Welcome to our latest edition of fantasy football rankings. Week 5 of the NFL season is here and we have some big start/sit decisions ahead of us. Along with my top 12 rankings, I’ll give you my must-start quarterback for Week 5 of the fantasy football season.

Week 5 – Quarterback Rankings

Week 5 Teams on Bye Weeks

Not Applicable: Justin Fields , Sam Howell

Tier 1

Tier 2

5. Lamar Jackson @ PIT

6. Anthony Richardson vs. TEN

7. Kirk Cousins vs. KC

Tier 3

8. Jared Goff vs. CAR

9. C.J. Stroud @ ATL

10. Trevor Lawrence @ BUF

Tier 4

11. Jordan Love @ LV

12. Daniel Jones @ MIA

Quarterback – Start Of The Week

C.J. Stroud @ ATL

The rule for my start of the week is to go beyond the obvious and pick a quarterback outside the top 12 FantasyPros consensus rankings. Facing off against the Atlanta Falcons, C.J. Stroud is my start of the week.

Despite being the second quarterback selected in the 2023 NFL Draft, C.J. Stroud has been one of the best quarterbacks in the league, not just among rookies but in the entire NFL. Through four games, Stroud is 5th in passing yards to go along with a perfect six touchdowns to 0 interceptions ratio.

Stroud has been a low-end QB1 this year, currently sitting as the QB10. Stroud has looked great from a real-life perspective, which translates over to his 18.4 PPG average. 

Although the Texans don’t have a very high implied team total with 20 points, the Falcons don’t have an elite defense. What’s more important is having a quarterback who loves to air it out. The Texans are currently 0.5-point underdogs against the Falcons, but this is so small that it doesn’t even matter. More importantly, Stroud is playing on an offense that’s sixth in pass attempts per game.

Stroud has looked fantastic all year, and there’s no reason to believe this week will be any different. Although Stroud may not have the same upside as those guys in tier one, it makes zero sense to have him outside your top 12 facing off against the Falcons.