Week 5 Guillotine FAAB: Who Got Chopped and What We'd Bid
By Patrick · Survive The Chop ·
Jahmyr Gibbs and Jaxon Smith-Njigba are the two players we'd target this week. If either one hit your waiver wire, we'd bid 18–22% of your starting budget on Gibbs and 15–20% on Smith-Njigba.
Expect both to go for a lot more than that. Last week, Kenneth Walker and Jonathan Taylor each sold for a median of 58% of a starting budget. So for each player, the bid guide shows what he's worth to your team and what it will likely take to win him.
We're sticking with our numbers. Your budget still has to last through a lot more cuts. You don't need to win every auction to build the best team.
Week 5 bid guide
Both numbers are a percentage of your starting FAAB budget. On a $1,000 budget, 15% is $150. We assume PPR scoring and one starting quarterback.
| Player | Our bid | Likely winning price | Best fit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jahmyr Gibbs | 18–22% | about 60% | An RB1 you can start every week |
| Jaxon Smith-Njigba | 15–20% | about 45% | A WR1 you can start every week |
| Ja'Marr Chase | 10–12% | about 45% | A WR1 once he clears the concussion protocol |
| Garrett Wilson | 10–12% | about 20% | A starting receiver |
| Trey McBride | 8–10% | about 40% | The most reliable tight end here |
| Christian Watson | 8–10% | about 20% | A starting receiver |
| George Pickens | 6–8% | about 25% | A starting receiver |
| Parker Washington | 6–8% | about 25% | A starting receiver |
| Bhayshul Tuten | 5–8% | about 25% | A starting running back |
| D'Andre Swift | 5–8% | about 30% | A starting running back |
| Saquon Barkley | 5–8% | about 30% | Running back help once his hamstring heals |
| Dalton Kincaid | 3–5% | about 10% | Tight end help, with some quiet weeks |
Go toward the top of a range if you're close to the chopping block. Stay near the bottom if your lineup is safe. Set a total before you enter several claims.
Waiver bids are blind, and not every league has a big spender. So bid your number even when the likely price is much higher. If it lands, you got a starter at a good price. If it doesn't, your FAAB plan can show you cheaper players who fill the same spot.
Where the likely prices come from. Our weekly FAAB price report shows what winners actually paid for last week's chopped players. McBride, Pickens, Washington, Tuten, Swift, Barkley and Kincaid all sold last week, so their likely price comes straight from that report. For everyone else, it's the app's market estimate for a player at the same position and rank.
Put your bids into a FAAB plan
In FAAB Insights, select targets from your league's available players and open Review plan. You'll see suggested drops, maximum spend, FAAB left and a projected lineup outlook. Adjust your selections, then enter the claims on Sleeper.
Our ranges are editorial guidance informed by FAAB Insights. Your personalized app recommendation can differ with your roster, budget and strategy.
Jahmyr Gibbs: our top target
Our bid: 18–22% · Likely winning price: about 60% · Rest-of-season rank: RB1
Gibbs is our top running back for the rest of the season. We project 22.1 PPR points this week.
He scored 41.4 PPR points in Week 3 with 3 touchdowns. In Week 4, he played 87% of Detroit's snaps and had 19 touches.
He gets our biggest range this week. His likely price is the highest in this guide too.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba: a WR1 every week
Our bid: 15–20% · Likely winning price: about 45% · Rest-of-season rank: WR1
Smith-Njigba is our top receiver for the rest of the season. We project 21.2 PPR points this week.
He had 14 targets, 128 yards and 2 touchdowns in Week 3. Week 4 was quieter, with 5 catches for 76 yards, but he still played 88% of Seattle's snaps.
Last week, top receivers sold above the market estimate. Amon-Ra St. Brown, our WR3 at the time, went for 52%.
Trey McBride and Dalton Kincaid: chopped again
Our bids: 8–10% and 3–5% · Likely winning prices: about 40% and 10% · Rest-of-season ranks: TE2 and TE6
McBride is the tight end we'd target. He had 12 targets in Week 4 and played 97% of Arizona's snaps. We project 16.7 PPR points this week. He sold for 42% last week, more than any other tight end.
Kincaid was chopped in 16.2% of our sample. He's had 5 targets over the last 2 games and scored 3.8 and 1.7 PPR points. We've moved him down to TE6. He sold for 12% last week.
Go toward the top of either range only if tight end is your weakest spot.
Garrett Wilson and Christian Watson: next on our list
Our bids: 10–12% and 8–10% · Likely winning prices: about 20% each · Rest-of-season ranks: WR11 and WR12
If Gibbs and Smith-Njigba aren't on your wire, these receivers are next.
Wilson had 13 targets and 107 yards in Week 3. He got only 4 targets in Week 4, when the Jets ran 32 offensive plays. We project 16.6 PPR points this week.
Watson had 10 targets and a touchdown in Week 3, then 3 catches for 47 yards in Week 4. We project 16.1 PPR points this week.
George Pickens and Parker Washington are a step below, at 6–8%. Both sold for 26% last week.
