This is the time of year when things can get away from fantasy managers.

For some unfortunate souls, it already has. It’s not impossible to make the playoffs after a 0-4 start, but it ain’t easy. Managers who have started the season 1-3 are already considering why day-drinking is fine — on a Tuesday. Injuries are starting to add up, with New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers and Miami wideout Tyreek Hill the latest to be felled by season-enders. The byes are here, too — four teams are taking Week 5 off.

Other than that? Everything’s fine. Pass the Schnapps.

Given all those issues, cutting bait on a player who isn’t getting it done can be harder. But stubbornly clinging to a player who is taking up a roster spot and shouldn’t be allowed within a country mile of starting lineups can be the issue that turns an early-season hole into an inescapable chasm.

Now, these drop recommendations are relative. Who a manager can replace a player with has a massive impact on whether said player should get shoved out the airlock. Managers in 10-team leagues with a short bench are obviously looking at far different alternatives than those in 14-team leagues with deep benches.

But if anything resembling a viable alternative is available, it’s the endless void of deep space for this bunch.

It’s what HAL 9000 would do.

Rostered percentages courtesy of Yahoo

Week 5 dropsKyler Murray, QB, ARZ (91% rostered — droppable in most leagues)

Is there an echo in here?

Yes, Murray was in last week’s edition of “Drops,” too. And yet, he’s still being rostered in over nine of 10 fantasy leagues. It’s as if my sage advice was dismissed as the histrionics of a half-witted doofus instead of the profound wisdom it is.

The question Murray managers are asking more and more frequently is, “Why am I rostering him?”

Last Thursday’s loss to the Seattle Seahawks was a very Murray game — 200 passing yards, two scores, two picks and a mediocre fantasy finish among quarterbacks. It’s been a theme with Murray in 2025 — his next 20-point outing will be his first of the year, and he’s being outscored in terms of points per game by Carson “The Ginger Lamppost” Wentz.

Geno Smith, QB, LV (53% — droppable in all leagues)

When the Raiders acquired Smith, it injected more than a little enthusiasm into the Vegas fanbase. That said a lot more about how bad the quarterback play has been for the Raiders in recent years than Smith himself because he appears intent on joining a long list of signal-callers in Sin City who have been, um, not good.

Yes, Smith’s completion percentage and yardage numbers haven’t been terrible — he’s eighth in the league in the latter regard. But a month into the season, Smith has had one good fantasy outing, one OK one and two clunkers, largely because he is on pace to throw 30 interceptions this year.

Nick Chubb, RB, HOU (78% — droppable in shallow leagues)

Between injuries, bye weeks and some players getting off to absolutely abysmal starts (looking at you, Chase Brown — looking right. At. You.), it’s hard for many fantasy managers even to consider parting ways with any running back with a pulse.

That’s the problem with Chubb, though. His pulse is weak and thready — and it’s about to flatline.

It’s not like Chubb has played especially well — his 4.0 yards per carry is well below his career average. Last week against the Titans, Chubb was out-touched by rookie Woody Marks 21-15, and Marks piled up 119 total yards and a pair of touchdowns. The future is now in Houston. Don’t get caught living in the past.

Bhayshul Tuten, RB, JAX (64% — droppable in most leagues)

There was no shortage of opinions regarding how the Jacksonville ground game would shake out in 2025. As it turns out, the overwhelming majority of them were wrong. Travis Etienne has been a three-down workhorse and a top-10 fantasy option; Tank Bigsby is in Philadelphia picking up Saquon Barkley’s dry cleaning; and rookie Tuten has essentially been an afterthought.

Tuten is averaging just over four carries and 22 rushing yards per game this season, and while he has found the end zone twice, he also hasn’t played more than 25% of the offensive snaps in a game this year. If you have Etienne rostered, Tuten has some “handcuff” value. But as a standalone fantasy asset? Not so much.

Keon Coleman, WR, BUF (71% — droppable in most leagues)

This was supposed to be Coleman’s year — the second-year pro drew raves all offseason long, with some proclaiming that it was “The Summer of Keon Coleman.” When Coleman had eight catches for 112 yards and a touchdown in the season opener, it appeared they may be right.

But then fall arrived — and Coleman fell off a cliff. Coleman’s three catches for 45 yards last week marked the third week in a row he’s had just three catches. Coleman had 11 targets in Week 1 and 11 in the last three weeks combined. Sure, there might be a spike week here and there. But good luck figuring out when that will be.

DJ Moore, WR, CHI (94% — droppable in shallow leagues)

This one should liven up the comments section.

Moore’s numbers in 2024 were down relative to his first season in Chicago. He failed to hit 1,000 receiving yards and averaged less than 10 yards per catch. Still, there was hope that the arrival of head coach Ben Johnson would invigorate the offense and that Moore would be a beneficiary.

One of those things happened.

While the Bears have looked better offensively, Moore’s role in that offense has dwindled. A month into the season, Moore is third on the team in targets, behind Olamide Zaccheaus. Last week against the Las Vegas Raiders, Moore had four catches for 38 yards on five targets — the third time in four games he has failed to hit 10 PPR points.

Calvin Ridley, WR, TEN (88% — droppable in most leagues)

Full disclosure — this analyst was high(ish) on Ridley this year. He topped 1,000 yards last year despite every pass being covered in mayonnaise and figured to dominate target share in Tennessee.

As it turns out, apparently, I was just high because Ridley has done nothing.

Granted, it’s not exactly Ridley’s fault that he’s struggling — 10 catches on 24 “targets” would indicate that perhaps Titans quarterback Cam Ward isn’t setting the league on fire as a rookie. But at some point, it doesn’t matter why Ridley has been held to 30 or fewer receiving yards in three games. All that matters is Ridley’s WR69 ranking in PPR points.

David Njoku, TE, CLE (85% — droppable in most leagues)

Want to do yourself a favor? Turn your early-season frown upside-down? Bring some joy and sunshine into your dull and dreary existence? Get every Cleveland Browns player not named Quinshon Judkins (and maybe Jerry Jeudy) off your fantasy roster. The Cleveland offense would have to be exponentially better to be trash. And it won’t get better.

That’s not harsh. That’s life as a Browns fan. Pain and despair.

After Njoku’s two catches for 11 yards in last week’s blowout loss at Detroit, he is outside the top-20 tight ends in fantasy points for the season, behind household names like Jake “Who?” Tonges of the San Francisco 49ers and AJ “Random Name Generated in ‘Madden’” Barner of the Seattle Seahawks.

Gary Davenport is a two-time Fantasy Sports Writers Association Football Writer of the Year. Follow Gary on X at @IDPGodfather.

(Photo of Nick Chubb: Alex Slitz / Getty Images)