On the day they traded Marvin Harrison Jr., the Cardinals probably couldn\u2019t help but wonder if Jeremiyah Love will be next. Not next month or even next year, but some inevitable time down the line. It\u2019s been that kind of decade for the Birds, who never really got up to highway speeds with Kyler Murray, and remained stuck in neutral with Harrison. Rather consciously or not, Love seems to have internalized that this is a place that wastes its young talent, and it seems to have made him miserable.<\/p>\n
For their part, the Cardinals seem determined to prove him right. Love\u2019s most unassailable usage came in their second game \u2014 of the preseason. That\u2019s where he picked up an ankle injury still bothering him to this day. Love was fit to be unleashed on August 13 against the Raiders but apparently not on September 13 against the Chargers. He had fewer touches in the Cardinals\u2019 season opener (13) than he did against the Silver and Black (14).<\/p>\n
That\u2019s a number he\u2019s risen above just twice in five regular season appearances. If you draft a running back at No. 3 overall, it is presumably to do everything. You can\u2019t take an RB in the top five if they are going to be part of a committee. But the Cardinals seem to barely trust Love to do anything. Tyler bleeping Allgeier, who caught 61 passes during the entirety of his rookie contract, is the Cards\u2019 third down and two-minute drill back. \u201cMake it make sense,\u201d you say, but you know you can\u2019t.<\/p>\n
Now nursing long-term injuries to both ankles in addition to his ego, Love seems unlikely to \u201cget right\u201d any time soon. Fantasy managers just have to pray it is before he meets the seemingly irrestible fate of all top-five Cardinals skill players: A ticket out of Arizona.<\/p>\n
Five Week 5 Storylines<\/p>\n
Jordan Love and the Packers finally play the offense they promised in the offseason. Laid low by their postseason devastation at the hands of the Bears, the Packers pledged to remake their system. They wanted to get the ball in their best players\u2019 hands more often, and they wanted to better \u201cfinish\u201d contests. Aka not take their foot off the gas and treat the second half as if the goal were to get the clock to zero rather than score the most points. The project had not been going too well through the first four weeks of the season. It turns out all they needed to get it right was the Bears themselves \u2014 and their backup quarterback. Yes, this was not the same Chicago team Green Bay will face later this year and perhaps again in the playoffs. But it was a demon that needed to be slayed, and it was done in spectacular fashion. If you watched the game, it felt like Love was completing a deep pass every other play. That\u2019s because he was. Love\u2019s 252 \u201ccompleted air yards\u201d were the most of his career. The Pack have been wanting to air out. They have finally done so. Hopefully it\u2019s a taste of what\u2019s to come instead of the precursor to another one of coach Matt LaFleur\u2019s patented retreats.<\/p>\n
Bears look human without Caleb Williams and Kyle Monangai. Which brings us to Chicago. Arguably no team had been flying higher despite the absence of its franchise player and starting quarterback. They had defeated teams with both their No. 2 and No. 3 quarterbacks. It seemed Ben Johnson could do no wrong. Maybe he can\u2019t, but he was finally wronged by Tyson Bagent. There can only be so much smoke and so many mirrors. Sunday the smoke evaporated, the mirrors were smashed, and the Bears were vividly reminded of Williams\u2019 importance, even if he doesn\u2019t implement Johnson\u2019s offense with the same precision as his automaton backups. Williams is a blunt-force instrument that both Johnson and fantasy managers desperately need. It appears we will finally get him in Week 6 against the Falcons. <\/p>\n
Snakebitten TreVeyon Henderson re-injures ankle. First off, it\u2019s never a good thing when the word \u201clatest\u201d appears before the phrase \u201cankle injury.\u201d That\u2019s what Henderson is dealing with. Slated for a Monday MRI, missed time appears all but guaranteed. It, obviously, is the last thing Henderson or fantasy managers needed after a slow start to the 2026 season where Henderson failed to take advantage of Rhamondre Stevenson\u2019s ongoing miscues. As unwanted as a potential injured reserve placement might be, it could buy players time as they assess their next move with a runner who seemed unlikely to force his way back into the RB2 ranks any time soon. If Henderson goes week to week, things get tougher with byes beginning in earnest and injuries mounting. In the meantime, \u201cCorey Kiner\u201d is now the next man up for the Pats.<\/p>\n
Things get worse for the Eagles; It\u2019s unclear how they\u2019ll get better. The good news: The Eagles converted a third down. They even scored a few second half points. Emphasis on \u201ca few\u201d since it was only three, but yeah. Miraculously, they were somehow in position to win until one of the worst special teams mistakes in recent memory. That was the only near miracle in a game where Will Shipley joined Saquon Barkley, DeVonta Smith and Tank Bigsby on the shelf. Now the Eagles\u2019 already-depleted depth is in the \u201cDameon Pierce zone,\u201d with the even more ominous \u201cJaydon Blue zone\u201d lurking. There\u2019s no true \u201cfix\u201d here, and will be no hope of any kind until Barkley and Smith return. Until then, Jalen Hurts can no longer be treated as a QB1.<\/p>\n
