Fantasy Football Week 6: Eliminator Picks To Keep You in the Game

So the worst-case scenario I predicted, along with my New Orleans Saints pick for Week 5, came true. It was, indeed, a shootout. Luckily, the Saints were able to hang on and I am still alive in the Eliminator Challenge heading into Week 6. With just over 20,000 perfect entries left in the ESPN version of the Eliminator Challenge, it's more crucial than ever to plan a few weeks ahead and beat the herd picks.

Here are my picks through Week 5:

Week 1: San Diego Chargers

Week 2: New York Giants

Week 3: Dallas Cowboys

Week 4: Green Bay Packers

Week 5: New Orleans Saints

A best-case scenario also transpired last weekend: The New York Giants, who received about half the selections last week (on ESPN and in my poll) lost 36-25 in a shocker to the Seattle Seahawks.

While I thought the Giants would win, there’s little to gain by going with the herd. Hats off if you avoided that pick. 

This week, the Atlanta Falcons seem to be a trendy pick, as they are garnering about a quarter of the selections so far. I do not like this pick. Carolina is a team that can score. They showed that last week when they hung 27 on New Orleans. As Cam Newton has shown no signs of slowing down, I’d hate to pick against Carolina on a week they put together a complete game.

The Green Bay Packers, New York Jets, Pittsburgh Steelers and Oakland Raiders round out the current top five selections on ESPN.

I have used the Green Bay Packers already. However, if you missed last week and are looking for as close to a sure thing as possible, I suggest the Packers at home against the Rams. If your entry is still perfect, I'd recommend saving the Packers. You'll have an extra edge (over me and others) if you have an additional strong team like the Packers in the later weeks.

As for the Jets, I'm not crazy about picking any team that has lost three in a row.

The Steelers, at home against the Jaguars, look like a strong pick as well. However, I'm looking to hold on to the Steelers for a later week's matchup.

I'll probably wait to take the Oakland Raiders in a division game, as they have absolutely destroyed the AFC West recently (6-0 last year, 1-0 this year).

The Bengals, at home, against the 0-5 Indianapolis Colts seems like the best pick to me. I'm shocked it is not in the top five selections. The Bengals handled the Jacksonville Jaguars on the road last week in a game I thought would be closer than 30-20.

I suppose there is some hesitancy picking against a winless team, but the Colts have not shown much on either side of the ball, and if I had to choose between Andy Dalton and Curtis Painter, I'd take Dalton.

Week 6 Selection: Cincinnati Bengals