We are now through eight weeks of the fantasy football season. Fantasy managers should always be looking to improve their rosters. With that in mind, here are a handful of players to explore trades for, either to buy low on those who are undervalued or sell high on those who are overvalued.
Top Trade Targets To Buy in Your League
Sam Darnold, QB, Minnesota Vikings
It’s tough to find quarterbacks to buy right now. Sam Darnold seems to stand out as a weekly QB1 who won’t be overly expensive.
Darnold has scored at least 15 fantasy points in all but one game this season. He has three games with 20+.
Over the next two weeks, the Minnesota Vikings have two soft pass defenses in games that could be high-scoring. Then, his stretch schedule is good but not great.
The Vikings have one of the better offenses in football. If you’ve been streaming quarterbacks, perhaps reach out to the Darnold manager if they have more than one and see if you can get the Vikings signal caller for cheap.
Alexander Mattison, RB, Las Vegas Raiders
Hear me out on this one. Alexander Mattison is obviously not a supremely talented player. The Las Vegas Raiders are also not an offense you want to necessarily invest heavily in. But Mattison is the clear RB1 on the team. This is not a timeshare.
Mattison predictably struggled against the Kansas City Chiefs’ elite run defense, running the ball 14 times for 15 yards. Yet, that was still better than Zamir White’s two carries for negative one yard. But the Raiders didn’t look terrible overall and they have a really favorable rest of season schedule for running backs, especially in the fantasy playoffs.
Mattison is probably not expensive to acquire. If you can pay an RB3 price, you may get RB2 production when it really matters.
Bucky Irving, RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Maybe it’s just me, but it doesn’t feel as though Bucky Irving is really getting his flowers from fantasy managers. He’s still in a committee with Rachaad White, but Irving has quietly been extremely reliable for three straight weeks. Irving posted games of 18.5, 16.7, and 15.4 fantasy points.
Irving has taken over as the clear goal line back. Yes, White has scored three times in the past two weeks, but all as a receiver. When the Bucs get near the goal line, it’s White getting the carries when they choose to run. Irving has eight goal line carries on the season. White has one.
Now, this is a move you may want to wait one more week to make. The Bucs get the Chiefs No. 1 run defense this week. Irving will likely go nowhere on the ground. But after that, it’s one of, if not the softest running back schedule for the rest of the season.
With Chris Godwin done for the year, Baker Mayfield is clearly utilizing his running backs more. Both White and Irving can thrive in this offense. The rookie offers more upside because of the touchdown potential.
Nico Collins, WR, Houston Texans
It is time. The Houston Texans’ offense is not the same without Nico Collins. Stefon Diggs injured his knee on Sunday and Tank Dell does not look like himself. They need Collins and, by all accounts, he is tracking to return as planned when first eligible in Week 10.
Collins will immediately reprise his role as C.J. Stroud’s top target and vault back into the top-five WRs weekly. If Collins’ manager needs instant help, send him a healthy player for the currently injured Collins.
Diontae Johnson, WR, Baltimore Ravens.
Fantasy managers have not gotten anything from Diontae Johnson for three of the last four weeks. In Week 8, he sat out with a rib injury. The days of WR1 Johnson appear over…for now.
According to Adam Schefter, Johnson is likely to be traded ahead of the Week 10 deadline. Much like Davante Adams, it wouldn’t be a surprise if his injury suddenly felt much better on a new team.
Wherever Johnson goes, the quarterback play will undoubtedly be better. He’s going to a contender. If you can still buy him for a WR3 price, there’s a chance you get a high WR2 from Week 10 onward.
I must amend my Diontae Johnson love in light of recent news.
Long Tweet/ For those wondering about potential impact to the #Ravens WR depth chart:
I’m told Diontae Johnson’s trade acquisition does not reflect a change in view of Zay Flowers and Rashod Bateman as the team’s current WR1 and WR2, per source.
While, I'm told Johnson was… pic.twitter.com/hQUNP9uhSf
— JosinaAnderson (@JosinaAnderson) October 30, 2024
This is a long tweet by Josina Anderson, but the crux of it is simple. Johnson is not immediately stepping into the WR1 role. While I do believe he is the most talented WR on the team, Zay Flowers is very good and Rashod Bateman has been playing the best football of his career this season. If this is true, and we have no reason to believe otherwise, Johnson is going to be a lot more boom/bust than he’s been throughout his career.
There will be weeks where he catches four passes for 80 yards and a touchdown. Those will likely come in games where Lamar Jackson has to be Superman and overcome his swiss cheese secondary. However, the likelihood that Johnson is an every-week startable WR3 is lower today than it was when the trade first happened. Therefore, Johnson is more of a hold than a buy.
Josh Downs, WR, Indianapolis Colts
Entering the season, Michael Pittman Jr. was the clear WR1 for the Colts, coming off the best season of his career. Josh Downs was largely an afterthought, his sneakily good rookie season flying a bit under the radar. It also didn’t help that he missed the preseason and the first two weeks of the season with a high ankle sprain.
Since his return, though, Downs has clearly been the best WR on the Colts. And he’s been at his best with Joe Flacco under center.
Anthony Richardson has been benched and head coach Shane Steichen has made it clear this is permanent. At the bare minimum, as long as the Colts are in playoff contention, it’s going to be Flacco.
Including the game Richardson got hurt in, Downs has scored 22.2, 15.9, and 19.5 fantasy points in three games with Flacco. He’s legitimately been a WR1 and I don’t think his managers are valuing him properly.
