The Week 6 slate presents some interesting challenges. First, the pass-game options on the slate are not nearly as deep as normal. Missing from our Main Slate are Patrick Mahomes II, Josh Allen, Justin Herbert, and Lamar Jackson. This also means we are without a bunch of elite pass catchers like Travis Kelce, Mark Andrews, Stefon Diggs, and Keenan Allen. In addition to the players whose teams are not on the main slate, we are also missing some superstars due to injury. Week 5 was one of the worst in recent seasons in terms of key injuries and many of those teams are on the main slate. One of the biggest keys to success in Week 6 is going to be figuring out how those injuries impact usage. So before we dive into recommended plays at each position, let’s begin by walking through some of these key injury situations.
Injury Replacements Week 6
Justin Jefferson Jefferson was placed on injured reserve this week with a hamstring injury. Prior to his Week 5 injury, Jefferson was averaging a whopping 11.8 targets per game and those have to go somewhere in this Minnesota offense. First, we need to figure out how to distribute some of those opportunities that were going to Jefferson amongst the top targets (Jordan Addison, K.J. Osborn, and T.J. Hockenson). You will see below who my money will be on as the biggest beneficiary. Second, we need to figure out how much Jefferson’s absence shrinks the overall Vikings offensive pie. We can’t just assume the pie stays the same size without arguably the league’s best wide receiver missing.
De’Von Achane The Dolphins offense has averaged 36.2 PPG this season and a big part of the success was due to their star rookie back. Over the past three weeks, Achane averaged 172.7 yards and 2.4 touchdowns per game. That is a massive chunk of fantasy production that is now up for grabs. Though again, we have to reduce the overall offensive pie because whoever steps into Achane’s opportunities will not be nearly as explosive. Unless perhaps the Dolphins give some of those rushing opportunities on jet sweeps to Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. In the backfield, does Raheem Mostert just add most of Achane’s opportunities to his projected workload? Or does somebody like Salvon Ahmed ($4,300) step into Achane’s shoes and get double-digit touches?
Miles Sanders Sanders has not been particularly good this season but he was averaging 12.2 carries and 4.8 targets per game, which opens up a bunch of potential touches for Chuba Hubbard ($5,500).
Khalil Herbert and Roschon Johnson With the Bears top two running backs both sidelined, D’Onta Foreman ($6,000) steps into the lead role.
Quarterback
As mentioned above, we do not have Patrick Mahomes II, Josh Allen, Justin Herbert, or Lamar Jackson on the main slate. Plus, Deshaun Watson and Anthony Richardson are out, which takes another two quarterbacks with rushing upside out of the mix. In these large tournaments, we usually need rushing upside to finish at the top of the standings and there are very few quarterbacks on this slate with realistic potential for 10-plus rushing points. Thus, it makes sense to put a lot of chips on the few guys who have proven ability to rack up big numbers on the ground. The floor and median projection may be higher on a guy like Matthew Stafford ($7,300), who is expected to be extremely popular. However, what is his ceiling? Stafford hasn’t topped 25 FanDuel points since October of 2021 and last had 30 FanDuel points in a game way back in 2015.
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