Week 6 Waiver Wire Sleepers & Overview for Fantasy Football

Zach Wilkens analyzes week six sleepers available on your fantasy football waiver wire. These NFL running backs (RBs), wide receivers (WRs), tight ends (TEs) and quarterbacks (QBs) are fantasy football sleepers.

Week 6 Waiver Wire for Fantasy Football

What’s up, RotoBallers. Here are some fantasy football waiver wire sleepers for Week 6 of the NFL season. Week 5 was another injury riddled and action-packed week of fantasy football action.

We saw a lot of great performances, a few more injuries (as usual), and some players who either broke out are on the verge of breaking out for fantasy football owners. In turn, there are some waiver wire pickups and sleepers for Week 6 that can have a huge impact on your team. We have them covered here!

Note that in order to make this weekly waiver wire pickups column, a player has to be owned in fewer than 50% of Fleaflicker leagues at the time of this article’s writing. Additionally, be sure to check out many more great RotoBaller articles and waiver wire analysis pieces at each position throughout the week, including risers/fallers, deeper league sleepers, rankings and more. Good luck in Week 6, RotoBallers!

Quarterback Waiver Wire Pickup Options

1. Teddy Bridgewater vs Lions - 27% Owned on Fleaflicker

It's not the best matchup, but the Lions did just allow Kyle Orton to throw for over 300 yards. Teddy should have plenty of passing yards, plus he has the mobility that Orton lacks. You can expect the rookie to have a few turnovers, but with some decent rushing yards and a passing touchdown or two, it should be a nice day for Teddy. I'm assuming he'll be healthy, given that he was a game-time decision last Thursday.

2. Austin Davis vs 49ers - 10% Owned on Fleaflicker

Again, not a great matchup, but who could doubt Davis at this point? He's coming off two straight 300-yard three-TD performances. Outside of shutting down Nick Foles, the 49ers have been nothing special defensively, and Davis gets to face them at home. His receivers are not as bad as you think. He'll have his ups and downs, but at this point, he's proven he has QB1 upside in any given week.

3. Ryan Tannehill vs Green Bay - 39% Owned on Fleaflicker

Tannehill is coming off his strongest start of the year and a bye. It's a tough matchup, but he should be up to the task. The Packers have a solid pass defense, but they can be exploited-- just witness Geno Smith scoring 17 points against them. If Tannehill can avoid the bad mistakes that he's been prone to making at times this year, he should have a really nice game.

Other QBs to Consider: Brian Hoyer (14%) is coming off his best game of the season and faces the Steelers at home. Their defense is hurting, but they did just shut down Blake Bortles. Carson Palmer (57%) will likely see a drop in ownership, but he's expected to come back this week or next. He has a really nice schedule coming up, and that offense is built for big numbers.

Running Back Waiver Wire Pickup Options

1. Branden Oliver @ Raiders - 6% Owned on Fleaflicker

I gave a lukewarm endorsement of Oliver last week. The Jets were the toughest run defense, but I figured Donald Brown is pretty awful, so Oliver was worth a pickup. Well, Oliver somehow ended up leading all running backs in scoring this past week (through Sunday). He's a small (5'8"), aggressive runner. I saw some comparisons to Darren Sproles, but he reminds me of the more muscular and physical Maurice Jones-Drew. That comparison doesn't come lightly. Oliver faces the Raiders this week. He likely loses a lot of value when Ryan Mathews returns, but if you need an RB in the short term, he is a must-add.

2. Antone Smith vs Bears - 22% Owned on Fleaflicker

Smith simply HAS to start getting more touches. The production he has put up given his small number of looks is beyond ridiculous. Get this: Antone Smith has a 30-yard touchdown in six of the last eight games in which he got a carry or a reception. That's not even the crazy part-- what's crazy is that he has just 23 touches over that span. Six 30-yard touchdowns in 23 touches!!!! That just boggles my mind. I'm not sure how Mike Smith can watch this guy in practice every day and think two or three touches is enough. Coach Smith finally conceded after today's game that Antone Smith needs to be more involved. Yes, yes he does.

3. Ronnie Hillman @ Jets - 24% Owned on Fleaflicker

Hillman has a tough matchup in Week 6, but he is the guy to own for a long-term investment. Montee Ball's groin injury is reported to be serious and will likely keep him out a game or more, and Hillman will be lead back (even if it might be a committee), making him a very valuable commodity.  The Cardinals are a very strong offense, and they had shut down Montee Ball early the Week 5 matchup. When Ball left with an injury, Hillman looked significantly better. He's a bit of a risk, because the Broncos are sure to get both Juwan Thompson and C.J. Anderson involved if Ball is indeed out. In fact, it was Juwan Thompson that got the touchdown here, despite Hillman doing most of the work late. The Broncos should easily dominate the Jets, which will mean plenty of carries for Hillman regardless of the situation.

