Stay vigilant on the trade market as fantasy football leagues push toward the trade deadline that usually falls around Thanksgiving.
Our Week 9 trade advice column focuses on rising running backs Ryan Mathews and Mark Ingram along with sell-high receivers Brandin Cooks and Larry Fitzgerald. As always, look for value in the way of future matchups and potential sleeper throw-ins, and don't bite on bad counteroffers.
MORE: Week 9 waiver wire pickups
Buy Ryan Mathews
Mathews won't eliminate DeMarco Murray from the Eagles' offense as long as Murray stays healthy, but Mathews' efficiency and visible feel for Chip Kelly's scheme warrants a usage swap between the two. Murray ranks 21st in rushing attempts and 29th in yards, while Mathews ranks 41st in attempts and 24th in yards. In the pass game, Murray ranks 12th in targets and 26th in yards; Mathews 39th in targets and 35th in yards, per Pro Football Focus data. Mathews had the bye week to recover from a groin strain and could very well seize the primary role in an offense that is no stranger to going from dormant to explosive midseason.
.@rmathews24 fought for every yard on last night's prime-time stage: https://t.co/6Ph5c9Vi5R pic.twitter.com/WRxL2TDuGi
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) October 26, 2015Trade advice: Trading for Mathews works best for fantasy owners with good receiver depth who really need a home-run swing at running back. It's not crazy to deal a low-end WR2 for him.
Sell high on Brandin Cooks
Owners who wished selling Cooks was even an option early in the season now have the recent production capital to do it. Cooks has compiled his three best fantasy games over the past four weeks, though two came against awful pass defenses and the other was saved in the final pointless gasps of garbage time at Philly. These all count just fine for fantasy, but the Saints' rapid improvement and the upcoming schedule limit Cooks' ceiling after Sunday's insane shootout against New York. More on this and the effect on Mark Ingram below.
Trade advice: Try to get WR2-equivalent return value or anything close to the draft capital Cooks cost you.
Mark Ingram ready to move up fantasy rankings
Game script gold. The next three games feature the extreme offensive floors of Tennessee, Washington and Houston. Vegas figures to project New Orleans as favorites in each of these contests (and in each half in each contest), and this should lead to Ingram getting fed. New Orleans Week 13 opponent, Carolina, also isn't equipped to consistently put teams down three scores early, so Ingram should be slated for a healthy run workload there, as well. Ingram quietly ranks seventh among RBs in targets and could see that increase following Khiry Robinson's unfortunate season-ending injury. Robinson ranks 26th in catches and 41st in targets, seizing that opportunity by being a good RB, not just because he's a designated "receiving back."
Trade advice: Don't hesitate to grab Ingram for less than borderline-RB1 value.
Gauge trade interest on Larry Fitzgerald
Fitzgerald has scored more points in standard leagues than any receiver not named Julio Jones or DeAndre Hopkins. Send out feelers during the bye week to owners who believe this pace will continue. Hang up the phone if they offer WR2-equivalent return value, but see what bites you can get. Michael Floyd's increased involvement in this offense should continue to eat into Fitzgerald's red-zone usage, where Floyd has caught three and just missed on another two over the past three games. Fitzgerald only saw five targets in Week 7, when John Brown was healthy and Floyd was fully integrated, suggesting the elite production floor may come down a bit.
Trade advice: Thank Fitzgerald for everything and shop to your leaguemates for bonafide WR1 return value.