2025 Waiver Wire for Week 5
Welcome to the Waiver Wire for Week 5!
Week Four of the 2025 NFL season is officially in the books, which means that it is time for WEEK FIVE WAIVERS!! In today’s discussion, we will be going over the most significant targets on the waiver wire currently for week 5 of the 2025 NFL season.
**DISCLAIMER: I have already talked about Romeo Doubs enough over the last couple of weeks in these Waiver Wire discussions. If he is still available in your league, add him immediately.
Quarterbacks
Sam Darnold (SEA)
- In week 4, Sam Darnold completed 68% of his passes for 242 yards and 1 TD. He scored 16.1 fantasy points in week 4.
- Sleeper Rostership: 28%
- ESPN Rostership: 9.3%
- Yahoo Rostership: 21%
Sam Darnold looks very confident in himself so far this season. I personally thought that he would turn back into a pumpkin after leaving such a great situation in Minnesota, but it seems I was wrong about that. Darnold has a true alpha #1 receiver in Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and once the Seahawks get down in the redzone, they have two capable TEs for Darnold to feed in AJ Barner and Elijah Arroyo.
Due to Seattle’s top-tier defense, Sam Darnold’s passing attempts and volume will likely be a bit capped every week this season. The Seahawks have two very capable RBs in Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet, so they might want to feed them a ton every single game this season and play defense.
- Next 3 opponents: vs. TB, @ JAX, vs. HOU
Jaxson Dart (NYG)
- In week 4, Jaxson Dart completed 65% of his passes for 111 yards and 1 TD, and also added in 54 rushing yards and a TD on the ground as well. He scored 19.8 fantasy points in week 4.
- Sleeper Rostership: 35%
- ESPN Rostership: 17.9%
- Yahoo Rostership: 23%
I’ll admit it, Jaxson Dart looked a lot better than I thought he would in his first-ever career start in the NFL vs. the Los Angeles Chargers in week 4. He looked comfortable and confident the entire game. Plus, Dart provides a surprisingly great amount of rushing upside weekly as well, which we obviously love for fantasy purposes.
Even though Dart looked really good for the Giants in week 4 vs. the Chargers, the situation surrounding him going forward is pretty poor, to say the least. Unfortunately, it appears that superstar WR Malik Nabers tore his ACL in Week 4, leaving Dart with extremely limited weaponry to work with. If Wan’Dale Robinson and Darius Slayton are your top options for the rest of the season, you’re in trouble.
- Next 3 opponents: @ NO, vs. PHI, @ DEN
Running Backs
Woody Marks (HOU)
- In week 4, Woody Marks ran for 69 yards and a TD on 17 carries, and also added 50 receiving yards and a TD on four receptions and five targets as well. He scored 25.9 Half PPR fantasy points in week 4.
- Notable advanced metrics from week 4: 3.57 YPRR (led team)
- Sleeper Rostership: 37%
- ESPN Rostership: 27.6%
- Yahoo Rostership: 31%
The Woody Marks backfield takeover in Houston has finally happened, folks. Marks had a 58.5% snap share in week 4, and Nick Chubb had a 40% snap share in week 4. The Texans are a high-volume passing offense, which is excellent for Marks, as he is an outstanding receiving back out of the backfield, providing us with immense value weekly.
The only concern here is that Houston still has a relatively subpar offensive line as things stand right now, so if they ever face an even above-average defense, Marks could potentially struggle, unfortunately.
- Next 3 opponents: @ BAL, BYE, @ SEA
Wide Receivers
Luke McCaffrey (WAS)
- In week 4, Luke McCaffrey hauled in 2 receptions for 21 yards and a TD on 3 targets. He scored 9.1 Half PPR fantasy points in week 4.
- Notable advanced metrics from week 4: 20.7 aDOT (2nd on team)
- Sleeper Rostership: 3%
- ESPN Rostership: 0.5%
- Yahoo Rostership: 1%
It sounds like Terry McLaurin’s quad injury is a bit worse than initially thought, and with him out of the lineup in week 4, Luke McCaffrey stepped up in his absence. Even though it was Marcus Mariota throwing him the ball, it seems that McCaffrey has carved out a nice little role for himself going forward. Speaking of that, it sounds like Jayden Daniels is very close to returning from his knee sprain for the Commanders, which means that the offense as a whole could only get better from here once Daniels does return very soon.