4. Andre Williams @ Eagles - 36% Owned on Fleaflicker

My good friend Rek covered the Giants' rookie running back Andre Williams in detail in his analysis of the top Week 6 running back pickups.  He highlights all the key points: Rashad Jennings is likely to miss a week or two, Williams is built and runs like a fleet-footed tank, and he's only owned in a third of Fleaflicker leagues. Enough said. He should be owned everywhere.

Wide Receiver Waiver Wire Pickup Options

1. Odell Beckham, Jr @ Eagles - 20% Owned on Fleaflicker

I didn't really give Beckham, Jr (OBJ) a thought this past week, as it would be his debut following a long string of missed practices and valuable development time with Eli Manning. However, Beckham came in and looked like he's been playing since Week 1. At times, he looked like the best receiver on the field (over both Victor Cruz and Rueben Randle), and every bit worthy of the 12th overall pick the Giants used on him. I don't want to overhype him too much here-- I'm sure he'll have his growing pains. That said, it's hard not to like what we saw in Week 5. He's basically the opposite of Rueben Randle, who continues to make mistakes every week. It would not surprise me if, given a little more time with the offense, OBJ is earning as many targets as Cruz / Randle in any given week.

2. Brian Quick / Kenny Britt vs 49ers - 44% / 10% Owned on Fleaflicker

I'm doubling down on these guys because there's no reason Quick's ownership shouldn't be to 100% at this point-- he is clearly the top receiver in this offense and he continues to put up the numbers to back it up. I haven't talked about Kenny Britt yet this year, but if you buy into Austin Davis as a decent quarterback, someone besides Brian Quick is also going to benefit. Britt was originally expected to be the top receiver and was praised in the preseason. He disappeared early on, but has come on strong the past two games. With Tavon Austin not doing much of anything, Britt is the clear #2. It's hard to say what will happen when Austin Davis isn't putting up huge numbers, but I like enough of what I see to invest in Britt.

3. Malcom Floyd @ Raiders - 25% Owned on Fleaflicker

I feel as though Malcom Floyd is going to be one of those guys that will be consistently underappreciated this year, no matter what he does. In his four games outside of Seattle, his 3-catch 72-yard performance is his worst, but that is still enough to put him in consideration as WR3/FLEX play. Why is he mostly ignored? He's old (33), he's coming off a serious neck injury, he doesn't catch a ton of balls, and he is competing for targets with Keenan Allen, Eddie Royal and Antonio Gates. Well, I can't really refute the first two issues, but he is a very tall receiver at 6'5", and that has allowed him to consistently put up high yards-per-catch numbers throughout his career. Since 2008, Floyd has averaged at least 17 yards per catch in all but one season. He faces the Raiders this week, and there is really no reason he can't make a few big catches while continuing to offer a very high floor with a decent chance for a touchdown.

Tight End Waiver Wire Pickup Options

1. Tim Wright @ Bills - 10% Owned on Fleaflicker

When the Patriots first acquired Tim Wright, they generated a lot of buzz. The thinking was that he could fill the void left by Aaron Hernandez playing across from Rob Gronkowski, a position which made the Patriots so successful for a few years. He was extremely quiet throughout the first four weeks, but Wright came on strong in Week 5 with five receptions for 85 yards. It's hard to say whether that will continue next week, but he's a talented pass-catching TE/WR hybrid, and the Patriots will likely need him if they want to thrive offensively. He'll be up and down, but I would take a chance on him.

2. Owen Daniels @ Bucs - 44% Owned on Fleaflicker

Daniels is far from exciting, but with Pitta gone for the season, Daniels is picking up most of those targets. He should have a high floor week-to-week, with 40+ yards most weeks. This coming week against the Buccaneers will be a great opportunity for a touchdown, making him one of the best options for tight end streamers.

3. Luke Willson vs Cowboys - 2% Owned on Fleaflicker

Willson hasn't even played in Week 5 as of this writing, so I can't comment on that performance, but the Seahawks' top receiving tight end Zach Miller is out for an extended period, making Willson the guy at the position. He's in his second year and was able to haul in 20 passes for 272 yards and a score last year. Willson isn't anything special, but it's a really nice matchup and with Miller gone he should get 3-5 targets. In particularly deep leagues, he'll make a nice play when the top streaming options are gone.