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- Fantasy Football Week 6 Waiver Wire FAAB Advice
- Erickson’s Week 5 Rapid Reactions & Top Performers
- Fantasy Football Panic Meter
- Fantasy Football Week 5 Takeaways: Surprises & Disappointments
- Fantasy Football Heat Index
- Fantasy Football Rest of Season Rankings
Let’s take a look at players to buy and sell this week. And be sure to check out our weekly trade value chart with updated values for all players.
Check out the rest of our weekly fantasy football advice
Fantasy Football Trade Advice
Players to Buy
Christian McCaffrey (RB – CAR)
CMC’s receiving usage rolled over from last week. 12 targets – 30% target share – in Week 5 while adding 14 carries for 54 yards and 1 TD. McCaffrey’s 86% snap share and 93% opportunity share are elite usage numbers. The uptick in receiving the past two weeks is extremely encouraging for the Carolina running back as the lone bright spot in this overall anemic offense. He’s gone over 100 yards or scored a TD in every single game this season.
Chase saw 3 red-zone targets and ran a route on 100% of Joe Burrow‘s dropbacks on Sunday night football. He also earned a 35% target share with Tee Higgins sidelined early on with an injury. Buy low after he posted just 50 receiving yards despite the high-end usage.
Buy low on A.J. Brown. He was heavily targeted to start the game – 3 catches for 32 yards on the 1st drive – but didn’t catch a pass after that. But even so, AJB still had more air yards than DeVonta Smith and came up empty-handed on his two red-zone targets.
Amon-Ra St. Brown was on a pitch count (32% snap share) which resulted in just four catches for 18 yards in 6 targets. Josh Reynolds took advantage, commanding 10 targets, six catches and 92 receiving yards while playing all the snaps. But it shouldn’t be ignored that when ASB was running routes, Jared Goff was peppering his No. 1 wideout. 38% target rate per route run, 6% percentage points higher than his target rate entering Week 5 (32%). Buy him while he’s on bye this week. He’ll be healthy and help you toward your playoff run.
The Indianapolis QB play has been fringy for Michael Pittman Jr., but there’s no ignoring his alpha role on the Colts offense. I’d buy low with matchups against the Jaguars, Titans and Commanders approaching for Indy.
Waddle led all Dolphins WRs in snaps (76%) but he finished with just three targets. It has been back-to-back dud games for Waddle, but there’s a silver lining. Tua Tagovailoa has a chance to return for Week 6, and Tyreek Hill is dealing with a potential mid-foot injury that could force him to miss time. I’d be a buyer with Waddle getting past his groin injury in a more favorable offensive situation.
Marvin Jones led the Jaguars in targets (11) followed by Evan Engram (10) in Week 5. Zay Jones also saw 8 targets. Kirk saw just three targets and caught one pass for 11 yards. Chalk it up to WR variance. Marvin Jones won’t see Kirk’s double-digit targets normally. The routes were still there for Kirk. He’s in a nice bounce-back spot ahead of Week 6 versus the Colts. In their first matchup, Kirk caught 6 passes for 78 yards and 2 TDs.
Miles Sanders saw top-tier usage in Week 5. 15 carries to Kenneth Gainwell‘s 3. Also added 3 targets for a 86% opportunity share while running a route on 65% of dropbacks. And most importantly, Sanders earned 3 carries inside the 10-yard line. However, he just didn’t score. That won’t happen every week.
For the second straight week Travis Etienne and James Robinson split carries – 10 for each of them. But ETN was more efficient rushing for 71 yards to Robinson’s 27 yards. Etienne was also the more involved receiver, seeing 5 targets versus Robinson’s 2. And played a higher snap share (53% vs 40%) with more routes run (54% versus 32%). The increased snap usage was a tell-tale sign to buy guys like Rhamondre Stevenson and Breece Hall in past weeks, so follow the snaps and trade for Etienne.
After Rashaad Penny exited the game, rookie Ken Walker got the rushing workload including a 69-yard TD run. Finished with 88 rushing yards on just 8 carries. He was not-targeted, but he still ran a route on 43% of dropbacks on a 58% snap share. Traditional pass-catching RB DeeJay Dallas ran a route on just 30% of dropbacks.
He’ll be a bellcow with Penny out for the rest of the season. He faces Arizona and LA Chargers next two weeks. Juicy and well worth going ALL-IN if he is on waivers.
End of the line for Antonio Gibson. Three carries for 6 yards. 32% snap share and 28% opportunity share. Gibson also saw fewer targets than Jd Mckissic (7 vs 4). Brian Robinson in his first game back totaled nine carries for 22 yards. 29% snap share and 36% opportunity share which will only increase in the coming weeks. He gets the Bears on Thursday night football…a defense that allows the highest percentage of rushing TDs. Giddy up.
