Week 6 Waiver Wire: Top Pickups and Drops After Evaluating Week 5 Box Scores

The waiver wire can be any fantasy manager’s best friend.

Monitoring matchups, looking for hidden gems and knowing when to drop others is key to fielding a successful team throughout a long fantasy season.

Entering Week 6, wide receivers are playing as big a role in wins and losses as any position, and two trusted targets of superstar quarterbacks have earned managers’ attention.

Who are they, and which wideout has struggled with consistent chemistry with his QB, thus making him expendable?

Allen Lazard is not a stats guy.

Still, the long-time dance partner of Aaron Rodgers has tallied four touchdowns in five games, making him a valuable asset to fantasy managers.

Lazard has managed double-digit fantasy performances in four of his five games this season in PPR leagues. In Week 6, with a tough Buffalo Bills defense, he will have an opportunity to make an impact as the AFC East leaders certainly look to take away Rodgers’ first option, Garrett Wilson.

The Iowa State product will not wow anyone with his final stat line, but he gets targets (at least eight in all but one game this year) and Rodgers trusts him to deliver when things get tough.

Things will get tough against the Bills and the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 7.

Lazard is available in 64 percent of Yahoo and 62 percent of ESPN leagues.

The second coming of Jerry Rice, Jauan Jennings was not.

Despite a monster game against the Rams in Week 3, Jennings has not seen the volume or scores needed to take up a spot on fantasy managers’ rosters.

Since that 11-catch, 175-yard, three-touchdown day at SoFi Stadium, Jennings has hauled in just four passes for 101 yards and no scores.

He remains stuck behind George Kittle and Brandon Aiyuk in terms of Brock Purdy’s preferred receivers.

With a Seattle defense ranked 11th against opposing receivers on tap, and no evidence that Jennings is suddenly going to become the guy who dominated that Rams game, now is the time to drop him and use that roster spot on someone who will contribute more consistently.

The hero from the Week 5 win over Pittsburgh, Jalen Tolbert has earned his way into consideration for the flex spot on your roster.

He still has yet to catch double-digit passes in any game this season, but against the Steelers, he hauled in seven for 87 yards and the game-winner.

In Week 6, against a Detroit Lions team allowing the second-most fantasy points to opposing defenses with 45.75 per game, he will have the chance to shine, especially if the NFC North leaders shift coverage to account for CeeDee Lamb.

With very favorable matchups against other wide receiver-susceptible defenses in San Francisco, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Minnesota, Washington and Carolina all coming up over the next six weeks, a solid performance against Detroit could (and should) earn him a permanent spot on your roster.

Especially with Brandin Cooks on IR for at least four games because of an infection that was the result of a knee procedure.

Tolbert is available in 91 percent of Yahoo and 84 percent of ESPN leagues.

All stats via FantasyPros unless otherwise stated.