We push forward to Week 6 where the Cincinnati Bengals, Detroit Lions, Miami Dolphins and Minnesota Vikings are on a bye. So if you see any players from those squads that shouldn't be on waivers, try to take advantage of someone else's roster crunch.
Each week, we'll highlight diamonds in the rough or some players that just need to be rostered in more leagues on the defensive side of the ball. Keep in mind your scoring system and roster restraints when heading to the waiver wire to grab these IDPs.
Defensive Linemen
DE Austin Booker, Chicago Bears
The 2024 fifth-round pick has put together three solid weeks in a row. In Week 3, he had four tackles and followed that up with sacks in consecutive games. He had two sacks in Week 5 to give him four on the season. He has earned more playing time and should
be scooped up.
DT Jalen Carter, Philadelphia Eagles
Someone awakened the beast in Week 5; Carter had five tackles, two forced fumbles, two sacks and a pass defense. He had done very little on the season up to that point. I would not like to be the Carolina Panthers in Week 6.
Linebackers
LB Quincy Williams, Cleveland Browns
The Browns lost Carson Schwesinger to a sprained ankle on Sunday, and Williams stepped up with a season-high 11 tackles. He also forced three fumbles and had a pass defense. Pick him up and start him regardless if Schwesinger can play in Week 6.
LB Jaden Dugger, San Francisco 49ers
The rookie fifth-round pick had the best game of his young career with nine tackles and a sack. Now, Dre Greenlaw got kicked out of the game, which helped Dugger's tackle potential and upside. But let's see if this is a jumping off point for the starting strongside linebacker.
LB Devin Bush, Chicago Bears
Bush has been consistently OK each week. Week 5 was his best showing with eight total tackles. He'll face the run-heavy Atlanta Falcons in Week 6 with another opportunity to rack up tackles.
Defensive Backs
S Jonas Sanker, New Orleans Saints
Sanker picked up a fumble and took it to the house in Week 5. Looking deeper, though, he has had 10, three, seven, six and seven tackles in each game. With that consistent production, he belongs on a roster.
CB Jacob Parrish, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Teams are having their way with the Bucs defense, but Parrish has been busy the last two weeks with six pass defenses. He also had nine tackles in Week 5 and five in each of the two previous games.
S Jeremy Reaves, Washington Commanders
The 30-year-old safety has been consistently solid with seven tackles or more in four straight games. He has two pass defenses on the season and nothing else in the stat column, but those tackle numbers provide a decent floor for leagues that use more than one DB.
This article originally appeared on The Huddle: Fantasy football IDP free-agent report: Week 6
