As if we needed further proof that the NFL is a pure chaos league, the San Francisco 49ers went on the road Thursday night and somehow beat the Los Angeles Rams with a bunch of names from a 2022 fantasy waiver wire column.
Mac Jones and Kendrick Bourne are probably going to finish inside the top-10 scorers at their respective positions this week. Demarcus Robinson just played 73 snaps for San Francisco and Marquez Valdes-Scantling played 46 — absolutely wild usage for guys you might have believed to be retired.
At moments like this, the league can seem entirely unknowable and borderline unserious. And this of course is the reason so many of us obsess over it. The NFL is a puzzle which cannot be fully solved.
We’d love to suggest that our mission here is to provide you with firm answers regarding the week ahead, but, realistically, the best we can probably do is help focus your attention on the right questions.
Heading into Week 5, the biggest unresolved issue in fantasy involves yet another NFC West squad. Arizona’s backfield had such a tidy hierarchy to open the season, with James Conner as the undisputed lead back and Trey Benson as his understudy. Today, with only four games in the books, Conner is done for the year and Benson is sidelined for at least a month.
The Cardinals’ running back room is suddenly a rogues gallery — a list of bad fantasy ideas from the recent past. Emari Demercado and Michael Carter are likely to play significant roles, with Bam Knight collecting scraps.
If you were hoping for clarity from the coaching staff, sorry. Nope. Not happening.
Gannon did not offer much when asked about the Cardinals RB split:
“We’ll see. They’ll all have their roles.”
Followed up to ask if Carter will be the starter. Same answer:
“They’ll all have their roles.”
— Theo Mackie (@theo_mackie) October 3, 2025
Just brutally unhelpful.
If choosing between Demercado and Carter this week, I’d lean toward the former. He’s the guy with the locked-in receiving role and he might be headed for rotational usage on early downs. We should note, however, that Carter did refer to himself this week as the starter. Dalton Del Don just made a pretty solid argument in favor of Carter on Thursday, too.
Because we needed a tiebreaker, we asked Jake Ciely to choose his fighter in this clash:
Jake’s Take
Demercado for me, though, that might be just as good as choosing ‘Select Random Fighter.’ Despite Michael Carter proclaiming his place as the lead, he’s coming off the practice squad with one good game and one bad last year … and the good one was his first since Week 9 of 2022.
Additionally, Demercado has the passing game upside, seen last week when he also received (see what I did?) the two-minute work. And let’s not pretend Demercado doesn’t have some beef on those bones. I wouldn’t be surprised if the split is actually 60/40 Demercado. But even if not, a 50/50 split would push me to the pass-catching and two-minute man, which is Demercado. — Jake Ciely
News of Note
- Bucky Irving was fantastic last Sunday, per his usual, gaining 165 scrimmage yards, with a 72-yard TD included. He looked as electric as ever. He swapped jerseys with Saquon Barkley after the game. By Monday, he needed an MRI. On Tuesday, he was seeking additional medical opinions. On Wednesday, he was in a walking boot. On Friday, he was officially ruled out for Week 5 against the Seahawks. Rachaad White should serve as the primary back against a stingy Seattle run defense, with Sean Tucker in a supporting role.
- Chuba Hubbard played through a calf injury last week, but, unfortunately, the situation has worsened. He’s been ruled out for this week’s dream matchup with Miami, a team with a scandalously poor defense. Fire up Rico Dowdle wherever you can. He gets the greenest possible green light in Week 5.
- As for Miami’s offense, it suffered a serious (possibly catastrophic) blow when Tyreek Hill went down last Monday. Let’s not assume any previously un-rostered Dolphins receiver is about to surge; the most likely outcome for this team is that everything is just a little bit worse. But if you want to take a flier on someone, Malik Washington could be the best bet. He does not possess Hill’s near-world-class speed, but Miami was already feeding him targets and gimmicky touches.
- Brock Bowers did not practice on Friday, which of course puts his status in doubt for Sunday’s matchup with Indianapolis. He’s been dealing with a knee issue that’s clearly compromised his performance. Honestly, a week of rest and recovery might not be the worst thing. Michael Mayer has a shot at short-term fantasy value if he can clear the concussion protocol.