For example, I’d rather have Downs rest of season than Davante Adams or Amari Cooper. I’d rather have Downs than D.J. Moore. Yet, in trades, I suspect you may be able to get Downs and another piece when trading away one of these guys. This might be your last chance to buy before the cat is out of the bag.
Cate Otton, TE, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
This is the epitome of buying high, but I simply do not care. Last week, I hypothesized that the primary beneficiary of the injuries to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ WRs would be Cade Otton. I was more right than I could have ever imagined.
Cade Otton's second TD on #NationalTightEndsDay!
Bucs are back in it.
📺: #ATLvsTB on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/ZZDLInY3RP— NFL (@NFL) October 27, 2024
Otton was the overall TE1 on the week, catching nine passes for 81 yards and two touchdowns. Baker Mayfield managed just fine without his two top offensive weapons. This offense should continue to air it out, and Otton is currently the most reliable pass-catcher. He very well may be a top-five tight end rest-of-season. Buy.
Top Players To Sell in Your League
Jared Goff, QB, Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are too good. I believe this to be the best team in football and the clear favorite to come out of the NFC. Normally, that would be great for fantasy. But the Lions never find themselves in situations where they need to throw.
Jared Goff just won a game with 15 pass attempts and 85 total passing yards. Sure, he threw three touchdowns. But that is a scarily low amount of volume.
The Lions have an absolutely brutal schedule of pass defenses from Weeks 13-17. Those are the most important weeks of the fantasy season. If you can sell Goff based on his upcoming stretch of soft pass defenses over the next month, it’s a wise move to make.
Tank Bigsby, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars
For the second consecutive week, Travis Etienne Jr. missed the Jacksonville Jaguars’ game with his hamstring strain. Tank Bigsby operated as the lead back, carrying the ball 18 times for 78 yards, while catching two passes for eight yards.
The volume is very encouraging, but head coach Doug Pederson has made it clear that Etienne is not going away once he returns. Bigsby is the better player, but he needs volume to not be entirely dependent on touchdowns. The rest-of-season schedule is worrisome.
#Jaguars Week 8 RB Usage
– Tank Bigsby: 66% snaps, 18 carries, 13 routes, 3 targets (87 yds)
– D'Ernest Johnson: 34% snaps, 1 carry, 16 routes, 2 targets (23 yds)Pass game usage is encouraging for Bigsby
— Michael F. Florio (@MichaelFFlorio) October 27, 2024
The Jaguars get the Philadelphia Eagles, Vikings, and Lions before their Week 12 bye. Then they have the Texans, Tennessee Titans, and New York Jets. That’s a very difficult stretch of opponents. There are several good run defenses and potentially negative game scripts, which do not favor Bigsby. Cashing out now for a more reliable option is definitely something to explore.
Kareem Hunt, RB, Kansas City Chiefs
We have yet to hear any concrete news on Isiah Pacheco’s return. But it’s coming. As well as Kareem Hunt has performed, the 29-year-old plodder is nowhere near as good as Pacheco. When the starter returns, he’s getting his job back.
Hunt won’t be useless. He will still have handcuff value and perhaps some standalone value as the passing down back. But this every-week RB2 stuff will be gone.
The key here is to sell Hunt based on his upcoming schedule, because it’s awesome. Four of the Chiefs’ next five opponents are bottom 10 against the run.
We are getting to the point in the fantasy season where teams need to make roster moves specifically designed to either win in the playoffs or get to the playoffs. Hunt can help teams get there, but he won’t be of much use once we’re there if he’s backing up Pacheco. Plus, the Chiefs’ run defense schedule from Weeks 14-17 is one of the toughest in the league. If you’re already safely trending toward a playoff appearance, sell Hunt before it’s too late.
Davante Adams, WR, New York Jets
I want out on the Jets. Davante Adams is not cooked. He can still be a very effective wide receiver, but it might be over for Aaron Rodgers.
Adams caught three passes for 30 yards in his Jets debut. He followed that up with four catches for 54 yards.
The Jets keep losing games. Once it becomes clear their season is over, any small injury might be it for Adams. I fully expect Rodgers, who is dealing with multiple nagging injuries himself, to shut it down once the Jets are out of playoff contention.
Since Adams is a brand name, he may still carry some value. If you have him and can trade him for something comparable — maybe package him with another piece for Puka Nacua — that will be a beneficial move going forward.
Deebo Samuel, WR, San Francisco 49ers
There are many fantasy managers excited about the prospect of Deebo Samuel without Brandon Aiyuk for the rest of the season. We got a preview of his usage on Sunday night against the Cowboys and it was pretty good. But, of course, Samuel got hurt. Because he always gets hurt.
The issue with Samuel is not just that he’s always banged up, it’s how frequently he costs fantasy managers matchups because of in-game injuries. It’s already happened three times this season.
The 49ers are heading into their bye. From Weeks 13-16, they have a very difficult stretch of pass defenses.
Samuel is being valued by some as a WR1. Trade him away at full value and get a more reliable WR2 plus another piece.
Sam LaPorta, TE, Detroit Lions
Somehow, in a game where Jared Goff threw for a mere 85 yards, Sam LaPorta had his best game of the season. LaPorta caught six passes for 48 yards and a touchdown. He accounted for 56% of Goff’s yards.
Since LaPorta is a household name, there may be someone in your league who thinks this is the start of his return to glory. I don’t think it is. This may be your only chance to sell him as a TE1.