2026 season · Week 5 · TE

Brock Bowers vs Sam LaPorta: Who Should I Start in Week 5?

Start Bowers over LaPorta in PPR. Projects 13.9 vs 12.8 PPR points. In standard scoring it is a toss-up.

Scoring

Start Bowers over LaPorta in PPR

StartTE1 · #2

Brock BowersLVTE@ NE

13.9 PPR pts

425

Floor 4 · median 12.5 · ceiling 25

Plays: 98%
Implied total: 21.0 (dog by 3.5)
Matchup: Tough · 8th
Target share: 23%▼20

Projects 13.9 vs 12.8 PPR points.

Low

FlexTE1 · #3

Sam LaPortaDETTE@ ARI

12.8 PPR pts

324

Floor 3 · median 11.4 · ceiling 24

Plays: 98%
Implied total: 29.5 (fav by 4.5)
Matchup: Soft · 30th
Target share: 26%▲8

Projects 12.8 vs 13.9 PPR points.

Medium

Add more players in Who Should I Start Brock Bowers stats and usage Sam LaPorta stats and usage All Week 5 projections

How this works

Both players come from the same weekly projection: a mean and an 80% range from 2,000 simulated games, scored in your format, and the chance he plays. Start goes to the higher expected points (chance to play × projection); within 10% is a Flex-level close call. The tier ranks each player against everyone at his position this week. Reasons are templates filled with the model's numbers.

Updated Tue, Oct 6, 2:39 PM ETFull methodology

Frequently asked questions

Should I start Brock Bowers or Sam LaPorta in Week 5?

Start Bowers over LaPorta in PPR. Projects 13.9 vs 12.8 PPR points. In standard scoring it is a toss-up.

Who has the higher ceiling, Brock Bowers or Sam LaPorta?

Brock Bowers: his 90th-percentile outcome is 25 PPR points against 24 for Sam LaPorta, from 2,000 simulated games each.

Who is the safer start, Brock Bowers or Sam LaPorta?

Brock Bowers: a floor (10th percentile) of 4 PPR points vs 3, and a 98% chance to play vs 98%.

What are Brock Bowers's and Sam LaPorta's Week 5 projections?

PPR: Bowers 13.9, LaPorta 12.8; half-PPR: Bowers 11.2, LaPorta 10.5; standard: Bowers 8.4, LaPorta 8.3 (points if he plays).

Side-by-side comparison