What We Saw: Week 5

Brett Ford
What We Saw 2 Weeks Ago
Series Navigation
Introduction
Buccaneers @ Falcons
Jets @ Vikings
Panthers @ Bears
Browns @ Commanders
Dolphins @ Patriots
Colts @ Jaguars
Ravens @ Bengals
Bills @ Texans
Raiders @ Broncos
Cardinals @ 49ers
Packers @ Rams
Giants @ Seahawks
Cowboys @ Steelers

Browns @ Commanders

Final Score: Commanders 34, Browns 13

Writer: Jesse Maida

 

Cleveland Browns head coach Jim Schwartz entered week 5 having not lost to a rookie QB since Dak Prescott in 2016, but Jayden Daniels is not your average rookie QB. This was by far the least efficient game of Daniels’ impressive young career, but he still dominated the Browns defense with numerous explosive plays in critical moments. On the opposite end, Deshaun Watson and his offensive line never gave their team a chance, resulting in an embarrassing blowout. The NFL is QB driven league and this game was a perfect example.

Three Up

  • Jayden Daniels – 20+ fantasy points in only three quarters. This kid is special.
  • Austin Ekeler – Showed lots of burst and looked good after returning from a concussion.
  • Terry McLaurin – 264 Yards and three TDs in the last three weeks. Terry was a few bounces away from a massive game.

Three Down

  • Jerome Ford – Did not start the game and Chubb is likely to return soon.
  • Deshaun Watson – When you Google ‘Sunk-Cost Fallacy’, a picture of Deshaun Watson should be the first result.
  • Amari Cooper – See above. Not his fault, but four of five weeks finishing worse than WR36 is not getting the job done.

 

Cleveland Browns

 

Quarterback

 

Deshaun Watson: 15/28, 125 Yards, TD | 3 Carries, 14 Yards, FUM(L)

I know there are 230 million reasons for Watson to be on the field, but I was still shocked he did not get pulled for backup QB Jameis Winston at half time. Watson has failed to reach the 200-yard passing mark in any game this season, and if it weren’t for garbage time, he would have struggled to reach 100 yards passing against the Commanders secondary–which was torched the first three weeks of the season. It wasn’t all Watson’s fault due to the abysmal play of his offensive line, especially in the first half. On 15 first half drop backs, Watson was sacked three times and knocked down five times, resulting in numerous errant throws and unsuccessful third down attempts.

Watson can’t control the play of his offensive line, but even the things he can control like his accuracy, body language, and leadership were noticeably poor. There were plenty of low-lights for Watson in this one but he is not droppable in all formats just yet as post-game, head coach Kevin Stefanski stated they will not be making a change.

Jameis Winston: 1/1 16 Yards | 1 Carry, -3 Yards

Winston saw some action for the last drive of the game after Watson led the Browns to a garbage time TD late in the game.

 

Running Back

 

Jerome Ford: 9 Carries, 47 Yards | 3 Targets, 3 Receptions, 2 Yards

Jerome Ford did not start this game and did not receive a rushing attempt until eight minutes remaining in the second quarter. D’Onta Foreman had four carries and even Pierre Strong had a carry before Ford was given his first rush attempt. Ford’s box score will show an efficient 5.2 yards per carry on nine attempts, but it was all in garbage time. That’s now twice in five games where Foreman is the lead runner making this backfield a disaster for fantasy, and with Nick Chubb on the way, Ford becomes an obvious sell (if you can) candidate.

 

D’Onta Foreman: 9 Carries, 44 Yards | 1 Target, 1 Reception, 16 Yards

Foreman unexpectedly started this game after only rushing four times for two yards in week 4. He was the clear lead runner vs. the Commanders, carrying the ball four times before Ford had his first attempt, but like Ford, Foreman’s production mostly came in garbage time. Both Browns’ running backs cannot be trusted as reliable options, even without Nick Chubb.

 

Pierre Strong: 1 Carry, 2 Yards

Strong is not fantasy relevant but if for some reason he is on your team in a super deep league, veteran Nyheim Hines is back at practice, potentially making Strong inactive for future games.

 

Wide Receiver/Tight End

 

Amari Cooper: 10 Targets, 4 Receptions, 60 Yards

Free Amari Cooper! The good news is that Amari Cooper commanded a dominant 36% target share: the bad news is that Watson missed him on at least three throws which could have been chunk gains. Cooper could have had 100+ yards if Watson was more accurate. It’s impossible for me to know exactly what Amari Cooper is feeling, but he seemed frustrated and confused at times based on his facial expressions. If I were him, I’d be hoping for a trade to Kansas City. Cooper is wasting his talent in this offense just like fantasy managers have so far wasted a mid-round pick, with Cooper likely failing to produce a top-36 WR finish for the fourth time in five weeks.

 

Jerry Jeudy: 3 Targets, 1 Reception, 16 Yards

After averaging 7.5 targets through weeks 1-4, Jeudy was an afterthought in week 5, only drawing three targets. When he finally did get a target, he dropped a touchdown. Jeudy owners won’t be happy with this performance, but Steve Smith is probably smiling somewhere. I don’t expect this to be the norm for Jeudy and am willing to bet this atrocious performance by the entire Browns team is an outlier, but we know what he is at this point. If you’re looking for WR30 spike weeks with a low floor, Jeudy is your guy.

 

David Njoku: 3 Targets, 1 Reception, 14 yards

Njoku was involved immediately, picking up a 14 yard reception on the very first play of the game. This was an encouraging sign, especially after a three-game absence. Sadly, he did not touch the ball again. To rub salt in the wounds, it was the backup tight end Jordan Akins who caught the Browns’ only TD of the game and Njoku is dealing with another injury.

