X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Gain Access Now

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Draft Rankings
Draft Simulator
Enter League Settings
Value Picks
Compare Any Players
News and Alerts

Deeper Sleepers for Standard Leagues (Week 6)

Deeper waiver wire sleepers and pickups to add for Week 6 of the NFL season. Justin Carter finds lightly owned players for fantasy football owners to target.

Another week, another spate of injuries. This week was headlined (at least from a fantasy perspective) by Odell Beckham Jr., who looks to be out for the rest of the season. After five weeks, two consensus round one picks--Beckham and David Johnson--have gone down to serious injuries. The Giants will replace Beckham with...hmm, I don't actually know since they had three other wide receivers injured in the Chargers game. Things look bleak for the Giants, who should probably just go ahead and tank the rest of the way.

J.J. Watt was injured too, which hurts the Texans D/ST going forward and also hurts the hearts of everyone in and around Houston. I've heard both NBC and my local NPR station call Watt a folk hero this week, which normally would ring as one of those hollow platitudes said about great players. But Watt's efforts during the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey have made him a hero in the Houston-area. To see him go on IR for the second consecutive season brings up a question that Texans fans don't want to hear--are the days of J.J. Watt as a dominant force in the NFL over? To bring this back to fantasy football, which I guess I have to do even though I would rather just keep being very sad about Watt, it brings up questions about what to do with the Texans D/ST. I think they're still very playable next week against the Browns, but with the loss of Watt and linebacker Whitney Mercilus it's probably time to start thinking them as just a streaming option.

Let's look at deeper waiver wire targets and sleepers for Week 6, players whose ownership is currently under 20% and are likely available in many of your leagues. Note: All ownership percentages are for Yahoo leagues.

Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2025:

 

Deeper Waiver Wire Targets for Week 6

Note: I'm not going to blurb players who I've already mentioned in previous weeks, but I will note that the following players from last week are still under 20% owned and still worth a look: Mitchell Trubisky (Note: this article is being written before Monday Night Football and published after it, so there is a chance I am very wrong still. If you're confused tomorrow about Trubisky, shoot me a tweet to hear my updated thoughts) and Elijah McGuire are still on my radar.

Before I get started, I just want to say this: it looks like every week some 49ers wide receiver not named Pierre Garcon is going to get 10+ targets. I'm done putting that player on this list because it's clear that it's almost all about game flow at this point. There isn't week-to-week consistency.

 

QUARTERBACKS

Jacoby Brissett, Indianapolis Colts - 12% owned

Andrew Luck is apparently out until November and Brissett has finally developed some chemistry with T.Y. Hilton. He also gives you some rushing upside. Brissett has a match-up next week with the Titans, too, who have struggled defensively this season. Brissett might be the only quarterback left who's under 20% owned and can give you consistent play.

Brian Hoyer, San Francisco 49ers - 9% owned

We've officially reached the point in the season where everyone whose strategy was just pick a quarterback late and then grab someone who breaks out off waivers early has found their quarterback, whether that be Deshaun Watson, Carson Wentz, or Jared Goff. If you're still streaming quarterbacks as we head into Week 6, you might be in trouble. Hoyer has struggled in three of his five games, but he's put up 22 and 27 points in the other two. I'm not sure if on the road against Washington is the best match-up, but he provides you with decent upside if you really need him.

Kevin Hogan, Cleveland Browns - 0% owned

DeShone Kizer finally got benched. Kevin Hogan threw a pair of touchdowns. They face a Texans defense that just lost two of its best players, though that might still not be enough to make me trust Hogan. But if you are betting that Houston's defense continues to look like they did against Kansas City, then Hogan is an interesting pick-up (assuming Kizer is actually benched. It's the Browns, so who knows.)

 

RUNNING BACKS

Marlon Mack, Indianapolis Colts - 8% owned

Mack missed the past two games, but his return for the Colts in Week 5 was loud--91 yards and a touchdown on only nine carries. Mack is the explosive runner that a late stage Frank Gore just can't be, but one has to wonder if he'll see much of an increase in workload and if he'll hold up fine if he does. Still, he looks like a player who could continue to bust off huge plays.

