Adam’s Eye: Week 6 DraftKings DFS Picks

Week 6 brings another 10-game DraftKings main slate loaded with intriguing value plays and a few obvious chalk cores. With the Packers, Colts, and Cowboys carrying the highest implied totals — and the Cowboys-Panthers matchup projecting as the most fantasy-friendly environment — ownership will once again tighten around a few popular builds.

Written by Adam Krautwurst, High Stakes DFS Pro

That means it’s critical to balance salary relief from underpriced options like Trevor Lawrence and Chris Olave with ceiling pivots such as Travis Etienne, Puka Nacua, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Let’s break down the best plays, stacks, and leverage spots to help you build sharper lineups for Week 6 DFS on DraftKings.

Week 6 DraftKings Cliff Notes

Smaller slate = tighter ownership. You’ll need to eat the best value in cash and find 1–2 leverage pivots in GPPs (RB or DST are great spots to flip).

The Cowboys–Panthers game looks like the most stackable shootout on paper; Packers/Colts carry the highest team totals among favorites in early models.

DK pricing lag shows up at QB ($5.1K Trevor Lawrence) and WR ($5.1K Chris Olave)—both jump off as value anchors.

Quarterbacks

Cash priorities

Trevor Lawrence – $5,100 (vs SEA)
Highest Projected Plus/Minus in the aggregated model. Salary posted before MNF spike game; brings cheap dual-threat floor/ceiling in a soft spot (SEA just got diced by Mayfield). Great salary relief for CMC/Puka builds.

Drake Maye – mid-tier
Projected borderline QB1 this week; consistent passing volume with some legs. Use when you don’t need the $ savings from Lawrence.

GPP pivots

Sam Darnold – mid-tier
Elite efficiency metrics; faces a pass-funnel (opponents skew pass vs JAX). Skinny stacks with JSN (see below).

Bryce Young – sub-$5K
Home splits are okay; Cowboys allow the most DK points to QBs so far. Cheap gateway to premium stacks on the other side (Dak doubles).

How to play it:
Cash: Lawrence.
Single Entry/3-max: Maye.
Large-field: Darnold (stack) or Young (value + game stack leverage).

Running Backs

Cash pool

Rachaad White – $6,000 (vs SF)
Highest RB Projected Plus/Minus with Bucky Irving likely out again. 80% snaps last week; goal-line + receiving usage.

Travis Etienne – mid/upper-tier
Workhorse: ~73% of RB rushes, plus routes/targets; game-script proof. Strong bring-back or pair with Lawrence in cash.

GPP leverage

Javonte Williams – mid/upper-tier
Projects as a top-5 RB with elite efficiency (YPC/YAC, explosive rate) and a cream-puff run D matchup.

Alvin Kamara / Jahmyr Gibbs – mid to upper
Direct leverage off the White/Etienne builds; both carry 25-point ceilings with receiving paths.

Notes:
If White becomes mega-chalk, consider Gibbs in GPPs.
Etienne is viable in all formats—pair with Lawrence in cash (no need to overthink correlation on a short slate).

Wide Receivers

Cash anchors

Chris Olave – $5,100 (vs NE)
Highest WR Projected Plus/Minus. 54 targets already; double-digit looks in 4/5. Volume floor + dome.

Puka Nacua – $8,700 premium
Projects as WR1 overall again; target share/TPRR are elite. Prioritize in cash if you’re on Lawrence.

Value & mid-tier

Tetairoa McMillan – mid-$5K
Under-$6K with WR1 usage (22.8% target share, 41.8% air-yard share). Friendly coverage matchup.

Nico Collins / Drake London – mid
Salary-friendly WR2s with ceiling; great when you pivot off chalk one-offs.

GPP shots

Jaxon Smith-Njigba
Alpha usage with Darnold: top-2 in target share/air-yard share; slate-breaking per-route production. Pair with Darnold.

George Pickens / Brian Thomas Jr. / Deebo Samuel
Mid-owned WRs with air-yards leverage. Brian Thomas’ underlying numbers scream buy.

Deep punt: Jalen Coker (if active) — cheap perimeter aDOT profile vs a defense hemorrhaging WR points; viable last-man-in for large fields.

Tight Ends

Cash

Tyler Warren – $4,900 (vs ARI)
Second-best TE Projected Plus/Minus; steady volume, strong home splits; ARI allows TE production (catches+yards).

GPP pivots

Trey McBride – $5,500 pay-up chalk alternative
Higher ceiling; use when paying off chalk RB to get different at TE.

Jake Ferguson $5,300 / A.J. Barner $3,600 (punt)
Ferguson: red-zone equity if you stack the Cowboys side.
Barner: cheap game-stack exposure if you attack SEA/JAX pace and pass volume.

Defenses

Chalk: Packers/Lions (projected favorites with pressure).
Leverage: Seahawks/Colts—cheaper, sub-10% owned; exploit variance and spend salary where it matters.

Stacks I Like

1) SEA @ JAX (pass-funnel + pace)
Sam Darnold + Jaxon Smith-Njigba
Bring back: Travis Etienne or Chris Olave (if you need salary elsewhere, swap bring-back).
Trevor Lawrence + Etienne (cash)
Skinny correlation; add cheap WR if news opens value.

2) DAL @ CAR (highest total, concentrated usage)
Dak Prescott + Jake Ferguson + George Pickens
Bring back: Bryce Young or Rico Dowdle as value correlation.
Bryce Young + Tetairoa McMillan
Double bring back Dak + Ferguson for game-theory leverage.

3) Value mega-stack
Trevor Lawrence ($5.1K) + Chris Olave ($5.1K)
Lets you jam Puka and one of Etienne/Javonte with a solid TE (Warren).

Quick Fades / Cautions

Eating too much chalk in the same lineup. If you lock White + Puka + Warren + chalk DST, make sure one skill slot is distinctly contrarian (Javonte/Gibbs, JSN, or Kamara).
Naked punt QBs in GPPs—pair your cheap QB with at least one teammate to capture TD correlation.

Cash Lineup (high floor, condensed volume)

QB: Trevor Lawrence
RB: Rachaad White
RB: Travis Etienne
WR: Chris Olave
WR: Puka Nacua
WR: Tetairoa McMillan
TE: Tyler Warren
FLEX: Drake London
DST: Packers
Why this works: Lawrence/Olave are pricing-lag values from the models; White’s role spikes with Bucky Irving out; Etienne/Nacua provide bankable usage; Warren is a TE value in a plus matchup; London/McMillan round out steady target shares.

GPP (ceiling, correlation + leverage)

QB: Sam Darnold
RB: Josh Jacobs
RB: Javonte Williams
WR: Jaxon Smith-Njigba
WR: Brian Thomas Jr.
WR: Chris Olave
TE: A.J. Waller
FLEX: Travis Etienne
DST: Colts
Why this works: Darnold + JSN stacks into a pass-funnel spot with Etienne as the bring-back; Jacobs/Javonte are direct leverage off chalkier RB constructions; BTJ brings air-yards upside; Waller is solid at 4K; Colts DST pivots off chalk defenses.

Week 6’s condensed slate leaves little room for error, so focus on identifying the right value anchors while finding a few sharp leverage pivots to separate from the field. Whether you’re building around Trevor Lawrence’s salary relief or paying up for elite volume with Puka Nacua and Travis Etienne, prioritize correlation and ceiling outcomes. As always, monitor injury updates and ownership trends heading into Sunday — small adjustments before lock can make all the difference in climbing the leaderboard.