Week 5 Streamers: Aaron Rodgers, C.J. Stroud and the Bengals Defense Cover the Chiefs and Panthers Byes

Week 5 is the first bye week of the season, and it takes two starting quarterbacks off the board: Patrick Mahomes and Bryce Young. The Chiefs and Panthers are idle, and Young managers in particular are scrambling after he threw for 329 yards and two touchdowns against Detroit on Sunday night.

The good news is that the streaming board is unusually deep at both quarterback and defense this week. Three veteran quarterbacks just posted big Week 4 lines and have playable Week 5 spots, and two defenses get offenses that have not won a game. Here is how to rank them, using only confirmed Week 4 production and the Week 5 market lines.

Quarterback streamers

1. Aaron Rodgers, Steelers vs. Colts. Rodgers completed 22 of 40 passes for 299 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions in Pittsburgh's 27-24 Thursday night loss in Cleveland, and he ran in a game-tying two-point conversion. His touchdowns went to Roman Wilson, Darnell Washington and Pat Freiermuth, which tells you the volume is spread around rather than dependent on one receiver. The bigger edge is rest: Pittsburgh played on Thursday of Week 4 and gets a mini-bye before hosting Indianapolis. The Steelers are about 2.5-point home favorites with a total around 44 to 44.5. The risk is turnovers; he was sacked five times and threw two picks against the Browns.

2. C.J. Stroud, Texans at Titans. Stroud completed 21 of 31 passes for 347 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions in a 34-30 loss to Dallas, posting his best passer rating of the season. He has been turnover-free in three of four games. Houston is 0-4, but so is Tennessee, and the Texans are favored by 6.5 on the road. The catch is the total, which sits at 39.5, one of the lowest on the slate. Stroud is a safer floor play than a ceiling play this week; if Houston gets ahead, the Texans may lean on the run late.

3. Kirk Cousins, Raiders at Patriots. Cousins completed 31 of 52 passes for 365 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in the 30-27 loss to Kansas City. Fifty-two attempts is the kind of volume that makes a streamer work, and Brock Bowers (11 targets in Week 4) gives him a reliable outlet. The Raiders are 3.5-point underdogs in New England with a 44.5 total, a script that should keep Las Vegas throwing. New England just beat Buffalo 29-26, so this is not a soft defense on paper, but negative game script is a streamer's friend.

Avoid: Jacoby Brissett at home against Detroit. He threw three interceptions, including a 98-yard pick-six on the final play, in a 36-24 loss to the Giants, and completed 6 of 18 passes against the blitz.

Defense streamers

1. Bengals at Dolphins. This is the cleanest defensive matchup of the week. Miami is 0-4 after a 15-10 loss to Minnesota in which the Dolphins managed 198 total yards. Malik Willis completed 9 of 17 passes for 85 yards and lost a fumble, and his longest completion went for 17 yards. Cincinnati is favored by about 7 to 7.5 on the road with a total near 42, which implies Miami is expected to score in the mid-teens at best. Sacks and turnovers are both in play against a quarterback who has struggled to find receivers downfield.

2. Texans at Titans. Houston opened at -3.5 and has been bet up to -6.5, with some books at -7, and the 39.5 total is among the lowest of the week. Tennessee is 0-4 after a 24-18 loss to Baltimore, and Cam Ward completed 20 of 31 passes for 222 yards with a touchdown and an interception in what was described as his best game of the year. Analysts covering the matchup point to Houston's pass rush, which has one of the league's better sack rates, as the clearest unit advantage on either side.

3. Cowboys vs. Buccaneers (Thursday). Dallas hosts a Tampa Bay team starting Jalon Daniels with Baker Mayfield out, and the Cowboys are favored by roughly 9.5 to 10 points. The obvious caveat is that the Dallas defense just allowed 30 points and 347 passing yards to Houston. This is a script play: big home favorites against backup quarterbacks generate sacks and late-game turnovers. Because it is a Thursday game, you lose the ability to pivot if you play it and it disappoints, so lock it in only if your alternatives are clearly worse.

Deeper option: Raiders at Patriots. Las Vegas was rostered in under 10 percent of leagues entering the week, according to RotoBaller, and posted 13, 12 and 12 fantasy points in its first three games before the shootout in Week 4. It is a fine pivot in deeper leagues but a weaker matchup than the top three.

What to do in your league

If you roster Mahomes or Young, pick up Rodgers first if he is available. The rest advantage and a manageable total make him the most balanced option, and his receivers are spread enough that one bad matchup will not sink him. Stroud is the best choice for managers who want to avoid interceptions, while Cousins carries the most passing volume and the most upside in a game where his team should be chasing.

On defense, the Bengals are the play you set and forget. If Cincinnati is gone, Houston is a nearly equal option given the line movement and the low total. Only reach for Dallas if both are taken, and remember that a Thursday streamer must be decided before waivers fully clear in many leagues.

Kickers are less predictable, but the same logic applies: target the favored side in games where the market expects the favorite to move the ball but stall in the red zone. Cincinnati and Houston both fit that description, with modest totals and comfortable spreads.

What's next

Lines will keep moving through the week, especially Houston's, which has already jumped three points. Recheck the spreads and totals on Saturday before finalizing a streamer, and if the Texans number keeps climbing toward 7.5, Houston's defense becomes the top option. For the full Week 5 slate, see the model's card at /nfl/predictions.