Being 5-0 or 4-1 in fantasy football is so much fun. You've had a great last month of Sundays and are feeling good enough about your spot in the playoffs that you can do some long term roster planning. One easy way to do that – buying into a bye week.
Week 6 is the first time this season that four teams are on bye, which means that some teams are going to really feel a roster crunch. If you're in a good spot and one of the 0-5 or 1-4 teams in your league has a buy target on the Bengals, Lions, Dolphins or Vikings, consider trading them a player or two with good matchups this week for one of their stars on a bye. Use the standings to your advantage and create some trades that help the bottom feeder in the short term and you in the long term.
With that said, here are 10 fantasy football trade targets for Week 6:
Week 6 fantasy football players to buy
RB Woody Marks, Texans
We'll start with an obvious one. David Montgomery has been terrible for a month and then injured his groin in Week 5 and could miss time. Marks was good, not great with a big workload as a rookie, but Houston has since added Kayshon Boutte and Marvin Harrison Jr. at wide receiver. The upgrade in field stretching will make Marks a locked-in RB2 when Montgomery is out and potentially even for the rest of the season.
WR Devaughn Vele, Saints
The Vikings defense is blanketing the NFL and New Orleans was the latest victim in Week 5. Vele did not have a good game, but neither did anyone else, and he still tied for the team in targets (six) and catches (four). Try and buy low on the Saints current WR2 before a get-right spot against the Giants in Week 6.
TE Harold Fannin Jr., Browns
The second-year tight end finished with one catch on four targets against the Jets in a monsoon. It's really hard to throw and catch a soaking wet football. If the Fannin manager wants to sell low, worst case, his value should be higher in two weeks after playing the Ravens and Titans.
WR Luther Burden, Bears
Simple thought process: If a team's WR1 just played with two QBs who combined for 165 yards and three interceptions but is now on the cusp of getting their star QB1 back, you should buy low on that player. Burden has been serviceable without Caleb Williams and it seems unlikely he gets worse once Williams returns, which could be Week 6.
TE George Kittle, 49ers
If Deebo Samuel is hurt and misses any time, you might be playing wide receiver for San Francisco next week. It is getting bleak out there. Kittle had just five catches for 24 yards against the Seahawks but should return back to overall TE1 consideration over the next month with very little target competition against the Commanders, Falcons, Raiders and Cowboys.
Vikings DST
This is only for the top tier of fantasy rosters, as Minnesota is off this week and holding two defenses is rarely the right move. Especially when the Vikings come out of the bye to play the Colts, Lions, Bills, Packers and 49ers. And yet ... this Minnesota defense is top 3 in just about every category you care about. They get the Commanders and Jets in Weeks 16 and 17 to end the fantasy season. If you're comfortably making the playoffs, think about making this unconventional move.
More: 12 instant fantasy football takeaways from Week 5
Week 6 fantasy football players to sell
RB Jaylen Warren, Steelers
I'm a huge Warren fan – he leads Pittsburgh in both rushing (410) and receiving (230) yards – and don't put him on the sell list lightly. This is also the kind of move you should only make if you're packaging Warren and another player to get someone like Kenneth Walker or Derrick Henry. But if you can tier up, Warren has to deal with Rico Dowdle coming back to split the backfield as early as Week 6 and is probably going to have a decrease in carries.
WR Dontayvion Wicks, Eagles
Wicks had a solid five catches for 63 yards in London against the Jags, though it was without DeVonta Smith. Once Smith returns from a hamstring injury, Philadelphia might not be healthy enough on the offensive line (or anywhere else on offense, really) to support two pass catchers.
RB Bucky Irving, Buccaneers
Don't let Irving's huge "Thursday Night Football" of 21 carries/165 rushing yards/two total touchdowns distract from the Cowboys having potentially the worst rushing defense in the NFL. Tampa Bay has two other running backs (Kenneth Gainwell and Sean Tucker) who are always lurking to take away touches and has also been a mess offensively. If you can get someone excited about the eventual return of Baker Mayfield despite his dislocated thumb, maybe you can get a RB1 return for Irving.
QB Jacoby Brissett, Cardinals
The 33-year-old veteran has been the king of garbage time and an absolute delight as a late-round QB dart in fantasy. On Sunday, he ripped out three touchdowns and 292 yards on 47 pass attempts in a 45-21 loss to Detroit. However, the Cardinals are 1-4 with a putrid -54 point differential. It's a matter of when, not if, they go to third round rookie Carson Beck just to see what they have. Get something in return for Brissett while you can.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fantasy football buy, sell: 10 trade candidates for Week 6