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Who should I start or sit for fantasy football in Week 6 of the 2023 season? Andrew Ball identifies potential fantasy football busts and duds to avoid for for this upcoming week.
The stars of today are the busts of tomorrow. That may be the theme of the week, as several high-profile fantasy football producers find themselves on the list for Week 6. There's a potential star of tomorrow that also landed on the list.
Injuries are piling up as the one-third mark of the season approaches. In some cases, it opens the door for lesser-known running backs or wide receivers to earn their stripes. In other cases, it dampens the outlook for star wide receivers who may be without their quarterback.
As you prepare to set your lineups for a victorious Week 6, make sure potential fantasy landmines stay on your bench. Below are my 10 fantasy football busts for Week 6 of the NFL season.
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C.J. Stroud vs. New Orleans
Being a successful NFL quarterback does not always equal success in the fantasy football realm.
Look at Trevor Lawrence last week. He was listed as a bust in this column but went out and threw for over 300 yards, leading the Jaguars to a victory over Buffalo. And yet, untimely turnovers and a failure to find the end zone resulted in Lawrence finishing as the QB15 with 15.7 fantasy points.
One spot behind Lawrence sat C.J. Stroud. Unlike his fellow AFC South quarterback, Stroud did not turn the ball over. In fact, he hasn't thrown an interception in his entire professional career. The rookie instead struggled to finish drives, resulting in four Ka'imi Fairbairn field goals. With only one score on his stat line, Stroud broke his streak of three straight games with over 20 fantasy points.
Stroud has the makings of a star quarterback and may very well make it through another game without an interception (although the New Orleans defense may have something to say about that). Safety Marcus Maye is returning from a three-game suspension and the Saints are one of five teams with more interceptions than touchdown passes allowed.
Stroud is still a starter in Superflex leagues but it's advised to find another streaming candidate in single-quarterback leagues for Week 6.
Derrick Henry vs. Baltimore (in London)
Before you read any further...DO NOT sit Derrick Henry.
The former All-Pro running back is averaging the lowest yards per carry (3.8) of his career. Prior to this season, that number sat at 4.68 yards per attempt. In two of the last three games, backup Tyjae Spears has outscored Henry in PPR formats. The rookie has also played more snaps in two of five games this season. The Titans like what they have in Spears and want to get him touches. His involvement is boosted when Tennessee is playing from behind.
The Titans' offense has slowed down when playing away from Nissan Stadium. They are the home team, technically, but this game is being played in London. Tennessee is matched up against the Ravens, who are one of five teams yet to allow a rushing touchdown this season.
For a running back who doesn't score a lot of fantasy points through the passing game and relies on rushing yards and touchdowns, it's not an ideal situation. Due to the scarcity of the position, fantasy managers probably don't have better options, but be warned of a down game.
Rachaad White vs. Detroit
NFL schedule makers were not kind to Rachaad White. Four of his first five matchups came against teams ranked in the top 10 for the least amount of fantasy points allowed to running backs. Against Philadelphia, New Orleans, and Minnesota, the second-year runner averaged 63 yards from scrimmage. It doesn't get any easier with Detroit and Atlanta (both in the top three) up next.
The Lions haven't allowed any running back to top 43 rushing yards this season. That honor belongs to Kenneth Walker III, who also punched in two short touchdowns in Week 2. Detroit also hasn't allowed a running back to catch a touchdown (White has 13 catches through four games). Below is how each leading running back performed against Detroit.
| Game | Leading Running Back | Stats |
| At Kansas City | Isiah Pacheco | 8 carries, 23 yards |
| Vs. Seattle | Kenneth Walker III | 17 carries, 43 yards, 2 TDs |
| Vs. Atlanta | Bijan Robinson | 10 carries, 33 yards |
| At Green Bay | Aaron Jones | 5 carries, 18 yards |
| Vs. Carolina | Chuba Hubbard | 9 carries, 35 yards |
White and the rest of the Tampa Bay offense will be rested coming off of a bye week, but don't expect much against a surprisingly stingy run defense. Two other struggling backs, Alexander Mattison and Rhamondre Stevenson, are facing softer rush defenses (Chicago and Las Vegas, respectively) and should be started over White this week.
