What We Saw: Week 5

The QB List staff catches you up on everything you missed during Week 5 of the 2020 NFL season.

Ben Brown
What We Saw 4 Years Ago
Series Navigation
Introduction
Buccaneers @ Bears
Bengals @ Ravens
Raiders @ Chiefs
Panthers @ Falcons
Jaguars @ Texans
Eagles @ Steelers
Rams @ Washington
Cardinals @ Jets
Dolphins @ 49ers
Colts @ Browns
Giants @ Cowboys
Vikings @ Seahawks
Chargers @ Saints

Dolphins @ 49ers

 

When the magic is flowing, Ryan Fitzpatrick is one of the most enjoyable quarterbacks to watch in the NFL. Such was the case in Santa Clara on Sunday as Brian Flores and the Miami Dolphins marched into Levi’s Stadium and embarrassed the San Francisco 49ers on both sides of the ball to come away with a convincing 43-17 win. Fitzpatrick sprayed the ball at will to a plethora of receivers and put up 30 points by half time on the way to totaling 342 pass yards on a besieged 49ers defense that seemed clueless for most of the game. Flores coached Kyle Shanahan off of the park with calculated defensive schemes to stifle the run game and take away the middle of the field, eliminating the short passes and dump-offs that Jimmy Garoppolo looks for.

 

Miami Dolphins

 

Quarterback

 

Ryan Fitzpatrick: 22/28, 350 yards, 3 TDs, 2 sacks | 3 carries, 16 yards

 

Ryan Fitzpatrick is the ultimate maverick – a virtuoso performance against this wretched 49ers defense was evident from the first offensive snap, a delightful 47-yard deep pass down the left sideline hauled in by Preston Williams. That set up a short touchdown pass to tight end Adam Shaheen before Fitzpatrick connected with Devante Parker for a 22-yard dime for another score before the half.

 

 

Veteran offensive coordinator Chan Gailey attacked the 49ers defensive backs relentless, in particular, Brian Allen who was starting his first game since 2018 and was soon replaced by Akhello Witherspoon. Fitzpatrick feasted on the space allowed by the poor play of Jaquiski Tartt and a wonderful secondary-splitting touchdown pass to Williams put the cherry on top of a perfect afternoon for this offense.

 

 

Fitzpatrick put up a season’s best 27.60 fantasy points, his fourth 20+ fantasy points scoring game in a row. He will be a popular streaming option through the bye weeks.

  

Running Backs

 

Myles Gaskin: 16 carries, 57 yards, 1 TD | 5 targets, 5 receptions, 34 yards

Matt Breida: 9 carries, 28 yards | 1 target, 1 reception, 31 yards

Lynn Bowden: 3 carries, 4 yards

Clayton Fejedelem: 1 carry, 1 yard

 

It isn’t the most glamorous running game in the world but it is dynamic and can be effective in moving the sticks to allow Fitzpatrick to excel in the passing game. Myles Gaskin spearheaded the attack again with 16 carries, his best was his first career touchdown run from the goal-line.

 

 

The most disappointing part of this Miami Dolphins rush attack for fantasy owners has been the minimal role of Matt Brieda. The former 49ers running back notched just 59 yards on 10 touches and seems to have ceded any pass-catching targets to Gaskin, especially in the redzone. Breida is only relevant at the minute if Gaskin goes down with an injury.

 

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends

 

Preston Williams: 5 targets, 4 receptions, 106 yards, 1 TD

Mike Gesicki: 6 targets, 5 receptions, 91 yards

Devante Parker: 3 targets, 2 receptions, 50 yards, 1 TD

Isaiah Ford: 2 targets, 2 receptions, 23 yards

Jakeem Grant: 3 targets, 1 reception, 6 yards, 1 fumble | 1 carry, -12 yards

Chandler Cox: 1 target, 1 reception, 6 yards

Adam Shaheen: 1 target, 1 reception, 3 yards, 1 TD

 

Preston Williams (20.60 fantasy points) is a stud. His rookie season was cut short last year after a promising start and he has been slow out of the blocks this year. That first pass from Fitzpatrick did wonders for his confidence, however, and he never looked back. Williams had the number of the 3 defensive backs who were shuffled around to try and cover him. Williams is an interesting option that remains on 22% rostered in Yahoo!