Justin Herbert goes from benchable to droppable. The only thing the Eagles really have going for themselves right now is that they\u2019re not the Chargers. The sheer scale of the disaster is beyond Herbert\u2019s control, but it\u2019s a simple fact that even in the very worst setups, if you are a good quarterback, you won\u2019t typically have five total touchdowns compared to nine total turnovers. We already stopped starting Herbert several weeks ago. Now it would appear the only appropriate course of action is dropping him. He also belongs outside the top 24 in superflex leagues until something changes. With basically everyone else hurt, it\u2019s unclear what that fabled \u201cchange\u201d might be.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t forget, for the latest on everything NFL, check out Rotoworld\u2019s Player News<\/a>, or follow @Rotoworld_FB<\/a> or @RotoPat<\/a> on Twitter\/Bluesky.<\/p>\n Five More 5 Storylines<\/p>\n Marvin Harrison Jr. shipped to the Texans amidst the Sunday afternoon action. In the scope of the wider football world, a former top-five overall pick was just traded in part for a second-rounder. Better compensation than most were expecting, but a disastrous outcome for the Cardinals two years after they spent the No. 4 overall selection. Either way, a fascinating story. By our narrower fantasy football purview, however, the takeaway is \u2026 new Kayshon Boutte just dropped? Because whatever the Texans\u2019 project for \u201cMHJ\u201d is, it\u2019s going to be long term. For now, they just need someone else to clear space opposite Nico Collins, and to hopefully credibly fill in whenever Collins suffers his next soft-tissue injury. C.J. Stroud is playing much better than anyone who watched the 2025-26 postseason could have expected, but Harrison\u2019s fantasy fortunes probably don\u2019t rise above those of a volatile WR4 for the time being.<\/p>\n Slumping David Montgomery lost to injury vs. Titans. Harrison arrives in Houston as \u201cD-Mont\u201d checks out for a bit. Already amongst the league\u2019s worst running backs this season, the last thing Montgomery needed was an injury. It compounds the problem for fantasy managers, who were facing uncomfortable questions about Montgomery\u2019s place in their starting lineup. We should now at least get short-term clarity. D-Mont will be affixed to Week 6 benches, and perhaps beyond. If Woody Marks fares well in his absence, he will likely take over 1A duties. If he doesn\u2019t, Montgomery comes back hopefully healthier and refreshed, perhaps as soon as Week 9 following the Texans\u2019 Week 8 bye. Hold on if you can, but be prepared to let go if Marks hits the ground running. <\/p>\n Broncos show very little following change at play-caller. About the only noticeable difference following Sean Payton\u2019s inevitable play-calling coup was the collapse of RJ Harvey\u2019s receiving work. Beyond that, it was more of the awful same. Barely-there QB2 returns for Bo Nix, and a complete inability for Jaylen Waddle to post WR2 numbers. Waddle has now finished below 40 yards receiving in 4-of-5 games as a Bronco, and below 20 in 3-of-5. I have tried to keep the WR2 faith, but how long can you keep ranking a player like that in the top 24? The answer is \u201cno longer,\u201d at least for Thursday\u2019s short-week date with the Seahawks\u2019 dominant pass D.<\/p>\n Deebo Samuel goes down for Niners offense running low on players. The 49ers actually got the best of that dominant Seattle pass defense, but they did so with another low-key performance from their nominal No. 2 receiver. Samuel went down like a ton of bricks on a third quarter rushing fumble, to the point onlookers were worried he had suffered a severe head injury. Instead it was a severe hamstring pull, the kind of issue that has frequently been Samuel\u2019s Niners and fantasy downfall. Already struggling to produce despite a golden setup, Samuel could end up a drop if you can\u2019t stash him on an I.R. spot. The returns have just not been strong enough, and Samuel\u2019s injury recoveries have a way of lingering.<\/p>\n Jaylen Warren continues to look like the best player on the Steelers. The question is: Will it matter with Rico Dowdle (toe) close to return? It seems like the answer should be a no-brainer \u201cyes\u201d but when you spend the first four seasons of your career in a committee, you quickly become a typecast player. Even if you provide gangbusters returns on bell-cow usage like Warren has done the past three weeks, coaching staffs tend to psych themselves out with the \u201cso and so has never handled these kinds of workloads before\u201d line of thinking. It\u2019s certainly true Warren has never handled these kinds of workloads. Each of the three highest snap percentages of his career have come in the past three weeks. But he\u2019s held up remarkably well under the pounding. Any player is more likely to get hurt if they are on the field more. Hopefully the Steelers don\u2019t mistake that league-wide generality for a Warren specific. <\/p>\n Questions<\/p>\n 1. How does the NFC East go winless in a week where two of its teams were playing each other?<\/p>\n 2. Justin Herbert and Tua Tagovailoa are imploding at the same time. Did a star die or a moon explode somewhere?<\/p>\n 3. Remember when Deshaun Watson was \u201cback\u201d?<\/p>\n Early Waivers Look (Players rostered in less than 50 percent of Yahoo leagues)<\/p>\n QB: Kirk Cousins (vs. BUF), Aaron Rodgers (@TB), Michael Penix Jr. (vs. CHI), Jameis Winston (vs. NO), Jalon Daniels (vs. PIT) Stats of the Week<\/p>\n Braelon Allen\u2018s 116 yards rushing against the Browns were nearly double his previous career high of 59. We finally got proof of plug-and-play RB2 concept.<\/p>\n
RB: Keaton Mitchell, Kendre Miller, Dameon Pierce, Samaje Perine, Kimani Vidal, Raheim Sanders, Corey Kiner
WR: Malik Washington, Keon Coleman, Keenan Allen, Tre Tucker, Adonai Mitchell, Kendrick Bourne, Derius Cooper
TE: Brenton Strange, Chig Okonkwo, Darren Waller, Pat Freiermuth, Tyler Higbee
DEF: 49ers (vs. WAS), Giants (vs. NO), Colts (vs. TEN), Panthers (@PHI)<\/p>\n