Week 5 Fantasy Football Start 'Em, Sit 'Em: Sean Tucker vs. Zavier Scott
With four teams on a bye in Week 5 and many NFL teams battling running back injuries, some fantasy teams will need to be creative in their running back lineup decisions.
Sean Tucker, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers should be without Bucky Irving, giving Sean Tucker an RB2 role at a minimum against Seattle. He has been on the field for only three plays in 2025, resulting in two yards on one carry.
His highlight game in 2024 came in Week 6 (14/136/1 with three catches for 56 yards and another score). Despite his success, the Bucky Irving train pushed him off the running back tracks over Tampa’s next 12 matchups (34/149/1 with five catches for 39 yards).
In my Rachaad White/Chase Brown article, I laid out the Bucs’ matchup data against the Seahawks.
Zavier Scott, Minnesota Vikings
Last week, Zavier Scott became fantasy relevant in a chaser game against the Steelers. He caught six of his eight targets for 43 yards and one touchdown. Minnesota had him on the field for 38% of their plays, up from 28% in Week 3.
In his final season in college (Maine) in 2022, Scott almost had a dual running back/wide receiver role (39/371//4 – 9.5 yards per carry with 42 catches for 434 yards and one touchdown). He lost NFL development time with the Colts due to a knee injury.
The Browns have been excellent against the run vs. running backs (83/242/2), with no bad days in coverage (14/82 on 20 targets).
The key to Scott’s opportunity in this game is that Cleveland is trailing. His resume of success is limited, almost suggesting an avoid in the fantasy market. The Vikings’ running backs have 16 catches for 137 yards and two touchdowns (10.42 FPPG), painting a better picture of his potential value in the fantasy market.
The Verdict: Sean Tucker vs. Zavier Scott
Over the first four games, Tampa used about a 70/30 split in playing time for Irving and White. I could see Tucker getting close to 40% of the Bucs’ running back snaps while potentially having the edge in goal-line chances.
I have Scott projected to score 5.69 fantasy points in PPR formats, compared to 8.64 for Tucker. Passing catching backs tend to have an advantage in these types of situations due to needing fewer touches to score fantasy points.
This year, the Buccaneers’ running backs have scored 101.20 fantasy points, compared to 88.50 by the Vikings’ backs.
I’m starting Sean Tucker in this start/sit decision.
More Fantasy Sports On SI News:
Week 5 Fantasy Football Start 'Em & Sit 'Em: Rachaad White vs. Chase Brown
Week 5 Fantasy Football Start 'Em & Sit 'Em: Wan'Dale Robinson vs. DeVonta Smith
Cardinals Depth Chart Debate: Emari Demercado vs. Michael Carter
With 20+ years of experience in the high-stakes fantasy market, I aim to research and compete at the highest level in baseball and football each season. I've contributed as a writer/analyst for Sports Draft Daily, ScoutPro, Scout Fantasy, Fulltime Fantasy, FFToolbox, and Sports Illustrated Fantasy. I'm honored to be in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship Hall of Fame. My drafting philosophy is risk-averse yet open to betting on potential game-changers. I approach player selection with a neutral perspective, acknowledging that fantasy sports are inherently unpredictable due to injuries, performance dips, and managerial decisions. My work focuses on these main areas: - Season-long fantasy baseball and football - BestBall Baseball and Football Events - Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS): DraftKings, FanDuel, and Underdog - Long Shot Player Prop Parlays for NFL I participate in various leagues and contests, including NFBC, NFFC, RTSports, FFPC, DraftKings, Underdog Fantasy, FanDuel, and FFWC, with the goal of leveraging my extensive experience and research for success in each game format. A fantasy follower can expect in-depth profiles of NFL and MLB players, along with season-long and weekly projections for each fantasy football season. In addition, I have many strategy articles to help develop fantasy players' learning curves.
Follow Shawn__Childs