This week, I highlighted players for each team to Keep, Trade, and Cut.
For Keep, I didn’t include any obvious candidates (Jeff doesn’t need to be told to keep Lamar Jackson), but rather I tried to highlight players that people may consider cutting or trading, but that still are worth keeping to see if they return on value.
For Trade, these are players that either currently have high values but I expect those values to decrease with time, or the team already has a surplus of players at this position and should utilize their depth to trade for other assets.
For Cut, these are just players that should be cut.
Enjoy!
1. I am not sacko! (Jeff Chen) (3-0) [1]
Jeff Chen’s team just keeps firing on all cylinders in Week 3, earning #HighScore and getting big performances from expected sources (Lamar, Nico, James Cook) and unexpected sources (Dalton Kincaid, David Montgomery on the bench). You could argue Jeff’s a bit weak at TE, but besides that, his team is rolling.
Keep: Emeka Egbuka. Of course, Jeff won’t cut Egbuka, but he might be tempted to trade him away. At his $15 draft value, I think Egbuka is a top keeper candidate for Jeff right now.
Trade: Nico Collins. This might sound crazy, but hear me out. Nico has the highest trade value out of Jeff’s WRs at the moment, and Jeff has the option of keeping Egbuka. Egbuka has a clear path to becoming a WR1, so why not try to bulk up at RB with a blockbuster trade involving Nico?
Cut: Stefon Diggs. He’s faded and too busy wedding planning with Cardi B. See Travis Kelce for reference. No thanks.
2. Run It Back! (Gabs) (2-1) [4]
Jonathan Taylor has been ridiculous the past 2 weeks, and continues to anchor Gabs’s team in spite of disappointing QB play and in spite of Brian Thomas Jr seeming to fall off a production cliff. Gabs’s RB situation is strong and deep, and he should probably capitalize on that value to help reinforce his QB or WR situation.
Keep: Jaydon Blue. You never know with these young backup RBs when their opportunity will come.
Trade: Kenneth Walker III. Gabs has so much depth at RB that he could swap KWIII for some decent value at QB / WR.
Cut: Darnell Mooney. A 2nd-tier receiving option in an Atlanta offense that turns the ball over 3 times to a bad Carolina Defense is not worth keeping.
3. Unicorn QueenZ (Tim) (2-1) [4]
Tyrone Tracy’s injury will pave a way for Cam Skattebo to get more opportunities and hopefully solidify himself as the Giants’s top RB option (which isn’t necessarily saying much, but he’s made the most of it the past 2 weeks). CMC also needs to continue to stay healthy since he’s the only thing keeping the SF offense going. Maybe this is a product of my team staying relatively healthy compared to other teams, or maybe my team is actually pretty good. Who knows, but I am happy with where it’s at right now.
Keep: Keon Coleman. After an explosive Week 1, Coleman has been disappointing the past 2 weeks. I think better days are ahead of him, though.
Trade: Alvin Kamara. With Skattebo’s stock going up, Kamara’s big-name value might be able to fetch a decent return at WR or QB.
Cut: Harold Fannin Jr. I thought it was worth a waiver bid for a rookie TE, but things don’t look great in Cleveland.
4. #surviveandadvance (Eric) (2-1) [3]
Should Eric be worried that Ladd is getting less fantasy production than Keenan and Quentin? Ladd is still getting a decent number of targets, and my bet is Keenan won’t last the whole season, so I think things will end up working out. But needless to say it has been a bit disappointing for Ladd so far this season. In spite of the loss to Gabs, I still think Eric’s got a pretty strong team, and Caleb Williams has been impressive as the overall #2 QB on his bench.
Keep: Caleb Williams. Caleb Williams seems to be in a groove to start his sophomore season, and while it may be tempting to trade him away, I think keeping him will be the better long-term move for Eric.
Trade: Justin Herbert. With the passing volume and the big name, Eric could still get some good value from trading Herbert away while retaining a better-performing Caleb Williams.
