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Week 5 finally brought a breath of fresh air for Steeler Nation and Pittsburgh Steelers fantasy football owners. The Steelers offense came alive against the Denver Broncos after coming out and committing to the run game. Najee Harris ramped up 25 total touches, Chase Claypool brought in 5 of his 6 targets, and Diontae Johnson only had 2 targets, but made them count to remain a productive start in fantasy football leagues everywhere.
Ben Roethlisberger protected the ball and added in a couple touchdown throws for his possible starts in super flex leagues to pay off. JuJu Smith-Schuster had two early carries and looked to be a bigger part of the game plan before exiting the game with what has since been reported as a shoulder injury that figures to sideline Smith-Schuster for the rest of the season.
The biggest takeaway from Week 5, Roethlisberger seemed to be more patient in the pocket. Committing early and often helped the offensive line get into more of a groove and Big Ben seemed more comfortable letting plays develop instead of the quick throws, dink & dump Steelers offense we’ve seen over the last 7 or 8 Steelers games. Getting Harris the ball early and often seems to be what will make this offense tick and move the ball.
Now let’s dive into the Steelers fantasy production:
(QB) Ben Roethlisberger
Week 5 Projections: 11.5 pts
Week 5 Score (actual): 16.02 pts
(RB) Najee Harris
Week 5 Projections: 15.5 pts
Week 5 Score (actual): 22.2 pts
(WR) Diontae Johnson
Week 5 Projections: 18.5 pts
Week 5 Score (actual): 15.2 pts
(WR) Chase Claypool
Week 5 Projections: 11.0 pts
Week 5 Score (actual): 24.0 pts
(WR) JuJu Smith-Schuster
Week 5 Projections: 9.5 pts
Week 5 Score (actual): 0.6 pts
(WR) James Washington
Week 5 Projections: 3.5 pts
Week 5 Score (actual): Inactive
(TE) Pat Freiermuth
Week 5 Projections: 3.5 pts
Week 5 Score (actual): 2.7 points
(TE) Eric Ebron
Week 5 Projections: 1.5 pts
Week 5 Score (actual): 3.0 pts
If you started Ben Roethlisberger in Week 5 after the slow start to the year, it was most likely in a two-QB league. Big Ben going over his projection against a good Broncos defense, more specifically secondary, is enough to be very optimistic moving forward. Harris continues to be an absolute fantasy superstar and emerging star on the field for the Steelers. He has been so valuable in fantasy football in part because of his passing game usage. Week 5 showed that Harris can get it done on the ground behind this offensive line, toting the rock 23 times for 122 rushing yards — his two catches is his lowest total since Week 1, but his 22.2 fantasy points are his second most so far this season. Harris continues to trend even further upwards on the fantasy scale.
Johnson had a season low in targets and catches in a game that saw JuJu exit early with an injury, odd right? Johnson more than made his two targets count, getting involved early for the 2nd straight week with an opening drive touchdown. Johnson still managed to post 15.2 fantasy points, even with the low involvement. Look for Big Ben to target Johnson a lot more next week against a suspect Seattle Seahawks secondary.
Claypool reeled in 5 catches in 6 targets and had a massive fantasy day. Claypool finished the day with 5 catches and 130 yards receiving with a touchdown (24.0 fantasy points). Claypool immediately jumps into the WR2 ranks with JuJu missing the rest of the season.
Both TE’s continue to be unplayable in fantasy as they take away from each other fantasy wise, as Zach Gentry even got involved in the passing game in Week 5. Freiermuth continues to be an add and stash in keeper leagues or 14-team and up redraft leagues, as the TE position is so thin and unpredictable in fantasy terms.
The Steelers will play host to the Seattle Seahawks in Week 6 on Sunday Night Football. The Seahawks come in with a struggling defense and an even more struggling secondary on top of them losing QB Russell Wilson for the next few weeks due to a finger injury. The Steelers offense will look to build off the success from Week 5 moving forward, hopefully continuing getting the run game going early and often again.