Even though Luke McCaffrey stepped up in Terry McLaurin’s absence in week 4 for the Commanders, just be aware that McCaffrey may only have a very short-term window of relevance here, because McLaurin will likely only miss another week or two at most. If you’re looking for a short-term play, go for it. But if you’re looking for a sustained, long-term play with McCaffrey, you’re going to want to temper your expectations quite a bit.
- Next 3 opponents: @ LAC, vs. CHI, @ DAL
Jalen Tolbert (DAL)
- In week 4, Jalen Tolbert hauled in 4 receptions for 61 yards on 6 targets. He scored 8.1 Half PPR fantasy points in week 4.
- Notable advanced metrics from week 4: 1.91 YPRR (3rd on team)
- Sleeper Rostership: 16%
- ESPN Rostership: 2%
- Yahoo Rostership: 4%
CeeDee Lamb is obviously likely to miss the next few weeks at least with the high ankle sprain that he sustained in week 3, which has shifted everything on offense in Dallas and changed around everyone’s roles and involvement pretty much. Dallas is an extremely pass-happy offense, and because so much attention is given to George Pickens by the defense on a down-to-down basis every single week, it opens up a lot of free releases and underneath targets for Jalen Tolbert in the middle of the field.
Tolbert has clearly received an elevated amount of opportunity with Lamb out, but it may not be as consistent as we would like it to be on a week-to-week basis. Outside of Pickens and Jake Ferguson, Dallas could opt to rotate their receivers every single week while Lamb is out. This past week it was Jalen Tolbert who got a lot of the opportunity as the #2 WR behind George Pickens, but who knows, next week it could be KaVontae Turpin who gets that opportunity.
Plus, when the Cowboys get down into the redzone and goal line area, they like to give it to Javonte Williams a lot, so the TD opportunities for these Dallas pass catchers outside of Pickens could be capped, unfortunately.
- Next 3 opponents: @ NYJ, @ CAR, vs. WAS
Tight Ends
Theo Johnson (NYG)
- In week 4, Theo Johnson hauled in 3 receptions for 17 yards and a TD on 5 targets. He scored 9.2 Half PPR fantasy points in week 4.
- Notable advanced metrics from week 4: 23.8% target share (tied for 1st on team)
- Sleeper Rostership: 5%
- ESPN Rostership: 1.7%
- Yahoo Rostership: 5%
Rookie QBs love their tight ends because it’s a nice, reliable safety blanket for them as they adjust to the NFL. It seems that Jaxson Dart and Theo Johnson have already built a strong connection with one another, and that connection will only grow stronger as time passes. Plus, Dart will want to get the ball out of his hands quickly for short, easy completions, which will provide Theo Johnson with a lot of opportunities. Also, Johnson tested off the charts athletically at the NFL Combine a couple of years ago when coming into the NFL, so that alone is exciting here.
With Malik Nabers unfortunately tearing his ACL in week 4, I don’t know how much touchdown opportunity there will be for this Giants offense as a whole going forward, and for Theo Johnson specifically. This just isn’t a good situation for any Giants offensive weapon, not named Cam Skattebo, unfortunately.
- Next 3 opponents: @ NO, vs. PHI, @ DEN
Defenses
Arizona Cardinals
- Week 5 opponent: Tennessee Titans
- Week 4 Half PPR scoring: 5.0 points
- Sleeper Rostership: 20%
- ESPN Rostership: 24.9%
- Yahoo Rostership: 17%
Welp, the Tennessee Titans offense once again looked completely inept vs. the Houston Texans in week 4, so we are going right back to picking on them in week 5. The Arizona Cardinals actually have a very good defense in the NFL, so this is an absolutely dream matchup for the unit in week 5.
New York Giants
- Week 5 opponent: New Orleans Saints
- Week 4 Half PPR scoring: 7.0 points
- Sleeper Rostership: 4%
- ESPN Rostership: 7.5%
- Yahoo Rostership: 2%
I know that the Saints’ offense actually looked surprisingly competent in week 4 vs. the Buffalo Bills, but it’s still Spencer Rattler and the Saints at the end of the day, so I highly doubt that this performance will repeat vs. the New York Giants in week 5. The Giants boast a top-tier defensive line in the NFL, and they should eat the Saints’ average-at-best offensive line alive in week 5.
