Fantasy Football Day Trader: Week 7

Welcome to the Fantasy Football Day Trader, where I present my favorite players to invest in as well as those to fade.  Fantasy football is a lot like the stock market, and this article series is meant to assist you with your investment portfolio.  I’m here to present my fantasy opinions for your consideration, and these are players that I’m actively trying to trade for/away in my personal leagues.  This article series will present fantasy players that I’m looking to move and the price tag that I think is fair.  You should always try to assess your trade partner’s valuation of players before jumping to a price tag that you assume is fair.  If you’re new to fantasy or if you’d like a refresher on general trade strategy, we have an evergreen article from 2019 to help: The Art of the Fantasy Football Trade.

We’re in the thick of it, and we’re starting to see which teams are for real.  Look at your league’s standings.  Now look at where you rank in “points for” and “points against”.  These three pieces of information are critical at this stage of the season, ESPECIALLY in keeper and dynasty leagues.  In fact, if my team is 1-5 and/or bottom-3 in “points for”…I would be trying to trade current assets away for future assets. Who will be valuable in Week 1 of 2022?  Strong teams should be looking to trade injured players, draft picks, and rookies to acquire “win now” pieces.  Conversely, rebuilding teams should be trading away “win now” assets for rookies, draft picks, and injured players.

Alright, let’s get to it!  Oh – and I now have a recurring guest in this article series…at least if Kyle let’s me continue to do this.  Who is it?  If you know me, you already know the answer.

Investments (Trade For)

Chris Godwin (WR, Buccaneers)
I believe Godwin is the least expensive top-15 receiver to acquire in all of fantasy.  People saw the huge week from Antonio Brown this past week, and it wasn’t his first boom week.  Mike Evans is a stud, leading the team in targets.  Gronk is coming back, and he’s been a touchdown machine while healthy.  Yet, Godwin is my favorite of them all.  While all three Bucs receivers are incredibly valuable for fantasy, Godwin sees the most valuable targets…the touchdowns are coming.  In fact, Godwin leads the league with 12 red zone targets (tied with Cooper Kupp).  Godwin started the season with three games above 14 fpts/g and has since had three games with fewer than 11 fpts/g.  Price Tag: WR2 | Risk Rating 2/5 (Medium-Low)

Brandin Cooks (WR, Texans)
Cooks has been a silent stud in fantasy, especially in leagues with a max of three starting WRs (2WR + 1 Flex).  He was on fire with 15.7+ fantasy points in each of his first three games.  He then played Buffalo and New England, two defenses who can eliminate their opponent’s best weapon.  Cooks is by far the best weapon on the Texans.  He was solid this past week, but many fantasy managers will be looking to “sell high”.  Cooks has finished five of his last six seasons with over 1,000 receiving yards and five touchdowns.  He’s well on his way to similar production through six games.  Cooks should be viewed as a solid WR2 but is likely valued as a middling flex option.  Price Tag: Flex | Risk Rating 1/5 (Low)

T.J. Hockenson (TE, Lions)
Hockenson was drafted to be great, as Jason says.  The guy is a stud entering his third year of the NFL.  In tight end terms, he’s entering his prime.  TJH started off hot but was unproductive Weeks 3-5: 2 fpts, 6.2 fpts, 3.2 fpts.  He bounced back in Week 6, leading the Lions in targets (11).  TJH was injured (knee) for the past couple of weeks and appears to be progressing.  TJH could easily become a top-3 fantasy TE by the end of the season, and I think now is the time to strike a deal.  Price Tag: Solid WR2 / RB2 | Risk Rating 3/5 (Medium)

James Robinson (RB, Jaguars)
Robinson is in contention as the best running back in the league.  He started the year off slow.  Why?  Because his coach limited his workload for no reason… But after Week 2, the Jaguars started to use Robinson more effectively,  and he’s been a monster since that time.  Robinson has been producing at a top-3 level on a bad offense, the same thing that happened last season.  Robinson is a great trade target and should continue to see a heavy workload.  If you’re in a keeper or dynasty league, you should recognize that Robinson is more valuable today than he will be in August, when 2021 first round pick Travis Etienne (RB) returns.  Rebuilding teams should be looking to trade away and “win-now” teams should be looking to trade for him.  (Redraft) Price Tag: Back Eng RB1 / WR1 | Risk Rating 2/5 (Medium-Low)

D’Andre Swift (RB, Lions)
(Evergreen).  Price Tag: I would hand over my house and car | Risk Rating 0/5 (zero risk)

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Fades (Trade Away)

Javonte Williams (RB, Broncos)
Javonte and Melvin Gordon have been splitting the workload all season.  Both have had productive weeks, but they are also limiting one another from a fantasy standpoint.  It appears that Gordon and Javonte will split the workload as long as they’re both healthy, but you will probably be able to find a leaguemate that believes in the shiny new toy that is rookie Javonte Williams.  Don’t get me wrong, don’t trade away Williams for pennies, but I would be trying to package Williams and a flex piece for an upgrade at RB or something like that.  Price Tag: RB2 | Risk Rating 3/5 (Medium)

Any Quarterback
I almost never trade FOR a quarterback in single-QB leagues.  It’s such a streamable position.  What does that mean?  It means that it’s relatively easy to start a serviceable QB from the waiver wire and QB depth is pretty deep.  While QBs can certainly be difference makers, they are more significant difference makers in the real NFL than they are in fantasy.  For this reason, most managers gain an edge by trading a solid QB for a solid RB, WR, or TE.