The Buffalo Bills and Houston Texans will face off Sunday afternoon in Week 5’s showpiece matchup. While the Stefon Diggs reunion is the main event, there should be plenty of fantasy football fireworks with so much talent on the field.
Buffalo’s offence is in desperate need of a rebound game after being shut out by the Baltimore Ravens last week. Meanwhile, Houston’s star-studded offence has shown some promise through the first four games, but it is still looking for peak form.
The start at NRG Stadium is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET on CBS.
Buffalo: Josh Allen’s Injuries Impacting Fantasy Stock
Josh Allen is coming off a dismal game against the Ravens. He didn’t score any touchdowns and was sacked three times before being pulled from the game in the fourth quarter due to the lopsided score. Baltimore won 35-10.
While the outcome was alarming for Allen and the Bills as a whole, the larger issue is the great quarterback’s increasingly battered body.
The 28-year-old University of Wyoming product carried nine times for two touchdowns in the team’s Week 1 victory over the Arizona Cardinals. Allen’s non-throwing hand was injured when leaping into the end zone, and he has only had 11 carries in three games since then. He has also not scored a rushing touchdown during that time. That is a huge knock for a player who relies significantly on rushing production to boost his fantasy production.
Meanwhile, the signal-caller suffered a defeat versus Baltimore last week. This includes a failed trick play in which he looked to put a lot of stress on his throwing elbow while following through with an empty hand and banged his head on the ensuing hit.
Nobody is more willing to put their body at risk than the Buffalo Bills’ quarterback. He’s spent his entire career attempting to run through (or leap over) opposing defenders for extra yards. However, these hits tend to accumulate over the course of 17 or more games.
Allen will never see a fantasy bench while active. His upside is too great. He’s one of the few quarterbacks who can win a fantasy week on his own.
However, expectations should be held in check until Allen makes one of his trademark monster scores to demonstrate his health again. He’s a fringe top-10 possibility in Week 5.
Houston: Dalton Schultz Production Will Finally Arrive.
This season, Schultz was projected to fall further down the Texans’ offensive hierarchy. With Diggs joining Nico Collins and Tank Dell, the passing game now has too many weapons and not enough targets. However, the Houston tight end’s situation remains worse than projected.
The Utah native has never caught more than three passes in a game. He has yet to score a touchdown. His season-high target number is five. The list of worrying figures goes on and on.
However, if there is a potential for a breakout game, it could come against the Bills. Rasul Douglas, Christian Benford, and Taron Johnson, who returned to practice this week after missing time with a forearm injury, form one of the NFL’s top cornerback groups.
Although that trio allows the Bills to slow down the Texans’ superior WR trio, they appear to have no answer for Schultz in the middle of the field. Injuries have destroyed the Buffalo linebacker group, which is led by Matt Milano, one of the most successful LBs at shutting down opposing tight ends.
Schultz should be able to convert his routes into targets, catches, and yards as a result. He will also have an excellent opportunity to score his first touchdown of the season.
His first great game of the season would also come at the appropriate time. Most fantasy managers are likely to drop him to the waiver wire. Another poor showing against the Bills would likely make that the correct conclusion.
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