Fantasy Week 6 projections will come out later this week, but which Steelers are you starting in your lineups? Let us know in the comment section below!
#SteelerNation
Support SteelerNation by clicking here to read the story..
Ben Roethlisberger protected the ball and added in a couple touchdown throws for his possible starts in super flex leagues to pay off. JuJu Smith-Schuster had two early carries and looked to be a bigger part of the game plan before exiting the game with what has since been reported as a shoulder injury that figures to sideline Smith-Schuster for the rest of the season.
The biggest takeaway from Week 5, Roethlisberger seemed to be more patient in the pocket. Committing early and often helped the offensive line get into more of a groove and Big Ben seemed more comfortable letting plays develop instead of the quick throws, dink & dump Steelers offense we’ve seen over the last 7 or 8 Steelers games. Getting Harris the ball early and often seems to be what will make this offense tick and move the ball.
Now let’s dive into the Steelers fantasy production:
(QB) Ben Roethlisberger
Week 5 Projections: 11.5 pts
Week 5 Score (actual): 16.02 pts
(RB) Najee Harris
Week 5 Projections: 15.5 pts
Week 5 Score (actual): 22.2 pts
(WR) Diontae Johnson
Week 5 Projections: 18.5 pts
Week 5 Score (actual): 15.2 pts
(WR) Chase Claypool
Week 5 Projections: 11.0 pts
Week 5 Score (actual): 24.0 pts
(WR) JuJu Smith-Schuster
Week 5 Projections: 9.5 pts
Week 5 Score (actual): 0.6 pts
(WR) James Washington
Week 5 Projections: 3.5 pts
Week 5 Score (actual): Inactive
(TE) Pat Freiermuth
Week 5 Projections: 3.5 pts
Week 5 Score (actual): 2.7 points
(TE) Eric Ebron
Week 5 Projections: 1.5 pts
Week 5 Score (actual): 3.0 pts
Fantasy Outlook
If you started Ben Roethlisberger in Week 5 after the slow start to the year, it was most likely in a two-QB league. Big Ben going over his projection against a good Broncos defense, more specifically secondary, is enough to be very optimistic moving forward. Harris continues to be an absolute fantasy superstar and emerging star on the field for the Steelers. He has been so valuable in fantasy football in part because of his passing game usage. Week 5 showed that Harris can get it done on the ground behind this offensive line, toting the rock 23 times for 122 rushing yards — his two catches is his lowest total since Week 1, but his 22.2 fantasy points are his second most so far this season. Harris continues to trend even further upwards on the fantasy scale.
Johnson had a season low in targets and catches in a game that saw JuJu exit early with an injury, odd right? Johnson more than made his two targets count, getting involved early for the 2nd straight week with an opening drive touchdown. Johnson still managed to post 15.2 fantasy points, even with the low involvement. Look for Big Ben to target Johnson a lot more next week against a suspect Seattle Seahawks secondary.
Claypool reeled in 5 catches in 6 targets and had a massive fantasy day. Claypool finished the day with 5 catches and 130 yards receiving with a touchdown (24.0 fantasy points). Claypool immediately jumps into the WR2 ranks with JuJu missing the rest of the season.
Both TE’s continue to be unplayable in fantasy as they take away from each other fantasy wise, as Zach Gentry even got involved in the passing game in Week 5. Freiermuth continues to be an add and stash in keeper leagues or 14-team and up redraft leagues, as the TE position is so thin and unpredictable in fantasy terms.
The Steelers will play host to the Seattle Seahawks in Week 6 on Sunday Night Football. The Seahawks come in with a struggling defense and an even more struggling secondary on top of them losing QB Russell Wilson for the next few weeks due to a finger injury. The Steelers offense will look to build off the success from Week 5 moving forward, hopefully continuing getting the run game going early and often again.
Fantasy Week 6 projections will come out later this week, but which Steelers are you starting in your lineups? Let us know in the comment section below!
#SteelerNation
Support SteelerNation by clicking here to read the story..