Week 6 is over and we are finally getting a grasp on who is worth keeping and who may be on their way out the door. With values rising and falling, trades start occurring more often and we start becoming more or less attached to players that we drafted.
The point of a trade is to make your team better, that part is obvious. But Trade Etiquette is something that many people lack. There are no set of rules for the way a trade should happen, but without a common set of grounds, do you know what happens? Chaos. Chaos happens. And there's nothing more dangerous in this world than a pissed off fantasy football player. Scratch that - it's really funny seeing pissed off fantasy football players, relax, it's a virtual game.
Yes, you want to get the better part of the trade, if there even is one, but don't be that guy who offers his entire bench for Aaron Rodgers. You know the deal won't get accepted, so quit. There are unwritten rules when it comes to trades:
1. Be clear. When I say clear, I mean be as clear as you can. I should be able to tell if we're trying to make a trade at this very moment or if we're just tossing around ideas for the future. Getting straight to the point means that you want this trade to happen faster than CJ Anderson's valued plummeted (too soon?). Saying something like "wanna trade LaGarrette Blount for Ronnie Hillman?" means that this trade can happen at this very moment. It's an open invitation for the recipient to either accept or deny. However, saying something like "I'm looking to ship away Randal Cobb" opens the conversation for discussion. Be clear what your intentions are, it's easy.
2. Respond. A lot of fantasy football talk happens away from your respective site. For instance, my league has a Facebook page where a majority of trade and smack talk occurs. Even if someone offers you a trade that you aren't the least bit interested in, respond. Nothing is more frustrating than when you offer someone a legitimate trade and you just don't get a response. Sure, most of us have jobs that don't revolve around fantasy football, or whatever (those are more like hobbies anyway), so it's understandable that you can't respond immediately, but if you see my message, let me know that you'll get back to me later. Even if your answer is no, just tell me that. It's okay, really, you won't hurt my feelings.
3. If you accept an offer on another medium (Facebook, texting, email, etc) then when I offer it on the website, you should accept it. The website part is just a technicality, you already told me you were going to accept, so now you have to. Be a man (or woman) of your word. There's no "oh sorry, I traded him to someone else." You accepted your trade to me on Facebook messenger, you better follow through.
4. Don't ever veto a trade, unless obvious collusion is involved. It is not your job to run other player's teams. If a trade is made, no matter how good or bad, unless collusion can be proven, it's not your place to choose whether it was a good trade or not. And if you veto a trade because it makes another team too good, please stop playing the game I love. The trade was made with both parties involved, so do your part as a good league member and just accept it. Trading is an art that needs perfected, don't be jealous that others have it and you don't. And if you are caught is collusion - yes, Mick, I've never actually met you, but I'm talking to you - you're no longer welcome in the league. Our league is sacred, and you have ruined the sanctity of our game...Goodbye.
5. We play this game for fun. More than likely, we play it with friends. Friends who we see and talk to on a regular basis. Don't lose a friend because of fantasy football, unless that person colludes, then you can kick he or she to the curb. But also, these friends are people we will have to trade with in the future. Don't ruin future chances at trades by ignoring Trade Etiquette.
It's a respect thing. If you wouldn't accept the trade if it were reversed, don't offer it.
Anyway, time for value - the value of players going forward. Some players have better value than others. Some draftees panned out and some didn't. You're probably using waiver wire adds and you've probably dropped players that you drafted; it's all part of the game.
Players who have great value going forward:
Antonio Brown: Experiencing extreme difficulties with Mike Vick at QB, Brown has Landry Jones at the helm this week. No, I don't see a rebound from Brown this week, but Big Ben will be back soon. Fantasy owners and Steelers fans rejoice. Brown finished last year as the number one receiver in fantasy and in three games this year with Big Ben, Brown has 100 yards in all three of those games and a touchdown in two. Breathe that sigh of relief.