Matt Breida, San Francisco 49ers - 7% owned

There's really nothing about Breida that jumps off the page, but he carried the ball ten times against the Colts and the coaches said afterwards that it had nothing to do with Carlos Hyde being injured, but with the team riding the hot hand. With the 49ers already essentially out of the playoff hunt, it wouldn't be a shock to see the team start to move on from Carlos Hyde. Don't forget--they were questions in the offseason about how committed they were to him.

 

WIDE RECEIVERS

Tavon Austin, Los Angeles Rams - 2% owned

I GET IT. You've heard for a few years now that Tavon Austin is primed to break out and you pick him up and nothing happens. It's probably going to go that way again, but it's worth noting that the Rams are using him more and more as a running back. Austin rushed for a touchdown in Week 5 and had a season-high five targets. If his usage continues to trend upwards, he could be a sleeper worth having.

Ricardo Louis, Cleveland Browns - 1% owned

Number of targets over the past three weeks: six, nine, eight. Louis is nothing special, but Kevin Hogan has shown that he can get the ball into the hands of his team's players more consistently than DeShone Kizer has, so Louis is a decent FLEX play against Houston on volume alone. Josh Gordon (probably) isn't walking through that door, but Louis seems the most likely receiver to benefit from the fact that Cleveland doesn't have any other good wide receivers.

 

TIGHT END

Ed Dickson, Carolina Panthers - 6% owned

Some guarantees about Dickson: 1) he won't catch all his targets every week, 2) he won't have another game with as many yards as he did this week, and 3) he is still worth an add because the Panthers and Cam Newton have historically loved their tight ends and Dickson is their starting tight end. Dickson has surprisingly emerged as a downfield target for the Panthers. His hands look solid. He's got a pretty easy schedule coming up. Now is a good time to grab him.

George Kittle, San Francisco 49ers - 1% owned

The wide receiver market is good enough that one can ignore all the myriad of mediocre options in San Francisco. The tight end market? Mark me down as cautiously optimistic about Kittle, who was targeted nine times, resulting in seven catches for 83 yards and a touchdown.

Nick O'Leary, Buffalo Bills - 0% owned

Charles Clay is going to miss some time. If you need a replacement, you could do worse than O'Leary, who is likely to see similar volume, though much less likely to put up similar production. The Bills like to throw to their tight end, though, so don't be afraid to give O'Leary a chance.

 

More Weekly Lineup Prep




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Draft Rankings
Draft Simulator
Enter League Settings
Value Picks
Compare Any Players
News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Mark Canha11 mins ago

Activated Off Injured List
Jake Cronenworth4 hours ago

Targeting Earlier Return
Liam Hendriks4 hours ago

Set To Return On Saturday
Jackson Merrill4 hours ago

Not Expected To Return Next Week
Martín Pérez4 hours ago

Martin Perez Will Undergo MRI On Saturday
Casey Schmitt4 hours ago

Expected To Hit Injured List
Brock Stewart4 hours ago

Expected To Return On Sunday
Luke Keaschall5 hours ago

Busy In MLB Debut
Jose Fleury5 hours ago

Continues Strong Start On Friday
AJ Smith-Shawver5 hours ago

Strikes Out Eight In Defeat
Marcelo Mayer5 hours ago

Tallies Seven RBI On Friday
Zyhir Hope5 hours ago

Hits Two Home Runs On Friday
Andrew Painter6 hours ago

Sharp In Second Rehab Outing
Tyler Anderson11 hours ago

Keeps Hot Streak Rolling Friday
Logan Webb11 hours ago

Fans 12 In Tough-Luck Loss
Carlos Rodón11 hours ago

Carlos Rodon Goes Six Scoreless To Snap Personal Losing Streak
Andrew Abbott11 hours ago

