Rico Dowdle and Jonathan Taylor Run Week 5 Fantasy Football Leaderboard
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Week 5 of the NFL season helped quite a few fantasy owners. Yes, we now give praise to the best of the best for each position from a fantasy football perspective. Quarterbacks come up first on our list.
Please note that we use standard point scoring with PPR. Bonuses are not included for certain milestones like 100 yards receving, 100 rushing, or 300+ passing yards. Okay, here we go!
Quarterbacks
Player | Points |
|---|---|
C.J. Stroud (HOU) | 28.76 |
Dak Prescott (DAL) | 28.28 |
Sam Darnold (SEA) | 27.64 |
Baker Mayfield (TB) | 26.66 |
Justin Fields (NYJ) | 25.92 |
There were a few shockers this week including Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield. Tampa Bay and Seattle combined for 73 points and almost 900 yards of offense. If not tor the one Darnold mistake, he would have probably topped 30 points on the week. Again, there were several highlight worthy performances.
Even with the Jets it was easy to see that Dallas had a pretty easy matchup. Dak Prescott has been one of the best fantasy football quarterbacks in 2025. Prescott passed for four touchdowns in Week 5 versus the JEts. Meanwhile, Justin Fields turned it on in the fourth quarter just enough to make the Top 5.
Running Backs
Player | Points |
|---|---|
Rico Dowdle (CAR) | 32.4 |
Jonathan Taylor (IND) | 31.6 |
Kyren Williams (LAR) | 31.1 |
Christian McCaffrey (SF) | 27.9 |
Jacory-Croskey Merritt (WSH) | 27.0 |
Javonte Williams nearly made the list from the Dallas Cowboys. However, Christian McCaffrey and Jacory-Croskey Merritt did just enough to steal that thunder. The Rams-49'ers clash produced lots of fantasy football points from the running side. McCaffrey is a PPR magnet for success. He keeps racking up receptions and targets. It offsets any rushing shortcomings.
The biggest surprise was Rico Dowdle although many saw this coming. He saw 19 carries over the past two weeks. When Chuba Hubbard was announced as out, the door was opened for Dowdle to enter the fantasy football spotlight. He ran for 206 yards on 23 carries and added a touchdown with 28 yards receiving.
Wide Receivers
Player | Points |
|---|---|
Emeka Egbuka (TB) | 31.3 |
Ja' Marr Chase (CIN) | 29.0 |
Jaxon Smith-Njigba (SEA) | 27.2 |
Puka Nacua (LAR) | 24.5 |
Kendrick Bourne (SF) | 24.2 |
Nacua, like McCaffrey has been among the tops in his position for several weeks. That is hardly a surprise. Emeka Egbuka continued his stellar rookie campaign with seven catches for 163 yards and a touchdown. Egbuka now has 445 yards and five receivng touchdowns in 2025. He is well on his way to being on the shortlist of nominees for Offensive Player Rookie of the Year.
The good, bad, and the ugly higlighted everything from a batty Week 5. Kendrick Bourne rebounded from an awful Week 4 to score 24.2 points for fantasy owners. That was almost 15 above his projection for the Thursday night game against Los Angeles.
Tight Ends
Player | Points |
|---|---|
AJ Barner (SEA) | 24.3 |
Jake Ferguson (DAL) | 23.9 |
Theo Johnson (NYG) | 21.3 |
Sam LaPorta (DET) | 20.2 |
Darren Waller (MIA) | 18.8 |
Not a single Tight End topped 20 points in Week 4. However, Week 5 gave us four receivers who went above that mark. AJ Barner shocked the fantasy football world with 24.3 points. Jake Ferguson and Theo Johnson did not disappoint as both found the endzone twice on Sunday afternoon.
Waller had 78 yards and a touchdown in a losing effort for Miami. The Dolphins' Tight End got separation against Carolina linebackers often. Waller was projected to crack the Top 10 and that he did. We were bullish on both New York Tight Ends. Johnson made his mark while Mason Taylor caught nine balls on 12 targets.
Kickers
Player | Points |
|---|---|
Ka'imi Fairbairn (HOU) | 18.0 |
Eddy Pineiro (SF) | 17.0 |
Blake Grupe (NO) | 14.0 |
Joey Slye (TEN) | 13.0 |
Chase McLaughlin (TB) | 12.0 |
Houston's kicker topped the list behind two 50+ yard field goals against the Baltimore Ravens. Fair'bairn booted three field goals in all. Eddy Pineiro kicked four through the uprights. Meanawhile, Blake Grupe missed two kicks but made four. It was that kind of Sunday as even Joey Slye rebounded from last week.
Defense/Special Teams
Team | Points |
|---|---|
New Orleans Saints | 18.0 |
Indianapolis Colts | 16.0 |
Tennessee Titans | 12.0 |
Washington Commanders | 12.0 |
Houston Texans | 12.0 |
Houston was not a surprise to be in this Top 5. The Texans were up against a Ravens team that was bagned up and without Lamar Jackson. Washington fell behind 10-0 and stopped the Chargers extending their losing streak to two. The Colts routed the Raiders with ease on their way to a fourth win.
However, the Saints and Titans brought the house down with their defenses. Tennessee went down 21-6 going into the fourth quarter and rallied to victory. Tennessee sackd Kyler Murray three times, snagged a couple fumble recoveries and even hit paydirt with a touchdown. The Saints held the Giants to no points in the second half to get their first win of the season behind five turnovers.