Cut: Cooper Kupp. Age and injuries have gotten the better of Kupp, and Eric will need to clear up space on the bench for Godwin at some point.
5. Terrific (Taylor’s Version) (David) (3-0) [8]
David finds his team at 2nd in league standings after a 3-0 start to the season, thanks to his Lions players stepping it up on MNF. He doesn’t care about his team being 7th in Points For, because wins are what matters, right? Gibbs and ARSB will continue to dominate, Jaylen Warren has been a solid RB2 option, MPJ looks good too, and Juwon Johnson continues to prove his worth as a waiver pickup at TE. David’s team has been solid after a slow start in Week 1.
Keep: Rashee Rice. David’s committed at this point, so he might as well see it through. It’ll be tough to continue keeping both Rice and Worthy on the bench, but Rice is the one with the bigger upside if he’s on the field.
Trade: Travis Kelce. Given the TE landscape, David might be able to get some value from Kelce’s name. I’m sure wedding planning has taken its toll, but Kelce is still Kelce.
Cut: Xavier Worthy. Who knows what his return from injury will look like, and honestly I don’t think the headache is worth it.
6. Spider Pig (Luke) (1-2) [7]
Luke’s team did ok in Week 3 - anchored by Josh Allen, Puka, and TJ Hockenson. Saquon will definitely bounce back, but I don’t know what the Commanders plan to do with their backfield, which puts Jacory’s value in question. Luke’s team had a really hot start in Week 1, and while things have cooled down the past 2 weeks, his team has put up respectable numbers considering how bad it looked pre-season. I think he’s done a pretty good job managing things thus far.
Keep: Troy Franklin. It might be tempting to drop Franklin after a disappointing Week 3, but I think he shows some promise as the 2nd receiving option in Denver.
Trade: Chris Olave. Olave has actually been performing better than I expected so far this season - he’s had a ton of targets, and being a team’s main receiving option has to count for something.
Cut: Kyle Monangai. I’m not sure the Chicago backfield is what I want, even with Monangai’s potential as a young RB.
7. Just Didn’t Catch D’Achane (Haji) (2-1) [9]
Haji has had some pleasant surprises on his team, from Rome Odunze taking a 2nd year leap, Davante Adams not regressing, DeVon Achane staying healthy, Jordan Mason stepping up with Aaron Jones out, and Tyler Warren mostly living up to the hype. Ashton Jeanty is still struggling, but at least Haji has some margin for error with his other players stepping up. He’s still weak at QB, but sits comfortably at 6th in league standings with a 2-1 record.
Keep: Matthew Golden. The rookie WR hasn’t had impressive numbers so far, but I think his time will come soon enough with someone needing to step up in Green Bay’s receiving corps.
Trade: Davante Adams. Adams has had a hot start to the season, but a part of me (the part that had Adams the past two seasons) questions how sustainable this will be.
Cut: Tyrone Tracy Jr. He was already being outplayed by Skattebo, and now with the injury, this might look like fewer opportunities for Tracy even after he gets healthy again. Let him be someone else’s headache.
8. chinaballa (Andrew) (1-2) [5]
Losing CeeDee Lamb so early in the game was devastating for Andrew, and with Lamb possibly out for an extended period of time, Andrew finds himself a bit thin at WR. JSN has been WR1 material, but the once-promising Deebo has been nerfed with Mariota at QB - who knows when Jayden Daniels will return (soon, I hope). Derrick Henry should continue to be solid, Drake Maye should be a decent play, and Brenton Strange has been serviceable with a healthy target share. But Pacheco’s lack of production has been concerning, and Andrew’s bench is pretty weak. He’ll need CeeDee back soon.
Keep: Woody Marks. It’s a matter of time before Nick Chubb gives out, and Marks should benefit from increased opportunity.
Trade: Drake Maye. Andrew might be able to find a UNC alum willing to entertain a Maye trade. Daniel Jones and / or Trevor Lawrence could be serviceable substitutes if Andrew can beef up his WR or RB depth.
Cut: Calvin Ridley. Cam Ward is still a rookie, and Ridley has suffered as a consequence. Let someone else dump some FAAB on him.
