Gardner Minshew among top fantasy football free-agent finds for Week 6

We’ve reached bye-week season. OK, I just made that term up, but let’s roll with it. Starting in Week 6, there will be at least four teams on a bye in six of the next seven weeks, including Week 10, when six teams will catch their breath for the home stretch.

It’s a challenge for your roster in two ways: deciding whom to pick up as a replacement and deciding which players become expendable to make room for a new addition.

Speaking generally, there are two very simple pieces of advice to share: Think ahead and know your invaluable commodities. Don’t wait until the week you need a player before making a move — get ahead of the curve. That’s your best chance to grab a preferred option and not wind up in a situation in which you are dropping a player you’d rather not drop.

In life, a little advance planning can go a long way. It turns out the same is true in fantasy football.

To help you plan ahead, navigate our NFL schedule page or just click the “schedule” button on your fantasy football team page to see when your players have their byes.

And with that, here are our Week 6 waiver-wire options.

Week 6 byes: Chicago Bears, Buffalo Bills, Indianapolis Colts, Oakland Raiders

Note: All players listed are available in at least 50% of leagues.

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Gardner Minshew II, QB, Jacksonville Jaguars (18.1%)

Minshew Mania has introduced itself to the world of fantasy football. The Jaguars fill-in quarterback has been a joy to watch and has provided a key spark for Jacksonville, and has been really solid in fantasy. Despite the fact that he didn’t even start Week 1, Minshew is one of just four quarterbacks to score at least 16 points in every game this season. He’s not a top-10 option, but if you’re on the lookout for some quarterback help, he’s a definite name to know.

Chris Herndon, TE, New York Jets (11.6%)

Herndon’s four-game suspension is now over and the Jets will soon have their talented young tight end available to pick up where he left off, as he looked like one of the better young tight ends in the game during his rookie season. The Jets’ offense has sputtered without Sam Darnold early for much of this early season, but with Herndon back in the fold and Darnold likely to play in Week 6, there is some hope for better days. Herndon has the chance to be a top-12 option at the position.

Gerald Everett, TE, Los Angeles Rams (3.3%)

The Rams have been throwing the ball a ton over the past two weeks, which has contributed to a breakout from Everett, an exceptional athlete who has a total of 12 catches for 180 yards during that two-game stretch. While the Rams figure to tighten the clamps defensively and not be forced to throw it quite as much on offense, Everett is still talented enough to merit consideration as a potential weekly starter.

Mohamed Sanu, WR, Atlanta Falcons (42.9%)

Sanu has been a frequent visitor of this column over the years, as he’s super reliable but rarely puts up monster numbers. He’s averaging 5.8 catches per game and has 10-plus points in four of five games this season. The Falcons have been in what feels like a wild and pass-heavy game every week, something that should remain the case with a porous defense. Keep Sanu on your radar as a likely flex consideration in many weeks, especially in deeper leagues.

Diontae Johnson, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers (18.5%)

While the Steelers may now be turning to Devlin Hodges as their quarterback after Mason Rudolph suffered a concussion in a scary moment on Sunday, Johnson has been busy of late. He has picked up 20 targets over the past three games and had five catches in Week 5. While not a star yet, Johnson has clearly established himself as the No. 2 receiver in Pittsburgh behind JuJu Smith-Schuster.

Auden Tate, WR, Cincinnati Bengals (10.3%)

Following John Ross III‘s injury, we expected Tate to remain busy … and he was. He scored his first career touchdown in Week 5, finishing with three catches, 26 yards and six targets. He’s up to 22 targets over the past three weeks, and with A.J. Green still out and the Bengals’ regularly playing catch-up, he remains a strong option. With his raw ability, he’s an intriguing add to have on your bench as he continues to get more looks.

Jonathan Hilliman, RB, New York Giants (1.1%)

There are a lot of moving parts with the Giants’ backfield, as Saquon Barkley is hopeful for a Week 6 return against the Patriots. Wayne Gallman also could return, though he left Week 5 early because of a concussion. If both Barkley and Gallman sit, that would leave Hilliman — who had nine carries in Week 5 — as the de facto starter. He’d be a deeper league consideration only … especially against the Patriots in Week 6.

Byron Pringle, WR, Kansas City Chiefs (0.0%)

Our weekly installment of a “Chiefs skill player who comes out of nowhere to look awesome” features Pringle, who had his breakout night in Week 5, scoring a touchdown and surpassing 100 yards on six catches. Is it sustainable? No one can say with confidence, as Pringle had just two total catches before Sunday. Tyreek Hill could return soon, though Sammy Watkins left Sunday’s game early because of injury. The thought process here is simple: When you’re filling out your bench spots in a deeper league, there’s always a case to be made for stashing a player who catches passes from Patrick Mahomes.

Baltimore Ravens D/ST (47.0%)

This Ravens defense is not the one we are used to seeing in recent years — let’s be clear about that — but they play the Bengals this weekend. That’s a streamer.

Dallas Cowboys D/ST (38.9%)

The Eagles became the first team in NFL history to record 10 sacks and multiple defensive touchdowns in a game in Week 5. That took place against the Jets, Dallas’ opponent on Sunday.

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