For most fantasy football leagues, this is the last week before the trade deadline. If you still don’t know when your trade deadline is, here’s an explainer that might help. Long story short, the deadline is either here or in the past, so get your trades in now before it’s too late.
Below are three players who you should look to trade high on, and three to trade low on. The trade-low targets are especially interesting for those looking to bulk up their roster for a championship run, while the sell-high is good for those looking to offload a player destined for an end-of-season dud.
The playoffs are nearly here. This is your last chance to move. Take advantage and get your roster set for a great finish to the season.
Buy-Low Fantasy Football Trade Candidates
Garrett Wilson, New York Jets, WR
Wilson has laid back-to-back stinkers for the Jets and is now on a bye. That’s the perfect chance to snag him from a team that needs starters this week and might be ready to give up on the talented WR.
The biggest concern is the Jets are now checked out, and Aaron Rodgers might shut it down. With only so many more games left in Rodgers’ career, I don’t see that happening. He’ll play out the string and try to prove, even to himself, that he still has some magic left.
Wilson has 14 targets in his last two games and is averaging even more over the course of the season. He’s been a bit boom-or-bust this year, but if you can get him for relatively cheap I love him in the playoffs, where he’ll face the Jaguars, Rams, and Bills.
Justin Jefferson, Minnesota Vikings, WR
I’m not sure if you can put one of the unquestionably best WRs in the NFL on this list, but that’s where we are with Jefferson currently, as a couple of fantasy experts have sounded the alarm on if there’s a problem.
From my perspective, the answer is no. It’s just a matter of time before Jefferson puts up some monster fantasy performances.
After making just 11 catches for 139 yards with 0 TDs in his last two games, anyone looking to offload Jefferson should be met with open arms. He’s still seeing just under 9 targets per game, is No. 3 in the NFL in air yards, and is commanding a 31% target share overall.
With games against gettable secondaries like the Cardinals, Falcons, Packers (twice), and Seahawks still on the schedule, Jefferson is a must-get if possible.
AJ Brown, Philadelphia Eagles, WR
I see a theme emerging from my last buy-low section: highly-drafted WRs who have underperformed.
Brown hasn’t caught a TD in four weeks and has failed to eclipse 14 points in all but one of those weeks as well. Still, he’s commanding 33% of the targets for the Eagles and is still toasting defenders. The problem is, Jalen Hurts hasn’t delivered a consistent ball to him.
A lot of that has to do with an Eagles offensive line that is better at run blocking than pass blocking. Saquon Barkley is also delivering a sensational season, which is concerning if you think the Eagles have established their best way to win is on the ground.
Still, to get a player like Brown at any discount is a win. The Eagles also play some soft secondaries down the stretch: Ravens, Panthers, Commanders, and Cowboys. I like Brown’s odds to breakout down the stretch.
Sell-High Fantasy Football Trade Candidates
Terry McLaurin, Washington Commanders, WR
This has nothing to do with McLaurin and more to do with his QB. Since injuring his ribs against the Panthers, Daniels hasn’t been driving the ball downfield the way he was previously. In his last three games, he’s averaging just over 200 yards passing per game and his completion percentage has dropped considerably.
That’s bad news for McLaurin, who just had his worst outing of the season, a 1-catch, 10-yard stinker. You could argue that was because the Commanders were on a short week, but I have concerns about Daniels that stretch back over the last three weeks.
Point to McLaurin’s consistency over the previous eight weeks as a reason someone should want him. But under the hood, he was saved by a 2-TD performance against the Giants, his only two catches on the day, and is averaging 3.3 catches and 66.8 yards per game since Daniels was hurt. If you take out the 2 TDs, he's averaging just over 10 points per game.
Sell now unless you think Daniels is ready to bounce back. I don’t.
D'Andre Swift, Chicago Bears, RB
It’s hard to sell an RB1 in a year where RBs have been scarce. But there are some concerning trends for Swift and his hold on the role atop the Bears depth chart.
Last week in Shane Waldron’s first game as Bears offensive coordinator, backup Roschon Johnson had 30 snaps to 41 for D’Andre Swift, ran 12 routes to 18 for Swift, had 11 total opportunities to 16 for Swift, and, most notably, he had 3 touches inside the 10-yard line to just 1 for Swift.
That’s concerning at best heading into the stretch run.
Swift had a nice 39-yard TD run against the Packers last week, but outside of that was held to 42 rushing yards on 13 carries. That’s 3.2 yards per attempt. If the Bears plan on giving Johnson more playing time, Swift’s value craters.
Kareem Hunt, Kansas City Chiefs, RB
I highlighted Hunt in this spot last week and I’d say that panned out, as he had only 60 rushing yards and 0 TDs. Now, Isiah Pachecho is expected to return from IR and will cut into Hunt’s playing time. Unless you think Pachecho is going to get injured again, which he hasn’t throughout his career, I’d trade Hunt for even a flex option moving forward.
Hunt is averaging just 3.7 yards per rush on the year and has been heavily dependent on TDs to boost his fantasy numbers. Pachecho has proven reliable in short-yardage situations, though I would expect to see Hunt snipe a few off him given his penchant to find the end zone. Either way, you’re playing with fire starting Hunt at all the rest of the season, so get what you can while you can.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Buy Low/Sell High: Immediate Trades to Make in Fantasy Football Week 12.
