Week 5 Fantasy Football Mailbag: Can Will Shipley and Emanuel Wilson Be Trusted in Lineups?
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There are already four weeks completed this season, and fantasy football managers have a decent idea of how their teams are going to perform this year. Whether it be the waiver wire or trades, managers may need to make moves to turn things around or improve their team even more for a championship run.
In this week’s installment of our fantasy football mailbag, which questions are eating away at managers?
Note: Feel free to reach out to me on Twitter so I can answer your fantasy football questions in future articles.
All stats used in this article are from PFF or Sumer Sports unless stated otherwise. Fantasy rankings and fantasy point totals are courtesy of FantasyPros.
Should Managers Trust Will Shipley and Emanuel Wilson in Their Lineups?
Will Shipley and Emanuel Wilson were popular waiver-wire options in Week 5, but can managers trust them in their lineups right away?
With Saquon Barkley dealing with a hamstring injury and Tank Bigsby being placed on injured reserve, Shipley is expected to be the Philadelphia Eagles’ featured back. That being said, Shipley faces the Jacksonville Jaguars in London in Week 5, and Philly’s offense is struggling while All-Pro tackle Lane Johnson just retired.
Across the first five weeks, the Jaguars’ defense is seventh in rushing EPA (-0.15) and sixth in rushing success rate (34.6%) allowed. Since the start of last season, Jonathan Taylor is the only RB to rush for 70-plus yards in a game against Jacksonville, so Shipley is an extremely risky option in Week 5.
Wilson became the starting RB for the Seattle Seahawks in Week 4 because of injuries to Jadarian Price and Zach Charbonnet, resulting in him scoring 27.0 fantasy points against the Los Angeles Chargers. While Charbonnet is nearing a return, he won’t be active again in Week 5, paving the way for Wilson to handle a decent workload against the San Francisco 49ers.
San Francisco’s defense is 31st in rushing success rate allowed (46.7%), so Wilson is a solid RB2 option, especially with Kenneth Walker III and Chuba Hubbard on a bye week.
Is Joe Mixon or Austin Ekeler Worth Stashing?
In the year 2026, Joe Mixon and Austin Ekeler popped up as potential stash candidates in Week 5. However, are either of these veteran RBs worth stashing?
Mixon worked out and initially signed with the Seahawks earlier this week. Although the team had plans to keep him on the practice squad until he got up to speed, he has since failed his physical, and Seattle has elected not to sign him now.
Just last season, Mixon dealt with a foot injury that kept him off the field for the Houston Texans, and the team didn’t reveal much information on his status or provide any updates. Given the uncertainty of his foot injury and the fact that the Seahawks were uncomfortable signing him after his physical, Mixon is better kept in free agency right now.
As for Ekeler, he recently returned to the Washington Commanders to provide depth alongside Jacory Croskey-Merritt and Rachaad White. With White inactive in Week 4, Ekeler touched the ball five times for 40 yards in the loss to the Indianapolis Colts.
Ahead of Washington’s Week 5 matchup against the New York Giants, White is expected to return to practice. Even if Ekeler has now carved out a role in the Commanders’ offense, it’ll be tough to trust him unless injuries happen to both White and Croskey-Merritt.
What Should Managers Do With Jeremiyah Love?
Rookie Jeremiyah Love tallied 21.9 fantasy points in Week 3, and his usage in that game suggested that he’d continue to see an expanded role in the Arizona Cardinals’ offense. However, Love logged a season-low 6.5 fantasy points in Week 4, and he played just 45.5% of the offensive snaps.
After managers noticed that Love wasn’t on the field in the red zone or two-minute situations, many questioned if something was wrong with the first-year back. Following the loss to the Giants in Week 4, Love revealed that he’s not playing at full strength, and head coach Mike LaFleur shared that he was dealing with an ankle injury.
While Love is reportedly dealing with a separate ankle injury from the one he dealt with in the preseason, it’s not ideal to hear him express his frustration about not being able to help the team as much as he’d like right now.
As more updates will be reported throughout the rest of the week, Love is tough to trust in starting lineups unless you’re desperate at the RB position. Also, if Love is unable to overcome his recent ankle ailment, he may never earn the role many expected him to have this season, so it wouldn’t be the worst idea to see what you can get for the rookie back.
Hopefully everyone’s fantasy football squads enjoy plenty of success in Week 5!
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Skyler Carlin is an experienced sports writer and editor with nearly a decade of experience covering the NFL, NBA, MLB, college football, college basketball, and soccer for FanDuel Research and USA Today. Outside of writing, he enjoys cooking, watching movies, and playing video games.
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