Week 6 is in the books, and IDP managers are furiously scouring the waiver wire for impact additions. The first few weeks of the season always provide some new and some old options to consider, some of which will impact IDP starters for the rest of the season. The names below all seem to qualify and may very well be available in your leagues. Let’s take a look at some of the names that are worth some of your free agent budget.
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Jonathan Greenard (DE – HOU): 0% rostered on Yahoo
Greenard showed up again in Week 6 and has apparently shown the Texans enough that they felt comfortable releasing veteran defensive lineman Whitney Mercilus on Monday. Greenard tallied five solos, one assist, two sacks, and two tackles for loss in Week 6 and is now up to four sacks in four games. He has sacks in three of his four contests this season and is making good on the promise he showed as a prospect coming out of Florida. He has been a DL1 on per-game averages and should continue to eat for Houston. He is a perfect bye week filler and could lock himself into the DL2 conversation if he keeps playing well. Add Greenard wherever possible as a bye week DL2/3 option.
Maxx Crosby (DE – LV): 14% rostered on Yahoo
Sometimes the rostered numbers at Yahoo make little if any sense. Case in point, Maxx Crosby. Coming off a 10 sack season and firmly entrenched as a starter for the Raiders, Crosby should be on more rosters. Yes, he all but vanished after his two sack Week 1 performance, but he is a proven talent that deserved the benefit of the doubt, even if it was just as a bench stash you only planned to deploy during the byes. They often say that sacks come in bunches, and that has proven to be the case for Crosby. He went off for two solos, four assists, three sacks, one tackle for loss, and one pass defended in Week 6 and is now up to five sacks on the season. He has been held off the sack sheet in four of his six contests, with all five sacks coming in those two other contests. Crosby is well on his way to another double-digit sack season and needs to be rostered in all competitive leagues, especially with the byes underway. If you happen to play in a league where he was dropped by an impatient rival manager, add him immediately.
Randy Gregory (DE – DAL): 2% rostered on Yahoo
Randy Gregory is another high variance defensive end who is either blowing up the quarterback or contributing next to nothing for fantasy managers. He recorded three solos, two sacks, two tackles for loss, and a forced fumble in Week 6 and is now up to four sacks on the season. All four sacks came in his last three games. He has two multi-sack games and three games in which he totaled zero solos, one assist, zero sacks, and zero tackles for loss. He is going to continue to be inconsistent but is a proven talent who is more than capable of filling in during the byes while making a case for a permanent spot on your roster. Gregory is a DL3 with DL2 upside during the byes and should be added wherever available.
Emmanuel Ogbah (DE – MIA): 2% rostered on Yahoo
Ogbah should be added wherever possible and quite simply should not be available in 98 percent of Yahoo leagues. Ogbah recorded two solos, one assist, one sack, one tackle for loss, and one pass defended in Week 6 and is now up to 2.5 sacks on the season. He is coming off a nine sack campaign and now has a sack in two of his last three games. As mentioned in prior weeks, Ogbah has been creating pressures and QB knockdowns this season. He just has not had the sack luck yet. Add Ogbah as a DL2 level bye week filler who can morph into a DL1 option in short order.
Trey Hendrickson (DE – CIN): 7% rostered on Yahoo
I am sure some of you are as tired of reading about Trey Hendrickson in this column as I am writing about him. Hendrickson is coming off a 13.5 sack season and is now up to 5.5 sacks in 2021. He recorded two solos, one sack, and one tackle for loss in Week 6 and has a sack in four of his last five games. It is true that he does not contribute much when he is not getting sacks, but he is scorching and needs to be rostered universally. Forget bye weeks; Hendrickson is a DL2 with DL1 upside who has already proven he can sustain this level of production. Stop sleeping on the Bengals top pass rusher and add him immediately.
Jadeveon Clowney (DE – CLE): 5% rostered on Yahoo
Clowney had a strong outing in Week 6, racking up two solos, two assists, one sack, and one tackle for loss. He has been inconsistent this season but is too talented not to have a bounce-back season with Myles Garrett commanding the bulk of the attention from opposing offensive lines. He has three sacks in his last three games and has already matched his 2020 output. He remains more of a DL3 option with DL2 upside than a pure DL2 but should be started with confidence during the byes. Add Clowney wherever needed.
Ja’Whaun Bentley (LB – NE): 1% rostered on Yahoo
Bentley became somewhat of a forgotten man for the 2021 IDP season. This was largely due to the Patriots welcoming back a host of COVID opt-outs along with Kyle Van Noy at linebacker. Bentley started the season a little slow but has picked it up since then. He missed Week 4 with injury and was injured again in Week 6 but has been rock solid when active. He went off for 12 solos, one assist, two tackles for loss, and one forced fumble against Dallas and now has six or more solos in three of his last four games. Bentley is worth a speculative add in the hopes that he gets cleared for a plus matchup against the New York Jets. He has made a case to be back in the LB2 conversation just in time for the byes and should be treated as such.