Dominates Orioles On Friday
Yoshinobu Yamamoto11 hours ago

Tosses Another Gem
Cam Smith11 hours ago

Hits Two Taters On Friday
Trevor Story11 hours ago

Mashes Pair Of Three-Run Homers
Zack Wheeler14 hours ago

Records 13 Strikeouts
Ja Morant15 hours ago

Cleared To Play Friday
Brandon Williams15 hours ago

Available Against Grizzlies
Anthony Davis16 hours ago

Will Play Friday Night
Gary Trent Jr.16 hours ago

Available For Game 1 Against Pacers
Taurean Prince16 hours ago

Returns To Bucks Lineup Saturday
NFL16 hours ago

Justin Hardee Sr. Waived With Non-Football Injury
Isaiah Stewart16 hours ago

To Return For Game 1
Ausar Thompson16 hours ago

Available For Game 1
Rui Hachimura16 hours ago

On Track To Play Saturday
Austin Reaves16 hours ago

Ready To Go For Game 1
NFL16 hours ago

Bills Release Armani Rogers, Branson Deen
Luka Dončić16 hours ago

Luka Doncic Removed From Injury Report
LeBron James16 hours ago

Listed As Probable For Game 1
Ben Sheppard17 hours ago

Probable For Saturday's Game 1
NFL17 hours ago

Kolton Miller Absent From Raiders' Voluntary Offseason Program
Kevin Durant17 hours ago

To Houston Already Losing Steam
Lauri Markkanen17 hours ago

Wants To Stay With The Jazz
NFL17 hours ago

Ross Blacklock Let Go By New York
Bennedict Mathurin17 hours ago

Expected To Play In Game 1 Saturday
Pascal Siakam17 hours ago

Available For Playoff Opener
Tyrese Haliburton17 hours ago

Returning From Two-Game Absence Saturday
Cade Cunningham17 hours ago

Available For Game 1 Against Knicks
Josh Hart18 hours ago

Back In Knicks Lineup Saturday
OG Anunoby18 hours ago

Good To Go For Game 1
Jalen Brunson18 hours ago

Available For Saturday's Game 1
NFL18 hours ago

Raiders Considering Drafting A Quarterback
Irv Smith19 hours ago

Sticking With Texans
Ryan Lindgren19 hours ago

Set To Return Saturday
NFL19 hours ago

Texans Expected To Draft Wide Receivers
Greg Dortch19 hours ago

Returning To Cardinals
Josh Manson19 hours ago

Available For Game 1
Mark Andrews19 hours ago

Could Be Traded Soon
Ondrej Palat19 hours ago

To Return For Start Of Playoffs
David Savard19 hours ago

Will Retire After Playoffs
NFL19 hours ago

Raiders, Falcons Could Have Interest In Jalen Ramsey
Robert Thomas19 hours ago

Good To Go Saturday
Matthew Tkachuk19 hours ago

Expected To Return For Game 1
19 hours ago

Raiders Are High On Ashton Jeanty
Jason Robertson20 hours ago

Considered Week-To-Week
Rome Odunze20 hours ago

To Hopefully Get More Involved
NFL20 hours ago

Dolphins Could Draft A Quarterback
James Cook20 hours ago

Could Stay Away From Voluntary Workouts
Leon Draisaitl1 day ago

Wins First Rocket Richard Trophy
Nikita Kucherov1 day ago

Bags Third Art Ross Trophy
Bryan Rust1 day ago

Scores Twice In Season-Ending Win
Igor Shesterkin1 day ago

Shuts Out Lightning With 27 Saves
Dylan Cozens1 day ago

Picks Up Three Points In Regular-Season Finale
Matvei Michkov1 day ago

Caps Off Rookie Campaign With Three-Point Effort
Brady Tkachuk1 day ago

Makes Early Exit For Precautionary Reasons
Jake Tonges2 days ago

Signs Exclusive-Rights Tender
Denver Broncos2 days ago

Broncos To Focus On RB Position In Next Week's Draft
Drew Lock2 days ago

Sam Howell, Drew Lock Expected To Compete For Backup Job
New York Giants2 days ago

