🐺 Wolf Sports Weekly

We’re coming off one of the longest weeks in NFL history, with Sunday beginning in London and ending well past midnight thanks to a weather delay. There were a few big career milestones hit in Week 5 to highlight:

🏴‍☠️ Buccaneers WR Mike Evans scored his 100th career TD (26th player in history to do so).

🐦‍⬛ Ravens RB Derrick Henry scored his 100th career TD (27th player in history) and also hit 10,000 career rushing yards.

💪 Steelers OLB T.J. Watt recorded his 100th career sack, becoming the second-fastest player to do so in terms of games (Reggie White).

🧨 More points headline Week 5

After roughly a quarter of the season, more offenses found their groove in Week 5, beginning with Kirk Cousins leading the Falcons to a shootout victory over the Buccaneers last Thursday night. The career-high 509-yard, four-touchdown night was capped by a walk-off 45-yard touchdown to WR KhaDarel Hodge. Despite some physical limitations at this stage in his career coming off a torn Achilles, Cousins knew where to go with the ball on virtually every snap and was tough for Tampa to stop. The offensive explosion became a common theme throughout the week.

Lamar Jackson led the Ravens back from two 10-point deficits against the Bengals to win in overtime, 41-38. It was one of those “takeover” performances from Lamar, who threw for 348 yards and four touchdowns including an insane scramble and touchdown toss to TE Isaiah Likely to begin cutting into the second 10-point hole. Baltimore is up to 3-2—while Cincy drops to 1-4 and still seeking answers on a defense that lost CB Dax Hill for the year due to a torn ACL.

The rookie quarterbacks have settled in. Bears QB Caleb Williams (vs. CAR), Commanders QB Jayden Daniels (vs. CLE), and Broncos QB Bo Nix (vs. LV) all won in Week 5 and are all above .500 through five games. After the Bucs gave Washington trouble in the season opener, Daniels has been more than settled into Kliff Kingsbury’s offense since Week 2. Meanwhile, Williams and Nix continue to look more and more comfortable in their attacks.

• Williams hit WR DJ Moore for two touchdowns against Moore’s former Panthers squad, and Nix helped Denver end an eight-game losing streak to the Raiders.

• Also, Nix was not afraid to go at HC Sean Payton on the sideline, which Payton’s former LT Terron Armstead (current Dolphin) posted is a good thing to Payton.

• Guys around them are also playing well, from a strong Chicago defense recording four sacks and three turnovers to Patrick Surtain II picking off two passes including a 100-yard pick-six.

An offense not doing well is the Jets, as Aaron Rodgers threw a rare pick-six to Andrew Van Ginkle and three interceptions total in the tight London loss to the 5-0 Vikings. While many are questioning why the Jets threw the ball 54 times, give Minnesota credit for continuing to play great defense and totally stuffing the run (2.6 YPC on 16 attempts for Breece Hall and Braelon Allen). That said, things are clearly off with the passing game for New York, and they’re clearly in on All-Pro WR Davante Adams.

Speaking to the parity around the NFL, the Jaguars beat the Joe Flacco-led Colts in a shootout to make 2024 just the fourth time since 1970 without any winless teams through five weeks. Rookie WR Brian Thomas Jr. (85-yard touchdown) and second-year RB Tank Bigsby (65-yard touchdown) starred in the victory for Jacksonville, a team that was in desperate need of a win before back-to-back games in London.

Other Week 5 results:

• Texans 23, Bills 20: Buffalo surprisingly had issues in pass protection and the weapons struggled to separate in the matchup with Stefon Diggs (six receptions, 82 yards) and Houston. The Texans lost WR Nico Collins (hamstring, week-to-week) in the game, and the Bills defense tightened up after that as Buffalo came back from a 20-3 deficit to tie the game, 20-20, before K Ka’imi Fairbairn hit a 59-yard game-winner as time expired—following a drive when Buffalo threw three straight passes inside their five-yard line, which HC Sean McDermott took responsibility for.

• Dolphins 15, Patriots 10: In a game of ugly offense, the Patriots had a potential game-winning touchdown to rookie WR Ja’Lynn Polk overturned—which HC Jerod Mayo agreed was the correct call by the officials despite some controversy. There’s speculation that New England will turn to rookie Drake Maye at quarterback starting this Sunday versus the Texans.

• Cardinals 24, 49ers 23: In two of the past three games, the Niners have been unable to hold leads late (Kyle Shanahan says the team is “extremely frustrated”), dropping the defending NFC champions to 2-3. For the Cardinals, it was an excellent bounce-back effort in an NFC West that’s very close early.

• Giants 29, Seahawks 20: Even without star rookie WR Malik Nabers, Daniel Jones (295 total yards, two touchdowns) was excellent paired with efforts from impressive rookie RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (18 carries, 129 yards) and WR Darius Slayton (122 yards, one touchdown) in an upset win at Seattle.

• Packers 24, Rams 19: An ill-advised decision by QB Jordan Love leading to a pick-six by Rams S Jaylen McCollough didn't ultimately cost the Packers, as TE Tucker Kraft (four receptions, 88 yards, two touchdowns) and key stops by the Green Bay defense sparked the win.

• Cowboys 20, Steelers 17: In a hard-fought battle that started well over an hour late due to a lightning storm, QB Dak Prescott orchestrated a game-winning touchdown drive capped by a four-yard touchdown to WR Jalen Tolbert on fourth-and-goal with under 30 seconds remaining.