Emari Demercado at Los Angeles Rams
James Conner is on injured reserve and somebody has to step up and take touches out of the backfield. Undrafted rookie Emari Demercado was one of the more popular waiver wire additions of the week, as he received a majority of the carries once Conner departed. Wide receiver Rondale Moore took a trio of attempts and led the team in rushing yards.
Keaontay Ingram, the second-year running back out of Texas, hasn't done anything impressive in his short NFL career but he was listed as second on the depth chart before a neck injury sent him to the sidelines.
Demercado may lead the way but Moore will get a few carries in Week 6 and Keaontay Ingram will be involved. That's what we in the fantasy football business like to call a mess of a backfield. With a low implied total by Vegas oddsmakers, it's better to wait and see the division of touches so managers don't get burned. If Demercado is the leader of the pack, then he'll be a decent play against Seattle in Week 7.
Terry McLaurin at Atlanta
Atlanta cornerback A.J. Terrell">Terrell isn't mentioned in the same breath as Sauce Gardner, Patrick Surtain II, or Jaire Alexander as the best lockdown corners in the league. It's about time that he should be. The 2020 first-round pick has been shutting down opposing number-one wide receivers all season long.
| Game | WR1 | Stats |
| Vs. Carolina | Adam Thielen | 2 catches, 12 yards |
| Vs. Green Bay | Romeo Doubs | 2 catches, 30 yards |
| At Detroit | Amon-Ra St. Brown | 9 catches, 102 yards |
| At Jacksonville | Calvin Ridley | 2 catches, 38 yards, 1 TD |
| Vs. Houston | Nico Collins | 3 catches, 39 yards |
Two notes on the above chart: Terrell does not travel into the slot, so he was not covering St. Brown with any consistency. The top outside receiver, Josh Reynolds, was shut out. Ridley's touchdown against Terrell came on a miscommunication with safety Jessie Bates III.
Behind the play of Terrell, the Falcons allow the fifth-fewest fantasy points to wide receivers through five weeks. Washington quarterback Sam Howell has already shown his tendency to find the open man and not force targets on his top playmakers. He'll look Terry McLaurin's way even less if Terrell is shadowing him. In their matchup last season, Terrell followed McLaurin often.
Michael Thomas at Houston
Derek Carr's shoulder injury, coinciding with the return of Alvin Kamara, has not been kind to wide receivers Michael Thomas and Chris Olave. Since being forced from the game in Week 3, Carr hasn't topped 185 yards in any of the two following contests. Kamara and even backup running back Kendre Miller are siphoning target numbers, as you can see below.
The targets were a bit more balanced in Week 5 (15 of the 25 went to wide receivers). Olave's day was salvaged by a short touchdown. Thomas gave fantasy managers what he's done every week: 50-60 yards on four or five catches. Nine or 10 fantasy PPR points are fine, but not great, and he's yet to score a touchdown. In standard-scoring leagues, he's not worth a start.
Carr isn't putting the ball in the air enough, nor throwing it downfield. His yards per attempt (6.3) ranks 28th in the league and it's his lowest number since his rookie season. Couple that with a Houston secondary that is allowing the third-fewest points to opposing wide receivers and Thomas is a sit in all formats. There's also concern about Olave, but his talent lets him slide by for another week as a WR2/3.
Amari Cooper vs. San Francisco
Amari Cooper on his home field has been significantly better than Amari Cooper on the road. So, we should like Cooper this week, right? As the legendary Lee Corso would say, "Not so fast, my friend!"
