Miami Dolphins fantasy football start and sit: week 5

Entering week five of fantasy football teams begin to start separating themselves from the pack behind them but you may want to consider whether or not to start Dolphins players this week.

It was down right ugly for the Miami Dolphins last week against the New England Patriots. For fantasy football players with Dolphins in their lineups, it was just as ugly. Miami’s offense could get nothing going against the Patriots, and for the second week in a row we’re completely dominated in time of possession.

Week 5 is another opportunity, however, and although it is another tough matchup for the Dolphins on the road, the Bengals defense is not exactly stellar. If Miami can put a well executed game plan together, the offense could very well find some success. Let’s take a look at which players are worth a start in fantasy lineups this week, and which of those are better left on the bench or off rosters entirely.

Ryan Tannehill

Clearly, Tannehill had his worst game of the year against New England. His fantasy output took a drastic hit as a result. With just 100 yards passing, zero touchdowns, a fumble lost, and an interception, Tannehill put up a donut for fantasy owners. The argument regarding the fumble could be made that it was the fault of center Travis Swanson, but it goes against Tannehill on the stat sheet.

Tannehill was benched in the 4th quarter for Brock Osweiler, who would go on to finish with a better day after throwing a pointless touchdown pass to Frank Gore to avoid the shutout. Tannehill is going to need to have a short memory, and put this awful performance behind him quickly. He could easily make up for it with a win and superb performance against Cincinnati.

The Bengals are a tough matchup for Miami, but that doesn’t mean Tannehill can’t lead this offense against them. Entering this game, Cincinnati is ranked 23rd in the league in points per game at 28.3, and 28th in the league in passing yards allowed at 303.5. It’s going to take that kind of day from Tannehill in order for Miami to come away with a win, and although I am hesitant to say that they will come away victorious, I do believe that Tannehill will have a much better afternoon to say the least.

Start

Running Backs

Miami’s run game has been dreadful these past two weeks, and that says more about head coach Adam Gase than it does for his two lead backs. Gase has seemingly abandoned the run entirely in the last two games, and it’s questionable as to why. The Dolphins did lose guard Josh Sitton for the season earlier on, and now center Daniel Kilgore has suffered the same fate. It could be that Gase no longer has any faith in his offensive line’s ability to run block, but he’s not even giving his team the opportunity to try.

Kenyan Drake has just 8 carries combined in the last two games for a total of 6 yards. Obviously, the blame can’t be all put on Drake, but I’m sure the disappointing output has cost some fantasy owners, and created a ton of frustration. I know personally that it has for me. There’s little doubt that Gore’s involvement in the offense has dipped into Drake’s touches as well. More so than I initially thought that it would.

Gore finished last week as the Dolphins lead fantasy player, highlighted by his late touchdown reception. In addition, he finished the game with 11 rushes, and although the majority of that came on the final drive, what does that say about Gase’s confidence in Drake?

After finishing the final six weeks of the season as one of the league’s strongest runners, it appears as if Gase is going away from his lead back. Cincinnati gives up 115.8 yards per game on the ground, tied for 21st in the league, but this situation is too risky at the moment. We’re going to need more clarity first before we start claiming Drake as a RB2 again.

Kenyan Drake – Sit

Frank Gore – Sit

Wide Receivers

Although it’s typically a toss up as to which Dolphins receiver is going to have the big day, they all busted against the Patriots. It should come as no surprise given Tannehill’s abysmal day. But like Tannehill, this game against Cincinnati is a good opportunity for Miami’s receivers to bounce back.

If I had to guess which player has the best opportunity it would have to be Kenny Stills. Stills is Miami’s #1 receiver capable of making the big play down the field, and has some WR3 value. While Albert Wilson and Jakeem Grant have had good starts to the season so far, they don’t get enough snaps for me to trust on a consistent basis. Danny Amendola has made some nice catches to extend drives, but is not on anyone’s fantasy radar, and DeVante Parker is almost never active.

Kenny Stills – Start

DeVante Parker – Sit

Albert Wilson – Sit

Jakeem Grant – Sit

Danny Amendola – Sit

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Tight Ends

Through four games, we still haven’t seen the Dolphins offense get their tight ends involved much. A.J. Derby had the touchdown catch in week 2 against the Jets, but it has been quiet on all accounts. Derby is still highly questionable to play this week, and we’re still waiting to see when Mike Gesicki is going to have his breakout performance.

Gesicki saw just two targets last week, and finished with a lone reception for nine yards. We thought his involvement might be trending in the right direction after recording 3 receptions for 31 yards against Oakland, but like everyone else last week he trended back down. He has a good opportunity for a breakout game against the Bengals, who have given up 3 touchdowns already to tight ends, in addition, to the 4th most fantasy points at the position, but Gesicki simply hasn’t done enough yet in his short career to start in leagues.

Mike Gesicki – Sit

Defense

To be brutally honest, this is an easy fade. The Bengals are averaging 31.5 points per game, and possess one of the most explosive offenses in the league. Meanwhile, the Dolphins are plagued with injuries, and their defense will be without another key member on Sunday.

Suffering from a knee injury, cornerback Bobby McCain is expected to miss the next 2-3 weeks. The Dolphins are already thin on the defensive line with William Hayes out for the season, and Andre Branch expected to miss at least one more game, probably more. There is no guarantee that Reshad Jones will play this week either, although all reports appear that he is trending in that direction.

The Bengals have a lot of weapons on offense, however, and it’s going to be very tough for Miami’s defense to contain. I would anticipate the Bengals to again hang 30+ points in this one.

Sit

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