The New York Giants suddenly look like a practice squad on offense but that could also lead to some surprise performances from veterans like Shane Vereen. There are also players on bye like LeSean McCoy and A.J. Green and replacing that production will be hard to come by with low ceiling, safe plays. If you’re in search of sleeper candidates or trying to avoid starting a bust, our featured pundits are here to provide advice.

Find out who they feel offers the biggest upside that’s lower down in the rankings and which higher ranked players could disappoint this week.

If you don’t see any of your players listed below, be sure to check out our Who Should I Start? tool. You can also import your team into My Playbook for instant advice specific to your team.

Q1. Give us a player outside of our top 105 Flex that represents a deep sleeper start and tell us why you think he has upside this week.

Shane Vereen (RB – NYG): at DEN

“Vereen is somebody that I could easily plug into a flex spot on a week that has four teams on bye. As we all know by now, Odell Beckham and Brandon Marshall are lost of the season, and this week, Sterling Shepard is unlikely to play. Most will look to Roger Lewis to step up and yes he will get his targets, but I look to a vet like Vereen who will be a trusted security blanket for Eli Manning.”

– Joe Bond (Fantasy Six Pack)

“With the Giants losing Odell Beckham and Brandon Marshall for the season, and Sterling Shepard expected to miss the week, Shane Vereen should see a much-increased workload. He has already seen more targets this season than third-down backs like Chris Thompson and Tevin Coleman, plus the game script suggests plenty of passing, so he could be a sneaky start for desperate fantasy owners.”

– Bobby Sylvester (FantasyPros)

A.J. Derby (TE – DEN): vs. NYG

“Whether you stream tight ends due to preference or out of necessity given the injuries at the position, Derby could be just what the doctor ordered (no pun intended). Not only have the Giants allowed the most fantasy points to the position, they have allowed six different tight ends (in just five games) to finish as top-10 weekly performers as well as a touchdown to a tight end every week this season. Derby started slowly this season, but the Giants give him an opportunity to pick up right where he left off before the bye (4/75/1).”

– Kevin Hanson (EDSFootball)

Martellus Bennett (TE – GB): at MIN

“Call me crazy, but I’m going to keep going back to the well with Martellus Bennett. He’s seen 31 targets on the season, which ranks sixth among tight ends. Yes, he’s failed to score a touchdown to this point and he’s the only tight end with more than 23 targets who has yet to do that, but the Vikings may be the team to end that drought, as they have allowed a tight end touchdown in three of their five games this year. With Jordy Nelson and Davante Adams tied up with Xavier Rhodes, maybe it’s Bennett’s week to shine.”

– Mike Tagliere (FantasyPros)

George Kittle (SF – TE): at WAS

“Kittle caught seven of his nine targets for 83 yards and a touchdown last week, and now has an excellent matchup against the Redskins. Washington has allowed the third most fantasy points to the position. Tight ends have averaged 88 yards per game against Washington, and have scored a touchdown in each of the last two games.”

– Sablich Brothers (5th Down Fantasy)

Q2. On the flip side, what player inside the top 40 Flex is likely to disappoint fantasy owners this week?

Tyreek Hill (WR – KC): vs. PIT

“Hill has been more of a disappointment this early season and I see it continuing in Week 6 going up against a stout Steelers pass defense. I know some of you will look at last week and think, but he had double-digit points and scored. That was due to a punt return, something I don’t rely on. If you remove that he is just a receiver who has failed to go over 100 yards in all but one game this season and only scored twice so far.”

– Joe Bond (Fantasy Six Pack)

Doug Martin (RB – TB): at ARI

“Without a doubt, Doug Martin is going to disappoint a lot of people in Week 6 against the Cardinals. Not only do the Cardinals play better at home (they’ve allowed eight fewer points per game there since the start of last season), but they are dominant against the run. On the year, they’ve held opposing run games to just 3.29 yards per carry and have yet to allow a top-10 running back. The Bucs offensive line isn’t going to have as easy of a time blocking the Cardinals front-seven as they did the Patriots. Martin is more of a low-end RB2 than the RB1 he’s ranked as.”

– Mike Tagliere (FantasyPros)

Larry Fitzgerald (WR – ARI): vs. TB

“The one that most concerns me is Larry Fitzgerald, who already has two games with less than 40 receiving yards despite five easy matchups to begin the season. John Brown is back in the fold, Andre Ellington is seeing more work each game, and Jaron Brown is emerging, so we will likely see Fitz continue to fade as the season goes on, like he has done the past two seasons.”

– Bobby Sylvester (FantasyPros)

Carlos Hyde (RB – SF): at WAS

“After 15-plus touches in each of the first four games, Hyde managed to turn a season-low nine touches into just 18 yards (1.8 fantasy points) last week. Meanwhile, UDFA Matt Breida had season highs of 13 touches and 71 yards. As double-digit road underdogs, the 49ers have one of the week’s lowest implied totals. And with Kyle Shanahan saying he’ll use the dreaded “hot hand” approach between these two going forward, it’s difficult to trust Hyde at this point.”

– Kevin Hanson (EDSFootball)

Mike Evans (WR – TB): at ARI

“Evans will be shadowed by Patrick Peterson, and that should give Evans’ fantasy owners pause. Evans is always a red zone threat, even against the toughest coverage, but don’t expect a huge game from him this week.”

– Sablich Brothers (5th Down Fantasy)

Thank you to the experts for naming their sleeper starts and sits. Be sure to give them a follow on Twitter if you’re not already doing so and check out our latest podcast below for more great advice.



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