The fantasy football landscape is always fluid, ever changing on a weekly (sometimes even daily) basis. Injuries are a major factor there, as we’ve recently seen Rex Burkhead’s unfortunate placement on injured reserve boost Sony Michel’s stock, while the entire 49ers offense is primed to lose value with Jimmy Garoppolo out for the season. Bye weeks are another component, with both Washington and Carolina taking this week off. Fantasy owners who are reeling after three weeks and are stacked with players on a bye may be forced to pull the trigger on a trade to try and save their season. Yet another element that alters the fantasy landscape is that certain rookies start to separate themselves from the pack at this point in the season and change the dynamics of their offense. Cleveland’s skill players get a boost with Baker Mayfield at the helm and Calvin Ridley’s emergence could both hurt Atlanta’s other receivers and help Matt Ryan.
One of the keys to identifying which players to target in a trade is understanding which players are due for increased production based on these and other factors that can heavily alter a player’s value for the better. In contrast, knowing which players to sell is about finding which guys are set to enter less appealing situations or have overachieved with a lousy offense or limited volume. Fortunately for you, our featured experts have scanned through every situation across the league and have scoped out their favorite discounted trade targets along with which players you would be wise to sell at a premium while you still can.
More Trade Advice:
Trade Analyzer | Trade Value Chart | ROS Rankings
Pick Recap
| Expert | Buy Low | Sell High |
| Andrew Gould – FantasyPros | Sony Michel (RB – NE) | Adrian Peterson (RB – WAS) |
| Rich Piazza – Fantasy Shed | Le’Veon Bell (RB – PIT) | Adrian Peterson (RB – WAS) |
| Elisha Twerski – Cheesehead TV | Jarvis Landry (WR – CLE) | Calvin Ridley (WR – ATL) |
| Mike Tagliere – FantasyPros | Mark Ingram (RB – NO) | Isaiah Crowell (RB – NYJ) |
Q1. Who is your favorite buy-low trade candidate at this point in the season and who are you willing to give up for him?
Sony Michel (RB – NE)
“This is the last chance to snag Michel. The rookie took another step toward solidifying a larger role by accruing 14 carries even though New England never led in Week 3’s loss to the Lions. It’ll be tougher to steal him from an informed owner now that Rex Burkhead (neck) has landed on the injured reserve, but it’s worth a try for someone who wields legitimate RB1 upside if Tom Brady gets the offense back into gear. I’d be willing to move Adrian Peterson, Isaiah Crowell, Royce Freeman or a receiver such as Marvin Jones, Nelson Agholor, Sammy Watkins, or Calvin Ridley.”
– Andrew Gould (FantasyPros)
Jarvis Landry (WR – CLE)
“The guy I’m trying to get in all of my leagues is Landry. Tyrod Taylor was never going to be constructive to Landry’s fantasy value due to his inability to get the ball downfield. Enter Baker Mayfield. In two quarters and change with the rookie at quarterback, Landry caught seven of 10 targets for 91 yards. Any time you have the opportunity to buy low on one of the highest volume receivers catching passes from a talented QB, you have to pounce. Some of the players I’m including in offers for Landry are Calvin Ridley, T.Y. Hilton, Demaryius Thomas, Robert Woods, Devonta Freeman, Carlos Hyde, and Adrian Peterson.”
– Elisha Twerski (Cheesehead TV)
Mark Ingram (RB – NO)
“Knowing that he’s got just one week left on his suspension, it’s Ingram. If you can get him before his owner realizes he’s a top-10 back the remainder of the season, good for you. Over the last four years, Ingram has posted RB2 or better numbers 68 percent of the time. By comparison, there were just 10 running back to top that number in 2017 alone. Ingram is well worth trading someone like Stefon Diggs or Brandin Cooks for.”
– Mike Tagliere (FantasyPros)
Le’Veon Bell (RB – PIT)
“Too obvious? Too risky? Sure, it could be both, but if you’re sitting at 2-1 or 3-0 right now, you are in a good spot. You drafted well, and probably did a nice job on the waiver wire too, so if you have the depth, this move can pay off in a big way. I can’t tell you when Bell is coming back, or even which team he comes back to, but he isn’t going to sit out the entire season. Find the Bell owner and see what they need. If you have a couple RB2s to go along with your RB1, one of those in itself could be enough. Were you fortunate enough to draft Patrick Mahomes to go along with Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, or Cam Newton? A quarterback on their level could work too.”
– Rich Piazza (Fantasy Shed)
Q2. Who is your favorite sell-high candidate at this point in the season and what would you try to get in return?
Adrian Peterson (RB – WAS)
“Only four running backs (Todd Gurley, Alvin Kamara, Melvin Gordon, and James Conner) have amassed more standard fantasy points than Peterson. He’s shown what he can do in the right situation, but he also displayed his downside by settling for 50 yards (20 rushing) in a Week 2 loss. Don’t count on the 33-year-old effectively managing a 20-touch workload for an entire season, especially since he hit a wall in all but three strong outings last season. See if you can upgrade at another position of need by swapping him for Marshawn Lynch, Sony Michel, or maybe even Jordan Howard, all of whom are higher in my rest-of-season rankings. If you need a receiver, you can try to fetch a strong WR2 like Jarvis Landry or Stefon Diggs.”
– Andrew Gould (FantasyPros)
“I actually laughed at those that were drafting Adrian Peterson heading into the season. Well, he obviously proved me wrong through the first three weeks, but that doesn’t mean that I’m a believer. I understand that trading away a running back may not be ideal depending on your depth, but if you can move a 33-year-old back who hasn’t been a real factor since 2015, you should do it. I would look to move him for a lesser RB with upside (like Royce Freeman) and a WR2 combo.”
– Rich Piazza (Fantasy Shed)
Isaiah Crowell (RB – NYJ)
“It’s got to be Crowell for me. Yes, he scored two touchdowns in Week 3, but he also totaled just 34 yards on 16 carries. The week prior to that, he amassed a pedestrian 35 yards on 12 carries against the Dolphins. He’s going to be a touchdown-or-bust option most weeks and the Jets offense isn’t exactly a high-scoring one. I’d prefer to get a running back who’s part of a high-scoring offense in return who has more week-to-week potential. If someone is panicking on Kenyan Drake, maybe you’re able to get him straight up. I’d be willing to take Mike Williams in exchange, though you can likely get more.”
– Mike Tagliere (FantasyPros)
Calvin Ridley (WR – ATL)
“If you were fortunate enough to draft or claim Ridley, you might want to consider selling high. There’s nothing like a matchup with the Saints to inflate a player’s value. In truth, Ridley’s ceiling is closer to what he did in Week 2 than his massive Week 3 performance, given that Julio Jones is still there and Devonta Freeman is coming back. Sure, he can easily sustain WR2 value for the rest of the season, but I’d look to see if anyone is willing to buy at the value of what he has done over the last two weeks. I would include him in a package for Ezekiel Elliot, David Johnson, Jarvis Landry, Joe Mixon, Rob Gronkowski, Dalvin Cook, Zach Ertz, or Emmanuel Sanders.”
– Elisha Twerski (Cheesehead TV)
Thank you to the experts for naming their trade candidates. Be sure to give them a follow on Twitter if you’re not already doing so and check out our latest podcast below for more great advice.
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