Need Fantasy Football lineup advice? Talk to CBS Sports on your Google Assistant to get insights on the best sleepers and to help decide between players. Just start with, "Hey Google, talk to CBS Sports." Editor's note: Welcome to Week 5! We're handling Jamey Eisenberg's Start 'Em & Sit 'Em column a bit differently this season. You're still getting the same in-depth analysis as always, we're just presenting a bit differently, in an effort to get it out to you earlier in the day. This column takes a long time to write, and in the past, we've usually gotten it out to you in the evening. This year, we're going to publish it position-by-position, to get it into your hands quicker. Here's Jamey's take on running backs for this week. Don't worry: If you want the classic Start 'Em & Sit 'Em, we'll still be publishing that at the end of the day with every position included. For now, here's running back. Running backs Note: Projections are provided by SportsLine.com. Sleepers Chris Thompson (at NO): We'll see if Adrian Peterson (ankle) is fine this week against the Saints, and you should start him as a No. 2 running back if he's healthy. But Thompson also has plenty of appeal in a game where Washington is likely chasing points. New Orleans has allowed 14 receptions to running backs in the past two weeks against Atlanta and the Giants, and Thompson has 20 catches through three games. He scored at least 22 PPR points in his first two outings and has the chance for another standout performance this week. Austin Ekeler (vs. OAK): Ekeler hasn't had more than 14 touches in any game this season, but he's scored at least 12 PPR points in three of four outings. At some point, his minimal workload may catch up to him, but you should still feel comfortable using him in this matchup with the Raiders. Five running backs have either scored a touchdown or had at least 100 rushing yards against Oakland, and this should be a good game for Ekeler and Melvin Gordon. Derrick Henry (at BUF): In full disclosure, I wish I had the guts to rank Henry higher because this feels like a breakout game for him. The Bills offense should struggle to move the ball this week, and the Titans should dominate time of possession. And while the Bills haven't given up a lot of rushing yards, they have allowed touchdowns, with seven scores allowed to the position. Henry has yet to find the end zone this year, but I'm expecting a touchdown from him in Week 5. He's worth using as a flex in all leagues. Nyheim Hines (at NE): The Colts aren't expected to have T.Y. Hilton (hamstring), can't run the ball and will likely be chasing points. That should lead to Andrew Luck throwing the ball with lots of dump-off passes, and Hines has three games this season with at least five catches. He's clearly a better option in PPR, and he's averaging 13.5 PPR points for the season. He's a flex option in Week 5 given the circumstances in this matchup. Javorius Allen (at CLE): Could this be the week the Ravens give Allen a full workload over Alex Collins? Coach John Harbaugh called out Collins for his fumble woes, and that could lead to more work for Allen. He failed to score in Week 4 for the first time this season, but he has at least 13 PPR points in three of four games. Allen is worth using as a flex option, with his value higher in PPR. And the Browns have allowed four running backs to catch at least three passes this season. Sit 'Em 12.2 projected points LeSean McCoy Buffalo Bills RB The matchup in Week 5 is awful for McCoy since the Titans are the only team that hasn't allowed a touchdown to a running back this year. And McCoy is less than 100 percent, dealing with a hand injury, along with playing through injured ribs. McCoy has yet to score more than nine PPR points in any game this season, and he has yet to have more than 13 total touches. Behind a bad offensive line, as well as playing with an inexperienced quarterback in Josh Allen, it will be a long year for McCoy, including this week against the Titans at home. 8.5 projected points Dalvin Cook Minnesota Vikings RB Cook said this week that his hamstring injury still has him at less than 100 percent heading into a matchup in Philadelphia, and he was on a pitch count in Week 4 against the Rams. As a result, he was limited to just 10 carries for 20 yards, with no catches. We'll see if that's the game plan again this week against the Eagles, but the situation doesn't sound encouraging. Along with that, Philadelphia has been excellent against opposing running backs all season, with one touchdown allowed to Tevin Coleman in Week 1, and no running back gaining more than 36 rushing yards in the first four games. I'm hopeful that Cook will be healthy soon and turn around what has been a disappointing start to the season, but he's just a flex option at best in Week 5 since he's playing hurt. 10.7 projected points Kenyan Drake Miami Dolphins RB Drake has been among the biggest busts this season, and he's been a disaster as a Fantasy option the past two weeks. In his past two games against Oakland and New England, Drake has combined for just four PPR points behind eight carries for 6 yards and three catches for 20 yards. The timeshare with Frank Gore has proven to be problematic, and Miami's offensive line is now beat up with center Daniel Kilgore (chest) joining left guard Josh Sitton (shoulder) as out for the season. Along with that, Cincinnati is expected to get linebacker Vontaze Burfict back from his four-game suspension for this matchup. It's hard to even trust Drake as a flex option right now, and he should be benched in all leagues. 