Fantasy Football Start/Sit: Week 6

Well, we survived the first set of bye weeks.

After four teams were off in Week 5, we're only down two teams -- Minnesota and Houston -- on bye in Week 6.

That's good news for fantasy managers, but more options means more start/sit decisions.

FanDuel Research's fantasy football projections serve as a solid baseline for deciding who to slot into your starting lineup. But when we pair those projections with some recent historical data, even further lines can be drawn. From there, factors like game environment, strength of opponent, and the latest news can help shape our start/sit decisions.

Below, you'll find every fantasy-relevant player, sorted by position and bucketed into tiers. These tiers are meant to reflect your typical 12-team, half-PPR scoring formats with only one starting quarterback -- though the general rankings can be loosely applied to most formats. Any player not listed can be assumed sit-worthy in most leagues.

Here is the Week 6 fantasy football start/sit.

All betting references refer to the NFL odds at FanDuel Sportsbook. All statistics via NFL Next Gen Stats unless otherwise stated.

Fantasy Football Start/Sit: Week 6

Quarterback

Start

Matthew Stafford (LAR)
Matthew Stafford hasn't hit 100 rushing yards in a season since his Detroit days, and that's made it hard for him to compete (in fantasy) with the dual-threat gunslingers of modern football. But Stafford was the overall QB6 in his first season with the Rams when he averaged 287.4 passing yards per game with a 6.8% touchdown rate. He was well below those marks the following three seasons -- only to kick off 2025 averaging 300.6 yards with a 6.0% touchdown rate through five games. Stafford's coming off a pair 375-yard, 3-touchdown outings, clearing 25 fantasy points both weeks -- which is the kind of passing output we need from Stafford to hang with the rushing quarterbacks. In Week 6, Stafford takes on a Baltimore Ravens secondary which has given up the fifth most fantasy points per dropback and ranks 29th in scheduled-adjusted pass defense. With LA sitting at fifth in Pass Rate Over Expectation (PROE), I see no reason to fade Stafford in a prime matchup, even if the Rams are sizable favorites.

Mac Jones (SF)
Mac Jones is expected to make at least one more start as Brock Purdy nurses a toe injury. Considering how effective he's been in this offense, Jones warrants starting consideration in Week 6. In three starts with the Niners, Mac has finished QB9 (21.8 fantasy points), QB15 (14.3), and QB10 (22.2). Among 32 quarterbacks with at least 100 dropbacks in 2025, Jones ranks 12th in EPA per dropback and third in Passing Success Rate. He's thrown 6 touchdowns despite a middling 4.4% touchdown rate, which speaks to how much Kyle Shannahan trusts him to air it out (Mac's 43 pass attempts per game leads the league, and the Niners have a +3.7% PROE in his three starts). With San Fran headed to Tampa as 3.0-point 'dogs in a game featuring a 47.5-point total, there should be enough volume to thrust Jones into the QB1 conversation in Week 6.

Sit

Kyler Murray (ARI)
We're hitting the point of the year where preseason expectations need to go by the wayside in favor of what is actually happening on the field. For Kyler Murray -- QB9 by consensus ADP -- the on-field product has been shaky, at best. Among QBs with 100 dropbacks, Murray ranks 19th in EPA per dropback, 26th in Passing Success Rate, and 28th in yards per attempt. Murray's rushing (34.6 yards per game) has helped 2025 from being a total disaster in fantasy, but he's not the same red zone threat as some of the other dual-threat quarterbacks. In turn, Kyler enters Week 6 as the QB21 in fantasy points per game (16.4), scoring between 14.1 and 18.3 fantasy points in all five games. A road date with Indy's 10th-ranked pass defense doesn't offer much upside, especially when the Colts are allowing the fourth fewest fantasy points per dropback to opposing quarterbacks. He's a firm sit and may not even warrant a roster spot in 10-team leagues.

Bo Nix (DEN)
Bo Nix has been better than Kyler to this point -- he's QB17 in fantasy points per game (17.6) -- but he, too, is someone still being propped up by preseason expectations (QB8 ADP). Nix has shown some upside via a pair of 20-point games, and this week's London matchup with the Jets is certainly a favorable one (New York is 30th in adjusted pass defense). Even so, opposing teams having passed at the sixth lowest rate over expected against the Jets, and only one of their five opponents have recorded a positive PROE against them. I'm pessimistic New York offers much pushback against Denver's defense, and that would limit Bo's upside against a defense equally inept against the run. There's a floor here, but it's fair to question Nix's ceiling -- something other quarterbacks don't have an issue with in Week 6.

Running Back

Start

Jacory Croskey-Merritt (WSH)
Jacory Croskey-Merritt had a breakout game last week, setting season-best marks for fantasy points (26), rush attempts (14), scrimmage yards (150), and touchdowns (2). The utilization backed up the production, too, as Bill led the Washington backfield in snap rate (49%) while tying Jeremy McNichols in route participation (31%). The rookie's arrow is trending up heading into a plus matchup against the Bears -- numberFire's 19th-ranked adjusted run defense, one which has given up the most yards per carry (6.1) to opposing running backs. In a projected positive game script, Croskey-Merritt has crept into RB2 territory and warrants a starting spot in fantasy lineups.

Michael Carter (ARI)
Things change quickly in the NFL -- just ask Michael Carter. After not suiting up in Arizona's first three games and playing only four snaps in Week 4, Carter was thrust into a lead back role in Week 5. He easily led the Cardinals backfield in snap rate (59%), turning 18 carries and 5 receptions into 73 scrimmage yards and a touchdown. Granted, Carter's efficiency (28% Rushing Success Rate; 1.16 yards per route run) left a lot to be desired, but it's hard to argue with that volume. Carter's 28 adjusted opportunities (carries plus 2x targets) tied for fifth on the week, and he saw five of Arizona's six running back targets while pacing the backfield in route participation (51%) and red zone snap share (50%). There's not a ton of upside, but Carter appears to be locked into 15-plus touches as long as he's the lead back. That deserves a spot in fantasy lineups against the Colts' 16th-ranked run defense.

Sit

Derrick Henry (BAL)
I'm not rushing to sit Derrick Henry in the current running back landscape, but I wouldn't blame you if you did. Henry is down at RB35 from Week 2 onward, scoring a full 7 fantasy points fewer than D'Andre Swift (who was on bye last week) in that time. He's managed an ugly 32.6% Rushing Success Rate during that stretch, averaging a mere 3.2 yards per carry. Henry has still averaged 2.5 red zone rush attempts over the past four games, but he's scored just twice and is a near-zero in the receiving game (6 targets all year). With Lamar Jackson's status in doubt for Week 6, Henry enters Week 6 against Los Angeles' top-10 defense as the early-down back for a team with a sub-20-point implied total. We've seen King Henry get scripted out of games when Baltimore falls behind -- something that's certainly in the realm of possibilities with the Ravens 7.5-point underdogs. As such, Henry is a touchdown-dependent flex in Week 6.

Wide Receiver

Start

Calvin Ridley (TEN)
Calvin Ridley finally had the kind of game fantasy managers were expecting when they used a mid-round selection on him in draft season. Ridley notched a season-high 15.6 fantasy points -- good for WR12 on the week -- by way of 5 receptions (on 10 targets) for 131 yards. Sure, we're still wanting Ridley to capitalize on his targets at a higher rate, but it's hard to argue with that volume. Ridley's up to 24.3% target and 37.4% air yard shares in games he's hit a 75% route rate. Those downfield looks were bound to go his way eventually, and that should give us optimism in his Week 6 outlook. This week's opponent (Vegas) has allowed the highest target rate and second most yards per route run to opposing wide receivers, giving Ridley plenty of appeal as a WR3 or flex.

