Defenses & Dragons: Week 5 Detroit Lions fantasy player of the week

Despite the team’s 1-3 record, the Lions still boast some of the league’s top offensive weapons. Detroit has yet to put together a dominant performance on offense, but the pieces have definitely been there. While it may be difficult for every single player to come alive all at once, there is plenty of space for multiple players to have a good day.

This is encouraging for the Lions’ trio of receivers, who are all deserving of a healthy number of targets. The leading player has changed each week, but three out of the four games have seen at least two of Golden Tate, Kenny Golladay, and Marvin Jones reach double digits. Knowing who will be the favorite is a tall task, but sometimes it takes a little reading between the lines. Call it a hunch, but the Week 5 Defenses & Dragons Player of the Week is Marvin Jones.

FantasyPros Ranking: WR22 (0.5 PPR)
FanDuel Pricing: WR25 ($6500)

Jones has 29 targets on the season, which trails both Tate (44) and Golladay (32). He has a modest 8.8 points per game so far, and has found the end zone just twice this season. In many ways he has been a bit of a disappointment in fantasy so far.

Though Jones has yet to replicate his productivity from last year, there is reason to believe some positive regression is coming. Matthew Stafford has been off on many deep throws, missing Jones who has had a step on his defender. Some slight adjustments on these long bombs will instantly cause a jump in fantasy points for both players.

The Packers have been decent against wide receivers this season, but the duo of Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs provided a promising sign for the Lions. The two players combined for 46 points in Week 2 with each player gaining over 100 yards. Even splitting this production among three receivers would result in a solid outing for Jones.

Green Bay was a positive matchup for him last year, and perhaps Stafford will look to exploit this imbalance again. In two games against the Packers, Jones totaled 11 catches for 188 yards and three scores; he notched 15.3 and 20.3 fantasy points in these two outings. As the Lions continue to figure out the offense right now, look for them to go back to a combination that worked well last season.

Jones is ranked/priced like a back-end WR2, which means that most outlets consider him a usable player this week. However, he is still seen as the third option on the team by most in the industry. This is a good matchup for Jones and expect him to take advantage. For one week at least, he should be outperforming his teammates.

Prediction: 7 receptions, 90 yards, 1 touchdown; 18.5 fantasy points