Trade Targets for Week 4 (Fantasy Football)

As we head into Week 4 of the season, there will be managers who begin to panic and feel they need to make a change. It’s always worth trying to buy low on players who have been disappointments for players who have produced early on in the year and may not have a path of sustained success. With that being said, let’s go ahead and take a look at some players you can attempt to buy and some players you may consider selling.

Players to Trade For

Jaylen Waddle

While the Dolphins have been lighting up the scoreboard, unfortunately for fantasy managers, Waddle has not been a significant part yet. He had 11 targets in the first two weeks of the season and then missed Week 3 because of a concussion. Waddle seems like a great buy-low option for fantasy managers shooting for upside. Tyreek Hill is the unquestioned number one option, but Waddle has proven he can be a coveted fantasy asset alongside him, finishing as the WR7 last season. There will be brighter days ahead for Waddle, and there is likely a manager willing to move him for cheaper than he likely will be all season.

Christian Watson

I will throw out somewhat of a risky option here in attempting to trade for Christian Watson, who has yet to play this year due to injury. Watson erupted during the second half of the year last season, and while Rodgers may be gone, he should be in good hands with Jordan Love. Per Graham Barfield’s tweet below, Love has been quite the gunslinger, which will perfectly fit Watson’s game.

Christian Watson’s upside is insane…

Jordan Love ranks 1st in average depth of target (10.2 yards) and 3rd in deep throw rate (16.8% of attempts 20+ yards in air).

On throws of 10+ air yards, Love ranks 10th-best in catchable passes (72.5%)

Watson's aDOT last season: 14.1…

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— Graham Barfield (@GrahamBarfield) September 26, 2023

Watson managers likely have him sitting in their IR slot, but it’s worth a shot at a potential high-upside type of player in this Green Bay offense led by Love, who is a perfect match for Watson. Other Packers’ receivers have played well, but Watson will be the receiver you want on this team when he is healthy.

Josh Jacobs

After an RB3 overall finish in 2022, Jacobs has been off to a poor start this season for fantasy football. He has yet to top ten points in a game in half-point PPR formats. Part of that is because he has yet to score a touchdown. He still gets workhorse-type usage, ranking sixth in targets among running backs and 11th in rushing attempts. The risk is that the Raiders don’t get it together, as they currently sit towards the bottom of scoring offense. The reward outweighs the risk because people are giving up hope on Jacobs through three weeks of the season, and a buy-low opportunity is within reach. Jacobs currently sits as the RB27 in Half-point PPR leagues but finished in the top ten in two of the last three seasons. While it is certainly a different situation than before, the volume is there, and that is what I want to chase for buy-low targets.

Players to Trade Away

D’Andre Swift

I am rooting for D’Andre Swift to continue his dominant run of fantasy production, but he may be heading into a committee in Philadelphia. First, let me start by saying that Swift is clearly the best running back for the Eagles and could be a great fantasy asset for the remainder of the year. However, Kenneth Gainwell will be in the picture and could be a thorn in the side of Swift’s fantasy managers. Swift had 16 carries to Gainwell’s 14, although Swift was way more productive, rushing for 130 yards to Gainwell’s 43. For context, Gainwell received a bulk of his carries in the fourth quarter, but as Dwain McFarland points out, they seemed to have rotated quarters.

Yeah, I thought that too but looked like they were basically rotating quarters.

Snaps:

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Q1: Swift 94%, Gainwell 6%
Q2: Swift 28%, Gainwell 72%
Q3: Swift 84%, Gainwell 16%
Q4: Swift 0%, Gainwell 100%

And yes, we should expect 4-min offense to be a real role that counts for PHI.

— Dwain McFarland (@dwainmcfarland) September 26, 2023

The Eagles could have let Swift get some rest in the fourth quarter because of the significant lead, or they may plan to rotate the two running backs. Also, if they did bench him because of the lead, that may happen often, as the Eagles will likely be ahead in plenty of matchups. Swift has yet to see much work in the passing game, so he doesn’t have that to fall back on, and Jalen Hurts will steal goal-line opportunities. Before this season, Swift had only seen 15+ rushing attempts in four games of his career. It will be interesting to see how the season unfolds going forward, but I would try to sell high on Swift if I can get a sweet deal.

Mike Evans

One of the most underrated receivers from year to year is Mike Evans. He was underdrafted again this season but is off to a stellar start, currently sitting as the WR5 through three weeks. A big reason he is the WR5 overall is that he has caught a touchdown in each game this season. I love Mike Evans, and I do not believe he is somebody you need to attempt to move away from outside from getting a potential upgrade at wide receiver or other position of need for your team. I still believe Evans has a good year, but I am hesitant to believe he maintains top-12 wide receiver production this season.

Christian Kirk

Over the last two games, Christian Kirk has produced similarly to what he did in 2022 when he finished as the WR11 on the season. Zay Jones has been injured for about a game and a half, and Calvin Ridley has had back-to-back dud weeks. If you can sell Kirk, you should try to do so. Once Jones returns, Kirk will be less productive. I still believe Ridley will be the receiver you want to roster most from this team. If you can use Kirk in a two-for-one trade to package with another player to try to upgrade, that is the best route.