- It was a full week of DNPs for Lamar Jackson, who exited with a hamstring injury in Week 4. He’s been ruled out against Houston on Sunday, so the Ravens will have Cooper Rush at the controls. Rush wasn’t a game-wrecker in Dallas last season — he went 4-4 in his starts, averaging 209.6 yards per game — but he did not generally push the ball downfield, averaging just 6.7 intended air yards per attempt. He may keep Zay Flowers relevant, but a Rush-led offense won’t support multiple fantasy starters.
Matchups to Embrace and Avoid
Each week, KC Joyner highlights players with the most favorable and unfavorable matchups. Here are a few of the best and worst:
Start with total confidence
- Justin Fields (vs. Dal), Woody Marks (at Bal), Alvin Kamara (vs. NYG), Garrett Wilson (vs. Dal), Dalton Kincaid (vs. NE).
Expectations are not high
- Jayden Daniels (at LAC), Kenneth Walker (vs. TB), Jordan Mason (vs. Cle), Deebo Samuel (at LAC), Keenan Allen (vs. Was), Tyler Warren (vs. LV).
On the Cut Line
Fantasy analysts are always telling you who to add, but we aren’t quite as generous with guidance on drops. Let it be known that you have our official permission to cut loose any of the following players this week:
- Cooper Kupp: We’ll always have the fondest memories of his magical 2021 season, but that version of Kupp is now in the distant past. He’s now a secondary receiving threat in an offense that’s attempted the second fewest passes in the league.
- Isiah Pacheco: He’s down bad, getting out-snapped and out-touched by the withered husk of Kareem Hunt. At this point, Pacheco is just trying to hold off rookie Brashard Smith. Kansas City will almost certainly shop for RB help on the trade market very soon.
- Christian Kirk: If you’re playing in a deep league and want to give Kirk a shot against Baltimore’s user-friendly defense, fine. But he’s been a dud to this point and he’s tied to a broken passing offense. Kirk also has a bye on the horizon in Week 6.
- Joe Mixon: Alas, it’s probably time to give up this dream. Woody Marks is running well, and, according to Jonathan Alexander of the Houston Chronicle, “Of all the people I’ve spoken with about [Mixon], there is no one who has told me they expect him to return this season.” That’s all I need to hear.
From the Discord
One thing we do not lack at The Athletic are fantasy experts willing to share opinions. At any given moment, there’s a good chance one of our analysts is conducting an AMA in our fantasy football Discord server. (You can join the fun here.) Here’s a question from Friday’s chat:
Agwoq: Is Pacheco droppable at this point for Kendre Miller? 0-4 team in 0.5 PPR with Jacobs and Kyren as lead RBs and Charbs, Tuten and Pacheco on the bench.
We already answered the Pacheco piece of this above, so let’s instead focus on Kendre Miller. Without question, he is a priority stash. Emphatic yes. Do it. Miller just received the John Laghezza stamp of approval this week, in fact.
Alvin Kamara is an obvious trade chip for the Saints, and Miller is the clear next-man-up in the team’s backfield. He’s actually seen 18 carries over the past two weeks, converting them into 92 rushing yards and one highlight-worthy touchdown.
Kendre Miller finds an opening for a Saints TD
NOvsBUF on CBS/Paramount+https://t.co/HkKw7uXnxV pic.twitter.com/g1kSJHyVTO
— NFL (@NFL) September 28, 2025
Miller has an appealing home matchup with the Giants ahead of him, which lands him squarely in the flex conversation for Week 5. He’s something more than a lottery ticket. Go get him.
Sleeper of the Week
In every fantasy league, there are no fewer than eight managers looking for help at tight end in any given week. It is simply a nightmare position. If you happen to have a TE-needy team, consider giving Jets rookie Mason Taylor a test drive. He’s coming off a week in which he hauled in a season-high five passes for 65 yards and he’s about to face the NFL’s most inept defense in the Cowboys. Dallas currently ranks last in the league in every passing stat that matters, including yards per game (297.3), yards per attempt (9.2) and touchdowns allowed (10).
(Photo: Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
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