Don't let these guys give you cold feet. Their recent performances (or suspensions) might be giving you room for pause, but we think you can start them in confidence for week 5.
Nyheim Hines - RB Indianapolis Colts
TY Hilton, Jack Doyle, and Marlon Mack have already been ruled out for Thursday Night football, with a juicy line of 51 points. Even with a bum shoulder, Luck threw an ungodly 62 pass attempts last week against the Texans, and against Tom Brady, he’ll probably need to keep it up. The Patriots are obvious favorites after heating up last week against the Dolphins, and if the Colts have any prayer, it’s to get there through the air given their lack of run game. Hines put up 9 receptions for 63 yards and two TD’s through the air last week, and with Luck’s favorite target out, we don’t see him slowing down. He is a high upside RB2 this week.
Aaron Jones - RB Green Bay Packers
The backfield in Green Bay is looking muddled off of Jones’ return from his 3 game suspension. In his first week, he split carries with Jamaal Williams 50/50 but boasted a 5.9 yards per carry to Williams 2.5. He was clearly the better back, and drew praise from Rogers who says they’ve “got to find ways to get him the ball.” Jones most certainly has himself down for more carries after last week’s performance, and against a Lions defense that’s allowed 33.6 point per game to the RB, we’re sticking him in our lineups with full confidence. If you don’t happen to own any Jones shares, don’t fret; you can still get in on the action. Ty Montgomery is available in 60% of leagues. Geronimo Allison remains sidelined in the concussion protocol, so he’s bound to reel in some air yards.
Chris Thompson - RB Washington Redskins
You might have forgotten about Thompson amidst his disappointing week 3 and week 4 bye, but don’t sleep on him just yet. The Redskins are playing the Saints this week in a matchup that’s got a 52.5 over/under. Thompson does most of his damage through the air, and the Saints rusty D has given up an average of 323 passing yards per game. They’ve gotta go somewhere, and Alex Smith likes his chuck down passes to the RB. Thompson’s size and speed allows him to create great mismatches and should find his way back into your lineups this week.
Keelan Cole - WR Jacksonville Jaguars
Cole owners might be hesitant to squeeze Cole back into their lineup following 100 yard performances from Moncrief and Westbrook where he came up dry. Against a Kansas City defense allowing 38.7 fantasy points to the WR per game, Cole should be a good play this week. RB Leonard Fournette has already been ruled out for this week, and although many are sick of the narrative (no, the Jags are not better without Fournette), they do certainly scheme differently without him on the field. He’s managed 225 yards on the year, behind only Dede Westbrook, who totaled almost ½ of his season yards in week 4 against the Jets. And in case you haven’t seen it, you should probably check out his OBJ-esque one handed grab that left NFL Twitter communities drooling. Coming off a season low in targets and yards last week, we think he’ll put up a fine line against a high powered offense with a questionable secondary like the Chiefs.
Kenny Stills - WR Miami Dolphins
With Landry out of the picture, Stills has come to fruition as the WR1 in Miami with a decent looking Tannehill and lackluster run game. Their week 5 opponent, the Bengals, are ranked 28 in passing defense on the season so far, ahead of only the Steelers, Saints, Chiefs, and Bucs. He’s got a 37% of the Dolphins’ total air yards on the season and ranks 3rd in average yards per target, so Stills should be looking to eat this week. Their win streak came to an end last week against the Patriots, and the offense had significant difficulties staying on the field and moving the ball. Luckily, Bengals have allowed the 3rd most 1st downs in the league. Although they do get back Vontaze Burfict, we am not sure the Bengals D can stop them from a bounce back game with a big play guy like Stills on the field.