Week 5 Survivor Bloodbath

Week 5

If you somehow survived this week, congrats, you’re built differently. Week 5 was pure madness, wiping out nearly 50% of Winners Circle Proxy clients. Three of the “safest” picks, the Rams, Cardinals, and Bills, all went down in flames, wiping out tens of thousands of entries in brutal fashion. Let’s break it down.

Rams vs 49ers

If you picked the Rams this week… yeah, I’m sorry. You’re part of the 3,524 people (that’s 28.4% of the entire Survivor pool) who just got wiped out in one of the biggest upsets of the season. The Rams were 8.5-point favorites against a banged-up 49ers team that was missing half its stars. On paper, it looked like the safest pick of the week. 

Final score: 49ers 26, Rams 23 (OT)

The 49ers came into this game held together by duct tape, no Brock Purdy, no Nick Bosa, no George Kittle. Somehow, they came out swinging. They built an early lead, scoring on their first two drives and going up 20–7 late in the third quarter.

Meanwhile, the Rams’ offense looked decent on paper, Matthew Stafford threw for 389 yards and three touchdowns, but every time they started to build momentum, something went wrong. Two fumbles in 49ers territory, a blocked extra point, a missed field goal… it was just mistake after mistake.

The dagger came late: with just over a minute left in the fourth, Kyren Williams fumbled at the goal line. The Rams did manage to tie it with a clutch 48-yard field goal to send it to overtime, but that energy didn’t last.

In OT, the 49ers marched down and hit a field goal to go up 26–23. Then came the defining moment, the Rams drove right back down to San Francisco’s 11-yard line, facing 4th-and-1. Sean McVay called a run. It got stuffed. Game over.

This was quite literally a mass casualty event, wiping out nearly a third of the Circa Survivor pool. Biggest shocker of the season by far. People assumed the Rams were safe so the line reflected that (-8.5), when a favourite like that gets upset, lots of overconfidence gets punished.

Cardinals vs Titans

Another bloodbath for Survivor players — 3,158 entries (25.4%) went down with the Cardinals. Arizona looked locked in up 21–3 at halftime, but completely unraveled after the break.

The Titans stormed back behind Cam Ward’s 265 yards and a clutch 29-yard game-winning field goal as time expired. A dropped ball at the goal line and costly turnovers doomed the Cards, turning a sure win into another Week 5 heartbreak.

Bills vs Patriots 

This one was a gut punch for the 756 Survivor entries who rolled with Buffalo. The Bills went in as heavy favorites and left stunned after a late-game collapse against the Patriots.

Rookie QB Drake Maye threw for 273 yards and set up the 52-yard game-winning field goal with 15 seconds left, while Rhamondre Stevenson added two rushing touchdowns.

Josh Allen had 253 yards and two TDs, but three turnovers flipped the game. Dalton Kincaid led Buffalo with 108 receiving yards, yet the loss snapped their 14-game home win streak and took out nearly 800 Survivor entries in one swing.

Million Contest Standings: Week 5

While Survivor players were out here watching their entries implode, the Circa Million crowd was quietly cooking, and guess what? One of ours is leading the whole thing. PPW, repping Winners Circle Proxy, is tied for first place in the entire contest with a 21-4 record. That’s basically perfection through five weeks.

Right behind him, ALATOS, HE IS THE ONE, SCRIM67, and WORLD’S GREATEST DAD are all sitting at 19-6, tied for fourth, keeping the leaderboard tight and the pressure on. 

And for the start of Quarter 2, things are already heating up. 109 entries are tied at 5-0, which means… game on. The board’s wide open, and with the way this NFL season’s been going, anyone can heat up fast (or crash and burn just as quick). 

Final Thoughts

This was a massive “don’t get too comfortable” week. Everyone saw the Rams, Cardinals, and Bills as locks, and both went down. If there’s one thing to take from Week 5, it’s this: never assume an easy win. Heavy favorites still have to execute, and when they don’t, it’s straight-up Survivor carnage.