Week 5 was kind in regards to not many fantasy relevant injuries occurring which is usually the life blood of waiver wire action. Despite the lack of injuries there are still some players out on the wire you should consider picking up to play in week 6 and others that are worth a bench stash. Two teams are on bye this week; Buccaneers and Vikings. Good luck!
Note: all waiver picks listed here will have only been owned in 50% or less of Yahoo leagues at the time of publication.
Quarterback
Alex Smith (KC) - 18% owned - The Chiefs are coming off a bye-week and return to action against a Raiders defense giving up a league-worst 331 yards per game to opposing quarterbacks. This means Smith should be a great streaming option if you're in need.
Running Back
James White (NE) - 46% owned - White has made the list two weeks in a row which means you're missing out if you haven't added him yet. With Brady returning White put up his best fantasy performance of the season with 26 yards on 5 carries and added another 63 yards on 4 catches. Most of his damage came in the first half so It's reasonable to assume his numbers would've been higher if the Patriots hadn't been dominating the entire game.
Devontae Booker (DEN) - 9% owned - The fourth round rookie ended up receiving only 4 fewer touches than the recently underperforming C.J. Anderson in week 5 which indicates the Denver backfield could be headed into a timeshare if Anderson continues to struggle. If you have the bench space available, Booker is worth an add and stash for a couple weeks to see how the situation shakes out.
Honorable mention: Kenneth Dixon (BAL) - 38% owned
Wide Receiver
Cameron Meredith (CHI) - 4% owned - Last week I thought Eddie Royal would see an uptick in production but instead it was the second year Meredith that exploded for 130 yards and a touchdown catching 9 of 12 targets. He should be locked in as the number 2 receiver behind Alshon Jeffery after this performance.
Jeremy Kerley (SF) - 9% owned - Kerley has put up back to back big games now catching 14 of 22 targets for 190 yards and two touchdowns over that span. What's most interesting is he is averaging 9 targets per game throughout the season which means he should have a decent floor week to week.
Honorable mention: Robert Woods (BUF) - 29% owned
Tight End
Jesse James (PIT) - 23% owned - James has now found the end zone in 3 of the last 4 games after scoring in week 5 on top of catching 6 of 8 for 43 yards. If you need a fill in for tight end this week look to James for a decent chance for a touchdown.
Honorable mention: Cameron Brate (TB) - 41% owned
Defense/Special Teams
Tennessee Titans (TEN) - 6% owned - The Titans defense has been consistently average for fantasy purposes all season, but I knock them up a few pegs this week since they play against Cleveland.
The final preseason games of any meaning claimed three more fantasy starters over the weekend. On Friday night, Julian Edelman and Spencer Ware both went down with knee injuries. Then, on Sunday, just as the Bears offense looked like it was really clicking, the Bears WR1 Cameron Meredith destroyed his knee.
Your draft may have already happened, or maybe it's coming up. Either way, you need to look to these fast rising replacements to keep your fantasy team stocked up before the season starts.
Danny Amendola & Chris Hogan - With Julian Edelman going down, the Patriots have a huge hole to fill, even with the offseason acquisition of Brandon Cooks. Danny Amendola might be the most likely to fill the slot role that Edelman was in, and comes with a very cheap price tag right now.
Amendola, ADP WR64, is currently going after Hogan, ADP WR53. I expect both to shoot up the ADP list by this time next week, so scoop them up before the final rounds of your draft if these are the guys you want.
Kareem Hunt - Rocketing up the ADP chart, Hunt may be a rookie, but he's going to have a very large role in the Chief's offense right away. Spencer Ware was already giving up carries to Hunt before his knee injury. Now, according to Coach Andy Reed, Hunt will be the "featured back".
This is great news for anyone who can get their hands on Hunt. He is unlikely to have to share many carries with Charcandrick West and C.J. Spiller. Hunt's current ADP is RB28, but is certainly now an RB2 with lots of potential RB1 upside. He will need to be drafted the first half of the draft now, as his stock is rising sharply.
Kevin White, Kendall Wright & Victor Cruz - Replacing the Bears' breakout WR from 2016, Cameron Meredith, will be a tough job from a WR core that's rather lacking. One of these guys will rise to the top and be startable throughout the season. Right now, Kevin White is the only guy even being drafted, and he certainly seems to have the inside track.
With White's ADP sitting at RB63, I would recommend Amendola over him. I do suggest a flyer, however, on Kendall Wright. He has shown some great flashes at camp and in the third preseason game, all three of his receptions were third-down conversions. If he winds up being the go-to guy, he will be a great PPR play every week. He can currently be had at the end of the draft, or perhaps off your waiver wire.