Football
Last week, I told you to start Texans running back Woody Marks. He went on to rush for an NFL record 500 yards in … well, in my imagination. In real life, Marks saw his workload drop once again, as the Texans decided to go back to Nick Chubb.
What horrible fantasy mistake will I make this week? Hopefully none — I feel pretty good about these lineup decisions here, including some potentially controversial ones about benching guys who’ve been productive all year.
Here’s who to start and who to sit in Week 6 fantasy football.
Start: Drake Maye – Quarterback – New England Patriots
Drake Maye failed to throw a touchdown pass against the Bills last week, but he finished the game with 273 yards and, most importantly, a huge divisional upset victory that moved New England to 3-2 on the year.
Win No. 4 should be on its way on Sunday when the Patriots take on the New Orleans Saints. The Saints have surprisingly not surrendered as many passing yards as you might think, but they have allowed 11 passing touchdowns already. With Stefon Diggs coming on strong with back-to-back 100-yard games, the Patriots passing attack should hum this weekend.
Sit: Tua Tagovailoa – Quarterback – Miami Dolphins
Tua Tagovailoa’s first week without Tyreek Hill went better than expected, as the left-handed quarterback threw three touchdown passes and completed 75 percent of his passes against the Panthers.
I don’t see that trend continuing on Sunday against the Chargers, though. Los Angeles has allowed just four passing touchdowns this season while holding teams to the fourth-fewest passing yards. Don’t expect another strong showing from Tua.
Start: Rico Dowdle – Running Back – Carolina Panthers
No, Rico Dowdle won’t rush for 200 yards again this weekend, but with Chuba Hubbard out again, Dowdle should be a solid fantasy play against his former team.
Dallas has actually been decent when it comes to run defense, but the tides seem to be turning, as the team allowed Jets running back Breece Hall to rush for his most yards of the season last year. Based on Dowdle’s explosive game last week and the Cowboys defense getting worse as the year goes on, you should be starting Dowdle in Week 6.
Sit: Chase Brown – Running Back – Cincinnati Bengals
I’ve got to take an L here. Coming into this season, I was super high on Chase Brown. I loved what he did last year and believed he had a chance to be a top-five fantasy back in 2025.
Instead, Brown enters Week 6 with just 160 total rushing yards, an average of 32.0 yards per game. He hasn’t even hit the 50-yard mark a single time, and he’s barely adding anything in the receiving game either.
This week, Brown faces the Packers, which is a pretty bad matchup for him. The Packers have allowed the second-fewest rushing yards in the league and the fifth-fewest yards per attempt. It should be tough sledding this week for Brown, who has become a huge fantasy liability.
Start: Tetairoa McMillan – Wide Receiver – Carolina Panthers
You basically always want to play the top receiver going against the Cowboys. The team is allowing more fantasy points per game to opposing wide receivers than anyone else, with wideouts combining to catch 10 touchdown passes against Dallas already.
I understand that you might be hesitant to play a wide receiver who has Bryce Young throwing him the football. Tetairoa McMillan, though, looks like an incredibly high-floor play right now, as he has 48 or more receiving yards in every game this season. Last week against Miami, he caught six passes for 73 yards. He’s yet to find the end zone in his rookie season, but there’s a very good chance it happens on Sunday.
Sit: Garrett Wilson – Wide Receiver – New York Jets
Garrett Wilson has played very well this season despite the inconsistency from quarterback Justin Fields, but some of that is about matchups, as his last three games have been against Dallas, Miami and Tampa Bay.
If there’s ever a week for Wilson to crash, it’s this one against the Broncos, who have allowed the 10th-fewest passing yards this season and just four passing touchdowns. Matchups have mattered there as well, with the team taking advantage of getting to play Cam Ward and Jake Browning, but this still looks like a really good pass defense while the Jets have a quarterback with accuracy concerns trying to get the ball to Wilson.
Start: Tucker Kraft – Tight End – Green Bay Packers
I expected more consistency this year from Tucker Kraft, whose receiving yardage totals by week this season are 16, 124, 29 and 56. This week, though, should be one of the better ones as he takes on the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Bengals have struggled big time against opposing tight ends, allowing more fantasy points to the position than any other team. Cincy has allowed the second-most receptions, fourth-most yards and second-most touchdowns to the position.
Sit: Dalton Kincaid – Tight End – Buffalo Bills
Can you really justify sitting a top 10 fantasy tight end like Dalton Kincaid? Well…it depends on your other options, but I hate the matchup for Kincaid this weekend against the Falcons.
That’s because the Falcons are killing tight ends this season. Four games in and Atlanta has allowed just eight catches for 69 yards to the position, and that’s after facing decent tight ends, including holding T.J. Hockenson to just one catch for 12 yards back in Week 2.
More NFL news and analysis:
Read More Lyndia Lupo