Moves to Make Before Week 6 Fantasy Football: Buy Bhayshul Tuten, sell Jaylen Waddle

Five weeks into the season, we have a much better idea of who these players and teams really are. Usage trends are becoming harder to ignore, and strength of schedule should start playing a bigger role in the moves we make going forward. For the fantasy managers near the bottom of the standings, it’s desperation time, and that means it’s time to start making some aggressive trades and finding value before your leaguemates do.

▶ PLAYERS TO BUY

Bhayshul Tuten, RB, JAX

In Week 5, Bhayshul Tuten saw career highs in snaps and touches. The big number was his 92 percent share of backfield rush attempts. These are very encouraging numbers for the fantasy managers who were worried about Tuten’s workload going into the season. If the middle-of-the-road production over the previous two weeks has the Tuten manager a little worried, I’d do everything I can to jump at this opportunity. I wouldn’t be scared off by the last couple of weeks or even this upcoming game against the Texans. This is just a rough patch against tough opponents, and if I’m being honest, Tuten was one wacky goal-line sequence of plays away from a touchdown and having a pretty good fantasy day. If you want to wait for the Jaguars’ Week 7 bye week to make your move, I think that’s fine too. I’d rather buy now just in case Tuten has a big game and the price goes up.

Luther Burden, WR, CHI

Luther Burden leads the Bears in targets and fantasy points, but the important stat that has eluded Burden in his career has been snap share. In Week 5, Burden saw a career-high 77 percent snap share. The problem last week was that Tyson Bagent and Case Keenum weren’t all that great. Luckily, it seems like Burden will get Caleb Williams back under center this week, and any time a team’s WR1 gets his starting quarterback back on the field, that tends to be a good thing. The stars might be aligning for Burden to see the production that many, including myself, predicted this preseason. Burden is already the WR26 in fantasy points through what is likely to be the roughest patch of the season for him and the Bears’ pass-catchers. Going forward, Burden and the Bears’ receivers have the sixth-easiest remaining strength of schedule, including the easiest fantasy playoff schedule. This may be the perfect time to buy low on Burden before the breakout happens.

Jalen Hurts, QB, PHI

I know this might sound crazy. I’m not typically one to advocate for making trades involving quarterbacks, but in this case I’m making an exception. Hurts is currently the QB17 in fantasy points and his fantasy managers can’t be happy about it. If a fantasy manager is getting impatient, there’s a chance you can acquire him at a discount. As a starter over the previous five seasons, Hurts has never finished lower than QB9. History tells us he should finish much higher than his current standing, and his upcoming schedule suggests we should see an uptick in fantasy points. The Eagles should be back at full strength this week with DeVonta Smith and Saquon Barkley potentially returning to the lineup. Hurts’ next four opponents (CAR, DAL, WAS, NYG) are all in the top 10 in fantasy points allowed to quarterbacks. Over the remainder of the season, Hurts has the third-easiest strength of schedule for a fantasy quarterback. He’s worth it as a low-cost option if you’re weak at quarterback.

▶ PLAYERS TO SELL

Jaylen Waddle, WR, DEN

Sometimes you just need to sell low. We’ve seen it all in the Denver passing game, and it would appear that this is it; this is as good as it’s going to get. Even with Sean Payton taking over the playcalling, Jaylen Waddle managed a meager 65 percent snap share and just 18.5 percent target share. On the season, Waddle is 40th in target share (17.9 percent) and 37th in team receiving yards (21.7 percent). Bo Nix looks bad. The playcalling has been bland, and Waddle has more drops this season (4) than touchdown receptions (1). At this point, I don’t trust Payton, Nix, or Waddle to turn it around, and I’d try to package Waddle with another player for an upgrade.

Woody Marks, RB, HOU

Most people would probably view Woody Marks as a screaming buy after last week’s performance combined with the David Montgomery injury. I decided to dig a little deeper. On top of Marks’ pedestrian rushing numbers, the window of meaningful fantasy value may be shorter than it appears. While Montgomery is out, Marks will face the Jaguars defense, which is allowing the third-fewest fantasy points to running backs this season. He then gets a matchup against the Giants, who have only allowed one top-24 fantasy finish to a running back over the previous three weeks. The Texans then have a bye in Week 8. After those three weeks, we’re likely right back where we started with Marks, and your fantasy team isn’t any higher in the standings. Even if Marks retains the majority of the work in the backfield, the Texans running backs have the sixth-toughest remaining strength of schedule. I’d rather cash in now while Marks is everyone’s favorite trade target.

Jacory Croskey-Merritt, RB, WAS

The fantasy box score looks better than the actual usage. Despite finishing as the RB17 in fantasy points last week, Croskey-Merritt had a season-low 35 percent snap share while Rachaad White handled all of the third-down, goal-line, and two-minute drill snaps. Even if White misses any time, the Commanders signed Austin Ekeler as an insurance back to catch passes, while the team cut Kaytron Allen and signed Devin Neal to their practice squad. It’s apparent that the Commanders don’t have a lot of confidence in any single running back to handle the load. To make matters worse, the Commanders’ running backs have the second-toughest remaining strength of schedule in terms of fantasy points allowed. Use this Week 5 spike to sell high on Croskey-Merritt while you still can.

▶ PLAYERS TO STASH

If for any reason these guys are still on your waiver wire, you should stash them on your bench.

Jonah Coleman, RB, DEN

Sean Payton clearly wants J.K. Dobbins to be the lead back despite being extremely inefficient this season. Dobbins is averaging just 3.5 yards per carry this season. A lot of that inefficiency is likely due to the Broncos’ lackluster offense and Dobbins’ long list of injuries. Dobbins even admitted that he’s not currently 100 percent healthy. Jonah Coleman, currently on IR with an ankle injury, has been labeled as the direct handcuff to Dobbins going back to training camp. RJ Harvey certainly hasn’t established himself as a threat. If Dobbins were to miss time, I’d expect Coleman to find himself in a decent-sized role, particularly at the goal line. The Broncos have one of the easiest remaining schedules for fantasy running backs, which means Coleman is a good insurance policy to hold onto. He’s eligible to return in Week 7.

Ray Davis, RB, BUF

Joe Brady has said that he wants to give Ray Davis more opportunities, and he did just that in Week 5. Davis doubled his typical snap share and showed off his ability on a 31-yard catch-and-run that put the Bills in scoring position. Brady has even gone as far as to say that “at some point there has to be consequences” for James Cook “putting the ball in harm’s way.” The Bills have the third-easiest strength of schedule in the fantasy playoffs, making Davis a must-have handcuff on your bench.