4 Fantasy Football Sleepers for NFL Week 6

The word "sleeper" gets thrown around a lot in the world of fantasy football, to the point where an actual definition may vary from person to person. In general, in my eyes, sleepers are players who may be flying relatively under the radar in a particular week.

In any case, we all need to find a sleeper from time to time. Whether you're a season-long fantasy football manager looking to roster a potential breakout player before your league-mates, someone playing NFL DFS on FanDuel who needs a spike week from a low-salaried player, or even just a manager in a pinch due to byes or injuries, we have you covered.

Here are some fantasy sleepers who could have a big week this week.

We'll reference our NFL projections. All NFL odds come from FanDuel Sportsbook and may change after this article is published.

Fantasy Football Sleepers for Week 6

Sam Darnold, QB, Seahawks

FanDuel Salary: $7,400

The Seattle Seahawks certainly own a run-first mindset under offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak (ranking dead last in pass rate over expected), but Sam Darnold has been producing solid fantasy outputs by simply being efficient. Along with Darnold tallying a season-high 28.6 fantasy points in Week 5 versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he's tied with Jared Goff for the fourth-most expected points added per drop back (0.25) among quarterbacks with 100-plus drop backs entering Week 6, via Next Gen Stats.

Up to this point, the Jacksonville Jaguars' defense is 14th in fantasy points per drop back allowed (0.45) to quarterbacks, but they've been running hot in the takeaways category. If Darnold can avoid turning the ball over and the Seahawks put the ball in the air a bit more as slight road 'dogs, he could have another notable outing in all fantasy formats.

Romeo Doubs, WR, Packers

FanDuel Salary: $6,200

Coming out of their bye week in Week 5, the Green Bay Packers get to face a Cincinnati Bengals team in Week 6 that is bad against the run (21st in schedule-adjusted run defense) but even worse against the pass (27th in schedule-adjusted pass defense). Although I believe this could be the week rookie Matthew Golden has a breakout performance, Romeo Doubs has been the team's most steady wideout, and we know he'll be on the field plenty.

Besides Doubs exploding for 26.8 fantasy points with 3 receiving touchdowns in Week 4, he has the highest route rate (80.0%), second-highest target share (17.3%), highest air yards share (31.1%), highest red-zone target share (30.0%), and highest end-zone target share (42.9%) among Green Bay's skill players. Meanwhile, Cincy's defense is 19th in yards per route run (1.58) and 31st in end-zone targets allowed (11) to WRs.

Tre Tucker, WR, Raiders

FanDuel Salary: $6,100

Tre Tucker certainly fits the mold of a boom-or-bust option at wide receiver, but a matchup against the Tennessee Titans could lead to another notable performance for the Las Vegas Raiders' wideout. The Titans are coughing up the sixth-most yards per route run (1.79), fourth-most downfield receptions (receptions of 10-plus yards; 25), and fourth-most downfield receiving yards (556) to the WR spot.

As for Tucker, he's getting plenty of run in Vegas' offense, earning the second-highest snap rate (91.8%) and second-highest route rate (89.7%) on the team across the first five weeks of the season. Although Tucker has just the third-highest target share (17.6%) on the Raiders, the ongoing injury to tight end Brock Bowers could lead to more looks for Tucker in Week 6.

Harold Fannin Jr., TE, Browns

FanDuel Salary: $5,300

Even though the numbers weren't overly impressive for Harold Fannin Jr. in Week 5, it's clear the Cleveland Browns are going to continue leaning on two tight-end sets with rookie signal-caller Dillon Gabriel operating the offense. While Fannin is playing alongside David Njoku, the Browns lead the league in 12 personnel rate (50.6%) by a decent margin, and both Njoku and Fannin found the end zone in Gabriel's first start of the season.

Upon garnering a modest 77.6% snap rate, 50.0% route rate, and 87.5% red-zone snap rate in Week 5, Fannin now owns a 71.7% snap rate, 59.2% route rate, and a team-high 87.8% red-zone snap rate in his first five games in the NFL. Considering that Cleveland are road underdogs to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 6, it's worth noting that Pittsburgh is 30th in fantasy points per target (1.84) and 24th in yards per route run allowed (1.48) to TEs.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.