Analysis
10/11/23
7 min read
2023 Fantasy Football: Targets, Fades for NFL Week 6
Week 5 of the NFL season brought another deluge of injuries to star players.
Rookie QB Anthony Richardson suffered an AC joint sprain; consensus No. 1 overall fantasy pick WR Justin Jefferson has a hamstring injury; RB James Conner is dealing with a knee injury; and waiver wire savior RB De’Von Achane sustained a knee injury. All four are headed to injured reserve and will be unavailable for at least four weeks.
Injuries this significant could certainly derail an otherwise strong fantasy season, so waiver wire adds, trades and savvy start-sit decisions may be even more crucial moving forward.
As a reminder, Week 6 brings another London game with a 9:30 a.m. ET start between the Tennessee Titans and Baltimore Ravens. Week 6 also marks the second round of byes, meaning managers will need to find replacements for any Green Bay Packers or Pittsburgh Steelers players as soon as possible.
Below, we will break down one player at each position to target (love) and one player at each position to avoid (hate) for your Week 6 fantasy football lineups based on matchups, injuries, strategies and more.
Love/Hate for NFL Week 6
Players We Love This Week
Joe Burrow (vs. SEA)
Quarterback Joe Burrow finally looked like the Burrow of past years in the Cincinnati Bengals’ 34-20 win over the Arizona Cardinals. He completed 36-of-46 attempts for 317 yards, three touchdowns and one interception in the effort, which snapped a two-game touchdown drought.
It was the first time all year Burrow finished as a fantasy QB1 and only the second time he tallied double-digit fantasy points. Hopefully, this is a sign of improving health and better things to come from a fantasy production standpoint. Burrow is back in the QB1 tier heading into Week 6 as the Bengals face off against the Seattle Seahawks, who have allowed the 10th-most fantasy points to quarterbacks and are one of only two teams allowing 300 or more passing yards per game.
Adam Thielen (at MIA)
There is little to “love” about this Carolina Panthers team, although Adam Thielen has been a bright spot in these otherwise dark times. Thielen recorded his fourth consecutive double-digit fantasy performance (in half-PPR scoring) in Week 5 on the road against the Detroit Lions. He caught a whopping 11-of-13 targets for 107 yards and a touchdown and was the WR5 for the week.
Excluding his slow start in Week 1, Thielen has been targeted 44 times — the fourth-most in the NFL and a feat made possible by the winless Panthers’ large deficits and negative game scripts. Barring the rumored addition of wide receiver talent, Thielen — who has a 25 percent target share this season — should continue to be a top target for rookie quarterback Bryce Young in an offense that ranks in the top 4 in pass play percentage this year.
This week, the Panthers are two-touchdown underdogs against the Miami Dolphins, who should force Young to throw frequently. Thielen is a top-24 play in this plus matchup.
James Cook (vs. NYG)
The entire Buffalo Bills team fell apart in Week 5 in London. Multiple defensive players exited the game with injuries, and the Bills’ offense simply looked gassed. James Cook was grossly ineffective in the effort, recording five rushes for -4 yards. He managed to stay out of the red with three catches for 25 yards and finished as the RB41 in half-PPR. His lack of usage was likely a reflection of the Bills trailing for the vast majority of the game.
Prior to the London game, Cook had been strong and had finished as a RB2 or better in three straight games. He should bounce back nicely this week; the Bills are 14-point favorites against the New York Giants. This matchup should lend itself to a run-friendly game script, especially against a Giants defense that ranks bottom 5 against the position.
Dallas Goedert (at NYJ)
Dallas Goedert is back in fantasy managers’ good graces after an absolutely monster Week 5 against the Los Angeles Rams. Goedert reeled in 8-of-9 targets for 117 yards and found the end zone for the first time all season.
The tight end position is known for its volatility, so some ups and downs are to be expected. The good news is that Goedert should have a decent chance to replicate his success in Week 6 against the New York Jets, who have allowed five different tight ends to score touchdowns and have allowed the most fantasy points to the position this year.
Players We Hate This Week
Jared Goff (at TB)
Both quarterbacks in this iteration of Love-Hate were also featured in last week’s but in inverse positions. Jared Goff delivered in Week 5 at home against the Panthers, completing 20-of-28 attempts for 236 yards, four touchdowns and zero interceptions. He finished as the QB4 for the week without star receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, who missed the game due to an abdominal injury.
Although the Lions are optimistic that St. Brown will return this week, Goff finds himself in the “hate” category for two major reasons: his home/road split and the matchup. As mentioned last week, the Detroit Lions signal-caller is averaging 35 fewer passing yards and 1.8 fewer passing touchdowns away from Ford Field since the start of the 2022 season.
In that span, Goff has only finished as a top-12 fantasy quarterback once (2022 Week 16 at CAR). The matchup, even at home, will be no cakewalk against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who have been a top-10 unit against fantasy quarterbacks and will be well-rested coming off their Week 5 bye. Goff is a fringe QB1 with bust potential in Week 6.
Amari Cooper (vs. SF)
Amari Cooper started the season fairly strong. Through three weeks, he was the WR18 in half-PPR and appeared to have good chemistry with quarterback Deshaun Watson. He stumbled in Week 4, however, with Dorian Thompson-Robinson getting the start, and Cooper caught just 1-of-6 targets for 16 yards.
Cooper (and the rest of the Cleveland Browns) could be in for a very long 60 minutes of football come Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers. The Browns may be forced to start XFL star P.J. Walker with Watson still recovering from a rotator cuff contusion. To add further pessimism to the situation, the 49ers have one of the strongest defensive units and are allowing an NFL-low 13.6 offensive points per game. Managers should temper expectations for Cooper in this brutal matchup that should be a low-scoring affair.
Dameon Pierce (vs. NO)
Dameon Pierce may be experiencing a bit of a sophomore slump. The Houston Texans running back was the RB14 in half-PPR before suffering a season-ending ankle injury in Week 14 of his rookie campaign. He posted a respectable 4.3 yards per attempt last year, which is significantly higher than this year’s 2.9. Pierce was only able to muster 66 yards on 20 attempts last week in Atlanta and fell outside of the RB2 tier for the third time this year.
Pierce’s role is largely volume-dependent, and his lack of involvement in the passing game, combined with just one touchdown all year, is concerning, to say the least. He is fringe-RB2/3 this week against the New Orleans Saints, whose defense has not allowed a touchdown to a running back and ranks top 4 in points allowed to the position this year.
Darren Waller (at BUF)
Darren Waller is coming off of his best game of the season. He caught 8-of-11 targets for 86 yards against the Dolphins and finished as the TE8 in half-PPR — his second top-12 finish this year.
However, Waller’s value as a tight end — a position often regarded as being highly touchdown-dependent — suffers on this anemic New York offense that has scored an NFL-low two passing touchdowns all year. His good fantasy games have come in Weeks 2 and 5 against the Cardinals and Dolphins, two subpar defensive units, and he struggled in Weeks 1 and 3 against the Dallas Cowboys and 49ers.
The Bills — even with their copious injuries — will field a similarly strong defense that has given up the third-fewest fantasy points to tight ends and has yet to allow a touchdown to a tight end all year. Waller is a risky, low-end TE1 with serious bust potential in this tough matchup.
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