JuJu Smith-Schuster's fantasy outlook: should you drop him?

After five years with the Pittsburgh Steelers, JuJu Smith-Schuster joined the Kansas City Chiefs. Smith-Schuster enjoyed a successful time in Pittsburgh despite occasional hiccups. His previous campaign ended prematurely after only five matches due to a shoulder issue that required surgery. Smith-Schuster was widely expected to regain the magic that made him popular a few years ago, but that hasn't exactly happened yet.

With eight targets in the most recent match, he tied Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Travis Kelce for the team lead. However, JuJu Smith-Schuster had the worst performance of the three. He mishandled a handful of passes and didn't get in the endzone. In five weeks, he hasn't scored a single touchdown. It seems likely that Valdes-Scantling will gain the yards while Kelce owns the red zone.

Smith-Schuster could play a significant role in the game against the Buffalo Bills in Week 6. Despite the lack of output, he has handled a 19.3% target share with eight targets in four of the five outings. Although he is yet to catch a pass into the end zone, he is 11th in red zone targets.

We recommend that you trade or bench JuJu Smith-Schuster.

Why you should bench or trade JuJu Smith-Schuster

Kansas City Chiefs v Chicago Bears

Though he has an injury history and isn't putting up big points, JuJu Smith-Schuster still has value. Smith-Schuster is a WR3 at the low end with considerable upside. He was listed as injured going into Week 5, but still saw action. For the fourth time this year, he finished with eight targets. With Patrick Mahomes as his quarterback, better fantasy performances could be around the corner.

If you aren't willing to wait for better days, there will be other managers in your league that need a player and are interested in a trade. It is unlikely you will be able to trade Smith-Schuster for a directly better receiver, so target teams that have needs in other areas. If you include him in a package deal, you may be able to get a better WR at the cost of a slightly worse TE or RB.

JuJu Smith-Schuster hasn't yet surpassed 14 fantasy points and has been kept in single digits three times this season. This represents Smith-Schuster's floor. While the volume is okay, it isn't easy to trust him at this time. The Bills, who have given up the sixth-fewest fantasy PPG to receivers, are his opponents this week. It's only appropriate to bench him for this scenario, but if you are torn between him and another choice this week, choose the other one.