as one of Aaron Rodgers’ favorite targets. As long as Lazard keeps playing, he’s a standard league flex option, while being a pretty solid deep league starting option too.

Dallas’ Jalen Tolbert played 68 snaps and got 10 targets in week 5. The targets stand out to most people, but the heavy snap count is even more reassuring. That makes Tolbert a possible flex option in standard leagues, while being a good deep league possibility.

Las Vegas’ Jakobi Meyers played 68 snaps and got nine targets. With Adams on the way out, he’s likely going to serve as the team’s No. 1 wideout. For a team that will likely be playing from behind a bunch, that makes Meyers a pretty good fantasy option.

Minnesota’s Jordan Addison played 65 snaps and got eight targets. Jefferson is going to dominate most weeks, but if Addison continues to play a bunch, that will give him opportunities to be a flex starting option in standard leagues.

Keep an Eye On

Kansas City’s JuJu Smith-Schuster was targeted eight times across 56 snaps on Monday night. He had 130 yards and was a waiver target because of it. The Chiefs’ offense needs some receivers to step up, and Smith-Schuster has been a good fantasy option in the past, and he could absolutely become an option again this season.

Jacksonville’s Brian Thomas Jr. continues to deliver every week. He had 122 yards and a touchdown across eight targets in week 5. He’s got a tough schedule coming up, so I’m interested to see if the rookie wideout can keep things rolling.

Miami’s Jonnu Smith had 62 yards across eight targets this past week. The Dolphins have to get through just one more game before Tua Tagovailoa could return, and if Smith remains involved in the passing game, he could be a good weekly fantasy option with Tagovailoa throwing to him.

New England’s Demario Douglas went for 59 yards on nine targets in week 5. The Patriots will be starting Drake Maye in week 6, which gives Douglas a little more fantasy hope moving forward. He could become a good starting option in a hurry with Maye throwing to him.

Jets’ Tyler Conklin had 55 yards across nine targets in week 5. He has 17 targets over the past two games and could be developing a good connection with Rodgers. 

Buffalo’s Mack Hollins had just 27 receiving yards in week 5, but was targeted six times. It was his second straight game with six targets, and with no clear leading pass catcher in Buffalo, it’s at least wise to keep tabs on Hollins for a bit.

Washington’s Zach Ertz had only 10 yards on two catches, but was also targeted eight times. He got three of those targets in the red zone, and at a weak fantasy TE spot, that gives Ertz some fantasy appeal moving forward.