Ladies and gentlemen, we’re entering Week 6, with another four teams on bye. The Chiefs, Rams, Dolphins, and Vikings get to rest their players, but unfortunately for us, we do not have that luxury as fantasy managers. If anything, we need to dig deep and find those fantasy assets to help us during these lean weeks on the waiver wire. That’s what we’re here for today, as we’ll get you set up for success heading into Week 6’s action.
Note: All rostership percentages use Sleeper for this Week 6 Waiver Wire (2024) article.
Quarterback:
Kirk Cousins – Sleeper Roster – 40%
- It may have taken a few weeks to get to this point, but it looks like Cousins is back to his pre-Achilles’ form. I mean, 509 passing yards and four touchdowns will certainly do that. Cousins put up the best fantasy performance by a quarterback with 35.4 fantasy points. With the amount of weapons at Atlanta’s disposal, Cousins can lift them up with regularity. We know there’s no rushing upside, but that’s the price of admission.
- At worst, Cousins deserves low-end-QB1 treatment moving forward, especially with players like Patrick Mahomes, Sam Darnold, and Matthew Stafford on bye.
Daniel Jones – Sleeper Roster – 15%
- Don’t look now, but Daniel Jones has been a top-12 fantasy quarterback over the last four weeks. Jones was left for dead minus Malik Nabers in Week 5, but somehow, he put up his BEST fantasy performance. Because of course he did. 257 passing yards and two touchdowns, plus 38 rushing yards, Jones has the Giants punching up and likely gets Nabers to return when they host the Bengals in Week 6.
- Jones hasn’t shown too much of the rushing upside so far this season, but his 38 yards this past week is his season-high. He also has at least two passing touchdowns in three of his last four games. He’s not the sexiest name, but we know the Giants have some fight to them. Jones is a solid placeholder at quarterback with byes here or if an injury strikes your quarterback.
Andy Dalton – Sleeper Roster – 21%
- While Andy Dalton’s day in Chicago was #notgood, the Bears have a tough defense and with Jaylon Johnson locking down Diontae Johnson and Xavier Legette leaving Week 5 with a shoulder injury, the deck was stacked against Panthers. But in bye weeks, beggars cannot be choosers.
- Dalton and the Panthers will head back home to face the Falcons, where the matchup for Dalton is much better for putting up passing stats. Compared to some of the quarterback options below him, Dalton is at a competent floor play at quarterback.
Running Back:
Tyrone Tracy Jr. – Sleeper Roster – 34%
- With Devin Singletary nursing a groin injury, Tyrone Tracy Jr. leveled up and put the Giants on his back with the most rushing yards of any running back in Week 5 with 129 on 18 attempts. Tracy also had the second-most rushing yards over expectation (RYOE) with 47 plus the 11th-highest success rate (44.4%) of 35 qualified rushers on the week.
- At the worst, Tracy has earned a workload split with Singletary when he returns. At best, Tracy took that man’s job and Singletary got “Wally Pipp’d.” Tracy should be added in all fantasy leagues as a priority running back add after seeing what he can do with 63% of the snaps and 78% of the running back rushing attempts.
Tank Bigsby – Sleeper Roster – 31%
- Tank Bigsby was right here in my column last week and his rostership rose significantly. But still, he’s unrostered in almost two-third of fantasy leagues. That should change as Bigsby finished as THE RB1 in fantasy with 25.9 fantasy points. Bigsby’s 101 rushing yards and two touchdowns plus a 28-yard reception should open some eyes. It’s unlikely Bigsby just takes Travis Etienne’s job, but Bigsby should be a solid flex option right now as he earns more work.
- With the most RYOE (61) and the highest yards after contact per attempt (8.2 yards) of any back in Week 5, Bigsby is not only incredibly productive, but highly efficient as well. He, like Tracy, needs to be added in every fantasy league he’s available in.
Tyler Allgeier – Sleeper Roster – 39%
- While the production for Tyler Allgeier was stifled by the Buccaneers’ front (mainly Vita Vea), Allgeier has seen over 35% of snaps in the last two weeks after playing as a seldom-used handcuff to Bijan Robinson. Allgeier is being used a bit more in this offense and should be much more productive against the Carolina Panthers in Week 6.
- Allgeier is the perfect contingent play that goes unnoticed until something happens to a lead back and people are blowing their entire FAB budget or exhausting their top waiver claim on a back. Allgeier is very talented (1,000-yard rushing season as a rookie) and ramping up in utilization, so stash him on your bench if you have the room to do so.
Wide Receiver:
Jalen Tolbert – Sleeper Roster – 17%
- With Brandin Cooks heading to IR at the end of last week, Jalen Tolbert was the next man up for the Dallas Cowboys and kind of had to be. The Cowboys’ depth is some of the worst in the league at wide receiver, but Tolbert showed up on Sunday Night Football. All Tolbert did was lead the Cowboys in targets with 10 and put up seven receptions, 87 yards, and a touchdown grab.
- Tolbert also led the Cowboys with 42% air yards share and tied Jake Ferguson for the team lead with seven first-read targets on 89% routes per dropback. Tolbert is an easy plug-and-play starting option in fantasy lineups as the Cowboys should need all the offense they can muster as they host the Detroit Lions before heading on bye in Week 7.
