Make a Trade, You'll Feel Better

I think a good fantasy trade is top 3 most satisfying things you can accomplish in life, and this is coming from a guy who takes his socks off before bed every night. Odds are that if your league's trade deadline hasn't passed already, it's fast approaching. Lucky for you, this article will highlight a couple of players to target in trades, and a player to trade away before time runs out. 

J's Favorite Trade FOR Targets: 

Mark Andrews:

Tight-end is one of those positions that seem hopeless unless you have THAT guy. Sadly, only one lucky manager per league has the privilege of owning Travis Kelce. But, as a wise man once told me, one pile of dog shit does have to smell better than another... I think that was it. The point is, I'm here to help you have a bit more hope than everyone else, which is why now is the perfect time to target Mark Andrews in trade talks. 

Andrews is the clear-cut 2nd best tight end in fantasy football, but just how clear is that fact to his fantasy managers? Player value is a fluid spectrum, and when analyzing trade targets, your job is to target players whose perception is lower than their actual value. Andrews hasn't eclipsed 13 PPR points since week 6. Yes, most of that was due to injury; nonetheless, Mark Andrews' managers have forgotten what it feels like to own an elite tight end. Coming off of his bye week, Andrews only put up 6 catches for 63 yards and 0 touchdowns. A decent stat line, but nowhere near what his fantasy managers were expecting after they've been waiting to have their "elite" tight end back. 

The blatant truth is that the Ravens NEED Andrews to produce. Even though Andrews was knocked out of week 8 and missed week 9 with an AC joint injury, he still ranks 2nd amongst tight ends in touchdowns, receiving yards, and receptions. With Rashod Bateman out for the year and Desean Jackson having used scrunchies for hamstrings, Andrews is the first, second, and third option for this Ravens' passing offense for the foreseeable future. Unless you're worried about Demarcus fucking Robinson stealing targets, go and trade for the #2 tight end in fantasy before he knocks the rust off and returns to form. 

Garrett Wilson: 

So, the thing about wide receivers is that their production almost always directly ties to the quality of their quarterback. And if Patrick Mahomes is J. Cole, Zach Wilson is Lil Pump. However, fortunately for Garrett Wilson, there's been a quarterback change in New York this week! So, let's take a look at Wilson's production with Zach Wilson and without Zach Wilson this year. 

Joe Flacco - Weeks 1-3

Zach Wilson started the season rehabbing a knee injury, which meant that old man Joe Flacco spent the first 3 weeks as Garrett Wilson's QB. In those 3 weeks, Garrett compiled 18 receptions for 214 yards and 2 touchdowns. However, the critical number to remember is that Garrett commanded 33 TARGETS in those first three weeks. That's an average of 11 targets a game, which would rank #2 in the league behind Davante Adams if extrapolated over the season thus far. Now let's look at Garrett's track record with Zach Wilson under center since then. 

Zach Wilson - Weeks 4 - 11

Over the last eight weeks, Zach Wilson has taken snaps for the NY Jets, commanding his team to a 5-2 

record in that span. During those 8 weeks, Garrett Wilson compiled 26 receptions for 319 yards and 0 touchdowns. Sadly, Garrett was only targeted 38 times over those 8 weeks, which comes out to a bit less than 5 targets per game. To recap, that's 5 targets per game with Zach Wilson and 11 targets per game with Joe Flacco. 

On November 24th, Mike White was named as the starting QB for week 12 - so what does this mean for Garrett Wilson's target share? Well, Mike White's only regular-season action came in 2021 before Garrett Wilson was drafted. However, throughout White's 3 regular season starts in 2021, he averaged 217 passing yards and 1.3 passing touchdowns - which may seem underwhelming. But, the important stat to look at is that White averaged 33 pass COMPLETIONS per start last year. The fact of the matter is that Garrett Wilson is a better player than Elijah Moore, Denzel Mims, or Corey Davis. He is a true number 1 receiver with the talent to command targets on an NFL offense. With Zach Wilson's mom-hunting ass out of the picture, Garrett now has a window to return to his high-volume production. If you are in any type of PPR league, go get Garrett and take a chance on him returning to his early season form. 

A couple of players I'd trade straight up for Garrett Wilson are JuJu Smith-Schuster and Courtland Sutton. 

J's Favorite Trade AWAY Target: 

Tua Tagovailoa: 

IT'S TUA TIMEEEE!!!! Well, actually, it's not - hence why he's a trade-away target for me. Tua has been spectacular this year, exceeding expectations while supporting two top-12 fantasy wide receivers. 

Yet, there's always a catch. 

Tua is a guy that gets all his money from his arm, a true pocket passer. He provides next to no production with his legs, and it just so happens that he has the most brutal QB schedule I've ever seen in all my years of living. For the rest of the fantasy season, Tua faces 6 consecutive defenses that rank top 16 in difficulty against fantasy quarterbacks - 4 of those 6 ranking in the top 10. 

Houston - [the 3rd worst matchup for fantasy QBs], San Francisco - [the 5th worst matchup for fantasy QBs], the LA Chargers - [the 14th worst matchup for fantasy QBs], Buffalo - [the 10th worst matchup for fantasy QBs], Green Bay - [the 9th worst matchup for fantasy QBs], and New England - [the 16th worst matchup for fantasy QBs]. 

Tua has the elite weapons to produce despite these matchups, but why take that chance? It's unlikely he will increase his production with this awful schedule, so sell him at his peak. The average fantasy manager won't be scared off by his matchup against the Texans this week, get it done. Remind everyone who he throws to. 

A couple of quarterbacks I'd target for the final stretch: Kyler Murray (if you can take on his bye week) and Justin Herbert. 

[FantasybyJ]