Running backs: Swift and Tuten
Our bids: 5–8% each · Likely winning prices: about 30% and 25% · Rest-of-season ranks: RB16 and RB15
D'Andre Swift had 20 carries in Week 3 and 15 in Week 4. Bhayshul Tuten ran 17 times for 73 yards in Week 4 and played 59% of Jacksonville's snaps. We project 14.0 PPR points for Swift and 13.5 for Tuten this week.
Both sold last week, Swift for 30% and Tuten for 25%.
Jeremiyah Love was chopped in 13.4% of our sample. He's questionable with an ankle injury, so check his practice reports before you bid. David Montgomery was chopped in 14.2%. He's had 11 and 10 carries in his last 2 games, and we'd keep him to 1–3%.
Injuries to check before you bid
Saquon Barkley was chopped more than any player, in 19.0% of our sample. He hurt his hamstring early against the Rams and is week to week. NBC Sports. We rank him RB18 for the rest of the season and would bid 5–8%. He sold for 30% last week.
Ja'Marr Chase was chopped in 17.3% of our sample. He left Sunday's game against Jacksonville with a concussion and is in the league's concussion protocol. WDTN. We still rank him WR3 for the rest of the season and would bid 10–12%.
Ladd McConkey (foot) is week to week. RotoWire. Rashee Rice played 6 snaps in Week 4 and is listed questionable with a hamstring injury. Kansas City has a bye this week.
DeVonta Smith (hamstring) and Breece Hall (quadriceps) are listed out.
Quarterbacks: keep it small
In a one-QB league, keep quarterback bids to 1–3% unless your starter is hurt. The upgrade over your current starter is usually small.
Trevor Lawrence was chopped in 10.9% of our sample. We rank him QB6 for the rest of the season and project 17.4 points this week. He sold for 6% last week.
Quarterback prices can still run high. Josh Allen sold for 43% last week.
In Superflex, quarterbacks are starters and worth more.
It's still early
Across the 2025 Sleeper leagues we analyzed, eventual champions had spent about 24% of their starting FAAB before the Week 5 chop, on average. That's roughly 35% less than the teams still competing at that point. We covered this in our Week 2 FAAB guide.
One win at last week's top prices would use more than twice that on a single player. That's why we stay near our ranges this early. Fix the spot that could get you chopped, and keep the rest for the cuts still to come.
Who hit waivers after Week 4?
These are selected notable players from our verified Sleeper cut sample. Percentages show the share of completed Week 4 cuts that released each player, including bench and reserve players.
| Player | Share of verified cuts |
|---|---|
| Saquon Barkley | 19.0% |
| Ja'Marr Chase | 17.3% |
| Dalton Kincaid | 16.2% |
| Rashee Rice | 16.2% |
| David Montgomery | 14.2% |
| Ladd McConkey | 14.2% |
| Jeremiyah Love | 13.4% |
| Parker Washington | 12.8% |
| DJ Moore | 12.6% |
| Christian Watson | 12.0% |
| Bucky Irving | 11.5% |
| D'Andre Swift | 10.9% |
| Trevor Lawrence | 10.9% |
| Davante Adams | 10.3% |
| Jahmyr Gibbs | 9.8% |
| Jaxon Smith-Njigba | 8.9% |
| Trey McBride | 8.7% |
| Garrett Wilson | 8.4% |
| Bhayshul Tuten | 8.4% |
These percentages describe verified releases as of midday Tuesday. Availability depends on your league, its cut timing and any claims that have already processed.
Build your team's FAAB plan
Start with the players your league actually released. Then decide how much to commit to each claim and how much you want left for future cuts. Your FAAB plan brings those decisions together with suggested drops and a projected lineup outlook.
Connect your Sleeper league for personalized recommendations based on your roster, available players and remaining FAAB. The article is free; the paid app brings the advice to your team.
Already connected? Review my FAAB plan.
About these recommendations
Ranks and projections use our October 6 Week 5 PPR update. Our bid ranges are editorial recommendations informed by FAAB Insights, not universal limits. Check current injuries, league settings and your combined spending before placing claims.
Likely winning prices describe what other managers may pay, not what we recommend. They are estimates, not guarantees. Where a player appears in last week's price report, we use his median winning bid there. Otherwise we use the app's market estimate, built from 2025 FAAB prices for players at the same position and rank, for an 18-team league with 14 teams left. In Week 4, the estimate ran low for the top receivers: St. Brown and CeeDee Lamb sold for 52% and 51%, above the middle half of their estimates.
Cut percentages come from completed Sleeper chop transactions that we matched to the lowest Week 4 score among teams still active and to a cleared roster. Leagues with more than 18 teams, more than one chop this week, or no completed release are excluded, as are leagues whose cut had not processed when we collected the sample. This is a sample of leagues that use our app, not a Sleeper-wide rate.
Snap counts, targets and box-score lines come from Sleeper's public game stats. Injury designations are the ones listed on Sleeper as of Tuesday, plus the reports linked above.
The historical spending analysis uses completed 2025 native Sleeper Chopped leagues with verified champions and reconciled FAAB records. It includes different league sizes and measures spending before the Week 5 chop. We compare champions with all teams still competing at that checkpoint, averaging within each league and giving each league equal weight. The 35% figure is a relative difference in spending, not 35 percentage points of the starting budget. These are observational results, not proof that a bidding strategy caused a championship.