Start Brock Bowers or AJ Barner? Week 5

Our Week 5 call

Start Brock Bowers over AJ Barner in Week 5.

Market-based projections have Brock Bowers at 16.8 points and AJ Barner at 6.8, a gap of 10.0.

What the market projects

Player markets imply 6.8 fantasy points for AJ Barner, with 100 percent of the markets a TE needs posted.

The market has AJ Barner at 24.5 receiving yards and 2.5 receptions, with a 24% chance to score a touchdown (15, 13 and 15 market sources).

Player markets imply 16.8 fantasy points for Brock Bowers, with 100 percent of the markets a TE needs posted.

The market has Brock Bowers at 72.5 receiving yards and 6.5 receptions, with a 39% chance to score a touchdown (15, 12 and 15 market sources).

That puts Brock Bowers 10.0 points ahead of AJ Barner on the market projections.

Week 5 matchups

Brock Bowers and LV visit NE on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.

NE allowed 5.9 fantasy points a game to TEs this season over 4 games, the fewest in the league.

Tight ends caught passes for 26 yards and no touchdowns a game against NE.

Injury status

AJ Barner is not on the injury report.

Brock Bowers is listed as questionable with a knee injury.

Usage before Week 5

Through Week 4, AJ Barner played 87 percent of SEA snaps, drew 13 percent of the targets, earned 4 percent of the air yards and had 13 percent of the red zone chances.

AJ Barner, Week 1 against NE: 44 of 50 snaps, 2 targets and 2 catches for 13 yards.

AJ Barner, Week 2 against ARI: 56 of 70 snaps, 1 carry for 1 yards, 1 target and 1 catch for 8 yards, 1 touchdown.

AJ Barner, Week 3 against WAS: 61 of 67 snaps, 9 targets and 5 catches for 69 yards.

AJ Barner, Week 4 against LAC: 54 of 60 snaps, 3 targets and 1 catch for 12 yards.

Through Week 4, Brock Bowers played 81 percent of LV snaps, drew 31 percent of the targets, earned 35 percent of the air yards and had 24 percent of the red zone chances.

Brock Bowers, Week 3 against NO: 55 of 70 snaps, 13 targets and 10 catches for 116 yards, 1 touchdown.

Brock Bowers, Week 4 against KC: 69 of 84 snaps, 11 targets and 6 catches for 86 yards, 1 touchdown.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025, AJ Barner played 17 games for SEA and scored 147.3 PPR points, 8.7 a game, finishing TE14.

He caught 52 of 68 targets for 519 yards and 6 touchdowns, with 12 red zone targets and 248 air yards.

He was on the field for 78 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.

In 2025, Brock Bowers played 12 games for LV and scored 176.2 PPR points, 14.7 a game, finishing TE11.

He caught 64 of 86 targets for 680 yards and 7 touchdowns, with 16 red zone targets and 375 air yards.

He was on the field for 85 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.

Brock Bowers, Week 16 of 2025 against HOU: 53 of 54 snaps, 5 targets and 5 catches for 33 yards, 1 touchdown, 14.3 PPR points.

Their other Week 5 calls

• Start Brenton Strange over AJ Barner.
• Start Cade Otton over AJ Barner.
• Start Chig Okonkwo over AJ Barner.
• Start Brock Bowers over Cade Otton.
• Start Brock Bowers over Colston Loveland.
• Start Brock Bowers over Dalton Kincaid.