Giants Leaning Toward Taking Best Player Available At No. 3
New Orleans Saints2 days ago

Ryan Ramczyk Announces His Retirement
Buffalo Bills2 days ago

Tre'Davious White Reunites With Buffalo
Aaron Rodgers2 days ago

Willing To Play For $10 Million A Year
Jakob Chychrun2 days ago

Returns Against Penguins
Rasmus Andersson2 days ago

Out Against Kings
Jonathan Huberdeau2 days ago

Sits Out Regular-Season Finale
Ryan Pulock2 days ago

Out On Thursday
Jake Sanderson2 days ago

Back In Action Thursday
Thomas Chabot2 days ago

To Be Rested Against Hurricanes
Claude Giroux2 days ago

Active On Thursday
Lucas Glover3 days ago

Looks To Rebound After Poor Performance
Daniel Berger3 days ago

Looking To Continue Solid Play At RBC
Sepp Straka3 days ago

Looking To Bounce Back At RBC
Justin Thomas3 days ago

Looking To Shake Off Poor Masters At RBC Heritage
Xander Schauffele3 days ago

Still Looking For Year's First Win At RBC Heritage
Maverick McNealy3 days ago

Is An Intriguing Play At RBC Heritage
Shane Lowry3 days ago

Looks To Shake Off Poor Masters Sunday At RBC Heritage
Will Zalatoris3 days ago

Eyes A Bounce-Back At RBC Heritage
Gary Woodland3 days ago

Could Add Some Surprise At Hilton Head
Sam Burns3 days ago

Hoping For Better Times At RBC Heritage
Sahith Theegala3 days ago

Still Trying To Put It All Together
Aaron Rai3 days ago

Might Be That Guy For Hilton Head
Robert MacIntyre3 days ago

All Or Nothing At RBC Heritage
Tom Hoge3 days ago

Still Playing Solid Heading To Hilton Head
Nick Dunlap3 days ago

Continues To Have Rough Stretch
Keegan Bradley3 days ago

Looks To Move On From Masters Performance
Matt Fitzpatrick3 days ago

A Boom-Or-Bust Option At RBC Heritage
Patrick Cantlay3 days ago

A Strong Play At RBC Heritage
Jordan Spieth3 days ago

Targets Another Strong RBC Heritage Showing
Collin Morikawa3 days ago

Eyeing Victory At RBC Heritage
Max Homa3 days ago

Breaks Through At The Masters
Alexander Volkanovski4 days ago

Reclaims Featherweight Title
Diego Lopes4 days ago

Drops Decision At UFC 314
Paddy Pimblett4 days ago

Remains Undefeated In The UFC
Michael Chandler4 days ago

Suffers TKO Loss
MMA4 days ago

Patricio Freire Gets Dominated In His UFC Debut
Yair Rodriguez4 days ago

Gets Back In The Win Column
Bryce Mitchell4 days ago

Gets Submitted At UFC 314
Jean Silva4 days ago

Gets Submission Win At UFC 314
Dominick Reyes4 days ago

Wins Third Fight In A Row
5 days ago

Austin Dillon Nabs His First Top-10 Finish Of The 2025 Season At Bristol
5 days ago

Ryan Blaney's Bold Strategies Fall Flat, Still Musters A Top-Five Finish At Bristol
5 days ago

Christopher Bell Finishes In The Top 10 After Falling Back Midway At Bristol
5 days ago

Ty Gibbs Earns His First Top-Five Finish Of The 2025 Season At Bristol
5 days ago

Chase Briscoe Quietly Scores First Career Top-Five Finish At Bristol
5 days ago

Denny Hamlin Cuts Into William Byron's Points Lead
5 days ago

William Byron Makes Best Of His Mediocre Qualifying Run With Sixth-Place Finish
5 days ago

Despite Engine Failure, Alex Bowman's Improved Speed Looks Promising
NASCAR5 days ago

A.J. Allmendinger Enters Playoff Picture With Surprise Bristol Top-10 Finish
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF