Eric Karabell is a senior writer for fantasy baseball, football and basketball at ESPN. Eric is a charter member of FSWA Hall of Fame and author of "The Best Philadelphia Sports Arguments".
Have you made more trades this season than the Arizona Cardinals and Philadelphia Eagles did last week? Sure, perhaps it was not loaded with big names but in the fantasy community, it certainly mattered. It helped both teams, too.
We will get to that, the positional rankings and our trade index as well as continue our trek through October. Good luck trading!
Quarterback
Rankings changes: Time to shine some praise on a few second-year passers. Philadelphia Eagles runner Jalen Hurts has surpassed 20 PPR points in each game this season. He can thank his legs. Cincinnati Bengals passer Joe Burrow has thrown two or more touchdowns in each game. He can thank his arm. Hurts moves into the top five and Burrow solidifies his top 100 spot, though he remains one spot outside the top 10 quarterbacks. A big Week 7 game at Baltimore changes that.
Trade for: We mentioned trading for Seattle's Russell Wilson a week ago, and we mean it. He will have a big second half. You know, nobody ever wants to trade for the Vikings' Kirk Cousins and most of the time he is solid. He is the No. 10 QB for the season but a value in these rankings. Patrick Mahomes must stop these interceptions and, it says here, he will. As for the Ravens' Lamar Jackson and Chargers' Justin Herbert, who each scored 11 PPR points even though the former QB blew out the latter on Sunday 34-6, definitely invest.
Be cautious trading for: Miami's Tua Tagovailoa. Let him prove he can stay on the field. The Giants' Daniel Jones was terrible on Sunday. He has four touchdown passes ... this season! Pittsburgh's Ben Roethlisberger won Sunday night, but he still has yet to reach 17 PPR points in a game. Let us not assume good times are pending. As for passers half his age, there remains no rookie QB to count on at this point.
Running back
Rankings changes: First of all, for those still arguing about No. 1, well, stop it. Derrick Henry is unstoppable. Second, we got a bit of clarity on the former No. 1 Carolina's Christian McCaffrey, as he went on the injured reserve list. See you in Week 9, but only maybe and there should be real concerns about him staying healthy for December. One Cleveland running back takes a much larger tumble than the other. Tampa Bay's Leonard Fournette is the big riser. Hey, good for him. He has the backfield to himself, pretty much. Others moving up include the Chiefs' Darrel Williams, Panthers' Chuba Hubbard and Raiders' Kenyan Drake. Do not assume they are one-week wonders.
Trade for: The top 10 running backs appear awesome and safe. Anyone injured is, well, not on the field and we know that injury often leads to more injury. Think about that with McCaffrey, Saquon Barkley and Chris Carson. They belong in the next section. In deeper formats, it appears Washington's J.D. McKissic is not going away. Love those pass-catching running backs!
Be cautious trading for: The injured fellows. And we know you love the Rams' Darrell Henderson Jr. today, and we hope for durability, but let us see more. Be careful of the Patriots' Damien Harris. Still no factor in the passing game and no reason to believe it changes. James Conner has more PPR points. Three of the top four PPR running back scorers take their bye this week. Do not make a bad trade just for a Week 7 fill-in.
Wide receiver
Rankings changes: His quarterback moves up, and so does his former LSU teammate Ja'Marr Chase, into our top 10. Pittsburgh's Diontae Johnson is back in the top 20 and Tampa Bay's Antonio Brown is just about there. We shall see if the Saints' Michael Thomas plays this coming week, and how it affects the offense. The bigger news is probably the droppers: The Bears' Allen Robinson. The physically compromised Titans. The Wilson-less Seahawks. Poor Robby Anderson.
Trade for: Unlike running back, there are about 25 or so wide receivers to be comfortable about. Seattle's Tyler Lockett is on the line but remember, Wilson will return soon. The Cowboys' CeeDee Lamb breaks into the top 10 soon. The Chargers' duo should be fine. Courtland Sutton is breaking out.
Be cautious trading for: Any rookie not named Chase. We want to believe Miami's Jaylen Waddle is safe. Perhaps he is. His QB must stay healthy, though. Trading for any Chiefs WRs other than Tyreek Hill seems too risky.
Tight end
Rankings changes: Trade! Zach Ertz moves on from the Eagles to the Cardinals and that is key for not only his statistical value, but of Dallas Goedert. Now they can each play more snaps and get more targets! Everyone wins and perhaps we have a pair of TE1 options soon. For now, the back end of the TE1 discussion is rather crowded. Good for those in 14-team leagues! As always, unless it is one of the top three or four options, tough to trade for a tight end when there is relative depth.
