Reasonably priced back-ups to fill your line-ups in Week 5
Week 4 saw some middling results from our line-up below – by no means a disappointment, but not a winning line-up.
We can be pleased that Puka Nacua hit the mark with 36 points, Quinshon Judkins hauled 21.5pts and Bucky Irving achieved 25.5pts – so very happy with the output of our premium plays.
Unfortunately, we did not get as much from our stack as we would like. Daniel Jones yielded nowhere near enough for your quarterback slot and Michael Pittman did score a touchdown, but his overall fantasy score was not significant enough for your captain.
Darnell Mooney left the game early with an injury and remains questionable for Week 5 at the time of writing.
Jake Tonges and Luke McCaffrey both scored touchdowns – which put an exclamation point on our cheap enablers contributions to the line-up.
Congrats to @Commanders on the big win today and to @mccaffrey_luke for his first @nfl touchdown !!!!! Thank you @TheTerry_25.for grabbing the football, haha #RaiseHail pic.twitter.com/3yyVIBLChs
— Ed McCaffrey (@87ed) September 22, 2025
Week 5 poses some very interesting setup decisions as a number of injuries have hit key players across the league, opening the door for back ups to take a leading role – at a very reasonable price.
Quarterbacks
Our premium quarterback of the week is Dak Prescott (£7,400) who faces a New York Jets team that simply is not stopping defenses.
Aaron Glenn’s man coverage system is leading to some friendly numbers for opposing QBs – the Jets have allowed a 109.2 passer rating to opposing QBs – fourth highest. I expect Dak is still going to be able to move the ball on this defense.
The Cowboys-Jets game has a projected total points of 47.5, which is joint second highest on the early slate.
So it makes sense that our cheaper alternative at quarterback is none other than Justin Fields (£5,800) of the Jets.
He is back from his concussion having posted 27.14 fantasy points last week in a Monday night defeat to Miami.
In three games, he has either scored 27+ pts or been injured. He is the definition of boom or bust but he faces a Dallas defense that also cannot stop the opposition.
Dallas have allowed a passer rating of 123 to opposing QBs – second highest – and have conceded 132 points through four games – second most – having just tied 40-40 with the Green Bay Packers in Week 4.
He is yet to have fewer than 48 rushing yards in a game, which gives a fantastic floor.
Want a cheap QB? Jaxson Dart is £4,400, he just claimed his first win of his career against the Los Angeles Chargers and posted 19.84 points along the way.
He now faces a lukewarm New Orleans Saints defense that Dart should not have a problem running on.
Running backs
This is where your line-ups will be won or lost. There is so much opportunity at reasonable prices across the running back slate – largely owing to injuries to starters.
Before we get to them – our premium pick of the week is Jahmyr Gibbs (£8,600) of the Detroit Lions. It would be a chalky pick but making him your captain would be a safe bet.
He faces the Cincinnati Bengals, who have allowed the second most fantasy points to running backs through four weeks.
He has found the endzone four times in the last three weeks and is yet to post fewer than 15 fantasy points.
Remember: We want roughly three times his price point returned in fantasy points. So 8.6 x 3 = 25.8pts, which is a very achievable figure for Gibbs.
I doubt Detroit will need to throw much, so expect them to dominate on the ground.
Woody Marks (£3,600) exploded last week for the Houston Texans and he seems to have a stranglehold on the RB1 job now. He is very affordable at his price point and faces the worst rushing defense in the league.
That is right – the Baltimore Ravens are banged up and they can absolutely be run on.
Bucky Irving has been ruled out for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which opens the door for Rachaad White (£3,200) to take on a greater workload against Seattle. I expect he will still need to catch the ball out of the backfield if Tampa Bay fall behind.
Another back-up set for an increased role? Rico Dowdle (£3,000) in Carolina. He hosts Miami who have been reasonably easy to run on. Chuba Hubbard has been ruled out so the gig is his for the weekend.
Emari Demercado (£2,200) is in line to take over from Trey Benson in Arizona as the latter lands on IR. That opportunity at that price should fit well around your more premium players in your line-up.
