RADIO
The Week 6 waiver wire adds lightning round for 2026 fantasy football. Our free agent list includes Woody Marks, MarShawn Lloyd, Samaje Perine, Germie Bernard, DeMario Douglas, Darius Cooper, Pat Freiermuth, Chig Okonkwo, Jameis Winston, and more.
The calendar continues to fly forward with another entertaining slate of football chiseled into the history books as Week 5 threw plenty at us. We'll do our best to take an early swipe at the initial read on what's transpired and how it will affect our game moving forward. Let's check in on early adds across several formats with our fantasy football waiver wire pickups lightning round heading into Week 6 of the 2026 NFL season, which sees the Bengals, Dolphins, Lions, and Vikings take their byes.
This quick reaction is for fantasy-relevant players going into Week 6. Key injuries to monitor are David Montgomery (groin), Will Shipley (foot), TreVeyon Henderson (ankle), Deebo Samuel Sr. (hamstring), KC Concepcion Jr. (head), T.J. Hockenson (concussion), Kenyon Sadiq (concussion), Tre' Harris (hamstring), Roman Wilson (finger), Ben Skowronek (calf), as well as Quinshon Judkins (foot) seen in a postgame boot, and more. Bookmark our league-leading news feed and set up app alerts for the best and most accurate information available.
This column will be published early in the week and updated daily as the site brings you in-depth waiver wire analysis for all positions. Waiver pickups are listed in priority order and broken down by position, covering those rostered in roughly 70% or fewer of Yahoo! leagues, from shallow standard options to deep PPR options. We do our best to walk the tightrope between "highly rostered player being dropped in shallow formats" and the "18-team double Flex sicko squad dart throw."
Bookmark our updated and revamped fantasy football rankings portal for all league formats!PPR rankings | Half-PPR rankings | Standard rankings | Rookie rankings | Superflex rankings | Dynasty rankings | Who To Start? | Injuries | Matchup Ratings | Strength of Schedule
Week 6 Running Backs To Add
Pickups are in priority order
Woody Marks (monitor Montgomery's status)
MarShawn Lloyd (O-line still a liability but faces DAL and DET next!)
Zach Charbonnet
Dameon Pierce (short-term dart only; monitor Shipley's status, as well as Saquon Barkley's recovery)
Brian Robinson
Tyjae Spears (not for performance, but outlook based on likelihood of a Tony Pollard trade)
Mike Washington Jr. (Ashton Jeanty not being at 100% raises MWJ's stock)
Emmett Johnson (will he earn more touches after the bye?)
Samaje Perine
Kendre Miller
Tyler Allgeier
Kaelon Black
Keaton Mitchell
Kimani Vidal
Roschon Johnson
Jaleel McLaughlin (odds are low they'd feature him even if Judkins' foot issue lingers)
Austin Ekeler
Najee Harris
Seth McGowan
Jaydon Blue (Perhaps the Shipley injury forces their hand into giving Blue a shot if Barkley remains out too)
Nicholas Singleton (ditto Pollard trade hopes)
Week 6 Wide Receivers To Add
Pickups are in priority order:
Jordyn Tyson (stash if available if you can afford to wait until ~Week 9)
Xavier Worthy (monitor Rashee Rice practice status following injury)
Courtland Sutton
Jakobi Meyers
Devaughn Vele
Tre Tucker
Dontayvion Wicks
Kendrick Bourne
Khalil Shakir
Keenan Allen
Keon Coleman
Germie Bernard (monitor Wilson's status)
DeMario Douglas
Tre' Harris (monitor hamstring issue)
Makai Lemon
Darius Cooper
Antonio Williams (monitor Diggs' status)
Kalif Raymond
Adonai Mitchell (monitor his finger recovery)
Tyreek Hill (can you afford to eat the roster spot to gamble on a Kansas City reunion?)
Malachi Fields
Jaylen Noel (monitor role following Marvin Harrison Jr. trade)
Ryan Flournoy
Brandin Cooks (monitor Samuel's status)
Jerry Jeudy (monitor Concepcion's status)
Efton Chism III
Kyle Williams
Christian Kirk (neat IR stash in case he's active and Samuel cannot go)
Marquez Valdes-Scantling (monitor injuries to entire LAC WR room)
Tank Dell
Jauan Jennings
Skyler Bell
Cody White
Laquon Treadwell
Isaiah Bond
Jalen Brooks
Treylon Burks
Josh Cameron
Week 6 Tight Ends To Add
Pickups are in priority order:
Brenton Strange
Hunter Henry
Pat Freiermuth
Chig Okonkwo
Tyler Higbee
Darren Waller
Michael Mayer
Charlie Kolar
Mason Taylor
Eli Raridon
Darnell Washington
Week 6 Quarterbacks To Add
Pickups are in priority order, with emphasis on Week 6:
Kirk Cousins (Buffalo track meet game incoming?)
C.J. Stroud
Aaron Rodgers
Jameis Winston
Jacoby Brissett
Daniel Jones
Sam Darnold
Jalon Daniels
Deshaun Watson
Michael Penix Jr. (monitor the rib injury; hard to advise picking up Tua Tagovailoa, but some in deep waters may be desperate)
Tyler Huntley
Tyson Bagent
Geno Smith
Week 6 Defenses To Add
Pickups are in priority order, with emphasis on Week 6:
Indianapolis Colts D/ST
New England Patriots D/ST
Kansas City Chiefs D/ST
Baltimore Ravens D/ST
San Francisco 49ers D/ST
New York Giants D/ST
Carolina Panthers D/ST
Who Should I Pickup Tool
Trying to decide who to pick up off the waiver wire? Check the Who Should I Pickup tool here:
Compare up to four players and we'll tell you who to pickup...
Who Should I Pickup? Some common 2026 fantasy football waiver wire decisions are regarding players like Woody Marks, MarShawn Lloyd, Samaje Perine, Germie Bernard, DeMario Douglas, Darius Cooper, Pat Freiermuth, Chig Okonkwo, and Jameis Winston. But not to worry, we are here to help make these waiver wire decisions and build winning teams in 2026. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups in 2026. Our free Who Should I Pickup? tool will help make your fantasy football waiver wire decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to pick up... all free! Make the right decisions.
2026 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Woody Marks, MarShawn Lloyd, Samaje Perine, Germie Bernard, DeMario Douglas, Darius Cooper, Pat Freiermuth, Chig Okonkwo, and Jameis Winston. These are some common searches for 2026 fantasy football waiver wire pickups.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player name. In the second box, search for the second player name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Pickup? button to see who the recommended waiver wire pickups are based on fantasy football rankings, projections, and more.
Recent Improvements For Who Should I Pickup? You may have noticed our Who Should I Pickup? tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win on the waiver wire in 2026. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, stats, projections, strength of schedule, enhanced search results with data to compare, and a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football waiver wire rankings and projections based on their research, and updates them constantly throughout the week. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked.
Popular Waiver Wire Searches. Curious to see some tough waiver wire decisions for 2026? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Pickup? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Player Comparison Searches - Who To Pickup
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Pickup tool for 2026 for Woody Marks, MarShawn Lloyd, Samaje Perine, Germie Bernard, DeMario Douglas, Darius Cooper, Pat Freiermuth, Chig Okonkwo, Jameis Winston:
More Waiver Wire Analysis
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