The fantasy football trade deadline is getting closer and closer, which means you only have a few more weeks to get your roster right for the playoff race. Let’s look at the wide receiver position to give you our top picks for who you should consider targeting and who you should consider trading away.
If you’re looking for more trade advice, head over to our Week 8 Buy Low or Sell High article, where we look at all the skill positions and players you should consider.
Top Wide Receivers To Buy in Your League
Chris Olave, WR, New Orleans Saints
Fantasy managers are getting fed up with Chris Olave. We’re now seven weeks into the season, and he’s had more games with 3.1 or fewer fantasy points (three) than with 16+ (two). Olave is averaging 9.3 fantasy points per game and has been a fantasy WR5. But this is still a really talented player.
Despite all his failings, Olave is averaging 2.14 yards per route run and 9.7 yards per target. For reasons that are hard to understand, his target share sits at a lowly 17.4%.
Derek Carr is likely returning in Week 9. Rashid Shaheed is done for the season. The Saints will need Olave over the second half.
Beginning in Week 9, the Saints start a stretch of games against average or worse pass defenses. They also face a handful of opponents likely to make them throw to keep up.
Given how poor Olave’s production has been, he may be acquirable for a WR3 price. I would pay that willingly.
DeVonta Smith, WR, Philadelphia Eagles
Did we just see the worst game of DeVonta Smith’s entire career? Probably. He’s had 0 receiving yards in a game before. He’s never had fewer than you or I did watching the game from our couches.
The Eagles dominated the Giants with Saquon Barkley and a deep A.J. Brown touchdown. They just didn’t need Smith.
Going forward, the Eagles have a lengthy stretch of games against below-average to bad pass defenses on teams with offenses capable of participating in a shootout.
Prior to this week, Smith had 14.9 fantasy points in every game this season. If his manager is worried about him, feel free to take Smith off their hands.
Amari Cooper, WR, Buffalo Bills
It’s great for fantasy managers that Amari Cooper scored in his Bills debut, but it would’ve made buying him a whole lot easier if he didn’t. Cooper caught four passes for 66 yards and the aforementioned touchdown. Yet, he barely played.
Having been with the team less than a week, Cooper was used sparingly due to his limited knowledge of the playbook, playing just 19 snaps and running 12 routes, both fourth on the team at WR. As a testament to his immense ability as a route runner and his overall high football IQ, Cooper scored on a play in which he didn’t even know what he was supposed to do.
Amari Cooper just scored his first touchdown with the Bills and he had no idea what the play was! Y’all gotta see this. 🤣 🤣
When you know what you’re watching, football is so much more fun. #BillsMafia | #AchoAnalysis pic.twitter.com/KTt646KJow
— Emmanuel Acho (@EmmanuelAcho) October 20, 2024
As the weeks go by, Cooper will become more integrated into the offense. He will learn the playbook better and eventually become the clear WR1. It wouldn’t be a shock if that happened as soon as this week. If his manager is looking to “sell high” off what appears to be a flukey high-scoring debut, gladly accept.
Malik Nabers, WR, New York Giants
From Weeks 2-4, Malik Nabers was the best wide receiver in fantasy. Then, he missed two games with a concussion before returning and posting a complete dud against the Eagles.
When Week 8 begins, it will have been a month since Nabers did anything useful for fantasy managers. See if you can’t use that to your advantage.
The Giants have a tough matchup this week against the Steelers. It could be another rough go of it for Nabers. Perhaps you want to wait a week. But beginning in Week 9, the schedule really opens up.
The Giants only have one more game against a defense better than bottom 10 against the pass. Seven of the Giants’ final eight games have shootout potential. If there is any discount at all, buy.
Top Wide Receivers To Sell in Your League
Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, Seattle Seahawks
No one is necessarily looking at Jaxon Smith-Njigba as some every-week must-start player. But his performance has been better than his usage.
Smith-Njigba is purely a PPR scam. His aDOT is somehow lower than it was last year. He doesn’t earn volume — it’s purely a product of circumstance when he gets targeted.
JSN caught three passes for nine yards against the Falcons. With DK Metcalf going down with an injury, fantasy managers may think this is a chance for JSN’s value to spike. In actuality, it’s merely an opening to sell him.
Diontae Johnson, WR, Carolina Panthers
It looks like the Andy Dalton honeymoon is over. The Commanders have been better defensively, but there’s no defending throwing for 93 yards and two interceptions over a full game. There’s a very real chance we see the Panthers go back to Bryce Young within the next week or two. It’s unlikely to be any better.
Diontae Johnson caught just one pass for 17 yards against the Commanders. Back in Week 5, he caught three passes for 23 yards against the Bears. That’s more like what we saw in Weeks 1 and 2 with Young, and what might be happening going forward. If Johnson still has any semblance of the WR2 value he did a couple of weeks ago, see if you can get something usable in return.
Mike Evans, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
In my experience, fantasy managers tend to be overly optimistic when it comes to injuries. I get a lot of questions about buying or trading for injured players.
Mike Evans is 31 years old. While he doesn’t have a history of missing games, he does have a history of playing through nagging injuries, much like the hamstring strain he tried to play through last week. As a man in his 20s, he was able to fight through minor injuries. That gets much more difficult in your 30s.
Evans is out until at least Week 12. He might be back then. If he is, and you were able to survive until then, great. But there is likely someone in your league willing to take on the risk. If you can get 75 cents on the dollar and acquire a player who is playing the next four weeks, that’s a good move to make.