The first problem is the health of Deshaun Watson. The quarterback was a surprise scratch prior to Week 4 with a shoulder issue. Rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson got the nod as QB1 and Cooper caught just one of his six targets for 16 yards.
The Browns took their bye in Week 5 and the assumption was that Watson would be healthy enough to play in Week 6 against San Francisco. He's now been ruled out for Sunday.
Veteran P.J. Walker will get the start. In five starts for Carolina in 2022, Walker topped 200 passing yards just once. The odds of him supporting a wideout on Sunday are low.
The second problem is the matchup against San Francisco. The 49ers' defense just shut down Dallas on the national stage on Sunday Night Football. Jordan Addison, Gabe Davis, Garrett Wilson, and Jakobi Meyers all have a higher upside than Cooper this week.
Deebo Samuel at Cleveland
Since suffering knee and rib injuries in Week 3, Deebo Samuel has been used more as a running back (or a decoy) than a wide receiver. Against Arizona and Dallas, Samuel had more rush attempts than targets. In total, he's tallied three catches for 55 yards and 36 rushing yards over those two contests.
| Game | Targets | Rush Attempts |
| Week 1 (at Pittsburgh) | 7 | 2 |
| Week 2 (at Los Angeles) | 9 | 5 |
| Week 3 (vs. New York Giants) | 12 | 1 |
| Week 4 (vs. Arizona) | 0 | 3 |
| Week 5 (vs. Dallas) | 3 | 5 |
The Cleveland Browns' defense hasn't played the best of the best when it comes to receivers. In Week 1, they saw a hobbled Joe Burrow struggle to find Ja'Marr Chase. George Pickens broke a long touchdown in Week 2. A hampered DeAndre Hopkins failed to get the Tennessee offense off of the ground in Week 3. And in Week 4, the Ravens ran away with the game, resulting in low target numbers for Zay Flowers.
Still, the numbers don't lie. The Browns are the best fantasy football defense against opposing wide receivers. When push comes to shove, the 49ers may show that it does not matter what defense is on the other side of the football. Brock Purdy has been too efficient in getting his playmakers the ball.
Samuel is still a WR2/3 this week, just behind his running mate Brandon Aiyuk. It just takes one long run or catch for the ex-Gamecock to give managers a notable fantasy performance.
Kyle Pitts vs. Washington
Last week, I declared Pitts a season-long bust (alongside Dallas Goedert and Darren Waller) who did not belong in this column until each actually had a start-worthy fantasy performance. All three tallied their best games of the season. So welcome back to the column, Kyle Pitts!
Although he scored over 15 PPR points, Pitts actually saw the field less than any other game this season. Atlanta held the football for the majority of their game against Houston, but Pitts played 41 snaps (down from his season average of 43.8), which was just over half of Atlanta's plays. Fellow tight end Jonnu Smith played 64% of the snaps. This all came during Desmond Ridder's career-high passing day.
The Commanders' defense is one of the stronger units in football against tight ends. It may not be by design or talent. Rather, they are allowing the most yards and touchdowns to wide receivers. Quarterbacks don't need to look toward tight ends when wideouts are running free down the field.
Dalton Schultz vs. New Orleans
Just like his quarterback, Dalton Schultz finds himself on the bust list for Week 6. The first-year Houston tight end has scored two games in a row but Atlanta is statistically one of the softest defenses against the position. Their division mates, the Saints, are the complete opposite. That unit is allowing the second-fewest points to tight ends after topping the list last season.
Through five games, New Orleans has allowed 99 yards and one score (Cade Otton) to tight ends. I'll do the math for you: that's 19.8 yards and 0.2 touchdowns per game. Not ideal.
Interestingly, Schultz's involvement comes as his playing time decreases. He's averaging playing 54% of the snaps the last two games. His prior average equaled 73%. Schultz has at least entered his name into the streaming sweepstakes now after a sluggish start to the season but there are better candidates this week. Jake Ferguson, Hunter Henry, and Logan Thomas are safer options.
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