Ben Roethlisberger burns fantasy owners, Odell Beckham breaks ankle
Fantasy football is mostly a celebration of players doing things well. We're always trying to pinpoint which matchups will produce the best results.
In Week 5, that matchup definitively looked like the Pittsburgh Steelers' running game vs. the Jacksonville Jaguars' league-worst run defense.
However, Le'Veon Bell somehow managed just 15 carries (for 47 yards) and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger threw the ball 55 times against the Jaguars' top-rated pass defense.
Not surprisingly, the Jags secondary silenced Big Ben, intercepting him five times and taking two of them back for touchdowns. Throw in a pair of sacks and it adds up to 28 fantasy points for Jacksonville's defense -- more than any quarterback scored on Sunday.
In this case, Roethlisberger may have single-handedly cost his fantasy teams a win this week instead of allowing Bell to carry his teams to victory.
Beckham down and out
The worst news of the week, however, came when New York Giants wide receiver came down awkwardly while trying to make a catch against the San Diego Chargers.
After he had already caught five passes for 97 yards and a touchdown, Beckham got his leg caught under the Chargers defender. The result: An injury that will likely end his season.
While Beckham's injury was the worst, the Giants also lost three other wideouts to injury in the game. Sterling Shepard hurt his ankle and didn't return, Brandon Marshall was carted off the field with an ankle sprain and Dwayne Harris suffered a foot injury.
Look for the Giants to sign a free agent receiver (maybe more than one) this week.
Sunday night special
The Houston Texans didn't win their prime-time game against the Kansas City Chiefs, but quarterback Deshaun Watson is doing some incredible things with the football.
In addition to showing off his sleight of hand, Watson is finding the end zone with great regularity. Last week, he threw four TD passes and ran for a score. This week, he threw for 261 yards and five touchdowns (three to DeAndre Hopkins and two to Will Fuller), ran for 31 yards and also scored on a two-point conversion.
Not to put too much pressure on the rookie, but numbers like that will make him a top-5 fantasy quarterback going forward.
Early Week 6 waiver wire
Green Bay Packers running back Ty Montgomery was a game-time decision Sunday because of his broken ribs, putting rookies Aaron Jones and Jamaal Williams in line for more touches. Which one would be a better fantasy start was anyone's guess.
It didn't take long to see Jones would get almost all the workload. And he responded with 125 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries. After running for a touchdown last week, Jones has established himself as the back to own while Montgomery recovers.
This week may have been the first glimpse fantasy owners have seen of Indianapolis Colts rookie running back Marlon Mack's talent. Although Mack did run for a touchdown in the season-opener, a shoulder injury kept him out the past two weeks.
Mack split time with starter Frank Gore and was considerably more effective. He rushed for 91 yards and a touchdown on nine carries. If the 34-year-old Gore should need a little more rest going forward, the Colts can confidently turn to Mack.
If you didn't pick up Carolina Panthers tight end Ed Dickson right after starter Greg Olsen was sidelined by a broken foot, then you missed out. We gave him a lukewarm recommendation then, but after catching five passes Sunday for 175 yards, he's going to be a hot commodity in leagues where he's still available.
Detroit Lions tight end Eric Ebron was plagued by the drops on Sunday, opening the door for backup Darren Fells, who caught both of his targets and turned both into touchdowns. Fantasy owners have been burned by one-week wonders in the past, but Fells could move ahead of Ebron after outplaying him for a second consecutive week.
Tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins has carved out a sizable role in the New York Jets passing game over the last three weeks. He's tied for the team lead in targets and catches over that span -- and on Sunday he hauled in his first touchdown reception of the season. He's a great fit for the Jets' short-passing offense.
Broad Shoulders Award
This week's anti-Roethlisberger also came from the Steelers-Jaguars game as rookie running back Leonard Fournette trampled the Pittsburgh defense for 181 yards and two touchdowns on 28 carries -- one of which was a highlight-reel 90-yarder.
Fournette also had a 3-yard reception to give him 30.4 fantasy points in standard scoring formats. He has at least one touchdown in every game this season.
However ... since most fantasy leagues count points for receptions, San Diego Chargers running back Melvin Gordon was the day's high scorer.
Gordon rushed for 105 yards on 20 carries and caught six passes for 58 more yards and a pair of touchdowns. In PPR scoring, Gordon racked up 34.4 points to earn our weekly honor.