Oh, and he faces the Tennessee Titans defence who have given up the third most fantasy points to running backs. What great timing.
Wide receivers
If we can save some cash by picking reasonably priced running backs, we can afford to pay up at wide receiver.
Garrett Wilson (£5,800) is a viable stack with Fields. We know that a lot of Fields’ stock is in his ability to run the ball – but with and without Fields this year, Wilson has been brilliantly consistent.
Three of his four weeks have yielded a score of 20+ points and another week of that would be the value we want at this price point.
If you do not fancy Woody Marks at running back – you could aim for Nico Collins (£6,000) at wide receiver. Again, Baltimore’s defense is horrifically injured right now and Collins could profit greatly.
You might have assumed that I would be suggesting stacking George Pickens with Dak – but I am not. Mainly due to the fact that Sauce Gardner is likely to shadow him and that is never a good sign.
With CeeDee Lamb injured and Kavontae Turpin also ruled out – the role of WR2 should fall to Jalen Tolbert (£3000).
With six targets in his last two games, we know he will feature and that is only likely to grow with Turpin’s absence.
HuddleUK’s host Phil and I have been waiting for Tolbert to finally break out – this might be the time, Phil. It is finally Tolbert time!
THE DALLAS COWBOYS!! Dak to Tolbert for 6️⃣!
📺: #DALvsPIT on NBC/Peacock
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/Jg7btATnJO— NFL (@NFL) October 7, 2024
Jakobi Meyers (£5,600) faces the Indianapolis Colts this week – which on paper is not favourable, but behind the scenes there is opportunity.
I expect the Colts can move the ball and put up points at home against the Raiders, meaning Geno Smith will need to throw the ball to keep up. Meyers mostly lines up in the slot and that is where the opportunity lies.
Last week, Puka Nacua roasted Xavien Howard while lining up mainly in the slot. That roasting was so bad that it made Howard reconsider his comeback and he has now retired.
That leaves a hole in the Colts secondary that needs to be filled short notice. Kenny Moore II is still out injured and so I firmly believe Meyers can profit here in Week 5.
If you want a comeback to Meyers, then Michael Pittman (£5,000) is again a very viable option. Dial him up again.
Quentin Johnston (£5,800) may not be cheap but he is certainly value. With two of his four scores coming in over 20 fantasy points, he has got upside.
Lastly, the devastating injury to Tyreek Hill on Monday was difficult to see and we wish him a speedy recovery.
It does open the door for Jaylen Waddle (£4,800) as de facto WR1. He has been quiet, but does have more opportunity now. As a cheaper alternative, you could look to Malik Washington (£2,400) who should also see an increase.
Tight ends
Talking of the Dolphins, Darren Waller (£2,600) is back. He wasted no time getting in the end zone – twice – in Monday’s game against the Jets.
What’s better than one stack? A double stack?
Jake Ferguson (£3,800) of the Cowboys has been TE1 on the season so far but is not the most expensive TE on the slate. He is also in a high-scoring match-up against the very same Jets side that conceded two touchdowns to Darren Waller. Need I say more?
In need of a cheap filler because you spent your budget already? Cade Otton (£2,200) travels to the Seahawks who have allowed the second most fantasy points to tight ends this year.
On the other side of the field, A.J. Barner (£2,200) is a red zone threat for the Seahawks and has hit pay dirt twice this year.
Theo Johnson (£2,400) of the Giants has had five red zone targets through four weeks this year, so is another cheap option but is very touchdown dependent.
My Sunday Stars lineup
Dallas stacks have been reliable – but I am leaning towards Gang Green in this one.
Captain – Jahmyr Gibbs (£8,600)
QB – Justin Fields (£5,800)
RB – Woody Marks (£3,600)
RB – Rachaad White (£3,200)
WR – Jalen Tolbert (£3,000)
WR – Garrett Wilson (£5,800)
WR – Quentin Johnston (£5,800)
TE – Jake Ferguson (£3,800)
