Booms and Busts - Fantasy Football Starts and Sits for Week 6 Lineups (2025)

Dave's fantasy football start 'em and sit 'em booms and busts for Week 6 of 2025. Sneaky starts that may boom, and typical starters who will disappoint.

The fantasy football season marches on, and we are already barrelling toward the middle of October. We had a few good calls in this space last weekend. We correctly labeled C.J. Stroud and Mason Taylor as boom calls. Stroud lit up the Baltimore Ravens defense and finished as the overall QB1, while Taylor caught nine passes for 67 receiving yards to finish as the PPR TE8. Our big miss, though, was labeling Emeka Egbuka as the Landmine of the Week. He torched the Seattle Seahawks defense and posted a 7-163-1 line. The main takeaway there? Egubka is incredible, and we will not be fading him again anytime soon.

As we enter Week 6, only two teams have a bye this weekend. Those teams are the Minnesota Vikings and Houston Texans. While it’s nice that there are only two teams with off weeks, there are a few heavy-hitters that fantasy gamers will sorely miss. So, let’s not waste any more time chit-chatting and take a look at who to start and who to sit.

Make sure you’re following RotoBaller on X and download the RotoBaller app for all your fantasy football needs. Let’s dive into our boom/bust picks for Week 6 of the 2025 NFL season.

• 2025 fantasy football rankings
• Running back (RB) rankings
• Wide receiver (WR) rankings
• Quarterback (QB) rankings
• Tight end (TE) rankings
• Defense (D/ST) rankings
• Kicker (K) rankings
• FLEX rankings
• Dynasty rankings

Sonic Boom of the Week

Jordan Love - QB, Green Bay Packers vs. Cincinnati Bengals

The Packers are coming off their bye in Week 5. Love’s most recent performance against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 4 was a strong one. He threw for 337 passing yards, three touchdowns, and finished the week as the overall QB6.

Love with a DIME to Doubs to open the scoring 🎯

GBvsDAL on NBC
Stream on @NFLPlus + Peacock pic.twitter.com/RiHUAATsqe

— NFL (@NFL) September 29, 2025

Love now gets to face a Cincinnati Bengals defense that has been dreadful so far in 2025. Cincinnati currently ranks 27th in FTN Fantasy’s defensive passing DVOA and 26th in PFF’s pass coverage grade. The Bengals have also allowed the eighth-most points to opposing quarterbacks per Fantasy Football Today. Cincinnati has also allowed 11 passing touchdowns this year, which is tied for third-most in the league.

Expect the Green Bay offense to move the ball at will against the Bengals this weekend. With Joe Flacco drawing the start for Cincinnati on short notice, we may also see Green Bay’s defense force a few turnovers. That would provide Love and the Packers offense with extra scoring opportunities as well.

Start Love in all formats this weekend.

Other Week 6 Fantasy Football Booms

Jacory Croskey-Merritt RB, Washington Commanders vs. Chicago Bears

Last week, Croskey-Merritt finally delivered the game fantasy managers were waiting to see. He ran for 111 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns against a previously stout Los Angeles Chargers run defense. Croskey-Merritt finished Week 5 as the overall PPR RB5.

There goes Bill!

The @Commanders are on the board.

WASvsLAC on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/bf8qzpTUw8

— NFL (@NFL) October 5, 2025

The Commanders now take on a Chicago Bears team that’s coming off its bye but was gashed on the ground by Ashton Jeanty back in Week 4. Chicago’s run defense has been a liability all season, and it allows 164.5 rushing yards per game. This looks like another great spot for Croskey-Merritt to crack triple digits and find the endzone, too.

Gamers can confidently start Croskey-Merritt as an RB2 this weekend.

RJ Harvey - RB, Denver Broncos at New York Jets

After taking a step forward in terms of playing time and production in Week 4, Harvey took a step backward in Week 5. He only had four carries for 12 rushing yards and caught three passes for 18 receiving yards. Most concerning was that Harvey only played 20% of offensive snaps, which was his lowest mark of the season.

Harvey’s dip in playing time against the Eagles in Week 5 is concerning; however, it’s possible the coaching staff did not fully trust a rookie going up against the defending Super Bowl champions. If that’s the case, then head coach Sean Payton may not have an issue giving Harvey more playing time against an inferior opponent like the New York Jets.

This is a good matchup for Harvey to potentially bounce back. The Jets allow 22.5 PPR points per game to opposing backs and have allowed the seventh-most rushing yards to running backs in 2025. New York has also allowed the eighth-most explosive rushing yards in the league per Fantasy Points Data Suite. That could be great news for Harvey, who we’ve seen pop for a few big plays already this year.

This is a good spot for managers to deploy Harvey as Denver projects to be playing from ahead for the majority of this game. That should mean plenty of rushing opportunities for Harvey and backfield running mate J.K. Dobbins.

Start Harvey as a flex play with a boost in PPR formats.

Tetairoa McMillan - WR, Carolina Panthers vs. Dallas Cowboys

McMillan has looked good to start his NFL career. Unfortunately, it hasn’t translated to much fantasy production, as he’s only posted one top-24 finish in five games.

This week could be his best game of the season, though, as the Dallas Cowboys' defense continues to look like one of the biggest pass funnels in the league. Dallas allows the most passing yards per game in the NFL and allows the most PPR points per game to opposing wide receivers, too.

