NFL Survivor Pool Picks for Week 5: Take Cowboys, Texans or Jaguars
After three chaotic weeks to start the 2026 NFL season, Week 4 finally gave survivor pool players a break. The two most popular options survived: the Minnesota Vikings beat the Miami Dolphins 15-10, and the Baltimore Ravens held off the Tennessee Titans 24-18. The Seattle Seahawks also took care of business against the Los Angeles Chargers.
There were still some casualties. The biggest came in Buffalo, where the Bills lost 29-26 to the New England Patriots. Buffalo wasn't nearly as popular as Minnesota or Baltimore, but any survivor entries that went with the Bills ended their season.
NFL survival pool picks for Week 5 present a different challenge. We don't have the same overwhelming favorites we saw last week, but several strong options remain.
NFL Survivor Pool Picks for Week 5
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are the most straightforward survivor pool pick of Week 5. Dallas enters Thursday night's matchup against Tampa Bay as roughly an 8.5-point favorite, with a moneyline of around -450 on most sports betting apps. The Buccaneers are 0-4 and will also be without starting quarterback Baker Mayfield due to a thumb injury.
That means rookie Jalon Daniels is expected to make his second consecutive start against a Cowboys team that should have a significant quarterback advantage with Dak Prescott. Dallas hasn't been perfect this season, but it enters Week 5 with momentum after overcoming a 10-point halftime deficit to beat Houston 34-30 last week. Prescott threw for 335 yards, while CeeDee Lamb caught 17 passes for 189 yards and the game-winning touchdown.
Thursday night games always carry risk, but this is one of the biggest mismatches on the Week 5 board. If the Cowboys are still available, they're the safest choice.
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It feels strange recommending a 0-4 team in a survivor pool, but the betting market clearly believes the Houston Texans are significantly better than their record. The Texans are around 7.5-point road favorites against an 0-4 Tennessee Titans team and sit around -370 on the moneyline on most sportsbooks.
Houston's winless start hasn't been pretty, but the Texans have at least shown more offensive upside than Tennessee. C.J. Stroud threw for 347 yards and two touchdowns against Dallas last week, while Nico Collins returned to the lineup with seven catches for 118 yards and two scores.
Tennessee, meanwhile, has scored just 55 points through four games.
There's obviously more risk here than Dallas. Houston hasn't proven it can close games, and taking a winless road team in a survivor pool isn't for everyone. But that's also what makes the Texans interesting from a strategy standpoint. Using Houston lets players preserve more talented teams for later in the season while still getting one of the largest moneyline favorites in Week 5.
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are another intriguing Week 5 option, especially for anyone who has already used Dallas or wants to avoid Houston's 0-4 record. The Jaguars are 3-1 and enter their London matchup against Philadelphia as roughly 7.5-point favorites with a moneyline around -345 on DraftKings.
Philadelphia has dropped two consecutive games after starting the season 2-0 and enters Week 5 dealing with several injuries, including the absence of running back Saquon Barkley. Jacksonville also has more overseas experience than any NFL franchise. The Jaguars have played 14 games in London since 2013, so the travel and unusual schedule shouldn't be as foreign to them as it is to most teams.
The Eagles are still talented enough to make this one uncomfortable, which keeps Jacksonville behind Dallas in terms of pure safety. But with so few heavy favorites this week, the Jaguars are one of the better options.
How Do NFL Survivor Pools Work?
NFL survivor pools are straightforward. Each week, you select one team to win its game outright. The point spread doesn't matter. If your team wins, you move on to the next week. If it loses, you're eliminated in most survivor formats, although some pools allow one or two strikes.
The catch is that you generally can't use the same team twice. That's why the biggest favorite isn't automatically the best pick every week. Survivor players also have to consider which teams they've already used and which teams could have valuable matchups later in the season.
For Week 5, Dallas offers the safest path, while Houston and Jacksonville provide two strong alternatives depending on which teams remain available.
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