Jordan Whittington – Sleeper Roster – 35%
- Over the last two weeks, Jordan Whittington has run routes on at least 92% of Matthew Stafford’s dropbacks and has put up two excellent weeks for any fantasy manager starting him. In Week 4, Whittington 6-62 on eight targets and then followed that up with a 7-89 performance on 10 targets against the Packers.
- While Whittington is on bye in Week 6, it’s actually a sneaky good time to get a claim in on him if you can hold him on your bench while your leaguemates are scooping up players that can help this week. You may even get a discount on solid production going forward.
Ja’Lynn Polk – Sleeper Roster – 17%
- Ja’Lynn Polk sticks out like a sore thumb here, but he’s a speculative add that could go under the radar in your fantasy leagues. With the Patriots rumored to be leaning Drake Maye’s way as their Week 6 starting quarterback against the Texans, it’s possible that Maye could elevate the offense in time to make some Patriots’ pass-catchers usable in fantasy. That certainly includes Polk, whose routes per dropback jumped considerably from 82% in Week 4 to a full 100% route participation in Week 5.
- Granted, the production hasn’t been there for Polk, but the offense has grown stagnant and listless under Jacoby Brissett. Perhaps Maye could be a bit of a spark? If that spark does happen, it’s going to be with a pass-catcher coming along for the ride. Why not Polk, the team’s second-round pick this past April? After earning six targets in the team’s first three games, Polk has earned seven and six targets in his last two games, so the offensive intent is looking for him. What if with a better quarterback, the efficiency spikes? Polk is a low-risk, high-reward add this week.
Tight End:
Cade Otton – Sleeper Roster – 44%
- We know Cade Otton has been tagged as a “boring” option at tight end, but with the Buccaneers playing quite well on offense, Otton should be rostered in more leagues if fantasy managers are trying to find some points at the position. Otton is a mortal lock for running a ton of routes (85% this season) and with an almost 20% target share in his last three games, he should be a fine streaming candidate in their Week 6 matchup in New Orleans against the Saints.
- After the Saints were torched by Travis Kelce on Monday Night Football to the tune of nine receptions and 70 yards, the Saints are allowing a league-worst mark in yards per reception allowed to tight ends.
Zach Ertz – Sleeper Roster – 49%
- We can’t turn our nose up at volume and the elder-statesman of this list, Zach Ertz, is seeing just that in his first season with the Washington Commanders. Ertz tied for a team-high with Terry McLaurin with eight targets, but parlayed that volume into a paltry two receptions for 10 yards. While it wasn’t one of Jayden Daniels’ best games, better days are ahead for the veteran.
- With matchups against the Ravens and Panthers on the docket in the next two weeks, Ertz should be able to put up TE1 numbers as those two teams are two of the softer defenses in terms of giving up fantasy points to the position.
Tyler Conklin – Sleeper Roster – 30%
- Tyler Conklin should already be a borderline top-12 option at tight end, but he’s available in your league, scoop him up. Conklin has 23 targets in his last three games and has been the second target for Aaron Rodgers in the Jets’ offense after Garrett Wilson.
- With two top-12 weeks in his last three games, “Conk Daddy” deserves much better than this from the 70% of leagues he’s not rostered in. Let’s help rectify that by adding and starting him as your starting tight end against a Matt Milano-less Buffalo Bills in Week 6.
D/ST:
Houston Texans – Sleeper Roster – 23%
- Houston is a top-five option for anybody looking for a defense this week, and could get the first start of Drake Maye’s career in Foxboro against the Patriots. While the Texans haven’t forced one turnover in their last three games, that looks likely to change. Even if the quarterback is Jacoby Brissett, it changes nothing about how highly the Texans are viewed this week.
- The Patriots have only scored 12.4 points per game this season and don’t expect to uptick too greatly with Brissett or Maye, so slotting in the Texans is a great one-week move to get some needed upside at D/ST.
Philadelphia Eagles – Sleeper Roster – 21%
- The Eagles are well rested having been on bye in Week 5. Sure, they haven’t done much in the way of scoring as a D/ST, putting up just one top-12 week in Week 3 against the Saints. But they get a gift coming off of bye: the Cleveland Browns.
- The Browns have been terrible at putting any offensive momentum with just 13 points against a Commanders’ defense that isn’t exactly a great defense themselves. Deshaun Watson has been one of the worst quarterbacks in the league and should cough up the ball in some form or fashion against the Browns. You could also keep the Eagles in their Week 7 game too against the Giants as well, so this is a potentially a two-week play here with Philadelphia.
Los Angeles Chargers – Sleeper Roster – 8%
- The Chargers have been a top-10 D/ST in three of their four games this season and like the Eagles, are coming off of their Week 5 bye to face the inept Denver Broncos and Bo Nix. Nix has thrown four interceptions this season and the Chargers are well-positioned to capitalize in Week 6.
- Los Angeles has an interception in each game this season and at least two sacks, so the Broncos could be another gift that keeps on giving for fantasy managers looking for a defense to play this week.