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We're heading into Week 5 of the XFL this weekend, and things are starting to make some sense in the league. D.C. is actually bad, St. Louis is surprisingly good, and despite winning the Twitter meme battle ahead of last week's meeting with Houston, the Dallas Renegades couldn't win the actual game, falling in the first-ever Texas Throwdown. But some things still haven't fully coalesced yet, so there are still questions to wonder about while setting up fantasy lineups.
That's why we're here with our new weekly XFL daily fantasy picks for your DFS lineups. Now, there are a lot of different ways to do XFL DFS lineups, as some sites are offering four-game slates, while others are offering a pair of two-game slates. We'll try our best to provide selections that can help you in whatever kind of DFS contest you're in by giving multiple selections for each position.
Below, you'll find my thoughts on the Week 5 DFS slate of XFL contests on FanDuel and DraftKings. Let's get to it, and good luck RotoBallers!
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XFL Week 5 DFS Lineup Picks: Quarterback
Saturday QB: Philip Nelson (Dallas Renegades) - DraftKings: $7,500 / FanDuel: $16
LET'S GET RISKY.
With Landry Jones out due to a knee injury, Nelson should get the start on Saturday against New York. DraftKings has these two teams ranked seventh and eighth against quarterbacks, so we could see some offensive fireworks in a game where neither team is particularly good at slowing down their opponents. Nelson wasn't great when he started in Week 1, but he should be more familiar with the offense now and that Week 1 performance did come against a very strong St. Louis defense.
Sunday QB: Jordan Ta'amu (St. Louis Battlehawks) - DraftKings: $9,700 / FanDuel: $20
I'll all aboard the Ta'amu hype train. His ability to rack up huge days on the ground -- two games already with 60 or more rushing yards -- and connect on a high percentage of his passes makes him a solid play, even with a not-so-great matchup with D.C.. Ta'amu has only real had one bad game all year, and even in that one he didn't have a disastrous game, as he managed to avoid turning the ball over. Ta'amu is a safe pick with a ton of upside.
XFL Week 5 DFS Lineup Picks: Running Back
Saturday RB: Darius Victor (New York Guardians) - DraftKings: $5,800 / FanDuel: $14
Victor continues to see his role with New York grow. Last week, he had a season-high 18 carries while Tim Cook had just eight. Let's go ahead and call Victor the top running back for New York. He had 82 rushing yards in Week 4 and has a pair of games with five or more yards per carry. Victor is making the most of his opportunities, and it seems clear that he's going to continue to get plenty of opportunities.
Sunday RB: DeVeon Smith (Tampa Bay Vipers) - DraftKings: $7,900 / FanDuel: $16
With the caveat that Smith didn't practice on Wednesday for an undisclosed reason and thus could end up missing Sunday's game -- in which case, play his backup, Jacques Patrick. But if Smith does play, he's an extremely intriguing option. Tampa has committed to Taylor Cornelius at quarterback, which has meant that Quinton Flowers is no longer in the plans. Without Flowers, Smith and Patrick are getting more carries, and last week we saw Smith finish with 122 yards on the ground. He's averaged at least four yards per carry in three of the four games this season.
XFL Week 5 DFS Lineup Picks: Wide Receiver / Tight End
Saturday WR/TE: Donald Parham (Dallas Renegades) - DraftKings: $9,500 / FanDuel: $19
I'm recommending a tight end in a league where tight ends have been so inconsistent? Yeah, because Parham has been the big exception to that trend. Not only does Parham have a juicy matchup against New York this week, he's also caught touchdowns in three consecutive games, and he's gotten at least six targets in every game, including double-digit targets in two of the final three games. Yes, Parham's worst game came when Philip Nelson started at QB, but I'd expect Nelson to rely a lot on Parham in Nelson's return to the starting lineup.
Saturday WR/TE: Nick Holley (Houston Roughnecks) - DraftKings: $7,100 / FanDuel: $17
Holley -- who was a running back before the season but has turned into a receiver due to the way he's been used -- is coming off an eight-catch, 97-yard outing against the Renegades. I like how Houston got him involved last week, and as defenses continue to focus on stopping Cam Phillips, Holley should have another shot to rack up numbers as a safety net for quarterback P.J. Walker. Plus, Houston's offense is so good that you've got to play someone in it.
Sunday WR/TE: Demornay Pierson-El (St. Louis Battlehawks) - DraftKings: $9,200 / FanDuel: $18
While St. Louis is trending more towards being a running team, Pierson-El has turned into the guy that quarterback Jordan Ta'amu is looking for when he needs a big play. Last week, Pierson-El caught all five of his targets, finishing with 71 yards and a score. He's caught 21 of his 23 targets this season, bringing a reliable option to the Battlehawks, and he's caught a pair of touchdowns. D.C.'s defense has also been trending down.
Sunday WR/TE: Jalen Tolliver (Tampa Bay Vipers) - DraftKings: $5,700 / FanDuel: $16
Tolliver only had four catches for 45 yards last week, but he's been a key target over the last two games for Taylor Cornelius, and on Sunday he should continue to be a key target for the Vipers. He's also shown an ability to put up big numbers, as he had eight catches for 104 yards against Houston in Week 3.
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