Welcome back for another edition of Devy Players of the Week! As we inch closer to the midway point of the regular season, we’re getting a clearer picture of who will hit our dynasty rosters and who lacks the tools to hack it on Sundays. Let’s take a look at which prospects stood out in Week 5.
Quarterback
Austin Simmons (QB – Missouri)
23-30, 340 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs
3 attempts, 3 yards
Several other quarterbacks had better box scores this weekend, but I’d be remiss to leave out Austin Simmons in this week’s edition after the upset he just pulled off. Despite being 5.5-point dogs to the 8th-ranked Florida Gators, Simmons led his Tigers to a dominant 45-17 win and played some truly polished football.
Simmons showed off his arm talent in this matchup, zipping tight spirals with pinpoint accuracy all afternoon. He’s playing some of the best football in the country and hasn’t thrown a single interception in five games. Simmons is up to my devy QB22 overall. If he keeps this up, he may just declare in 2027 and go in Round 1 of the NFL Draft. The one downside is that Simmons lacks any rushing upside.
CJ Carr (QB – Notre Dame)
21-29, 234 yards, 4 TDs, 0 INTs
5 attempts, 14 yards, 1 TD
CJ Carr continues to silence the doubters (including myself), playing mistake-free football and leading the Irish with confidence every week. I maintain the stance that Carr doesn’t have a very strong arm, but he’s highly accurate and has some of the best touch in the country. His superpower is his processing ability, both pre-snap and post-snap. Being able to diagnose a defense quickly is arguably more important than any physical tools when finding success as an NFL quarterback.
Carr put together another excellent stat line in Notre Dame’s win over UNC, throwing for four touchdowns and rushing for one. He’s another guy who won’t get you much fantasy production on the ground, so his ceiling is relatively capped.
Running Back
DeSean Bishop (RB – Tennessee)
34 attempts, 220 yards, 3 TDs
Bishop accounted for all of Tennessee’s touchdowns in their 24-14 win over Auburn this weekend, improving to 4-1 on the season. Bishop’s competence as a rusher has been integral in taking some pressure off the passing game, which has been up and down all year. The Vols benched their true freshman quarterback, Faizon Brandon, midgame, relying solely on the run game to get them the dub.
Bishop saw 34 attempts this weekend, rushing for 220 yards and three touchdowns. Despite the excellent numbers, I do have some hesitation investing in any Tennessee players from a devy perspective. It tends to be an offensive system that produces plenty of college fantasy points, but doesn’t necessarily develop its players for the next level.
