The fourth Sunday of the NFL season featured quite a bit of action and high-scoring performances, starting with a morning game in Dublin, Ireland, and finishing in Dallas with a game that ended in a tie. Overall, six players scored 30 PPR points, including Los Angeles Rams WR Puka Nacua and Las Vegas Raiders rookie RB Ashton Jeanty. Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes turned back time to throw four TD passes.
However, the big story in Week 4 was, once again, an injury. New York Giants star WR Malik Nabers tore the ACL in his right knee in his team’s stunning win over the Los Angeles Chargers. QB Jaxson Dart played well. RB Cam Skattebo played well. Fantasy managers lost Nabers — in many cases their first-round pick — for the rest of the 2025 season.
Each Monday, before the current NFL week ends, we will identify players available in at least 50% of ESPN standard leagues worthy of your attention, from standard formats to deeper options. The NFL is a weekly league, and player valuation and roles seldom remain stagnant. It does not matter how you acquire players for your fantasy rosters, just that you get them.
Jaxson Dart, New York Giants (rostered in 21.1% of ESPN leagues): What a Sunday of mixed emotions for the Giants. Dart’s first start went well enough statistically, as he scored 19.84 PPR points — mainly thanks to his 54 rushing yards and touchdown. However, he attempted only 20 passes and was under heavy pressure. Dart’s running ability might make him look statistically like New England Patriots sophomore Drake Maye, which is potentially special in fantasy. Dart should be a QB2 this season even with a limited group of receivers to throw to now that Nabers is out. No QB1 options are on bye this week, but fantasy managers should add Dart anyway for a Week 5 road game against the New Orleans Saints … and beyond.
Sam Darnold, Seattle Seahawks (9.4%): Darnold scored 16.08 PPR points to open Week 4, a tough Thursday win on the road against the Arizona Cardinals. He continues to play efficient football. He has been mistake-free in three of four games and has completed 70% of his passes. Darnold faces an overmatched Tampa Bay Buccaneers secondary in Week 5.
Deep-league options/streamers/random thoughts
Woody Marks, Houston Texans (33.2%): Marks, a fourth-round pick from USC, didn’t see many chances over the first three weeks, earning just 12 rushing attempts, and he turned them into only 44 yards. He also caught two passes. On Sunday, against the woeful Tennessee Titans, the Texans split the work between the rookie and wily veteran Nick Chubb more evenly. Marks turned his 21 touches into 119 yards and two touchdowns, including his receiving work. That’s 27.9 PPR points. Chubb scored 8.2. Advantage, Marks.
The Texans really should rely on Marks moving forward, starting in Week 5 against the Baltimore Ravens, though this might remain a timeshare, and nobody seems to know when or if Joe Mixon (foot) will play again. Marks becomes a viable RB2 option even against the Ravens.
Kenneth Gainwell, Pittsburgh Steelers (35.6%): Starter Jaylen Warren (knee) was a surprise inactive Sunday morning, and many fantasy managers were simply not prepared to remove him from lineups. Others added Gainwell and were rewarded with 31.4 PPR points, the No. 3 RB performance from Week 4 (entering Monday).
Gainwell might be worth adding this week even though the Steelers are on a bye in Week 5, because we shouldn’t presume that Warren will be fully healed for Week 6 against the Browns or beyond. This knee problem might linger. Gainwell rarely started over four seasons with the Eagles, and perhaps he lacks the size to handle a regular role, but what he achieved Sunday was quite impressive.
Deep-league options/streamers/random thoughts
Wan’Dale Robinson (54.3%) and Darius Slayton (3.6%), New York Giants: Well, someone needs to catch the football now that Nabers is done, and these fellows combined for six receptions on nine targets Sunday. Robinson is far more rostered, coming off a season in which he caught 93 passes, though he turned them into a mere 699 yards and three touchdowns. He averaged 5.0 yards per target with Daniel Jones, Drew Lock, Tommy DeVito and Tim Boyle throwing the football last season. Dart is better, and Robinson, speedy out of the slot and not much of a downfield threat, should be productive. Slayton gets downfield better, but he doesn’t figure to see major volume. Regardless, there is a void in this offense. Robinson and Slayton must see opportunity.
Deep-league options/streamers/random thoughts
Dallas Goedert, Philadelphia Eagles (67.8%): Goedert is rostered in more than 50% of leagues, but he was started in a mere 15.2% of them in Week 4. He tallied a position-leading 19.7 PPR points, and he has had three touchdowns over the past two weeks. Goedert has been a relative disappointment in recent seasons for both production and health reasons, but he seems to have a safe role in what has become a wildly inconsistent Philadelphia offense.
Brenton Strange, Jacksonville Jaguars (22.7%): A repeat name from prior weeks, Strange has six receptions on seven targets over consecutive weeks, which might not seem like much, but it’s pretty good in this offense. Strange leads the Jaguars with 19 receptions and 192 receiving yards.
Deep-league options/streamers/random thoughts
Arizona Cardinals (24.6%): The Cardinals D/ST has reached double-digit fantasy points in just one game (Week 2 against the Carolina Panthers) and did so mainly because of an early fumble recovery for a touchdown. The Cardinals host Tennessee on Sunday, and the Titans didn’t score in Week 4.
Jacksonville Jaguars (7%): It seems dangerous to rely on the Jaguars for a Week 5 home game with the Chiefs, after seeing what Kansas City did to the Ravens on Sunday. Then again, the Jaguars D/ST has scored double-digit PPR points in three of four games. That is impressive.
New York Giants (7.2%): The Giants have a lot of other stuff going on, obviously, but the defense played admirably against Justin Herbert and the Chargers. In Week 5, the Giants hit the road against the Saints. The Saints are not an offensive juggernaut. Then again, one could make the case to add the Saints D/ST (0.6%) against the Giants, too! Go with the Giants first.