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Fantasy Franchise Tag Lineup: Week 5
My nickname around the NFL Media office is "Franchise" and every week I deliver my "Fantasy Franchise Tag" lineup to help give you that boost of confidence you need to start some players on your fantasy roster. Last week, I nailed Andy Dalton, Karlos Williams, Mark Ingram, Amari Cooper, Charles Clay, Chandler Catanzaro and the Raiders D/ST. I've had my share of misses too, (Matt Jones in Week 3…yeah it was rough for me as well), but I'm only human, so cut me some slack. Keep in mind that I'm starting a majority of these players in my slew of fantasy leagues too, so we're in this together. Be sure to check out my full positional player rankings, and if you're all up on the Twitter, be sure to send me some feedback @MattFranchise with #FantasyFranchiseTag and get th

I had to deploy Bortles in Week 4 with Andrew Luck sidelined and I didn't feel great about it. But the decision paid off as Bortles posted 19 points - more than Luck has in any game all season. Through four weeks, Bortles is a top 10 fantasy quarterback and has one more passing yard than Aaron Rodgers (looks around, makes sure nobody saw this sentence typed moves on). He goes up against a Buccaneers squad that turned the ball over five times last week and has a talented duo of Allens (Robinson and Hurns) to distribute his passes to. Bortles is a great quarterback sleeper if you need him in Week 5.

If there's a week to start the No. 1 runner on the Redskins depth chart, this is it. Alfred Morris matches up against the Atlanta Falcons who have allowed more FPPG to running backs than any other team this season. Last week Morris saw the lion's share of carries for Washington with 17 so the fact that Atlanta is allowing two touchdowns per game to RBs should be reason enough for you to plug Freddy Mo into your lineup and feel somewhat okay about it. As for Matt Jones, I've been down this road before and it wasn't pretty. But hey, if you're feeling lucky be my guest. Just don't blame me if it goes awry.

Look, I'm not saying Hillman is the answer for Denver's backfield. But by all accounts he has earned himself a bigger role in the Broncos' offense and has been praised by coach Gary Kubiak for his impressive play thus far. With C.J. Anderson shaping up as one of 2015's biggest early season fantasy busts, Hillman is now the Denver running back to own and has scored the only two rushing touchdowns for his team this year. Even if the backfield becomes a "50/50" split in terms of carries, I still like Hillman for his upside potential (See: 72-yard TD run) over Anderson this week against a middle-of-the-pack Oakland run defense. If you own both Denver backs, Hillman is the one to start.

Last week was Jones' first game of the season without a touchdown and he still almost managed to post double-digit fantasy points in standard scoring leagues with 98 receiving yards. With touchdowns on nearly a quarter of his receptions this year (four on 17), he's a good candidate to be the second wideout that the Rams allow a touchdown (or two) to when Green Bay takes on St. Louis at Lambeau Field. Yeah, I know. It's not a very bold call, but I have to make up for my running back risks somehow. Plus, at WR2 I'm the highest on Jones of our rankers this week.

Will Maclin become the first Kansas City wide receiver with three-straight 100-yard games since Dwayne Bowe in 2010? Sure, why not? In his last two games Maclin has racked up 19 catches for 289 yards and a touchdown. And that whole deal with Alex Smith not throwing the deep ball hasn't really been an issue; 182 of Maclin's 398 yards (45 percent) have come after the catch. Plus, he's averaging 10 targets per game and faces a Chicago defense that has allowed the eighth-most FPPG to opposing wideouts. Fantasy owners who may have sold high on Maclin after his Week 3 breakthrough could already be regretting that move.

Before you jump to the comments and tell me how the Ravens have allowed the least fantasy points to tight ends this season blah blah blah -- enough. Baltimore's opponents and opposing tight ends thus far: Denver (Owen Daniels, come on), Oakland (Mychal Rivera, no chance), Cincinnati (Tyler Eifert, had a controversial TD overturned via replay) and Pittsburgh (the Mike Vick to Heath Miller connection was virtually non-existent). Barnidge has become Josh McCown's second favorite target and leads Cleveland with 16 receptions. He is the only other pass-catcher on the Browns to score a touchdown other than Travis Benjamin and is becoming a legitimate every-week starter at a position that can be very volatile in fantasy. So if you own him, fire him up this week despite the seemingly poor matchup.

For the third week in a row, this rookie wideout makes my Franchise Tag lineup. Cooper is becoming a mainstay here because of his consistent production. On average, Cooper posts about 84 yards per game and has just one contest, his NFL debut, where he put up single-digit fantasy points in standard leagues. Of his 339 receiving yards, 200 of them (58 percent) have come after the catch which is a testament to his play-making ability with the ball in his hands. Since the Raiders play a tough Broncos defense this week, Cooper has been downgraded to a flex play rather than a WR1 or WR2, but I still have faith in the AC/DC connection to produce for fantasy owners once again.

The only game that Gould hasn't posted double-digit fantasy points in this season was Week 3 when Jimmy Clausen started at quarterback for the Bears and they punted on every single possession. Those were sad times, but as long as Jay Cutler is back in the mix, Gould should benefit. With the depressing state of kickers across the NFL right now, Gould is one of the bright spots both in reality and in fantasy.

The Jaguars face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this week. Jameis Winston and his Bucs turned the ball over five times against Carolina in Week 4, including four interceptions and a pick-six, and will likely continue to cough up the rock frequently all season. So pretty much any D/ST going up against Tampa Bay will make for a good spot start this season and that includes Jacksonville in Week 5.