Fantasy Football Waiver Wire power rankings, Week 6: Darnell Mooney, Ty Chandler and Tank Bigsby are must-haves

Each week during the 2024 NFL season, FanSided fantasy football expert Lior Lampert creates a hierarchy of ideal waiver wire pickups. He'll base his ranks on performance, usage, coachspeak, injury news/analysis, stats, upcoming matchups, FAAB value and more. Every player mentioned is available in at least 50 percent of Yahoo fantasy leagues.

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire power rankings, Week 6

Week 6 started with a bang in the Thursday night thriller between the Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The NFC South showdown yielded three of fantasy football's six highest PPR scorers from the 14-game slate.

Robert Saleh's final game as head coach of the New York Jets was an eyesoreing 23-17 loss to the Minnesota Vikings across the pond. Will Gang Green's abrupt coaching change impact the fantasy landscape? Probably not. Regardless, managers are hoping Garrett Wilson will continue getting peppered with targets -- he drew a whopping 22 looks this week!

Those who read last week's column hopefully snagged Rico Dowdle before it was too late, considering his sudden chokehold on the Dallas Cowboys backfield. The undrafted tailback finished Week 6 as the PPR RB3, setting season/career-highs in touches (22) and scrimmage yards (114), hauling in a crucial touchdown grab. Continue following along for more waiver wire additions, starting with the players mentioned below!

Dumpster diving, digging for scraps

Believe it or not, Daniel Jones has averaged more fantasy points per game (15.5) than Patrick Mahomes (15.2) through five weeks. Frankly, that's more of an indictment on the latter than a testament to the former, but it's a fact nonetheless.

Ray-Ray McCloud has seen at least seven targets in three of the Falcons' first five contests, eclipsing 50 receiving yards each time. The combination of opportunity and production on an Atlanta passing attack trending upwards makes him an intriguing albeit uninspiring bye-week filler.

Joe Mixon's status for Week 6 (and beyond) remains murky as of this writing. Until that gets cleared up, Cam Akers will offer low-end RB3/FLEX value. It hasn't been pretty for the FSU product, but he's gotten double-digit touches in three straight outings on a potent Houston Texans offense.

The stash-and-save

Tyrone Tracy Jr. showed what he can do with the ball in his hands when given a chance. The New York Giants rookie running back consistently generated chunk gains versus the Seattle Seahawks, running for 129 yards in his first career start. Devin Singletary (groin) could return to the lineup sooner rather than later, but that may not matter. In addition to solidifying his status as a premium handcuff, there could be standalone value here.

The Drake Maye era is officially upon us. This year's No. 3 overall pick will make his pro regular-season debut when the New England Patriots host the Houston Texans. The young signal-caller isn't necessarily set up to succeed as he begins his reign in Foxborough, but his mobility makes him interesting. Nonetheless, he's more of a deep league/2QB/Superflex option.

D'Andre Swift's renaissance continued in Week 5 after a brutal trio of performances to kick off the 2024 campaign. Meanwhile, Roschon Johnson found the end zone twice while sharing the goal-line work with his backfield mate.

The educated guesses

Jaylen Warren is doubtful for Week 6 because of a knee issue. However, his track record and potential role upon return validate him as a worthy flier. The third-year back posted a 1,154 scrimmage-yard effort in 2023. His contributions as a receiver (61 receptions last season) are enough to warrant PPR relevance -- at the very least.

On sheer volume alone, Tyler Conklin is a passable fantasy football tight end, especially given the current state of the position. He ranks fourth among his peers in targets from Weeks 3-5 (23). In that span, the veteran seam stretcher is the PPR TE10.

The Kansas City Chiefs turned to JuJu Smith-Schuster as their primary receiver in the team's primetime victory over the New Orleans Saints. An afterthought for much of the past two years, the seasoned pass-catcher stepped up tremendously. He commanded eight targets, which went for seven receptions and 130 yards. It could've been an even bigger day for the 2017 second-round selection had he not dropped what would've been a two-yard touchdown.

The 'if you ain't first, you're last'

Josh Downs may not be a flashy name, but he surely produces like one on a per-route basis. The Indianapolis Colts slot man has proven himself as a reliable safety valve in the middle of the field. Anthony Richdarson's looming recovery (oblique) dings his value, though he's talented enough to overcome the change under center. Anytime Joe Flacco (or any traditional pocket passer) gets the nod at quarterback, the 23-year-old is a dependable PPR FLEX with upside.

The Dallas Cowboys put Brandin Cooks on injured reserve because of a knee issue, meaning the earliest he can return is Week 10. Someone must assume his role as Dak Prescott's No. 2 receiver, and so far, Jalen Tolbert has seized the opportunity. The 2022 third-rounder logged season-highs across the board in Week 5 while virtually operating as a full-time player, yielding PPR WR12 numbers.

Gotta have 'em

Tank Bigsby, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars

No matter the format, Tank Bigsby led all running backs in scoring in Week 5. And for the first time this season, he out-snapped fellow Jacksonville Jaguars back Travis Etienne. Could that signal a change of the guard in Duval County?

Etienne reportedly "got popped in the shoulder again" in Jacksonville's win against the Colts, which may have played into Bigsby's increase in reps. Nevertheless, the latter took advantage of his expanded role and has been the more effective and efficient runner of the two.

Bigsby is barreling through defenders regularly and giving the Jags an element of explosiveness their offense lacks beyond rookie receiver Brian Thomas Jr. His 8.03 yards per carry is first among players with 25-plus carries so far this year.

At worst, this looks like a split backfield. That said, Bigsby can emerge as the primary option between him and Etienne should the ongoing trend persist.

Ty Chandler, RB, Minnesota Vikings

Vikings star running back Aaron Jones is "week to week" due to a hip injury, thrusting Ty Chandler into a sizable workload.

We've seen Chandler thrive in these situations before. He started four games from Weeks 15-18 last year, averaging 13.2 PPR points per game. The 26-year-old functioned as a three-down back following Jones' departure in Minnesota's handling of the Jets, suggesting we could see similar results in 2024.

Moreover, the Vikings have a very run-friendly schedule moving forward, which only helps Chandler's RB2 path. Minnesota is on bye in Week 6, but managers who can afford to wait must prioritize him.

Darnell Mooney, WR, Atlanta Falcons

Darnell Mooney is quietly averaging as many fantasy points per game (15.0) as household receivers like D.J. Moore and Davante Adams. Furthermore, he's outscoring Garrett Wilson and Marvin Harrison Jr., two fringe first-rounders in fantasy drafts this summer. Yet, the Falcons offseason addition is available in over half of Yahoo football leagues. Why?

Since Mooney's Week 1 clunker, he's posted at least 56 yards every game. His field-stretching ability has been as good as anyone in the NFL and critical to a Falcons offense on the rise. He's a legitimate every-down player, ranking second among receivers in snaps. Besides being the No. 2 option for a solid Atlanta unit, the connection with quarterback Kirk Cousins is palpable.

Mooney caught nine of his 16 targets in Week 5 for 107 yards, finding paydirt twice. What's crazy is he could've had an even gaudier stat line were it not for a costly late-game drop.