Man vs. Zone Matchups for WR/TEs in Week 5: KC Concepcion Trending Up

Coverage schemes can often dictate what offenses and pass-catchers are able to do on a weekly basis. Being able to identify who excels against man or zone coverage can give you an edge in any fantasy football format, whether season-long, dynasty, DFS, etc.

Let’s take a look at a few players who find themselves in favorable spots ahead of Week 5.

Week 5 Man vs. Zone Matchups for WR/TEs

KC Concepcion @ New York Jets

Concepcion has been overshadowed a bit by fellow rookie wideout Denzel Boston, but it appears he is trending upward. Last Thursday, Concepcion caught five passes for 64 yards, and he has now seen a very healthy 17 targets over the past two weeks.

During that span, he leads Cleveland with a 25% target share, as he continues to see plenty of schemed looks in this offense. In fact, Concepcion leads the NFL in wide receiver screen targets (7) so far this season, as the Browns are ramping up his opportunities to make plays in space with the ball in his hands.

I like Concepcion to keep it going in Week 5. He gets a vulnerable Jets secondary that ranks top-five in man coverage deployment through the first four weeks. That could bode well for Concepcion, who is averaging a strong 2.38 yards per route run against man coverage in the early going, while easily leading the team with a 30% TPRR.

It also helps that Cleveland’s offense has been a pleasant surprise of late. Over the past three weeks, Cleveland ranks 16th in the NFL in points per drive (1.92), as well as 18th in percentage of drives to end in a touchdown (18.9%). That may not sound very impressive, but considering this unit ranked 32nd in both departments last season, it’s a pretty substantial step forward.

Alvin Kamara vs. Minnesota Vikings

A running back makes an appearance in the man/zone article for the first time this season, but it’s warranted this week. With Travis Etienne sidelined, Kamara operated as the lead running back for the Saints, out-touching Kendre Miller 12-8. Kamara logged 41% of the snaps, though it is important to remember he left the game for a little bit in the third quarter. We also saw CJ Donaldson once again handle plenty of long-down-and-distance and two-minute drill snaps, though he mostly played on the final drive of the game in a blowout.

Kamara caught five passes in the game and should remain busy in the passing game this weekend. We know Brian Flores and the Vikings are going to blitz like crazy, currently doing so on 67.3% of dropbacks, easily the highest rate in football. And, like always, Minnesota plays a ton of zone (particularly Cover-2) on the back end.

That screams a ton of check-downs to Kamara, especially given the current state of the Saints offensive line. And over the past two seasons, Kamara has been targeted on 23% of his routes against the blitz. We’ll see how much Minnesota’s offense pushes the Saints to throw in this game, but regardless, Kamara should see plenty of targets as Tyler Shough’s safety valve.

Michael Wilson vs Detroit Lions

Yeah, we’re going right back to the well with Wilson this week.

He was strong in Week 4, catching seven passes for 95 yards and just missing a touchdown. I love everything about how Arizona is using Wilson, who has now seen a whopping 30 targets over the past two weeks. Mike LaFleur really is using him in the Puka Nacua role, as Wilson ranks fourth among all wide receivers in routes from motion (24), while also ranking third in targets (9).

The Cardinals have deployed 13 personnel on about 20% of their plays thus far, one of the highest rates in the league. Wilson, meanwhile, trails only Davante Adams in routes from 13 personnel (14), while his four targets also rank inside the top-five.

Wilson draws an elite Week 5 matchup, facing an awful Detroit secondary that, following a Tetairoa McMillan masterclass in primetime, is now coughing up a ridiculous 139.7 yards per game to opposing lead wideouts, easily the most in football. The Lions continue to deploy man coverage at a top-five rate in the league, which is good for Wilson, who is averaging over three yards per route run against man so far this season. He’ll see primary coverage from D.J. Reed, who has allowed the second-most receiving yards in coverage this season (275), as well as the sixth-most yards per reception (19.6).