The Miami Dolphins will travel to take on the New England Patriots on Sunday in Week 5. The spread currently stands at Dolphins -1, with a game total of 36.5. The Dolphins’ implied points are 18.8, and the Patriots’ implied points are 17.8.
Here’s fantasy football start-sit advice for every Dolphins skill player who has the potential to make an impact during the game.
Tyler Huntley, QB
Tyler Huntley and this entire Dolphins offense was abysmal on Monday night, so much so that my social media feeds were spammed with, “Thank God there’s a second game” posts. They weren’t wrong – Miami’s offense was just as tough a watch last week as they were the week before, and I’m not sure what that will change for the foreseeable future.
On the bright side, Huntley rushed for a score and directed 61.9% of his passes to Tyreek Hill or Jaylen Waddle. Sure, those passes did almost nothing of significance, but him concentrating his looks on his primary playmakers, along with some above-average mobility, is enough for me to take his side this weekend when I inevitably get a handful of Superflex questions regarding him against a low-end WR2 with a five-to-seven-target projection.
It’s ugly in Miami these days, and this is the game I am least looking forward to watching. Check back for our picks and predictions column – I’ll be diving into the props to find some excuse to keep an eye on this AFC East pillow fight.
De’Von Achane, RB
De’Von Achane hasn’t been a top-30 running back in either game played since Tua Tagovailoa’s injury, and I wish I could bend the numbers in such a way that would make you feel good about a rebound.
I can’t.
Well, I probably could, but that’s not the point. It would require overlooking certain metrics at an irresponsible level, and that’s not helping anyone. The fact of the matter is that 133.3% of Achane’s rushing yards last week against the Titans came after contact, and that’s a tough way to make a living, no matter how talented the player is.
He remains my favorite back in Miami and will likely get plenty of opportunities in a competitive game with the Dolphins knowing that they can’t afford to rely on the pass game. Achane is in a scoring position with every touch he gets, so while he has fallen outside of my top 10, he remains a starter in all formats.
Raheem Mostert, RB
A chest injury has kept Raheem Mostert out for three consecutive games, though he was listed as questionable for the majority of last week. His role as a touchdown threat is predicated on this team being in scoring positions, and that’s not something I’m counting on happening at a high level for the next month.
Mostert will be active for Week 5 and I’ll be monitoring his usage. This knocks some of the shine off of Jaylen Wright, though, at the moment, this is an offense I don’t want to be counting on outside of the very top talents.
Mostert remains a roster worthy player simply because he’s shown the ability to find paydirt when given the opportunity and that holds value this time of year, but you shouldn’t be counting on him on any sort of regular basis until Tua Tagovailoa is back under center.
Tyreek Hill, WR
Tyreek Hill spoke about a “crazy game plan” ahead of Huntley’s first start. At some level, he was right — he had more targets (four) than receiving yards (three) in the first half, something most fantasy managers would label as “crazy.”
He led the team in targets during Monday night’s disaster, so that’s a plus. He also had a pair of deep targets that didn’t miss by much (one underthrown and another overthrown by Huntley).
In theory, those deep shots have a potential to hit, and that keeps Hill inside of my top 30 at the position, but the risk outweighs the reward if you have nice depth at the position (Hill hasn’t been a top-45 receiver in a game since posting a WR3 finish in Week 1).
This week, Hill checks in as WR24 for me, just behind Christian Kirk and Diontae Johnson, two receivers trending in a much more positive direction.
Jaylen Waddle, WR
Jaylen Waddle has one top-30 finish this season, and with Miami looking for answers under center, why would we expect that to change until we see tangible proof?
If the quality of targets is going to be an issue, we need single-play potential to even be remotely interested in this offense.
Week 4 target depth:
- Hill: 18.1 yards
- Waddle: 5.7 yards
On the bright side, the Patriots have allowed the third most short completions in the league this season (77), and Huntley completed 12 of 15 of those passes last week. On the less bright side, it’s going to take consistency from the backup QB to justify playing Waddle — that is not something we saw on Monday night.
Waddle is my WR40 this week, ranking behind options like Dontayvion Wicks and Jerry Jeudy.
Jonnu Smith, TE
If you thought the outlook on Miami’s receivers was bleak, why go to their tight end?
I suppose the interest in Jonnu Smith is an athletic profile and the general approach of assuming that a shallow target could be featured in an inept offense like this. But you’re really overthinking things if you’re still landing on Smith (one top-30 finish this season).