10.4 projected points Lamar Miller Houston Texans RB Miller is battling an undisclosed injury, although he's expected to play in Week 5 against Dallas. It's a good matchup on paper with Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee (hamstring) potentially out again, but it's hard to trust Miller as anything more than a flex option this week. He has two games this season with at least 11 PPR points, and two games with eight points or less, including Week 4 at the Colts when he had just 14 carries for 49 yards and no catches. Keep an eye on Miller's health for Sunday, but he should not be considered a starting-caliber Fantasy option this week in most 10- and 12-team leagues. 8.9 projected points Chris Carson Seattle Seahawks RB Carson cost many Fantasy owners some much-needed production in Week 4 when he was a surprise inactive with a hip injury. He's healthy for Week 5, but he could be looking at a timeshare with Mike Davis, who played well in his absence against the Cardinals, and potentially Rashaad Penny. Carson had a quality performance in Week 3 against Dallas with 20 PPR points, but he needed 32 carries to rush for 102 yards and a touchdown, as well as two catches for 22 yards. With the Seahawks likely chasing points against the Rams, it's hard to expect a heavy workload for Carson even without Davis or Penny taking away touches. And the Rams have only allowed Marshawn Lynch in Week 1 and Melvin Gordon in Week 3 to score double digits in Fantasy points this year. Bust Alert Carlos Hyde JAC • RB • 30 Week 5 projection 8.4 Fantasy points View Profile Hyde comes into Week 5 as the No. 8 PPR running back, and he's scored at least 11 PPR points in each game this season, including five touchdowns over that span. But this should be his worst game of the year against Baltimore. If he doesn't score a touchdown he might be in trouble since he's averaging just 3.4 yards per carry, and he only has four catches for 15 yards in four games. The Ravens have allowed just one rushing touchdown this season, which was to Royce Freeman in Week 3, and are No. 3 in fewest Fantasy points allowed to opposing running backs. Coach Hue Jackson also said Nick Chubb could get more work after he had three carries for 105 yards and two touchdowns against the Raiders in Week 4. Hyde should still get the majority of touches, but I would only use him as a flex option this week, with his value lower in PPR. So who should you sit and start? And what shocking QB could win you Week 5? Visit SportsLine now to get Fantasy football rankings for every single position, and see which shocking QB finishes in the top 10 this week, all from the model that out-performed experts big time last season.<doc-sep>Week 5 of the NFL and fantasy football season is here and as always, we have this week’s studs, duds and sleepers. Make sure to use USA TODAY Sports’ rankings to help as well, and good luck! Studs QB Blake Bortles, Jacksonville Jaguars A great streaming option — if the defense can’t contain Patrick Mahomes, then it’ll be on Bortles to throw the Jags’ way back against a Swiss-cheese defense. With Leonard Fournette out, he and T.J. Yeldon will have to carry the offense. RBs Sony Michel, James White, New England Patriots The breakout has come for Michel, and now he gets to run against a mediocre rushing defense in Indianapolis on a Thursday night. And if Andrew Luck has the kind of game he had on Sunday, White will be called upon to have a high-volume role with Tom Brady. Start these two with lots of confidence. WR Keenan Allen, Los Angeles Chargers He hasn’t put up his usual huge numbers as a WR1, but I’m confident he will against Oakland. I just don’t trust the Raiders’ defense at all, especially after last week’s shootout with the Browns. TE Austin Hooper, Atlanta Falcons The Steelers give up the most fantasy points to opposing tight ends, per ESPN. Given how shallow the tight end position is this year, you might as well give Hooper a chance. Duds QB Jared Goff, Los Angeles Rams This is one of those lowered expectations game — Seattle boasts the fifth-best pass defense, and although the Rams’ offense is a well-oiled machine, this might be huge Todd Gurley game given how bad the Hawks are against the run. RB Carlos Hyde, Cleveland Browns He’s developed as the bellcow in the Browns’ backfield, but the Ravens might have the best defense in the NFL. WR Devin Funchess, Carolina Panthers The Giants have problems, but they have the seventh-best pass defense in the league. TE Eric Ebron, Indianapolis Colts The Patriots boast the best defense against tight ends. Again, you’re probably not benching him because good TEs are hard to find, but if he puts up terrible numbers, you know why. Sleepers QB Carson Wentz, Philadelphia Eagles The Vikings are now a bottom-10 team against the pass after that incredible Jared Goff Thursday game, something that seemed