Moves to Make Before Week 5 Fantasy Football: Buy George Pickens, sell Quinshon Judkins

Bye weeks are starting, injuries are piling up, and at this point you’ve either deleted the fantasy app from your phone, or you’re looking to make some moves to stay competitive. After four weeks of action, some big names can be had for cheap, while it might be time to cash in on some outlier performances from certain players.

▶ PLAYERS TO BUY

George Pickens, WR, DAL

It’s been a rough start to the season for George Pickens and his fantasy managers. Pickens’ 20 percent target share in 2026 is nearly identical to his 21 percent target share in 2025. In fact, nearly everything is statistically the same except for his touchdown numbers. For the most part, Pickens has just been unlucky. Defensive pass interference calls and touchdown variance have kept his production down in an offense that leads the NFL in points per drive. The Cowboys should continue to pass the ball plenty, and CeeDee Lamb is unlikely to have 21 targets every week. Expect some positive regression for Pickens in the coming weeks.

Chase Brown, RB, CIN

Usage matters when it comes to running backs, and Chase Brown is getting plenty of it. He’s currently top 10 in snap share, opportunity share, routes run, route participation, and designed running back targets – all good signs. Unfortunately, the matchups have been tough for Brown to start the season. Three of Brown’s first four opponents rank in the bottom-eight in fantasy points allowed to running backs. This week he gets the Miami Dolphins, who have allowed the second-most fantasy points to running backs this season. With both Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins dealing with injuries this week, we could see Brown become the most important part of the Bengals’ offense, and his buy-low window could slam shut.

D’Andre Swift, RB, CHI

I like to bet on players getting volume in good offenses. It’s such a simple concept and tends to work out for fantasy football. The Bears appear to be a good offense regardless of the quarterback, and D’Andre Swift is the RB1 for Chicago, but the buy-low window may have opened for a brief moment. In Week 4, we got a classic Ben Johnson “time to teach you a lesson” moment when D’Andre Swift had a fumble in the second half, and the remaining three drives were given to Kyle Monangai, who finished with 30 carries in a lopsided win over the Jets. I wouldn’t read too much into that. The game was already out of reach, and the Bears just needed to run out the clock. Before Week 4, Swift was handling 64 percent of the backfield snaps, and nothing would indicate that we’re going to see a change going forward. If anything, we may see less Monangai as he deals with a finger injury. It’s also important to note that the Bears running backs have the second-easiest remaining strength of schedule and a playoff schedule that lends itself to three potential shootouts against the Bills, Packers, and Lions.

Carnell Tate, WR, TEN

Brace yourself, a top-five draft pick is being used like a top-five draft pick. The massive breakout game that fantasy managers have been waiting for finally happened. Tate just had nine receptions on 12 targets, for 145 yards and a touchdown. So why is this the time to buy? You’re certainly not buying low. This is more of a psychological thing. Tate’s fantasy managers have been frustrated for three weeks and likely didn’t have Tate in their lineup in Week 4 for the big breakout. If anything, they’ll likely be excited to sell high on Tate. The vibes around the Titans and Cam Ward are kinda gross, but if you look specifically at Tate, he’s totaled 21 targets over the last two weeks while having the seventh-highest first-read target rate in the NFL. The offense runs through Tate. Now going forward, the Titans’ wide receivers have the second-easiest remaining strength of schedule. This is a buy-high scenario that I’ll endorse because I believe we’ve just scratched the surface.

Josh Downs, WR, IND

Week 4 was likely a fluke for Josh Downs, and it opened a buy-low window. He had a 14 percent target share, his lowest of the season, despite running the most routes of any Colts receiver. This isn’t a typical performance for Downs, who has been over a 29 percent target share in both games without Alec Pierce. Context around this previous game matters a lot in this instance. The Colts had an early lead and didn’t have to pass much in the second half. Daniel Jones only attempted 12 passes in the second half compared to 22 in the first. Downs did most of his work in the first half, seeing three of his four targets before halftime. This was more of an outlier with a game script issue, not a Josh Downs issue.