The biggest issue for McMillan has been the play of Panthers quarterback Bryce Young. However, the Cowboys rank just 26th in adjusted sack rate, so Carolina’s offensive line could hold up in pass protection and allow Young to find McMillan multiple times downfield.

Gamers should leave McMillan in their lineups. This is a great matchup, and he could post his best performance of the season in this game.

Troy Franklin - WR, Denver Broncos at New York Jets

We’ll continue picking on the Jets' defense here. Franklin’s playing time has decreased in each of the last two games. However, he has still posted a solid 22% targets per route run on the season per Fantasy Points Data Suite.

We already detailed some of the issues New York has had stopping opponents’ rushing attacks. They haven’t fared much better against the pass either. The Jets rank dead last in defensive rushing DVOA and rank 31st in PFF’s pass coverage grade. With WR1 Courtland Sutton likely drawing a matchup against star cornerback Sauce Gardner, that could open up other areas of the field for Franklin.

Consider him a WR3 or flex play for this week, as he could pop for his best game since his 8-89-1 performance in Week 2.

Landmine of the Week

Dalton Kincaid - TE, Buffalo Bills at Atlanta Falcons

Kincaid has gotten off to a hot start so far in 2025. His three receiving touchdowns are tied for the third-most among all tight ends, and he is currently the PPR TE2 on the year. He’s also posted some strong advanced metrics. Kincaid currently has a 24% targets per route run and 2.84 yards per route run this season per Fantasy Points Data Suite.

While that’s all well and good, his production may not be sustainable. Kincaid only has a 15.6% target share this year. He has run a route on just 55.5% of the Bills' dropbacks, and that ranks 25th among 30 tight ends with 15+ targets in 2025.

Kincaid now draws a tough matchup against a Falcons defense that's been very good at limiting opposing tight ends. Atlanta ranks first in DVOA against tight ends and allows an average of two receptions and 17.3 receiving yards per game to the position.

Even though Kincaid has been a great option for fantasy managers, this doesn’t look like a great matchup to deploy him. That means gamers may want to approach Kincaid with caution in Week 6.

Other Week 6 Fantasy Football Busts

Jaylen Warren - RB, Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Cleveland Browns

It looks like Warren will play this weekend after missing Week 4 due to a knee injury. However, Kenneth Gainwell played very well in his absence and may have forced his way into a 50/50 split with Warren.

The Steelers also draw a tough matchup as they take on a Cleveland Browns defense that ranks first in defensive rushing DVOA, first in PFF rushing defense grade, and allows the fewest PPR points per game to opposing backs. Even though Warren is known for his pass-catching ability, he might not offer much upside in that regard this week either. Cleveland has allowed the fifth-fewest receptions to backs this year and fourth-fewest receiving yards to backs, too.

I expect the Steelers to win this game and cover the five-point spread in the process, but this game could turn into a defensive slog with points being a premium. That means gamers should consider pivoting off Warren in favor of other backs.

Derrick Henry - RB, Baltimore Ravens vs. Los Angeles Rams

Since his 169-yard, two-touchdown performance in Week 1, Henry has PPR finishes of RB60, RB25, RB43, and RB29. Obviously, part of the issue is that Baltimore is 1-4 and has been playing from behind for the majority of games this season. Losing Lamar Jackson to a hamstring injury also hasn’t helped matters.

Baltimore’s Week 6 opponent, the Los Angeles Rams, has been very good against the run this year. Los Angeles allows the 10th-fewest rushing yards per game and third-fewest PPR points per game to opposing backs. Cooper Rush is set to start again at quarterback for the Ravens, so we are likely looking at another negative game script for Henry.

Throw in the fact that he offers no real upside as a receiver, and this is looking like a spot for managers to leave Henry on the bench. Sitting Henry admittedly feels crazy, but that’s the sad reality facing him and the Ravens until Jackson returns healthy.

If gamers can afford to do so, they should consider starting other options this weekend.

Garrett Wilson - WR, New York Jets vs. Denver Broncos

Wilson has gotten off to a nice start so far in 2025. He is currently the PPR WR5, but this week might be one to fade him. Wilson takes on a Broncos defense that ranks eighth in DVOA against opposing WR1s and allows just 4.4 receptions and 34.8 receiving yards per game to WR1s, too.

That’s largely due to the presence of star cornerback Patrick Surtain II. Wilson will most certainly be matched up against Surtain for the majority of this game, and he could have a hard time finding room to operate here. When these two teams squared off last year, Wilson only posted a 5-41-0 line on eight targets. We could see similar results this year.

If you drafted Wilson, you've likely played him every week and have been riding his hot start. That could end this week, though, as this is a tough matchup for the former Ohio State Buckeye. If you have enough depth at wide receiver, you should consider leaving Wilson on the bench.

Kyle Pitts Sr. - TE, Atlanta Falcons vs. Buffalo Bills

Pitts has been a pleasant surprise this year. He looks healthy, is playing with a heightened sense of urgency, and is beginning to resemble the player we were all excited about following his rookie year.

While that’s great to see, this week may not be a great time to throw Pitts into your starting lineups. Buffalo allows an average of 2.2 receptions and 22.6 receiving yards per game to tight ends. The Bills have also allowed the second-fewest PPR points per game to tight ends and have given up just one touchdown to the position this season.

Atlanta starter Michael Penix Jr. could really struggle against Buffalo’s defense in this game, and that would also ding Pitts’ outlook. Leave him on your bench and consider other streaming options.

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