Three Big Trades That Shake Up The Fantasy Football World
In today's Fantasy Life Newsletter, presented by Xfinity, three trades that shake up fantasy football, Freedman's Favorites and re-ranking draft class of 2024.
In today's Fantasy Life Newsletter, presented by Xfinity:
It used to be that nothing interesting ever happened at the NFL trade deadline, but that was certainly not the case yesterday.
Here’s everything that went down and the fantasy fallout …
Jakobi Meyers > Jags. Jakobi finally got his wish and was freed from the shackles of Las Vegas. This move makes plenty of sense for Jacksonville (they gave up a 4th and a 6th rounder) with Travis Hunter out for the year and Brian Thomas Jr. dealing with an ankle injury.
Fantasy fallout: This is probably a slight upgrade for Meyers (assuming BTJ doesn’t miss too much time), but nothing seismic. As for the Raiders, they are likely to run way more two-TE sets with Brock Bowers and Michael Mayer. For more on the fallout—including whether you should be stashing any Raiders WRs—check out Freedman’s full breakdown of the trade.
Rashid Shaheed > Seahawks. Setting aside the fact that the Saints essentially swapped Shaheed for Devaughn Vele (woof), this is a fun move for the Seahawks, who are clearly going all-in this year and get to reunite Shaheed with Klint Kubiak. With Cooper Kupp injured, Shaheed gives them a reliable No. 2 alongside JSN.
Fantasy fallout: This is great for both Shaheed and Sam Darnold (another deep ball weapon??! sheesh), but a little disappointing for rookie Tory Horton, who ran 83% of the routes in Week 9 and broke out for 2 TDs. For more on the Saints side, listen to Freedman’s instant reaction.
Adonai Mitchell > Jets. I guess I’m technically burying the lede here since Mitchell was just a toss-in for the bigger Sauce Gardner trade, but this is a fantasy football newsletter after all and AD is now the second most talented wideout on the Jets.
Fantasy fallout: Mitchell is definitely worth an add on waivers now that he’s escaped both the doghouse and a crowded Indy depth chart. He’s a talented dude who can earn targets.
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Did you survive the waiver wire? Hopefully you got what you needed! And even if you’re left wanting, we have some great Fantasy Life content that you might have missed. Our Rankings and Xfinity Best Projections will also help with the prep for your next W …
This player has been hurt for part of the season, but when he was healthy he put up a robust 92 Utilization Score. He also compiled 1,039 scrimmage yards and 5 TDs in the final 10 games of the 2024 season to shoot up our draft boards this summer. Who is he, and why is he one of Matthew Freedman’s favorite RBs for this week?
Freedman’s Favorites are here, and we’re dropping clues on one player highlighted in each of the four articles. Can you guess who they are?
Checking In On The Dynasty Value of Second-Year Players …
The 2024 rookie class entered the league with a bang last season, and frankly, the returns on many of them in their sophomore seasons have not matched what we saw last season, for better or worse.
Sam Wallace dove into what we’ve seen through the first nine weeks and re-ordered the rankings of the 2024 rookie class accordingly …
No. 1 - Brock Bowers - TE, Raiders
Since 2017, Brock Bowers has the second-highest score in the entirety of our Rookie TE Model. His score of 91 trails only Kyle Pitts, and I doubt you'd find a single fantasy manager who would rather have Pitts over Bowers right now.
Needless to say, if I can secure a unicorn, generational talent at a onesie position, you better believe I'm taking him with the first overall pick, (almost) regardless of the rest of the draft class.
If you need additional context, here's how Year 1 went for Bowers last season:
153 targets
112 receptions
1,194 yards
5 TDs
If there's any nitpicking of his profile, it's his offensive environment. However, the Raiders (or their QB) don't have to be all that good as long as they keep feeding Bowers, and that's exactly what they've been doing. He's going to be the focal point of that passing attack for as long as he's there, so all we need to do is sit back and enjoy the ride.
No. 2 - Malik Nabers - WR, Giants
Year 1 for Malik Nabers was pretty exciting. He reached 170 targets, 109 receptions, and topped 1,200 yards to go along with seven TDs.
Unfortunately, this season was cut short by a torn ACL in Week 4.
Looking ahead, assuming a full recovery, I am still taking Nabers second in this class, especially since the Giants seem to have found their franchise QB in Jaxson Dart. The sky is the limit for this young, talented wideout.
For what it's worth, now is likely the only time you can acquire Nabers at a "discount" if there's a dynasty manager looking for immediate production this season. Either way, don't be afraid to spend up on elite talent.
No. 3 - Ladd McConkey - WR, Chargers
A stellar rookie campaign had fantasy managers' hopes high coming into this season, but it's been a bit of a bumpy ride for Ladd McConkey through nine weeks.
He only topped 10 fantasy points once in his first four games, but then averaged 18.6 PPR over his next four games.
There are two reasons for his lack of consistency:
Keenan Allen returned to LA after a one-year stint in Chicago. The chain-moving maven is back for Justin Herbert, which has put a dent in McConkey's role.
Quentin Johnston is having a classic Year 3 breakout; he's hauled in six TDs this season, with four of them coming in the first four games.
Long-term, I'm solidly taking McConkey over both Allen and Johnston. He's talented enough to dominate targets on this offense for a long time. Stay patient.