Jordan Mason, RB, MIN

A bit of looking ahead here with Mason on IR with a thumb injury and eligible to return in Week 7. We’ve learned that when Kyler Murray is given the opportunity to make a pass anywhere on the field, he’ll look to his running back early and often. Right now, Aaron Jones is reaping the benefits of the Murray checkdown offense, but eventually we’ll be back to a split backfield with Mason taking a large portion of the work. The thing is, Jones is nearly 32 years old, has missed significant time over the past three seasons, and has already dealt with an injury this year. If Jones were to miss time, Mason would instantly become a top 24 fantasy running back with a solid receiving floor and touchdown upside. The Vikings running backs have the fourth-easiest remaining strength of schedule and a bye week coming up in Week 6, making Mason an ideal buy-low candidate that has contingent upside and should be easy to acquire.

▶ PLAYERS TO SELL

Quinshon Judkins, RB, CLE

I know the Browns have been winning games, but it hasn’t exactly been because of Judkins. Through four weeks, Judkins is averaging just three yards per carry and has just one finish as a top 24 fantasy running back. To get that finish, he needed to have the second-best fantasy performance of his career and the highest receiving numbers of his career. Judkins has just one top-24 finish in his last seven games. While I think he might be a better player than what we’ve seen thus far, Judkins has proven to be a low-upside, touchdown-dependent player on a mediocre offense who does not typically catch passes. I know that might sound harsh, but we have film and data that say you should take this opportunity to sell high. The matchup against the Jets could give you one more week to sell high on Judkins, but I’d rather not risk needing him to fall into the end zone or have career-highs in receptions to maintain fantasy value.

Jameson Williams, WR, DET

We got the Jameson Williams game! All it took was for both of the Panthers’ starting cornerbacks to be out and a pass-heavy game script. Williams has been the poster child for inconsistent fantasy value. Would you believe me if I told you that over the last two seasons Williams has been outside the top 50 fantasy wide receivers nearly the same number of times he’s been in the top 20? I like the player as a talent, but if Sam LaPorta and Amon-Ra St. Brown are both playing, Williams is the third or fourth target on the team. He’s a boom/bust roller coaster. Your sell-high window may continue into next week against the Cardinals, who are without their top outside corner, Will Johnson, but the Lions have a bye in Week 6 and a less-than-favorable schedule for fantasy receivers going forward.

▶ PLAYERS TO STASH

If for any reason these guys are still on your waiver wire, you should stash them on your bench.

Emmett Johnson, RB, KC and Mike Washington Jr., RB, LV

These two rookies could be two of the best handcuff stashes in all of fantasy football. Johnson is the direct handcuff to one of the best running backs in all of fantasy, and Washington continues to make big plays for the Raiders in his limited reps. However, both of these guys are only rostered in 39 percent of Sleeper App leagues. If you have the space on your bench, I’d suggest stashing one or both of these rookie running backs, especially with Johnson and the Chiefs on a bye in Week 5.

Antonio Williams, WR, WAS

There’s an alternate universe where Antonio Williams finished Week 4 as a top 12 fantasy wide receiver. Williams had an 84-yard touchdown reception called back due to an illegal shift before the play even started. That’s a play that your leaguemates won’t see in the stat line, but the coaches in Washington definitely noticed. Williams has watched his role grow, especially last week with Terry McLaurin out against the Colts. Both McLaurin and Stefon Diggs are 31 years or older. There’s a decent chance that one or both of them miss time at some point this season. Williams is a talented rookie with inside-outside versatility that should continue to see targets as the season goes on, specifically down the stretch from Week 12 on, where the Commanders receivers have the easiest strength of schedule leading up to and in the fantasy playoffs. You’ll likely see Williams get dropped as soon as McLaurin is back in the lineup as early as this week; if not, the Commanders have a bye in Week 7, where Williams will likely be dropped by a lot of fantasy managers.

Chris Bell, WR, MIA

Another talented rookie had a big touchdown reception called back for a silly reason. Malik Willis scrambled out of the pocket looking downfield, and as Bell worked his way back towards Willis, he had a toe on the boundary line, rendering him ineligible downfield. We haven’t had the monster breakout game just yet, but the signs are there. In Week 3, Bell had four receptions on eight targets, while in Week 4 Bell saw an 82 percent snap share, the highest of his career. If that touchdown had counted, he’d likely be all over the waiver wire lists for Week 5, but the stats don’t show “almost” touchdowns. Bell is probably available on your waiver wire now, and even if he isn’t, the Dolphins have a bye in Week 6, so you’re likely to see him get dropped.