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We finally witnessed some offensive football in Week 5 of the NFL season. Nine different teams had 30 or more points. Five of those games went for over 35. We also saw nine different quarterbacks exceed 300 passing yards. The previous high was five.
Despite the strong offensive production, offensive lines across the NFL continue to navigate through injuries and subpar play. Seven different groups finished with an average PFF grade below 60.0. One team (see it below) finished below a 50.0 average grade.
Bye weeks roll on and finding solid streaming options requires much research. Check out the offensive line matchups to target and avoid in Week 6 to make sure you leave no stone unturned.
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Champ of the Week
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are our offensive line champ of the week simply because they did not play down to their opponent.
The Bears offensive line was credited with just one sack and one pressure against a Panthers defense missing numerous starting defenders in the box. The team also lost edge-rusher Jadeveon Clowney in the middle of the game, making it even easier.
Caleb Williams with a sidewinder pic.twitter.com/dUD0IsvldZ
— Nate Tice (@Nate_Tice) October 8, 2024
Chicago was able to take full control of the trenches against a massively depleted opponent. All five starters finished with a PFF pass protection grade above 73.0 and a run blocking grade above 64.0. Four of five starters also had a PFF grade above 71.0.
The performance allowed Caleb Williams to rack up another 300-yard day as a passer and helped D'Andre Swift find rushing lanes. It hasn’t been a great start to the season for the Bears offensive line, but it’s possible it just had a unit-wide get-right game against a very subpar opponent.
Chump of the Week
New Orleans Saints
The Saints offensive line started the season off very well. But a couple of key injuries on the interior of the offensive line forced some players into uncomfortable situations in Week 5 against the Chiefs.
The unit was not up for the challenge.
Derek Carr is so terrible under pressure pic.twitter.com/Tt447T1dVK
— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) October 8, 2024
New Orleans’ offensive line finished with an average pass-blocking grade of 34.2, an average run-blocking grade of 53.4, and an average PFF grade of 41.7 against Kansas City in Monday night’s loss. The team allowed just one sack on the night but gave up 21 pressures.
It was an especially concerning night for rookie left tackle Taliese Fuaga. The rookie had been steady in protection to start his career but gave up seven pressures to the Chiefs in Week 5.
New Orleans had vastly outperformed expectations to start the year, but an extended time without Erik McCoy and Cesar Ruiz will be problematic for a unit that doesn’t have the talented depth to replace multiple starters.
Matchups to Target
Atlanta Falcons at Carolina Panthers
The Falcons offensive line is still missing a major piece (center Drew Dalman), but this group did get back one starter in Week 5 against the Buccaneers (right tackle Kaleb McGary).
Atlanta got an offensive explosion against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers thanks to the sturdy play of its offensive line. The team’s offensive line was credited with four sacks and 20 pressures, most of which came off the edge.
𝗗𝗿𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗟𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘀 𝟭𝟳 𝗴𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲:
➖𝟭𝟬𝟵 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀
➖𝟭,𝟮𝟬𝟰 𝗬𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀
➖𝟭𝟬 𝗧𝗗’𝘀𝗪𝗥𝟭 pic.twitter.com/gwqomZJj8j
— Austin Abbott (@AustinAbbottFF) October 4, 2024
While it wasn’t the best performance, this group will enter Week 6 with the best matchup in football. Carolina has already been decimated by injuries and lost Jadeveon Clowney to an injury against the Bears. The group mustered just one sack and nine pressures against Chicago.
There isn’t much else to say. Any team facing off against Carolina is at a clear advantage in the trenches at the moment. So fire up all of your Falcons players in Week 6 and watch the points rack up.
Chicago Bears vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (London)
Chicago’s offensive line took control against Carolina in Week 5. It was encouraging to see the offense clicking in a fantastic matchup and many players along the offensive line had their best game of the season.
The Bears have another matchup they can take advantage of in Week 6 against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Jacksonville got a fantastic performance out of Travon Walker (seven pressures and three sacks) in their first win of the season against the Colts, but the rest of the group struggled to make an impact. The rest of the team had just six pressures and a sack.
Indianapolis is a much tougher matchup than Chicago, but Jacksonville’s defense has been far from sturdy to start the 2024 season. Jacksonville ranks in the bottom 10 in PFF pass-rushing grade (62.9) and is middle-of-the-pack in run defense (62.3).
The edge duo of Walker and Josh Hines-Allen is still more than enough to give Chicago fits in this game. But the Bears should once again have a successful week against a defensive line that struggles to get interior pressure.
Matchups to Avoid
New England Patriots vs. Houston Texans
Drake Maye getting his first career start against the Houston Texans defensive line is not great. Nobody would consider Miami’s defensive line good right now with its injuries on the edges, but that group still generated 19 pressures in Sunday’s win.
What if I told you Christian Wilkins was actually a Zach Sieler merchant? pic.twitter.com/iHqeZFQm2L
— Kevin Fielder 🇫🇮 (@RivalsFielder) October 7, 2024
The Patriots offensive line is an absolute mess. The team is missing three starters due to injuries. It was forced to move right tackle Mike Onwenu back into guard out of necessity. Most casual football fans couldn’t name three players on their offensive line at the moment (bonus points if you’ve heard of Demontrey Jacobs).
The collective offensive line is averaging the 28th-best pass-blocking average, the 31st run-blocking average, and the 32nd overall grade per PFF through five weeks.
Meanwhile, the Texans defensive line is coming off a game where it gave the Bills offense fits. Five different players had two or more pressures. The team combined to generate 20 but converted only one into a sack.
The combination of Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr. has generated 42 pressures and five sacks to start the season. The team also has found a solid interior presence with Tim Settle and Mario Edwards Jr. (20 pressures and four sacks). Even off-ball linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair (11 pressures) is getting in on the fun.
Things are looking bleak for Maye in his first career start. You already weren’t playing many Patriots players in your lineups for fantasy, but maybe give it another week before trusting anyone from this group with the future under center.
Washington Commanders at Baltimore Ravens
The Commanders offensive line has been up to the challenge this season, but the team won its game against Cleveland in Week 5 due to the brilliance of Jayden Daniels and not his blocking in front of him.
Washington allowed just 10 pressures and one sack against Cleveland but had just one player (rotational tackle Cornelius Lucas) finish with a pass protection grade above 69.0.
Washington’s offensive line will be put to the test once again against a Ravens defense that can win anywhere on the offensive line.
Baltimore features three defensive linemen with at least 12 pressures and two sacks (Kyle Van Noy, Nnamdi Madubuike, and Odafe Oweh). Through five weeks, the collective defense has 87 pressures and 17 sacks. 10 of its box defensive players (linemen and linebackers) have a run defense grade above 68.0.
Odafe Oweh hitting a VICIOUS spin aligned as the 4-tech.
Kicking him inside on pass downs is a great idea. pic.twitter.com/tfigX5x7lJ
— Spencer Schultz (@ravens4dummies) January 11, 2023
You still have to start Daniels because his next bad game will be his first one as a professional. But be wary of trusting huge days from anybody on this offense in one of the toughest matchups of the season.
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