unthinkable before the season. Plus, Alshon Jeffery is back, which will help. Wentz isn’t quite back to his QB1 status, but he could have that kind of day on the road. RB Aaron Jones, Green Bay Packers He’s clearly the best running back in Green Bay and the Detroit has the worst run defense in the league. Starting him at your Flex spot may pay off with serious dividends. WR Keke Coutee, Houston Texans We’ll see what happens with Will Fuller’s injury, but if the speedy wideout is out with a hamstring injury, you might plug in the rookie who received 15 (!) targets for 11 catches and 109 yards last week. TE Geoff Swaim, Dallas Cowboys I’m going really deep for this one. He’s had 12 targets in his last two games and score against the Lions last Sunday. Could he be the Jason Witten replacement the Cowboys need?<doc-sep>
2 of 7 Sam Greenwood/Getty Images Better Than Usual Ben Roethlisberger, PIT (vs. ATL) Roethlisberger had a less-than-ideal matchup with the Baltimore Ravens in Week 4, which resulted in a season-low 274 yards with a touchdown and an interception on 27-of-47 passing. He finished as the No. 20 quarterback for the week with 14.9 fantasy points. Even though Big Ben has three games with at least 335 yards, he's only the No. 9 fantasy quarterback for the season with an average of 21.7 fantasy points per game. Expect Roethlisberger to bounce back in Week 5 with a much easier matchup against the visiting Atlanta Falcons. Through four weeks, only the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New Orleans Saints and Steelers have given up more fantasy points to quarterbacks. Atlanta already lost starting safeties Ricardo Allen and Keanu Neal for the season, and linebacker Deion Lewis is on injured reserve. Defensive lineman Grady Jarrett is also likely to miss this game after injuring his ankle in Week 4. With the Steelers defense likewise struggling to stop the pass, this could be a battle of the aerial attacks. Play Roethlisberger with confidence. Concern Patrick Mahomes, KC (vs. JAC) Mahomes may never be ranked this low for the rest of the season, but tough matchups go both ways and he'll have his most difficult test of the year against the Jacksonville Jaguars. It should come as no surprise that no team has been tougher on fantasy quarterbacks than Jacksonville. In four games, the Jaguars have surrendered only 733 yards and three touchdowns to quarterbacks, which means they're giving up a meager 11.1 fantasy points per game. However, Jacksonville has done this against Eli Manning, Tom Brady, Marcus Mariota and Sam Darnold. With Mahomes currently leading all quarterbacks at 28.8 fantasy points per game, he'll also be the Jaguars' toughest test of the season. You don't have to bench Mahomes, but you might want to lower your expectations. Sleepers Blake Bortles, JAC (at KC) On the other side of that matchup, we have Bortles taking on a vulnerable Kansas City Chiefs defense. In their first four games, quarterbacks lit them up for 1,372 yards and eight touchdowns, so they've been a bottom-five fantasy defense at 24.5 fantasy points allowed per game. They faced stiff competition from Phillip Rivers and Roethlisberger in addition to battling Jimmy Garoppolo and Case Keenum. Bortles enters this week as the No. 12 fantasy quarterback with 79 fantasy points. He's had great games against the New England Patriots (376 yards, four touchdowns, one interception) in Week 2 and the New York Jets (388 yards, two touchdowns, one interception) in Week 4. He also had forgettable performances in Week 1 against the New York Giants (176 yards, one touchdown, one interception) and Week 3 in a loss to the Tennessee Titans (155 yards, no touchdowns). Streaming Bortles can be a dangerous game, yet the likely absence of Leonard Fournette (hamstring) puts more on him to carry the offense. To his credit, he's been able to boost his fantasy production with 132 yards on 18 carries, so even if he isn't great with his arm, he can make up for any lost production with his legs. Give Bortles a shot this week. Marcus Mariota, TEN (at BUF) An elbow injury limited Mariota to only 203 yards and two interceptions without a touchdown on 21-of-34 passing in two games over the first three weeks of the season. When the Titans named him the starter early last week, there was a hint of optimism for Mariota's chances to rebound in Week 4 with the Philadelphia Eagles traveling to Nashville. In his best performance of 2018 and one of the best games he's played dating back to 2016, Mariota went 30-of-43 for 344 yards, two touchdown and an interception along with 10 carries for 46 yards and a rushing touchdown in a win. He wound up as the No. 7 quarterback in Week 4 with 30.4 fantasy points. That optimism should only build heading into an even better matchup with the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. Even though the Bills allow the 12th-most fantasy points to quarterbacks this season, they've been lucky enough to not get the best of Kirk Cousins, Phillip Rivers and Aaron Rodgers. That's been more about leaving points and production on the field than Buffalo's defense slowing down three of the best in fantasy football. Mariota should be able to take advantage of this beatable matchup.