• Chiefs 26, Saints 13: The score was closer than the lopsided play in this one, with KC outgaining NO by 240 yards. However, the highlight of the game came from Saints DT Khalen Saunders—a total must-watch if you haven’t seen it already.

🔥 Top fantasy performers in Week 5

• Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase: 36.3 points

• Falcons QB Kirk Cousins: 34.36 points

• Bengals QB Joe Burrow: 33.78 points

• Ravens QB Lamar Jackson: 33.42 points

• Falcons WR Drake London: 27.4 points

(point totals are for half PPR scoring)

🧐 Davante Adams not alone among disgruntled WRs

Three-time All-Pro WR Davante Adams has requested a trade from the Raiders, bringing closer the end of a saga that’s dragged on for a bit. Here’s what we know:

• When Adams was traded to the Raiders in 2022, it was to play with his college QB Derek Carr. So—while Adams has family in the area and sounded like he wanted to finish his career with the franchise—things began feeling shaky when Carr was cut by Vegas in 2023.

• Over the past two seasons, there have been times when Adams has been visibly frustrated with how things were going on the field, both from a team perspective and from the standpoint of his own personal goals.

• The Jets are thought of as the favorite to land Adams due to Aaron Rodgers’ presence and the offense’s struggles, but the Saints (where Carr is now the quarterback) have reportedly been the most aggressive in trade talks.

• Adams has missed the past two games due to a hamstring injury, but the feeling is the Raiders will trade him soon—and that he’ll be ready to get back on the field quickly after that.

Bottom line: Vegas has no obligation to trade the veteran weapon to the Jets, so this might come down to whether another team like the Saints (the Bills and Steelers are also reportedly interested) swoops in with a stronger offer—and if New York will match if that is the case.

📝 More player news

Chiefs WR Rashee Rice’s knee injury will have more clarity during his surgery today, but it’s not thought to be a torn ACL. The expectation is that it’s an LCL injury with a much shorter recovery timeline. While it’s probably unlikely that Rice returns this season, it would still be great news for his long-term health.

Dolphins OLB Jaelan Phillips suffered a torn ACL in Week 4 and is out for the season—his second consecutive year with a season-ending injury with a lengthy rehab process. But the 2021 first-round pick posted that his “resolve has never been stronger” and he’ll be back.

Big o-line injuries: Patriots C David Andrews is done for the year due to a significant shoulder injury that cannot be played through and requires surgery. Cardinals G Will Hernandez is out for the season due to a knee injury. Panthers C Austin Corbett (biceps) is out for the remainder of 2024.

The NFL suspended Bills OLB Von Miller four games for violating the league’s Personal Conduct Policy. He can return in Week 8 against the Seahawks.

Star players progressing in returns from injury: 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey (Achilles tendinitis) is getting closer to a 2024 debut and may play in late October or early November, while Rams WR Cooper Kupp is eyeing a Week 7 return versus the Raiders on October 20.

In addition to those mentioned earlier, players set to miss time with various injuries:

• Dolphins S Jevon Holland (hand)

• Cowboys DE Marshawn Kneeland (knee)

• 49ers DE Yetur Gross-Matos (knee, IR)

• Patriots OT Caedan Wallace (ankle, IR)

• Colts DE Tyquan Lewis (elbow, IR)

Patriots S Jabrill Peppers was arrested over the weekend and faces charges including strangulation and drug possession.

For some awesome news, Texans DE Dylan Horton played his first game since being diagnosed with Stage IV Hodgkin’s Lymphoma last December.

42-year-old future Hall of Fame OT Jason Peters signed with the Seahawks practice squad to begin his 21st NFL season.

📰 NFL notes

The NFL’s international expansion: The league is eyeing Ireland, France and Australia as locations for future overseas games.

Tom Brady’s part-ownership stake in the Raiders is moving toward a vote either this month or in December, according to the Washington Post.

NFL players do not want the media to interview them in the locker room, continuing an effort by the NFLPA to make a change there. The NFLPA says it’s about “respecting players’ privacy and dignity.”

“I was like, ‘I hate this sport.’” Lions HC Dan Campbell has a very good (and comical) reason for not liking baseball.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones landed his helicopter in middle of the team’s practice last week.

Other Sports Updates

🏈 Considered a down week on paper, college football instead delivered stunning top-ten upsets with five top-11 teams losing (four of them to unranked opponents):

• Vanderbilt stunned No. 1 Alabama, 40-35.

• Arkansas held down No. 4 Tennessee, 19-14.

• No. 25 Texas A&M blew out No. 9 Missouri.

• Washington took care of No. 10 Michigan, 27-17.

• Minnesota toppled No. 11 USC, 24-17.

⚾️ State of the MLB postseason: Mets-Phillies, Padres-Dodgers, Royals-Yankees, and Tigers-Guardians are all tied 1-1 after two games. A couple of notes:

• Padres SP Joe Musgrove needs Tommy John surgery and is out for the postseason.

• Jurickson Profar had a spectacular robbed home run that even tricked FOX Sports’ scoreboard operators to help the Padres win Game 2 over the Dodgers in the NLDS. LA fans sadly threw things at Profar later in the game.

🏒 NHL season begins: The Devils beat the Sabres both games in Prague, beginning the NHL season—which officially gets underway in North America starting today.

🔴 The Reds hired two-time World Series winner Terry Francona as their new manager.

👀 The Pac-12 continues staying alive, with Gonzaga the latest school to join the conference.

🐺 Found on wolfsports.com

• Week 5 fantasy awards

• Fantasy ROS rankings (🔒)

• Week 6 waiver wire rankings (🔒)

• Latest college football power rankings