 

Jordan Akins: 3 Targets, 3 Receptions, 22 Yards, TD

Akins secured all three receptions, including a beautiful TD grab which was the only highlight of the day for the Browns.

 

Elijah Moore: 4 Targets, 3 Receptions, 11 Yards

Moore was actually second on the team in targets, only trailing Cooper, but failed to reach 20 receiving yards for the third straight week and fourth time this season. Oh, how I miss rookie Elijah Moore. He is obviously not worth a roster spot.

 

Washington Commanders

 

Quarterback

 

Jayden Daniels: 14/25, 238 Yards, TD, INT | 11 Carries, 82 Yards

Another game, another milestone for Jayden Daniels. He now has the most rushing yards of any QB through their first five games and became the first player in NFL history to have 1,000+ passing yards and 250+ rushing yards in the first five games of their career. Daniels came into week 5 completing 82% of his passes but did face some adversity early on, starting 6/11 including an INT at the Browns’ 1-yard line on a poorly thrown ball to Zach Ertz. Even though he’s a rookie, he responded like a veteran, showcasing his poise in the pocket while picking up chunk gains with both his arm and legs. Daniels was unstoppable in the second and third quarters, scoring on 5 of 6 possessions, with the only stop being a Terry McLaurin fumble. He got a rest in the 4th quarter, and deservedly so. It seems every week Daniels makes a few jaw dropping plays that have us saying ‘OMG’, and this week was no exception.

Missed Opportunities

  • Dropped TD from McLaurin.

 

Marcus Mariota: 1/3 -2 Yards, 2 Carries, 2 Yards

Mariota made a rare appearance up 34-6 with 13-minutes remaining in the game and did not look good in his limited action.

 

Running Back

 

Brian Robinson: 7 Carries, 18 Yards, 2 TD

Robinson entered week 5 with a questionable tag which may be a reason for his limited workload (along with the game being a blowout). He split carries with both Ekeler and McNichols and was inefficient, but still managed two rushing touchdowns including the first of the game where he broke a tackle and powered through contact on first and goal. His second touchdown was a goal-line conversion. That’s now four rushing touchdowns in the last three weeks, making Robinson a weekly must-start in this high-powered offense.

 

Austin Ekeler: 6 Carries, 67 Yards | 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 30 Yards

Austin Ekeler showed us all in week five that he still has the juice! Speaking of juice, Ekeler’s 57-yard run in the 2nd quarter was the longest by a Washington RB since Derrius Guice’s 60-yard run in Week 13 of 2019. After being considered ‘washed’ by many entering the season, Ekeler has 300+ yards on 30 touches in four games. He’s not getting the volume like the Ekeler of old, but he’s proving he can still deliver consistent RB2 production due to his incredible efficiency. Ekeler played nearly 50% of the snaps after clearing concussion protocol earlier in the week, proving he can still be the lead back when relied upon. If anything were to happen to Brian Robinson, Ekeler could have some monster weeks in this offense.

 

Jeremy McNichols: 7 Carries, 44 Yards, TD

McNichols followed his impressive week 4 two-touchdown performance with another end zone trip, converting a third & 2 from the three-yard line. He also had a 28-yard gain on an inside zone hand off late in the 4th quarter. McNichols has 16 touches in the last two weeks after touching the ball once the first three weeks. He has proven to be effective when given increased playing time filling in for Robinson and Ekeler and should be owned in deeper leagues.

 

Wide Receiver/Tight End

 

Terry McLaurin: 4 Receptions, 112 Yards | 1 Carry, 2 Yards FUM(L)

Terry McLaurin finished with a respectable 13.4 PPR points, playing only three quarters in a blow-out, but this could have easily been a 20+ point game. McLaurin was tackled at the three yard line after catching a 66-yard bomb and was extremely close to another touchdown which should have been caught. He commanded a 30% target share as this passing offense was funneled through him and Zach Ertz. He’s averaging 88 yards per game in his last three along with two touchdowns, providing fantasy players with the mid-WR2 consistency they were hoping for. The first two weeks of the season look like clear outliers with this offense reaching new heights, averaging 38 points in the last three weeks. McLaurin is a large part of this explosive offense and looks to finally be unlocked after years of inconsistent QB play.

Missed Opportunities

  • Tackled at the three yard line and dropped a TD

 

Dyami Brown: 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 57 Yards, TD

With Noah Brown ruled out in week 5, it was the other Brown who was on field-stretching duty for the Commanders. Dyami Brown stepped up in an increased role and caught a 41-yard TD right before half-time. Daniels has an accurate long ball and likes to take shots down field, giving Dyami some deep league appeal if Noah Brown continues to miss time.

 

Luke McCaffrey: 3 Targets, 3 Receptions, 19 Yards

Luke McCaffrey continues to be involved in this offense, albeit in a minor role, but this was his third game of the season with three receptions. He made an impressive catch, converting a third down and he could see increased opportunities in the second half of the season.

 

Zach Ertz: 8 Targets, 2 Receptions, 10 Yards

This was a poor game from the veteran tight end who failed to capitalize on a team-leading eight targets. He had two uncharacteristic drops and only 10 yards. However, with this target volume and the current tight end landscape in fantasy football, he is a weekly streamer.

Missed Opportunities

  • Daniels missed him on a massive gain, potentially 98-yard touchdown

Series Navigation
Introduction
Buccaneers @ Falcons
Jets @ Vikings
Panthers @ Bears
Browns @ Commanders
Dolphins @ Patriots
Colts @ Jaguars
Ravens @ Bengals
Bills @ Texans
Raiders @ Broncos
Cardinals @ 49ers
Packers @ Rams
Giants @ Seahawks
Cowboys @ Steelers

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