Welcome to Week 5 Stashes.

“Stashes” are players with long-term upside that we’re looking to get ahead of the competition on. From a stock market perspective, think of it as trying to identify and buy that next hot tech stock (or hot alt coin, for the Crypto crowd), that will hopefully run 50-200%, before everyone else does.

On that note, instead of going through this positionally, I’m going to highlight stash candidates from a risk/variance perspective. Higher-profile stashes may be better known and harder to grab, but also have a better chance of turning out. Lower-profile stashes should be available in all leagues, but will obviously have a bigger bust factor.

As always, you can pair the advice here with the fantasy football rankings, projections, and other cool tools from a Fantasy Life+ subscription (Use code “GRIND” for 20% off) ahead of Week 5.

Let’s get stashing.

Week 5 Fantasy Football Stashes

Kendre Miller, RB, Saints

Miller was already seeing his touch count rise before his 11-carry, 65-yard, and a TD game vs the Bills in Week 4. The third-year RB had taken 5 carries each of the first two weeks, before being given 7 carries and 2 receptions for a season high 9 touches vs the Seahawks in Week 3.

What’s so promising about Miller is that the change in usage in New Orleans was completely organic. By all accounts, Alvin Kamara is fully healthy and still capable of taking 20+ touches, but the coaching staff had clearly liked what they had seen from Miller the last couple of games, enough to give him early touches vs Buffalo and 11 carries in a game they trailed all of the second-half.

After he outproduced Kamara by reeling off an 18-yard TD run and going for 5.9 YPC, it’s hard to see his usage dwindle from here. Add in the fact that the Saints may eventually try to shop Kamara soon if they remain winless, and there is some great upside lurking with Miller as we get into the later portions of the season. He’s a great stash candidate and player you need to pick up now, before trade rumours (Ed. Note: Geoff is Canadian and we are going to let this spelling stand because he's cool) start to swirl around Kamara, or he posts another big day (and takes away more touches).

Upside Potential: 8.5/10

Premium

Go FantasyLife+

Your league is unique. Your advice should be too. Get personalized tools, rankings, and projections tailored to your fantasy football league settings.

Learn More

Mason Taylor, TE, Jets

Taylor was somewhat unimpressive the first two weeks, but popped up in Week 3 with 6 targets working alongside veteran QB Tyrod Taylor. It didn’t amount to much (4 rec. 18 yards) but set the stage for his true breakout game vs. the Dolphins the following week, where he saw a season high 7 targets and went for 5 receptions 65 yards with starting QB Justin Fields.

Game flow certainly helped Taylor in Week 4, but the underlying usage stats suggest that the kind of production he posted vs the Dolphins is more than sustainable. Via the Utilization Report, Taylor was second on the team in Route Rate in Week 4, and his 26% target share trailed only Garrett Wilson (30%). The Jets' defense also ranks just 28th in EPA per play, so while they remain a run-heavy team (6th in run rate), game script figures to be on Taylor’s side more weeks than not going forward.

With an ownership rate under 30% on many popular FF sites, Taylor is still a name you can get out in front of and could be set to be one of the bigger stories at TE in the second half of 2025.

Upside Potential: 7.0/10

What are stashes without SMASHES? Read Mark Drumheller's must-starts for Week 5 here

Isaiah Bond, WR, Browns

With Cedric Tillman now on IR, Bond figures to take over as one of the primary outside receivers in the Browns' offense. He led the Browns with 58 yards vs the Lions in Week 4 and was second on the team with a 19% target share.

Even if Bond doesn’t light things up right away, the Browns' switch to Dillon Gabriel at QB should be bullish for their passing game. Joe Flacco was averaging just 5.1 yards per attempt (34th out of 35 graded QBs), and the Browns had yet to produce a play of 40+ yards in the passing game with him under center. Bond’s got sub-4.4 sec 40M speed, so even if the efficiency with Gabriel is lacking, he could certainly pay off with one or two big plays a week.

The matchup vs the Vikings this week is tough, but he’s a player you still want to be in front of going forward. If Gabriel balls out or Bond scores on a long reception, he’ll undoubtedly be one of the most popular waiver wire targets in Week 6, so stashing him now while his valuation is lower makes plenty of sense.

Stash Potential: 6.5/10

Jalin Hyatt, WR, Giants

With Malik Nabers (knee) out for the season, Hyatt figures to get some decent snaps on the outside for the Giants going forward, who would undoubtedly love to keep featuring Wan’Dale Robinson in the slot. The forgotten third-year WR hasn’t been able to carve out a consistent role in the NFL as of yet, but has the sort of ability that could help the Giants fill at least some of the big play potential they lost when Nabers went down.

The 24-year-old scored 15 TDs in his last year of college, which included this insane 5TD game vs Alabama, and has flashed potential when given the shot. In the three games that he’s seen 5+ targets, Hyatt’s managed 75+ yards twice, and posted 5 receptions and 109 yards on 6 targets vs the Patriots back in November of 2023.

It remains to be seen if he can ever put together enough good reps to be an every-down WR, but if you lost Nabers or Tyreek Hill last week, or are just in need of a decent Hail Mary play at WR, it’s not outlandish to swing for the fences and make some room for Hyatt on your roster.

Upside Potential: 7.0/10

Brashard Smith, RB, Chiefs

The Chiefs have started to get Smith more involved over the past few weeks. The rookie caught three passes and saw four targets vs the Ravens, which led all KC RBs, and he played on 19 snaps, which was more than double the eight snaps he played on the week before vs the Giants.

Smith is a converted WR whom the Chiefs valued for his receiving ability, and given the lack of production they received from the position to date, it would not be shocking to see him get worked in more and more as the season progresses. Given the uptick in usage we saw last week, he’s well worth a look in PPR leagues.

Upside Potential: 5.5/10

Sean Tucker, RB, Buccaneers

With Bucky Irving out, Tucker looks set to play a significant role for the Buccaneers in Week 5 vs the Seahawks. In the one game last season where he got to work as one of the primary backs when Rachaad White was out, and Irving was still getting worked in, he exploded for 192 total yards and two TDs.

I wouldn’t expect a repeat of that performance, given how good the Seahawks' rush defense is, but the fact remains, Tucker is talented enough to be a lead NFL RB, and if the Irving injury lingers or just is more severe than is being reported, he’s not someone you want to be late on. If you have the room, stashing him for a week or two to see how the Irving injury plays out is recommended.

Upside Potential: 9.0/10

Taysom Hill, TE, Saints

TE is a tough position. As of now, there are just 12 names who are averaging 10.0 points or more per game in full PR leagues. That’s why the news of Taysom Hill (ACL) returning to practice this week is at least something to take note of.

Hill averaged 12.9 FP per game in 2024 before going down with injury, which would put him as the TE5 in 2025 after Week 4. It’s hard to know what the Saints have planned for Hill, who could also be an option at QB, but just know that if he does take the field at some point, a decent stream of fantasy points will likely follow.

Upside Potential: 7.5/10