2025 SCFFL week 5 Power rankings

Through the first 4 weeks of 2025 NFL action, the Something Clever Fantasy Football League feels like we've all been drafted into a war of attrition. There have been a slew of unfortunate season ending as well as too many multi-week injuries to some top drafted players. Top WR talent has been dropping like flies and sending some team managers scrambling to the waiver wire like it's Black Friday at Walmart. Some of the early season surprises include ADP steal Cowboys RB Javonte Williams, rookie Bucs WR Emeka Egbuka producing weekly, a solid fantasy start for the Colts QB Daniel Jones, and a strong sprint out the gate by LA Chargers deep ball threat WR Quentin Johnston. Other notable headlines include top drafted rookie RBs adjusting to the speed of the NFL, the defending champion Philadelphia Eagles offense is currently as exciting as "watching paint dry", and the output of the Patrick Mahomes and Taylor Swift's finance' led offense is as corny as those Jake from State Farm commercials (Rashee Rice is due back Week 7).

Enjoy your Week 5 Something Clever FFL Power Rankings!

#10 - Pizza Party (Joe Starmer)

Weeks 1 through 3, Joe's squad was serving up cold $5 Little Caesars pizza - cheap, lifeless, and barely edible. But in Week 4, the oven pilot light finally clicked on, and suddenly Pizza Party was hot and fresh with Ashton Jeanty delivery extra cheese and premium toppings rewarding Joe with the highest scoring team total in the league. Joe's team may have showed up 4 Weeks late to the party thusly earning him the bottom ranking in the league, but upon closer inspection, this roster is anchored by fantasy football QB stud Josh Allen (highest weekly QB floor), and has a lot of depth at WR. If Jeanty can keep this team's pizza orders coming in, and other some other roster pieces rise to the occasion (like a well seasoned pizza dough), then it will be a gourmet deep dish feast for Joe and the cardboard tasting disappointment of the first few weeks will fade into a distant memory.

Best Draft Pick: Rome Odunze (CHI - WR)

#9 - Big Nix Energy (Nick Elio)

So far, the only thing "Big" about this team is the disappointment. Between the Broncos offense moving at a glacial speed and Michael Penix Jr. looking more like he's still completing preseason warmup drills, this team's QB room is dragging this team's ratings down faster than post Caitlin Clark injury WNBA viewership numbers. Saquon Barkley has been steady, but steady doesn't win you fantasy matchups if you compare this year's output to the RB stud's 2024 fireworks. If sad trombone music were a group of NFL players, it would be this team's WR corps. Nick did stumble upon (RB fantasy stud in the making) Quinshon Judkins if the Browns offense picks things up, and found a waiver wire gem in Packers TE Tucker Kraft. If this squad doesn't turn it around soon (some more waiver wire magic or trade improvements perhaps), then this team manager should change its name to "Tiny Spark Fizzle".

Best Draft Pick: Quinshon Judkins (CLE - RB)

#8 - KENOSHA KICKERS (Jeff Sharpe)

Jeff has been riding high on the early (and surprising) lightning bolt success of Chargers QB Justin Herbert and his connection (and WR stack) with deep ball threat Quentin Johnston (a bold fantasy football gamble that hasn't blown up in his face yet). Toss in Amon-Ra (St. Brown) torching secondaries for Detroit's high powered offense, and this team's starters look like they belong in the contender conversation. The problem? The fantasy football ranking gods can see right past the shiny 4 weeks worth of success, and see that this team's bench quality looks like the clearance rack at Goodwill. The fantasy football gods see past the smoke and mirrors of your roster Jeff, and they're not buying your ticket to the top of the rankings. The Kenosha Kickers might seem like a hot team at the moment, but one injury or a defense keying in on the Chargers passing offense, and this team could collapse faster than a polka band without John Candy.

Best Draft Pick: Quentin Johnston (LAC - WR)

#7 - My Precious (TJ Reagan)

Sitting atop the league standings feels good when you've got Puka Nacua carving up defenses like an unguardable Swiss Army knife and Jonathan Taylor dragging defenders for YAC like it's his full-time job. But the rest of this team's roster looks like a Tolkien plotline - long, confusing and hard to read at times, and dependent on a Hobbit's success. Ja'Marr Chase could easily help TJ rule all of Middle Earth, if only the Bengals had a competent and well protected QB that had more that 2 seconds to throw a spiral. This team is way further down the power rankings compared to it's league best record based on the fact that TJ's team has poor QB play so far, and got caught snoozing on locking down Arizona RB handcuff Trey Benson (sorry about James Conner) thus hurting this team's roster depth at RB. If TJ's not careful, his "precious" grip on the top spot might slip into the dragon guarded depths of the Lonely Mountain sooner than you think.

Best Draft Pick: Puka Nacua (LAR - WR)

#6 - take my money (Bruce Hook)

The league hottie stumbled out of the gate this season partly due to George Kittle's, Aaron Jones's, and Mike Evan's hammies and some surprisingly bad QB play from Houston's CJ Stoud. Luckily for Bruce, Christian McCaffery is still the fantasy football cheat code holding this team together with wood glue, New Zealand sex appeal, and solid play from Cardinals TE Trey McBride (who's doing everything he can to disguise Kyler Murray's horrendous QB play). Bruce, your status as the league's Kiwi Heartthrob keeps you relevant, but if you don't trade for or pick up some RB depth or start getting some WR consistency in your starting lineups (this team has some nice WR pieces that could eventually hit), your team might limp into the playoffs, but will be exposed as a painfully unsexy, non-title-contender.

