With each wild week fantasy managers are getting more and more frustrated. They’re seeing their teams that looked dominant after the draft fall apart. The best fantasy managers don’t get down though. Instead, they look to the waiver wire and try to make trades to get out of the hole. Here are the top three players added, dropped and traded as we head into Week 5 of the season.
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Fantasy Football Roster Trends: Adds, Drops & Most Traded (Week 5)
Most Added
After finishing as the TE1 in Week 4, 7.1% of linked leagues added Tucker Kraft to a team. I mean, I get it. In a year when tight ends are even crazier than ever in fantasy scoring, chasing points seems to be the norm. Kraft saw nine targets, catching six for 53 yards and a touchdown. Without his 13-yard touchdown catch, Kraft would have been the TE9. That’s just where we are right now. I don’t mind adding him, but given how unpredictable touchdowns are, I’m not starting him immediately if I can help it.
Fellow Packer Dontayvion Wicks also makes this week’s list, being added in 6.9% of linked leagues on FantasyPros. Much like Kraft, Wicks also blew up in Week 4. He only caught five of his 13 targets but made the most of them by going for 78 yards and two touchdowns. The Packers were on fire in the second half and QB Jordan Love looked like a man possessed. Although they came up just short of winning, Wicks was the name everyone remembered. Due to teammate Christian Watson‘s injury and potentially missing time, I would rather add Wicks than Kraft. Now that bye weeks are here, you might find yourself starting Wicks in your Flex, too. I don’t hate it.
Last but not least on the most added list is none other than Kareem Hunt, who was signed off the street by the Chiefs. Hunt started his career in Kansas City in 2017, so seeing him back in red and yellow feels right. He also played well in Week 4, recording 14 carries for 69 yards. He also caught two of his three targets for 16 yards. This was good enough to be the fantasy RB28 in PPR scoring. That’s not amazing, but for a first game back, I’m happy with it. I’m not at all shocked that 4.5% of leagues saw him get added to benches this week. He might be Flex-worthy if he can do it again in Week 5.
Most Dropped
On the flip side of the Hunt addition is a Carson Steele subtraction. He was sent packing to the waiver wire in 4.1% of leagues, potentially in a transaction that added Hunt in return. Steele looked terrific in Week 3, getting 72 yards on 17 carries, but he lost his second fumble of the season in Week 4, finishing with negative 0.4 points on the week. You would have been better off starting the injured Isiah Pacheco instead of Steele. That’s a brutal thing to see. I’m not at all shocked Steele is getting cut the most this week.
Next on the list is Cam Akers, who was dropped in 2.9% of linked leagues after a disappointing Week 4. Akers saw the most carries of the season with 13 touches for 53 yards but had zero catches. In PPR leagues, he finished as the RB49. Both RB Joe Mixon and Dameon Pierce missed the game, so a lot of fantasy managers expected Akers to thrive. Instead, Dare Ogunbowale saw the lion’s share of the carries. Ogunbowale finished as the RB19 in PPR scoring and is the hot hand in Houston. This leaves Akers on the outside looking in. He’ll likely be on waivers in most leagues if he’s not already there.
How far Mike Gesicki has fallen in two short weeks. He saw nine targets in Week 2, catching seven of them for 91 yards. In Week 4, he caught his lone target for negative nine yards. He barely finished above zero in PPR scoring. Because of that a lot of fantasy managers decided to move on. This week he was third in drops with 2.4% of leagues seeing him hit waivers. Similar to Akers, Gesicki also appears to be taking a back seat to a teammate. Rookie Erick All seems to be taking more of a role in the new Bengals offense in recent weeks, catching all four of his targets in three straight weeks. Once he gets a touchdown, All will go through he roof, which is why Gesicki is being dropped early and often.
Most Traded
Something is brewing in Las Vegas. Davante Adams missed Week 4 and has been involved in a ton of trade rumors ever since. The Raiders don’t seem against the idea, which just adds fuel to the fire. Because of this, fantasy managers are following suit. Adams was traded in 1.4% of linked leagues, likely in the hope he lands on a better team than he’s on now. That hope is driving a lot of people to make moves in either direction because volatility is an acquired taste.
Jacksonville has been very hard to predict this year. Travis Etienne specifically has been all over the map. He scored touchdowns in Week 1 and Week 2, which helped his fantasy scoring, but he had an average of 6.2 yards per carry in Week 3. In Week 4, however, he didn’t have a touchdown and averaged only 4.5 yards per carry. He also saw only one target in the passing game. Etienne was drafted as an RB1 but he’s performing a lot more like a Flex player. That’s why he tied with Adams for the most traded, being moved in 1.4% of leagues. If you trust the talent, you probably added him, but if you’re sick of the low scoring, you probably sent him away. I get both sides.
What are we doing with Garrett Wilson this year? I know last year was a write-off because of Aaron Rodgers going down, but that’s not the case this year. Instead of Rodgers being hurt, he’s just playing poorly. That’s a lot tougher to forgive. Wilson finished Week 4 as the WR60 in PPR scoring. He’s the WR39 for the season. If you drafted him in the top two rounds, you expected more. Now he’s being traded in 1.3% of leagues. Wilson drafters want out and are probably willing to sell low just to move on. Managers adding Wilson are likely doing so in the hope he turns it around. That’s the kind of risk trading was designed for, so I understand why he’s the third-most traded player this week.
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Andrew Hall is a featured writer for FantasyPros. For more from Andrew, check out his profile and follow him @AndrewHallFF.