Joe Serpico shares his top fantasy football waiver-wire pickups heading into Week 6.
Tank Bigsby, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars: The playing time has been slowly shifting in Bigsby’s favor, and we might have seen the takeover on Sunday. Bigsby rushed for 101 yards and two scores on 13 carries against the Colts. Meanwhile, Travis Etienne continued to struggle on the ground with just six carries for 27 yards. Etienne is still the primary pass-catcher (seven targets were second most for Jaguars), but Bigsby looks to have the early-down and goal-line work. He’s a must-add in all leagues.
Jaylen Wright, RB, Miami Dolphins: It does not matter who lines up in the backfield for the Dolphins — that back will produce when given the opportunity. The rookie had his best game of the young season after De’Von Achane was knocked out of the game with a concussion. Wright carried the ball 13 times for 86 yards against the Patriots, while Raheem Mostert had 80 yards on 19 carries. Miami is on a bye next week so Achane has plenty of time to clear protocol, but the Dolphins can support two running backs on any given week.
Ty Chandler, RB, Minnesota Vikings: Aaron Jones exited Sunday’s game against the Jets with a hip injury and Chandler took over as the lead back in his place. Chandler didn’t do much with the opportunity, rushing for 30 yards on 14 attempts. The Vikings are also on a bye this week, which gives Jones an extra week to heal up, but Chandler is a good insurance plan if Jones does miss extended time.
Tyrone Tracy Jr., RB, New York Giants: Another rookie, Tracy ran for 129 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries against the Seahawks on Sunday with Devin Singletary on the shelf. Eric Gray only had four carries and was primarily used on passing downs, which does cap Tracy’s upside. It remains to be seen if Singletary will be forced out again this week, but the Giants’ ground attack is putting up numbers.
Darnell Mooney, WR, Atlanta Falcons: Mooney is surprisingly available in more than 50 percent of leagues despite averaging seven targets per game in his past three games. Mooney reeled in nine of 16 targets for 105 yards and two touchdowns in the shootout on Thursday night. You cannot expect 16 targets each week, nor can you expect Kirk Cousins to throw it 58 times. However, Mooney leads the Falcons in snaps and is just four targets behind Drake London. Mooney is a solid WR3 to deploy during the bye weeks.
Josh Downs, WR, Indianapolis Colts: A holdover from last week, Downs was targeted 12 times on Sunday against the Jaguars, giving him 21 targets in two games. Joe Flacco has given the Colts’ passing game a boost. Downs is talented, but a change back to Anthony Richardson could limit his upside starting with next week’s game against the Titans.
Jalen Tolbert, WR, Dallas Cowboys: The Cowboys lost Brandon Cooks to an injury and Tolbert instantly made an impact as a starter. Tolbert caught the game-winning touchdown with 20 seconds remaining to beat the Steelers. He led the Cowboys in targets (10), receptions (7) and receiving yards (87). The Cowboys are going to throw it a lot given their lack of a running game.
Top Handcuffs (Rostered in less than 50 percent of leagues)
Braelon Allen, New York Jets
Tank Bigsby, Jacksonville Jaguars
Tyler Allgeier, Atlanta Falcons
Justice Hill, Baltimore Ravens
Ty Chandler, Minnesota Vikings
Alexander Mattison, Las Vegas Raiders
Jaleel McLaughlin, Denver Broncos
Antonio Gibson, New England Patriots
Blake Corum, Los Angeles Rams
Trey Benson, Arizona Cardinals