AJ Barner And 3 Other Must-Start Tight Ends in Week 6 Fantasy Football

Start these four tight ends in Week 6 Fantasy Football, featuring AJ Barner and 3 others.

Oct 5, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Seahawks tight end AJ Barner (88) reacts after catching a touchdown pass against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the second half at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

Outside of the top end tight ends, most of the value at the position comes from touchdown opportunity. That has been an element seized by AJ Barner and Darren Waller thus far this season. The position has shown broad value across the board and that has given us the ability to find nuggets on a weekly basis. In Week 5, our must-starts did well: Theo Johnson (TE3), Darren Waller (TE6), Travis Kelce (TE8), and Hunter Henry (TE25). This is our Week 6 outlook.

Mark Andrews (Vs LAR)

Much like the start to last season, Andrews has struggled to have huge fantasy value this year. However, it is all very explainable. Andrews is still the TE16 and despite 3 targets last week, it was a 15% target share in a tough matchup versus Houston. Even with Cooper Rush, the target share is notable enough to find startable value.

The Rams rate 29th against the tight end this season. Given the Ravens struggles, they will likely fall behind, introducing a passing script. Andrews should have his usual 15-20% target share and find great value within it. Rush will pass much more than 20 attempts this week.

Fantasy Sports On SI Week 6 Ranking: TE22

Darren Waller (Vs LAC)

Waller should be a weekly must-start, but it does not appear that people are elevating him in that manner quite yet. Althought this will change once waivers clear, Waller is still owned in under 50% of leagues. We have seen all we need to see through two games. Waller already has three touchdowns and is still being ramped up to his full snap-load. The Chargers may rank 3rd versus the tight end, but given the success of Waller, he is a matchup proof must-start.

Fantasy Sports On SI Week 6 Ranking: TE10

AJ Barner (@ JAX)

AJ Barner might already be a top 10 TE in the NFL

True in-line dominator who doesn’t drop the ball and wins at the catch point pic.twitter.com/oGcx0xqgkE

— NFL Draft Files (@NFL_DF) October 5, 2025

Barner is gaining the full trust in this offense and it appears that any upside that Elijah Arroyo may have had is being stolen by Barner. He has 56% of team red zone targets this year, and has caught 100% of those passes (5-for-5). Barner also had a season-high seven targets in Week 5. His target share is still just 12%, but is very clearly rising week-over-week. This is definitely a higher-risk play, but his touchdown opportunity makes him a great start if need be. Barner has played zero snaps in the slot and that is the only strength of the Jaguars in coverage.

Fantasy Sports On SI Week 6 Ranking: TE20

Jake Tonges (@TB)

The 49ers seem to know how to work the "Next Man Up" mindset. They continuously have inuries but someone always seems to fill the role. In Week 5, Tonges and Kendrick Bourne both had fantastic games. As far as we are concerned, Tonges is already a top-ten caliber tight end. In fact, he is the TE10 despite not even starting every game. Week 5 was not even a high-leverage spot for Tonges but he did have a 23% target share that gave him his third touchdown of the year. This week, the 49ers face the 21st ranked Buccaneers tight end defense.