9. 第六 (Abraham) (1-2) [11]
Woohoo, Abraham gets his first win, and in convincing fashion, too! Omarion Hampton is now the benefactor of a teammate’s injury, and that should provide more reliable production at RB for Abraham. George Pickens should also benefit from CeeDee’s injury in the short-term. Keenan Allen looks like he hasn’t lost a step at all, which at least counteracts how bad Drake London has looked. Will Hunter Henry or Mark Andrews put up another 20+ points at any point in the season? Maybe, but probably not enough times to make Abraham happy about his TE options. At least his team is 8th in standings and steering clear of repeat Sacko for now.
Keep: RJ Harvey. It might be tempting to drop the underperforming Harvey, but I do like the potential he has to breakout if given the right opportunity.
Trade: Keenan Allen. Cash in on his value while you can - I don’t think Allen will last the entire season.
Cut: Mark Andrews. Yes, he had the monster MNF performance. But that kind of production will come once in a blue moon. Henry should be the more reliable TE.
10. Maybabyboo (Laura) (1-2) [6]
Laura’s team got off to a hot start this season, but has struggled in the last two weeks. Zay Flowers looks more boom-bust now, Justin Jefferson has been mid, Chase Brown is suffering with the Bengals’s weak O-line, James Conner is gone (at least she has Trey Benson on the bench), Bo Nix has struggled, and her bench has a few glimmers of hope but nothing that has broken out yet. I do like Ferguson as her TE option, and also think brighter days are ahead for Justin Jefferson and Zay Flowers. But whether she can adapt to the sudden change in fortune using waiver pickups or trades is TBD.
Keep: Bhayshul Tuten. I think he’s got promise and is just one Etienne injury away from having a wide open window of opportunity to seize.
Trade: Travis Hunter. The big-name exciting rookie prospect may still have some trade value in spite of a slower start to the season.
Cut: David Njoku. Ferguson is Laura’s answer at TE. She should free up some bench space for a waiver pickup or backup QB.
11. 大展鸿图 (Jeff Lin) (0-3) [10]
I’m trying not to overreact, but Jeff Lin’s team seems to be in big trouble. Putting Joe Burrow’s injury aside for a minute, Malik Nabers’s production has been very boom-bust, and who knows how things will look with Jaxon Dart, but it’s hard to believe it’ll be a huge upgrade. TreVeyon Henderson hasn’t performed up to his draft value, and Breece Hall has struggled. The good news is AJ Brown bounced back and showed he still has it. But returning to the QB problem, Jeff will need better options than Browning and Bryce.. Perhaps through a trade?
Keep: TreVeyon Henderson. It’s been disappointing, but Jeff has to trust the process. Brighter days ought to be ahead for him.
Trade: AJ Brown. Off a hot Week 3 performance, Jeff might be able to cash in on the big name in return for a QB upgrade plus some.
Cut: Jake Browning. He’s not the answer at QB, and neither is Bryce.
12. choubacca (Aaron) (0-3) [12]
Aaron’s team had a much better showing in Week 3, but couldn’t pull out a win against Jeff Chen’s seemingly unstoppable team. Sure, Aaron’s RB situation seems to be improving, but it’s more like upgrading your RBs from bench players to Flex players. There’s still a ways to go before any of them become RB2 or RB1 material. And with Mike Evans probably needing to miss time and JaMarr Chase unable to overcome the Bengals’ terrible offensive woes, the improvement at RB seems to be negated by the decline at WR.
Keep: Ollie Gordon. Out of Aaron’s RBs, Ollie Gordon has the most upside. So while he might not be an every-week starter right now, being patient with him is the way to go.
Trade: JaMarr Chase. His value has dipped with Joe Burrow’s injury, but perhaps a WR-desperate team will be willing to trade for the name.
Cut: Kaleb Johnson. Sure, he’s a rookie RB that could emerge with time, but that time, if it ever happens, may not be this season. Right now he’s just a bench clog.