Best Draft Pick: Christian McCaffrey (SF - RB)

#5 - Get Your Popcorn Ready (Steve Clyde)

The Comish's squad seems stuck in 2nd gear, and we're all wondering if it's a karmatic curse from last month's demented Gauntlet course, the distraction of being a social media "running influencer", or Lamar Jackson's hamstring giving up on you. Either way, your QB1 going down isn't ideal, but Bears QB Caleb Williams and LAR QB Matthew Stafford have been surprisingly sharp and should keep this team competitive week to week. Steve's RB room is deeper than Joe's list of league rule complaints, but unless this team finds a WR spark soon (where you at AJ Brown?), than this team's title contention hopes will disappear faster than Steve's hair follicles.

Best Draft Pick: Javonte Williams (DAL - RB)

#4 - Johnny Dank Meme Company (John Resetarits)

The Week 3 ankle injury (and zero points) to 1st round draft pick Dallas WR Ceedee Lamb has this team looking more like Johnny Stank after posting solid wins the first two matchups. This team's RB room looks more like a MASH unit without a single difference-maker (please be good Woody Marks), and the remaining WRs (Marvin Harrison Jr. and Brian Thomas Jr.) aren't on the same page with their QBs and seem allergic to touchdowns and PPR points at the moment. Dak and Jalen Hurts could be one of the league's best 1-2 Superflex QB combos (if the Eagles offense gets going, and Johnny Dank doesn't get cute and bench Dak again). Right now, this team's playoff (and title defense) dreams look more pathetic than Nick Elio running The Fray's Instagram fan club page. However, if this team's WR room finally wakes up, Ceedee returns to form and stays healthy, a RB waiver wire handcuff pick up hits, then this team will rise from the dumps, and the dank meme universe will begin to heal itself.

Best Draft Pick: Tyler Warren (IND - TE)

#3 - Master of Punters (Howard "PJ" Paulson)

Starting the season ranked 10th in post-draft power rankings, everyone figured this team and it's jolly giant owner would be punting on the season by the end of October. Instead, QB combo Baker Mayfield and Jayden Daniels (when his knee is healthy) are slinging the rock and making this team a dangerous matchup. The Buffalo Bills are letting James "Cook", and Derrick Henry (who's battling a slight case of the fumblelitis) gives this team a steady weekly RB floor. The problem? This team's WR group is full of WR3 level production and about as reliable as Jordan showing up to the Gauntlet in person and drafting and managing his own team without calling in a ringer. If Jayden Daniel's knee holds up, and some WR pieces fall into place, than this "sleeping giant" could wake up and stomp through the standings - but for know, this team is at risk of hitting the snooze button a few too many times.

Best Draft Pick: James Cook (BUF - RB)

#2 - Rollin' with Mahomie's (Eric Gruber)

This team might have made you barf when it selected the cliché' and corny Googled team name 'Rollin' with Mahomie's', but its Colts QB Daniel Jones that is helping Eric enjoy his Something Clever FFL rookie campaign joyride, a #2 power ranking, and a solid start to the season through 4 weeks. Strong RB play from Breece Hall and Knuckles (Montgomery) as well as match up (and back up QB) proof Justin Jefferson, is making this team more dangerous than initially expected. However, this team's roster construction and bench depth is about as one-dimensional and shallow as Jeff's fantasy football skills. With so much success tied to a only few starters and Daniel Jones, the question isn't if the wheels will fall off for this team, it's when. For now though, enjoy rollin' - because every Cinderella ride eventually turns into a pumpkin come October.

Best Draft Pick: Daniel Jones (IND - QB)

#1 - Have a nice day! (Justin Villardi / Jordan Ray)

Nothing is more infuriating than the guy who doesn't even bother to draft his own team ending up with a juggernaut roster. Jordan disappears on draft day (to draft in another league by the way), hires his mysterious shadow GM, and somehow walks away from the draft with a stable of solid rookie WRs who produce every week and a RB room that looks like it was built in Madden Franchise mode. It's a classic Something Clever FFL fantasy football nightmare: an absentee owner who prioritizes other leagues over this one sitting pretty at the top while the rest of us (who actually care about this group of friends) grind away for fantasy football glory. Don't you just love when the guy who's the "Assistant To the Team Manager" of his own roster becomes the team to beat? The fantasy gods are always watching, and don't be surprised when your unimpressive Drake Maye and Jordan Love QB Superflex combo fails to produce consistent winning weeks once we get to Week 8.

Best Draft Pick: Emeka Egbuka (TB - WR)

With NFL injury chaos everywhere, some team managers are already clinging to waiver wire life rafts while others are riding an unexpected wave of success (or dumb luck). Teams currently enjoying the view from the top of the league standings might be looking at 'IR' listed next to their top picks in the draft a week later. In our league, pretenders are always eventually exposed, true contenders will be flexing by Week 8 (our next Power Rankings update), and the only things you can consistently count on is Joe's incessant whining, Jordan asking Justin Villardi for his ESPN App login and if he's "allowed" to make a roster move, and Nick's behind the scenes scheming to usurp Steve Clyde as League Commissioner through ballot harvesting, corrupt auto-pen legislation, and a lack of a formal Democratic Party Primary vote. So, embrace the chaos and luck that is fantasy football, take a stab at a RB handcuff, blow your FAAB bucks on an emerging rookie WR, and don't forget to #draftbetter !

~Johnny Dank