Players to Sell
Dalvin Cook finally didn’t get vultured at the goal line! The Vikings RB compiled 20 touches for 96 yards including 2 rushing TDs! But all that glitters is not gold. Alexander Mattison was the more involved receiver (four vs 2 targets) ran as many routes and totaled 12 touches of his own. Cook played just 57% of the snaps while Mattison played 43%. It’s a two-back system that we have not ever seen with Cook at any point this season, so it suggests a more committee approach might be brewing in the Vikings backfield. Considering Cook’s long injury history, this is the perfect time to sell high.
Aaron Jones (13 carries, 3 targets, 73% snap share) dominated the backfield over A.J. Dillon (6 carries, no targets, 32% snap share). Positive game script provided no favors for either Packers RB. This Packers offense is showing it might not be good enough to support two RBs that constantly split touches. I doubt Dillon’s snaps stay this low for a second straight week based on the near 50/50 split usage these two backs have seen all year, making Jones a player I am happy to move off from.
Najee Harris reached just 11 carries for 20 yards. Four targets on 52 attempts from Kenny Pickett. No. 2 RB Jaylen Warren had more targets (5), ran more routes and compiled more yards from scrimmage (63 versus 36). Now he did see a solid chunk of playing time in garbage time, but Harris’ every-down role from 2021 is long gone. He’s a TD-dependent RB that plays on a bad offense. You need to pivot. Buccaneers up next.
Curtis Samuel lead the Commanders in targets again (8) as he has done every single week this season. That wasn’t shocking, but the lack of increased usage for Terry McLaurin was. He should have been a major benefactor of injuries to Jahan Dotson and Logan Thomas, but he finished with 5 catches for 76 scoreless yards on a meager 16% targets share – which is his season-long average. His route participation can’t get any better, so it’s concerning that he is often third in the target pecking order on an offense he should dominate volume for. I’d be looking to sell TMC.
Diontae Johnson led the team in targets (13, 25%), but George Pickens had more receiving yards (83 versus 60) on 5 fewer targets.
Pickens has 71-plus receiving yards from Pickett in the last two games. With so much competition in the offense for targets with a rookie quarterback under center, I’d be looking to get out from underneath DJ.
Aaron Jones (13 carries, 3 targets, 73% snap share) dominated the backfield over A.J. Dillon (6 carries, no targets, 32% snap share). Positive game script provided no favors for either Packers RB. This Packers offense is showing it might not be good enough to support two RBs that constantly split touches.
Cam Akers 13-33-0 (zero rushing attempts for Darrell Henderson). But Henderson saw more targets (5 vs 1), played more snaps for a second straight week and ran more routes. Not good for Akers, who has not been effective as a rusher this season, running behind a piss-poor offensive line. Despite the 74% opportunity share in Week 5, he’s a sell-high candidate.
The Broncos running backs split work on Thursday night with Melvin Gordon (56% snap share) and Mike Boone (41%) snap share, each seeing a decent chunk of playing time. MG3 totaled 18 touches – 15 carries, three catches – for 103 yards, while Boone hit 10 touches – 7 carries, 3 catches – for 85 yards. Gordon was the lead back undoubtedly to start the game and the “guy” in the red zone, but the team didn’t shy away from using Boone. They split routes nearly 50/50 with Gordon running 21 to Boone’s 19. The team also randomly threw out Devine Ozigbo on two snaps. After a so-so performance in the box score, I’d sell Gordon now before the backfield becomes a total mess. The team lost starting tackle Garrett Bolles, and Latavius Murray figures to throw a wrench into the backfield pecking order.
The gap is closing between Nico Collins and Brandin Cooks. Over the last month, Collins has more receiving yards than Cooks. Each saw 6 targets in Week 5. Sell high while Cooks maintains his perceived status as the clear-cut No. 1 WR in Houston.
Zeke got ALL the run for the Dallas Cowboys in Week 5. 22 carries for an 85% opportunity share and 65% snap share. But with all the volume, he was left with 78 scoreless yards, less than teammate Tony Pollard. Pollard stole the show with his explosive 57-yard score. Finished with 8 carries for 86 yards. Dak Prescott coming back is enough to entice another fantasy manager to take Elliott off your hands. Buy Pollard instead.
Raheem Mostert RB1 season continues. 18 carries for 113 yards on 69% snap share. Chase Edmonds 1 for 1. Less than Myles Gaskin. Woof. However, Mostert’s injury history precedes him. And he’s 30-years old. I’d cash out now.
Tyler Boyd ran a route in 100% of dropbacks in Week 5 but drew just 4 targets. He might be the perfect sell-high candidate for fantasy managers thinking he will replace an injured Tee Higgins 1-for-1.
Adam Thielen finished 2nd on the Vikings with 7 targets, but just 27 yards on 4 catches in Week 5. The Vikings TD-dependent WR is starting to show his age, ranking 3rd-worst in yards per route run among WRs with at least 30 targets this season.
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If you want to dive deeper into fantasy football, be sure to check out our award-winning slate of Fantasy Football Tools as you navigate your season. From our Start/Sit Assistant – which provides your optimal lineup, based on accurate consensus projections – to our Waiver Wire Assistant – that allows you to quickly see which available players will improve your team and by how much – we’ve got you covered this fantasy football season.