The bye weeks are finally here and things are getting tricky. Save yourself the headaches of the waiver wire by stashing these players ahead of next week’s waivers. All the players in this column are rostered close to 50% or below in Yahoo leagues.

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Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Stashes Ahead of Week 6

Derek Carr (QB – NO): 34% Rostered

It was always unlikely Derek Carr would be able to maintain his red-hot start to the season where he finished top-six in back-to-back weeks, but his last two finishes, both outside the top-24, are also unlikely to fairly represent him. In Week 4 against the Falcons, Carr completed 77% of his passes, the fourth-highest rate, looking good while doing so. The Falcons’ safeties took away the deep ball and forced Carr to be more creative underneath. He could have had a good fantasy return if he’d found the end zone. The Saints now face the Chiefs in Week 5 before a potential shoot-out with the Bucs. Better fantasy days are coming for Carr.

Personally, I would watch a documentary on the incredible time Davante Adams and Derek Carr clearly had together in college. https://t.co/NNC6No5uog

— Dan Graziano (@DanGrazianoESPN) October 2, 2024

Braelon Allen (RB – NYJ): 49% Rostered

The Jets raised eyebrows when they drafted Braelon Allen in the fourth round but assured everyone Breece Hall was still the guy to lead their offense. That remains true, but the strength of the statement seems a little more flimsy now. Allen has earned his way into a role on the offense, holding Hall’s opportunity share below 65% since Week 1 and out-carrying Hall with 4.81 yards per carry to 3.11 from Hall. Allen is averaging only nine fewer rushing yards per game, on half as many touches. Allen should be rostered in all formats.

Alexander Mattison (RB – LV): 42% Rostered

It was very revealing when on Monday Antonio Pierce said Alexander Mattison had earned the right to get more touches, and Pierce was merely vocalizing what had become obvious to everyone else: Mattison is a better running back than Zamir White. White’s weight gain this offseason seems to have led to the same downturn in production that other backs who’ve gained weight have experienced. Meanwhile, Mattison is bouncing back after a disappointing 2023 campaign, outproducing White in yards per carry (5.1 vs 3.1), explosive play rate (17% vs 2%), inside-the-five touches (67% vs 0%) and yards after contact per attempt (2.4 vs 1.8). Mattison has found his way into the end zone in three games this year. It wouldn’t be a surprise if he led this backfield for the rest of the season.

#Raiders seemingly been itching to get Alexander Mattison more work at the expense of Zamir White anyway.

Zamir is PFF's No. 53 RB among 53 qualifiers. https://t.co/dS9ltltOQ5

— Adam Levitan (@adamlevitan) October 4, 2024

Antonio Gibson (RB – NE): 34% Rostered

Rhamondre Stevenson‘s fumbling issues continue to leave the door open for Antonio Gibson to take a bigger piece of the pie in New England. Stevenson is forcing missed tackles at a higher rate than Gibson but has fewer yards after contact per attempt and is delivering 4.1 yards per carry (YPC) compared to Gibson’s 5.34. Stevenson leads the league with four fumbles, while no other running back has more than two. Coaches simply don’t tolerate that unless you’re a unique talent.

Jerry Jeudy (WR – CLE): 50% Rostered

Willingly attaching your fantasy team’s hopes to statistically one of the worst quarterbacks in football isn’t overly appealing but Jerry Jeudy has been a steady performer. Through the last three games, Jeudy has finished between WR27-WR33 in every week, averaging 7.5 targets per game and earning 1.3 yards per route run. Amari Cooper is struggling, with just a single top-50 finish, and trade rumors continue to swirl around his future. Jeudy can become the No. 1 WR of this offense in one way or another.

Taking some shots on Jerry Jeudy this week vs this WAS defense.

Cooper seems a bit checked out with all the trade talk looming.

Jeudy quietly has had 6, 7, and 9 targets L3 weeks. Great spot here

— Sean Mitchell (@smitchell17) October 3, 2024

Wan’Dale Robinson (WR – NYG): 44% Rostered

Who’d have thought Daniel Jones could support two target-earning wide receivers, but here we are with both Malik Nabers and Wan’Dale Robinson top-five in targets earned through four games. Robinson has been a top-36 receiver every single week so far and that kind of reliability is very valuable for fantasy teams, particularly with bye weeks now upon us. Wan’Dale Robinson should be rostered in every league before this Sunday when he’ll no doubt see crazy volume with Malik Nabers ruled out.

Xavier Legette (WR – CAR): 30% Rostered

Adam Thielen landed on injured reserve (IR) while catching a touchdown pass, presenting a much bigger opportunity for Xavier Legette, who has been elevated from playing in only 3-WR sets to now playing opposite Diontae Johnson on 2-WR formations. Legette caught six of his 10 targets in Week 4 for 66 yards and a touchdown, giving fantasy managers a top-13 finish to reward their faith. The Panthers might not be a great team, but they rank seventh in offensive EPA since Andy Dalton took over at quarterback and will continue to be forced into pass-heavy scripts the rest of the way thanks to their defense ranking seventh-worst in EPA per play.

Xavier Legette in first game without Adam Thielen (IR, hamstring):

* 61-of-70 snaps
* 47 wide, 14 slot (Mingo was primary slot)
* 37 routes on 42 Dalton dropbacks
* 10 targets for a 25% share
* 6-66-1 resultpic.twitter.com/oqDnHpaqy5

— Adam Levitan (@adamlevitan) September 30, 2024

Tucker Kraft (TE – GB): 51% Rostered

The Packers’ No. 1 TE has finally emerged. Those of us who had faith in Tucker Kraft after last year’s strong finish are being rewarded. Kraft is averaging over 80% of the snaps while backup tight end Luke Musgrave languishes at 39%. Kraft also outdoes Musgrave in yards per route run (1.3 vs 0.5), and every other meaningful stat you could look at. The Rams’ defense is awful and allows the sixth-most fantasy points to opposing tight ends, allowing 20 of 24 tight end targets to be caught so far. When Kraft has a big performance this weekend, good luck getting him from the waiver wire next week.

Colby Parkinson (TE – LAR): 20% Rostered

The Rams’ pass-catching options are quite grim at the moment, but Colby Parkinson remains consistently involved despite not popping so far. Parkinson has been held outside the top 15 in three of his four games but had seven targets in Week 4. If he can start to be more involved in the red zone, where he has zero targets to date, he could pay off immediately at a miserable position.

Houston Texans D/ST: 44% Rostered

The Texans’ defense hasn’t been incredible for fantasy so far with fewer than five points in three out of four games. They play the New England Patriots next week, who continue to be awful on offense and have more offensive line injuries totting up.

Green Bay Packers D/ST: 37% Rostered

The Packers’ defense has scored the second-most fantasy points so far, with at least eight points in every game. After this week’s game against the Rams, they play the Cardinals, who aren’t clicking. Kyler Murray has taken 10 sacks in four games, including four in Week 4.