 

 

Devante Parker has finally evolved into a No.1 receiver and he was a menace all afternoon with his outstanding route running, competitiveness on contested catches, and secure hands. Despite nabbing just 2 catches on the day, he consistently stretched the field and distracted the 49ers safeties to allow his teammates to exploit the space. Mike Gesicki‘s development under Brian Flores has been eye-opening. Comparisons to George Kittle are easy to make, however, Gesicki has more speed and route-running ability than the 49ers tight end. Fitzpatrick loves his tall, lanky tight end and he trailed only Williams for targets in Santa Clara. He will be a top 5 tight end by the end of the season. It was just a shame the TD went to the other tight end, Adam Shaheen!

 

San Francisco 49ers

 

Quarterback

 

Jimmy Garoppolo: 7/17, 77 yards, 2 INTs, 1 fumble, 3 sacks

C.J. Beathard: 9/18, 94 yards, 1 TD, 1 fumble, 2 sacks

 

A day to forget for the San Francisco 49ers, especially at the quarterback position. Jimmy Garoppolo was clearly hampered by his high ankle sprain and threw 2 horrible interceptions in a disastrous first half for Kyle Shanahan, who didn’t help his offense with some predictable playcalling that Brian Flores‘ defense was waiting for with open arms.

 

 

Shanahan benched Garoppolo for the second half in favor of C.J. Beathard, who is a third-string quarterback for a reason. Beathard had a decent first drive that resulted in a touchdown pass to Kendrick Bourne. But that was as good as it got for the 49ers, with Beathard struggling with his awareness in the pocket while also lacking the ability to get the ball out quickly. Garoppolo will likely be back next week so it is hard to see a future for Beathard in San Francisco.

 

 

Running Backs

 

Raheem Mostert: 11 carries, 90 yards | 3 targets, 3 receptions, 29 yards

Jeff Wilson: 4 carries, 27 yards | 1 target

Kyle Juszczyk: 2 carries, 11 yards, 1 TD | 1 target

Jerick McKinnon: 1 carry, 0 yards | 4 targets, 2 receptions, 5 yards

 

The lone bright spot for this offense was the return of Raheem Mostert after missing the last two games. Mostert looked sharp and consistently broke tackles and ran the ball well with his 11 carries. The game script moved away from utilizing his skills after the 49ers fell so far behind. The strength of Shanahan is his ability to scheme runs and jet-motion to his speed merchants, however, today Flores was prepared for it and Shanahan had no answer, failing to adapt and be creative in the passing game. Jeff Wilson saw just 4 carries and Jerick McKinnon, who led the offense last week, disappeared from the gameplan altogether. 

 

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends

 

George Kittle: 8 targets, 4 receptions, 44 yards

Brandon Aiyuk: 6 targets, 3 receptions, 44 yards

Kendrick Bourne: 4 targets, 2 receptions, 30 yards, 1 TD

Deebo Samuel: 8 targets, 2 receptions, 19 yards | 1 carry, 3 yards

 

This receiving corps has its strengths and both Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel offer electric speed out of the backfield. What they lack is the ability to go up and contest catches to move the sticks. That is the responsibility of George Kittle, but even he couldn’t do it on his own today. The Dolphins defense shut off the middle of the field and the 49ers offense failed to push the ball down the field. This offense if lacking a No.1 receiver on the outside who can dominate the sideline and provide the passing game with versatility. I just don’t see who takes that role. The next few weeks will be key.

 

— Benjamin Haller (@benjaminhaller1 on Twitter)

Series Navigation
Introduction
Buccaneers @ Bears
Bengals @ Ravens
Raiders @ Chiefs
Panthers @ Falcons
Jaguars @ Texans
Eagles @ Steelers
Rams @ Washington
Cardinals @ Jets
Dolphins @ 49ers
Colts @ Browns
Giants @ Cowboys
Vikings @ Seahawks
Chargers @ Saints

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