Fantasy football IDP free-agent report: Week 6

Check your waiver wire for these IDP Week 6 pickups.

Five weeks down, and one round of byes are in the rearview. Keep an eye out for the competition in a roster crunch and dropping players you wouldn’t normally see on waivers.

Each week, we’ll highlight diamonds in the rough or some players that just need to be rostered in more leagues on the defensive side of the ball. Keep in mind your scoring system and roster restraints when heading to the waiver wire to grab these IDPs.

Defensive linemen

DE Sam Hubbard, Cincinnati Bengals

The 29-year-old busted out with nine tackles and a sack in Week 5 after a relatively quiet first four weeks. Hubbard is always on the fringe of being worthy of a pickup. He’ll get 60 tackles and six sacks every season. He has one sack to-date, which suggests the best should be yet to come.

EDGE Jonathan Greenard, Minnesota Vikings

Greenard is on a bye this week, and he hasn’t particularly had a good season despite a three-sack week in Week 3. The other four weeks have been pretty so-so. That means he could be dumped to waivers this week, and he should be claimed immediately. His schedule is very favorable after the bye with DET, LAR, IND, JAC, TEN, CHI and ARI on the docket the next few weeks.

Linebackers

LB K.J. Britt, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Britt has been solid with 30 tackles through five games. He hasn’t done anything beyond that, but if he can repeat nine-tackle games like he had in Week 5, he’s easily a flex candidate most weeks.

LB Jerome Baker, Seattle Seahawks

After a frigid start to the season, and a hamstring issue, Baker had a monstrous Week 5. He logged 14 tackles a forced fumble and a sack against the New York Giants. Baker was consistently a 100-tackle guy in Miami, and he appears to be back in that kind of window.

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LB Trevin Wallace, Carolina Panthers

The third-round rookie made a statement in Week 5. Entering last week, he had three tackles on the season as a reserve. Wallace delivered 15 in Week 5 after being thrust into the lineup with Shaq Thompson (Achilles) done for the year. Pick him up and ride the wave!

Defensive backs

CB Jamel Dean, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Wait, we’re opening the DB section with a corner? Yes! Dean has nine-plus tackles in three of the last four weeks. He also added four pass defenses in the process. He’s stacking numbers and taking names.

S Tre’Von Moehrig, Las Vegas Raiders

His name reminds you of Lou Gehrig, and he reeks of consistency. Over the last four weeks: six tackles; six tackles; five tackles, and eight tackles, plus an INT and a pass defense. The numbers won’t knock you over, but Moehrig is a stable high-floor, low-ceiling option.

S Antonio Johnson, Jacksonville Jaguars

The second-year man has been productive all season, but he took a big step forward in Week 5. His tackle counts were as follows: nine, five, six, five, and broke out with 11 tackles in Week 5. He has the Chicago Bears and New England Patriots up the next two weeks.

Fantasy football IDP free-agent report: Week 6

Check your waiver wire for these IDP options ahead of Week 6.

We’re through five weeks and just completed the first round of byes. Keep an eye out for owners feeling the roster crunch who may drop a player they normally wouldn’t drop in order to cover an IDP bye.

Each week, we’ll highlight diamonds in the rough or some players that just need to be rostered in more leagues on the defensive side of the ball. Keep in mind your scoring system and roster restraints when heading to the waiver wire to grab these IDPs.

Defensive linemen

DE Aidan Hutchinson, Detroit Lions

Last year’s No. 2 overall pick has had three straight good games after a so-so first two weeks. Hutchinson has nine tackles, a fumble recovery, a forced fumble, an INT, four pass defenses and 4 1/2 sacks over the last three weeks. Hutchinson is likely owned in most deeper and competitive formats, but if he’s still somehow on waivers, you should change that.

DT Ed Oliver, Buffalo Bills

The big, 287-pound tackle has been a force in the middle thus far. He has at least three tackles per game, but Oliver has at least one sack per game over the last three games. He added nine tackles and a sack in Week 5. Defensive tackles are risky, but he’s producing enough to warrant the pickup if you need to cover a bye.

Linebackers

LB Nathan Landman, Atlanta Falcons

The Falcons lost Troy Andersen in the middle to a torn pectoral muscle, and the undrafted Landman has stepped in nicely. He had nine tackles in Week 4 and seven in Week 5. He’ll face the Washington Commanders in Week 6, and they run the ball and use short routes a lot, which could be another big tackle day.

LB Henry To’oTo’o, Houston Texans

Injuries have catapulted the fifth-round pick into a spot on the strong side, and he has answered the bell. He has at least seven tackles in four straight games and had at least 10 stops in two of them. To’oTo’o doesn’t offer much else, but it’s hard to find someone to land around eight tackles a game on waivers.

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LB Christian Rozeboom, Los Angeles Rams

Six, five, five, six and five. That’s what the fourth-year, undrafted linebacker from South Dakota State has delivered in tackles each week. Rozeboom has offered nothing else, but he has set a baseline that can be useful in deeper formats if you’re trying to cover a bye at a premium position.

Defensive backs

SS Jimmie Ward, Houston Texans

It has been three good weeks in a row for the 10-year vet. He had eight tackles in Week 3, four tackles, and a forced fumble in Week 4, plus six tackles and a pass defense in Week 5. He has the New Orleans Saints this week and then a bye, which may mean he’s a short-term option. However, if he has another solid game this week, we could see keeping him around through the bye.

FS Micah Hyde, Buffalo Bills

From a fantasy perspective, the 32-year-old is a very unsexy option. His six tackles in Week 5 were a season high. He has two INTs, but he doesn’t really do much to stand out from a statistical standpoint. He has the New England Patriots, New York Giants and Tampa Bay Buccaneers the next three weeks, and he could see more INT windows.

S Sam Franklin, Carolina Panthers

Franklin could be a one-week play against the Miami Dolphins this week. The Panthers are on a bye in Week 7, and Franklin would probably be expendable that week. He has stepped in for Xavier Woods, who is out four-to-six weeks with a hamstring injury. He had a Pick-6 in Week 4 and eight tackles last week.

Fantasy football waiver wire: Week 6 free-agent forecast

Check out the top waiver wire targets for fantasy football in Week 6.

We are now six weeks into the season, knocking off roughly a third of the campaign for fantasy football managers, which means the standings will begin to take shape even more over the next few weeks.

After the first week of byes featured four teams getting time off, Week 6 includes only two teams. Teams on a bye in Week 6 include the Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers.

We’ll be taking a look at the top available players rostered in Yahoo leagues, using the 75% rostered mark as the threshold. If you have any questions about prioritizing a certain player over another, don’t be afraid to hit me up on X, formerly Twitter, (@KevinHickey11). Your questions and comments are always welcome!

We also will be taking a look at some deeper players to stash and the top streaming options for the upcoming week.

Fantasy football waiver wire recommendations refer to 12-team league formats, unless specifically stated.

Check back for any updates throughout Monday and Tuesday as more injury news becomes available.