Cramming for NFL Week 5: Five fantasy sleepers, three predictions, three trends and an intriguing bet

Week 5 of the 2025 NFL season is here, and our NFL analysts person you covered successful the eleventh hour. Don't miss our last-minute prep for a loaded slate.

Here's what we have: First, analytics writer Seth Walder breaks down 3 stat trends that could beryllium pivotal this weekend. Then phantasy shot writer Eric Moody runs done 5 players who are rostered successful nether 50% of ESPN phantasy shot leagues arsenic of Saturday and could beryllium started successful a jam. That's followed by NFL expert Matt Bowen predicting 3 perchance large surprises and sports betting expert Pamela Maldonado giving her favourite stake for Week 5.

Will the Giants' discourtesy rotation against the Saints? Can Lions antiaircraft extremity Aidan Hutchinson get aggregate sacks against the Bengals? Will Browns CB Denzel Ward snag an interception for the 2nd consecutive game? Which 2 QBs person sneaky phantasy worth this week? And could we spot a clump of points successful the Raiders-Colts game? Let's dive in.

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Stat trends | Fantasy sleepers
Potential surprises | Best bet

Walder: Three cardinal stat trends that could find Week 5 winners

Can Giants receivers Wan'Dale Robinson and Darius Slayton measurement up against the Saints?

The numbers suggest they can. New Orleans has 1 of the astir pass-inducing defenses successful the NFL, ranking 2nd highest successful walk complaint implicit anticipation allowed (plus-2%), per NFL Next Gen Stats. It's casual to spot why. While the Saints' defence allows minus-0.10 EPA per designed transportation (ninth best), it allows 0.25 EPA per dropback (fourth worst).

Twenty-one percent of passes against New Orleans are thrown to receivers successful the slot, which ought to specifically assistance Robinson, who has lined up successful the slot 69% of the time. It doesn't extremity there, arsenic the Saints person allowed 8.6 aerial yards per effort this play (fourth most), which should play close into the hands of Slayton, a heavy menace who is averaging 12.7 aerial yards per target.

Is Lions borderline rusher Aidan Hutchinson headed for different multi-sack time against the Bengals?

I'm a small amazed to spot the Lions starring the full league successful antiaircraft sack complaint (10.6%), but Hutchinson is blistery since returning from leg surgery. He has a sack successful 3 consecutive games, including 2 past Sunday against the Browns. He besides ranked successful the apical 5 successful walk unreserved triumph complaint astatine borderline that week. Now helium and the Lions get to look a Bengals squad that is struggling mightily successful walk protection.

As a team, the Bengals fertile dormant past successful walk artifact triumph complaint (44.6%). Against the Broncos past week, some tackles Amarius Mims and ...