Lamar Miller: If you're a Miller owner like me, you've been looking for alternatives...until this past Sunday. New head coach + new game plan = New Lamar Miller. Sunday, Miller saw his highest yardage total, his highest total of carries and a touchdown. Maybe it's too soon to tell, but if you bought low on Miller last week, congrats to you. If not, I recommend doing so before it's too late.
LeSean McCoy: He's baaaaack. Buffalo is having some issues at QB and with their stub RB back, they'll be leaning heavily on the run game - not that Rex Ryan didn't do that anyway. McCoy saw his highest yardage total last week, tied his season-high in carries and added a touchdown. There's no other RB in Buffalo that can do what McCoy can do. That was proven in the week that he was out. McCoy will be in the Top 15 of RB's going forward.
Doug Martin: 20 carries 106 yards 1 TD. 24 carries 123 yards 2 TDs. Those are Martin's numbers for his last two starts. The latter resulted in a win, the former came against the undefeated Carolina Panthers. Winston has been shaky, as a rookie typically is, so I look for the Dougernaut to be the focal point of the Buccaneers offense going forward. He has proven he can be the bell-cow back and I think Lovie Smith will feed him the ball.
Patience, not Panic: these are players that have not been producing as of late, but you can't drop them quite yet.
Randall Cobb: Aaron Rodger certainly loves throwing the football. James Jones currently leads the team in yards and touchdowns. The upside is that Cobb leads the team in targets by 18 and the Packers faced an injury to rookie Ty Montgomery. The Packers are on their bye this week, so I look for them to find ways to get the ball to Cobb. He specializes in the slot, which reduces his chances of goal line work, but Cobb does most of his damage between the redzones.
Eddie Lacy: The problem has to be injuries. We've seen a healthy Lacy the past two seasons and he's been a top 10 back each of those seasons. One year could be a fluke, two, not so much. The injured ankle has prevented Lacy from gaining momentum but with the Packers on a bye, that ankle should be plenty rested for the rest of the season.
Melvin Gordon: Danny Woodhead has proven his worth as not only the Charges pass-catching back, but also the goal line back. But here's my thought process on Gordon: he can't get any worse. He has the raw talent, he just has to put it together on the field.
Jordan Matthews: Matthews is the most targeted Eagle and has the most talent of any other wide receiver on the team. The problem has been consistency at quarterback and, for those of you that have watch Eagles games, Matthews has been non-existent inside the 20-yard line. Bradford almost ignores Matthews, his biggest receiver. Matthews is viable in PPR-formats, and that's about it.
Mike Evans: The build and talent that any receiver would want, the only thing holding Evans back is his quarterback. The Bucs will focus their game plan around Doug Martin more following their bye-week and if Martin proves he can handle the load, that should leave Evans in one-on-one situations.
These are players you should cut loose. See ya. Sayonara. Or, if someone wants them, trade away:
Joseph Randle: Seemingly in Jason Garret's doghouse for jumping over the goal line, Randle is now a part of a RBBC with Darren McFadden AND Christine Michael. Good luck figuring out who will get the majority of carries game in and game out.
Peyton Manning: That's right, the Peyton Manning who was once drafted in the first round of drafts in years past. Manning is QB#28 overall. He has seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Brian Hoyer has more points than Manning and Hoyer was benched for two games. Kirk Cousins has more points than Manning this year. Jameis Winston has more points that Manning this year. Shall I go on?
CJ Anderson: If you're still starting Anderson, you must be in a 20 team league and hoping for a miracle. Clearly the number two back behind Hillman, Anderson, who was drafted in the first round of many drafts, is now un-startable. Andre Ellington has more points than CJ Anderson and he misse three of the six games played so far.
Brandin Cooks: Cooks was drafted as a low-end WR1 or high-end WR2. Cooks is currently a WR4, only producing 40 points in six games. Torrey Smith, Willie Snead, and Pierre Garcon all have more points than Cooks does on the year.
Good luck with the reason of your season and if you're 2-4 or 1-5, start making some trades! You're still in it!