Romeo Doubs (GB)
The last time we saw Romeo Doubs take the field, he scored 3 touchdowns and finished with 26.8 fantasy points. A Week 5 bye may have dampened some of the hype around Doubs, but his early utilization should get us excited about his outlook moving forward -- even in games he doesn't score three times. Through four games, Doubs easily leads the Packers in route participation (80%; no one else is above 68%). He's also pacing the team in air yards share and red zone target share while ranking second in overall target share. But Doubs is Green Bay's only pass catcher to hit an 18% single-game target share three times, so he's the one we can trust the most to start in plus matchups. That's the case this week when Green Bay welcomes the Bengals' 27th-ranked pass defense to town. Doubs' target share gives him a solid floor while the Packers' week-leading 29.5-point implied total offers plenty of upside.

Sit

Jameson Williams (DET)
Jameson Williams is always just one play away from delivering a starting-caliber performance -- we saw that in Week 2 when he scored 17.8 fantasy points on just 2 receptions. But other than that Week 2 blowup, the big plays just haven't been there for Jamo. And even including Week 2, the volume has been sorely lacking. For the season, Williams ranks fourth on the Lions with a 15% target share. But much of that is thanks to his eight-target game in Week 4; otherwise, Williams has failed to see a 15% single-game target share in every other game this season. Again, Williams leads the team in air yards, and those deep shots are going to connect here and there. But if he's consistently shy of a 15% target share, that's just not going to cut it in season-long leagues, even on such a high-powered offense. There's certainly a viable ceiling week-to-week, but the floor is nonexistent. Until he starts getting more looks, Williams isn't someone I'm looking to start in fantasy.

Tee Higgins (CIN)
The Bengals bringing in Joe Flacco may help Ja'Marr Chase's fantasy value, but I'm not sure it impacts Tee Higgins. For one, Flacco has been marginally better than Jake Browning this season -- he's narrowly ahead of Browning in EPA per dropback and has the single-lowest Passing Success Rate among quarterbacks with 100 dropbacks. But Flacco's averaged a full yard per attempt fewer than Browning on the year, and his on-target throw rate is just slightly better than Cincy's former quarterback. Higgins has been targeted on only 16.5% of his routes -- a rate unlikely to change with Chase healthy. On the road against a Packers defense fresh off a bye and with a new quarterback under center, I'm not sure how we can trust Higgins in fantasy lineups in Week 6.

Tight End

Start

Mason Taylor (NYJ)
Mason Taylor continued his upward trajectory in Week 5, clearing 13 fantasy points for the second time in as many weeks. His target rate has climbed every week this season, with the last three games providing plenty of intrigue leading into Week 6. Taylor has seen single-game targets shares of 17.1%, 25.9%, and 27.3% the last three weeks, and that kind of volume is hard to ignore even on a bad offense. The Broncos pose a difficult test across the pond, but they have let up an above-average target rate to opposing tight ends. Given his recent volume, Mason Taylor is my favorite tight end to stream in Week 6 and deserves a spot in your starting lineup.

Juwan Johnson (NO)
Juwan Johnson has cooled off following a red-hot start to the year. He's seen just 7 targets combined the past two weeks after commanding at least 8 in each of their first three games, posting 4.3 and 2.7 fantasy points the last two times out. Even so, Johnson's route participation shot back up to 82% last week, and he's still been over a 12% target share in this rough two-week stretch. There's no guarantee Johnson gets back to the 24.1% target share he saw the first three games, but he doesn't have to be that involved to be a starting fantasy tight end. Look for Johnson to get back on track in Week 6 against a Patriots defense that just got lit up by Dalton Kincaid and has given up the second-highest target rate and most yards per route run to tight ends this season.

Sit

Mark Andrews (BAL)
Mark Andrews saw just three targets as Cooper Rush struggled to generate much offense in Week 5, and that doesn't bode well for Andrews' Week 6 outlook with Lamar looking unlikely to suit up. Even with Jackson active, Andrews hasn't done much to warrant starting consideration. He put up 91 yards and 2 touchdowns in Week 3 but has just 11 receptions for 59 yards over the other four games. The Rams are a top-10 defense and a below-average tight end matchup in terms of fantasy points per target. Assuming Lamar sits, there are certainly better options than Andrews on the waiver wire in Week 6.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.