Haason Reddick (DE/LB – CAR): 13% rostered on Yahoo
I cannot believe that it is Week 7, and I am still talking about the virtues of adding Haason Reddick. The DL1 overall on the season went off again in Week 6, recording six solos, two assists, two tackles for loss, and a fumble recovery. I get it, these are Yahoo rostered numbers, and he only qualifies as an LB. However, he is an LB1 as a linebacker only and is more than your traditional low tackle, sack-dependent outside linebacker. He has recorded six solos in two straight weeks and is more active in the tackle department than most caught in between positions at Yahoo. As echoed here before, as long as he is playing dominantly, Reddick should be viewed as a T.J. Watt type who boasts LB1 upside at Yahoo and is locked in as a DL1 at other providers. Add him everywhere, regardless of the platform you use. And here’s hoping his rostered percentage goes up high enough that I do not have to write about him in this column again this season.
Bobby Okereke (LB – IND): 7% rostered on Yahoo
Okereke has been solid this season and kept up his strong play with a nine solo, five assist performance in Week 6. He now has six or more solos in three of the last four weeks and is the LB21 overall on the season. He should be rostered as an LB2 outright, the bye week disclaimer is not needed here. Okereke has three plus matchups in a row and should be started with confidence as an LB2 option going forward.
Cory Littleton (LB – LV): 10% rostered on Yahoo
Though the solo count has not always been sexy enough to get the attention of the casual fantasy manager, Littleton is among the league leaders in total tackles (ninth). He was at it again in Week 6, tallying seven solos, four assists, and 0.5 sacks. Littleton, the LB22 on the season, should be rostered in all competitive leagues and is firmly back in the LB2 conversation. The Raiders have a bye in Week 8, but Littleton has three plus matchups in a row. Add the prolific linebacker wherever possible.
Nick Bolton (LB – KC): 4% rostered on Yahoo
The LB29 on the season, Nick Bolton recorded seven solos, two assists, and one tackle for loss in Week 6. He is back in the LB2 conversation with the byes upon us and has continued to function as a starter even with Willie Gay healthy. He is starting to show the elusive consistency that made him fall from LB2 option to LB3 and should only continue to improve as the season progresses. He is an excellent bye week filler but should also be a target of anyone with ample bench space and the desire for an extra LB2 option. Add Bolton wherever available.
Kyle Dugger (S/LB – NE): 3% rostered on Yahoo
It feels like I am waxing poetic on Dugger every week to no avail. Dugger had another strong outing in Week 6, this time tallying eight solos, an interception, and one pass defended. He is the DB14/S9 on the season and needs to be started universally. His snaps at linebacker make him all the more valuable and is part of the reason I have been including him in this column or our start em, sit em column so much this season. Dugger has now recorded five or more solos in three straight weeks and is displaying the type of consistency we hoped for when we started discussing him as a DB1 option. Dugger has arrived and should be not only rostered but started where possible.
Taylor Rapp (S – LAR): 11% rostered on Yahoo
Rapp continues to impress for the Rams. He was rock solid during the first four weeks of the season but has now recorded two straight one solo outings. However, in Week 6, that one solo came with four assists, two interceptions, and three passes defended. That output was enough to push him to the DB17 on the season. His upside is enough to put him on the weekly DB1 watch, and when all is said and done, he should provide DB1/S1 level production. There is no reason for him to be available in so many leagues. Rectify that immediately.
Kamren Curl (S – WAS): 3% rostered on Yahoo
Curl was a hot name in IDP drafts this offseason, but after some uneven performances, fantasy managers on all platforms started to cut bait. That was a mistake. He has been nothing more than a DB4 so far this season but proved his mettle last season and may finally start to get it going with Landon Collins seeing more snaps at linebacker. Curl tallied seven solos, two assists, and a fumble recovery in Week 6 and remains hard to leave out of the DB2 conversation during the byes. He played every snap for the first time this season against Kansas City, and hopefully, that is a sign that more consistent production is on its way. Add Curl wherever possible, even if it is just to block a rival.
Rayshawn Jenkins (S – JAC): 1% rostered on Yahoo
Jenkins has been solid for the Jaguars this season. He has been inconsistent in the tackle department but has three games with six or more solos. He was excellent in Week 6, recording seven solos, three assists, one tackle for loss, one forced fumble, and one pass defended. He is a strong DB2 level option when he returns from his bye, thanks to having Geno Smith on deck for Week 8. Stash him as a low-cost addition where possible.
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Raju Byfield is a featured writer for FantasyPros. For more from Raju, check out his profile and follow him @FantasyContext.