Editor's note: This column was originally published heading into Week 11's action. The trade deadline in standard ESPN fantasy football leagues is Wednesday, Nov. 21, at noon ET.
One day.
That's all you've got to make those final, front-of-the-roster tweaks, as the trade deadline in ESPN leagues arrives on Wednesday, Nov. 21. One days to -- if you're in need of an upgrade at a certain position -- get your offers in and processed. Remember, all trades must be accepted by noon ET on Nov. 21 in ESPN standard leagues.
I'm a fan of going big at the trade deadline. In most of my fantasy football leagues, the managerial group as a whole is hesitant to trade, especially when it comes to making the first offer. In situations like these, it's good to take the first step and make it a significant move. Propose a fair, blockbuster first offer -- so long as your team needs it for that final push toward the playoffs -- and get your counterpart thinking. I find that the most successful moves in these situations are the ones that start big, get the exciting names involved, and are fair to both sides right from the start.
So let's go big.
Listed below are five players I'd recommend acquiring, followed by five I'd shop as aggressively as I could, right now. Some are time-sensitive moves (i.e., smarter to make now than next week), some are heavily schedule-influenced. Now is the time to act.
Happy trading.
Trade for ...
Odell Beckham Jr., WR, New York Giants: His three touchdowns and 41.8 PPR fantasy points the past two weeks probably inflated his perceived value, but the sum of Beckham's season still shows a player who might have the look of an underperformer. With those scores, he still has only five receiving touchdowns on 106 targets (fourth in NFL) and 14 end zone targets (first), so the case can be made he has been a bit unlucky. There's also the perception that Eli Manning's play brings Beckham's value down, and also that Manning might not last the season as the Giants' quarterback, which could further threaten Beckham's value. Considering Beckham's historical success, as well as his great rest-of-season schedule, he's one of the most bankable WR1s in the game. Josh Norman and the Washington Redskins (Week 14) represent Beckham's only remaining truly treacherous matchup, and Beckham scored 21.6 points against them as recently as Week 8.
Corey Davis, WR, Tennessee Titans: He has a 30 percent target share and 42.6 PPR fantasy points in three weeks since the bye and had an especially impressive effort in dominating New England Patriots cornerback Stephon Gilmore in Week 10, but his value might be perceived to be on the downswing with Marcus Mariota dealing with a stinger and questionable for Week 12. Mariota apparently has a chance to play in that game, however, and Davis' breakthrough potential is as apparent today as it was in August. It'll help that his two toughest remaining matchups come against defenses that have struggled of late, in the Jacksonville Jaguars (Week 14) and Redskins (Week 16), alleviating some of the worry about his quarterbacking situation.
Cam Newton, QB, Carolina Panthers: In this matchups-driven quarterback environment, if you're going to trade for and lock in only one, you want the one with the greatest volume of plus matchups. That's Newton, who faces the New Orleans Saints (twice), Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Atlanta Falcons in four of his final six games, matchups for which he'd be a locked-in top-three option. He also benefits from the continued emergence of DJ Moore, as well as the healthy return of tight end Greg Olsen, deepening his options in the passing game, and has shown minimal signs of regression as a runner. His average of 5.9 fantasy points per game on rushing plays is within range of his career rate of 6.8.
David Njoku, TE, Cleveland Browns: His perceived value is probably at its seasonal low point, after he totaled six targets and 12.1 PPR fantasy points in the two games since Freddie Kitchens took over as the offensive coordinator, then spent the Week 11 bye off the fantasy radar. That merely makes Njoku more affordable in trade, probably at beneath the top-five tight end value I'd expect from him in the season's final five weeks. No tight end has a more favorable remaining schedule, as he'll play two games against the Cincinnati Bengals and another against the Carolina Panthers -- teams that rank among the three most favorable matchups at the position -- while facing nothing but teams that rank among the top 15 in terms of points per game allowed to tight ends. Njoku is sure to be a focal point for the Browns the rest of the way.
JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers: Considering the Steelers' pass-friendly remaining schedule, it's a good idea to acquire a share from their offense, with Smith-Schuster perhaps its most affordable, high-end piece. He has the advantage of running the majority of his routes from out of the slot, which aligns him with weaker cornerbacks and cedes the tougher coverage -- such as Casey Hayward (Week 13), Gilmore (Week 15) and Marshon Lattimore (Week 16) -- to Antonio Brown. Despite a lull in his performance around his Week 7 bye, Smith-Schuster still has a 21 percent seasonal target share and has averaged 15.0 PPR fantasy points in his past four games.
Trade away ...
Tyler Boyd, WR, Cincinnati Bengals: A.J. Green's toe injury has expanded Boyd's role, but it has also had the negative effect of overinflating Boyd's perceived value in fantasy. He's now rostered in 92.6 percent of ESPN leagues and was started in 58.2 percent in Week 11, despite facing an awful matchup against the Baltimore Ravens. Therein lies the problem: Boyd looks like a guy who is going to get a lot of targets each and every week, at least until Green is fully healthy, except that he has only one "A" grade matchup left on his schedule, the Week 15 game against the Oakland Raiders. Boyd was targeted a whopping 11 times this past Sunday but caught only four passes, and despite his slot-receiver status, he draws two of the toughest remaining matchups for a slot receiver in the Denver Broncos (Week 13) and Los Angeles Chargers (Week 14). It's time to cash him in for a more reliable weekly option.
Tom Brady, QB, New England Patriots: He's only the No. 14 quarterback in fantasy points and had one of his worst performances of the season before his Week 11 bye, but his name brand apparently remains strong. He is rostered in 98.3 percent of ESPN leagues, fourth highest among quarterbacks, and he has been started in greater than 50 percent of leagues in every non-Week 17 for which he was eligible to play for more than four calendar years. To his fantasy managers, Brady can seemingly do no wrong, and it's worth exploiting that now that he's beyond his bye and seemingly more attractive in trade. Not one of his six remaining games represents a plus matchup, and his Weeks 13 (Vikings) and 16 (Bills) matchups are poor ones. Considering the health track record of his receivers -- Rob Gronkowski, for one, has missed three of the team's past four games -- Brady might struggle to elevate his final positional ranking in points from its current spot. Frankly, I'd rather have Mitchell Trubisky for the final six weeks, and you can probably get Trubisky and a good second player for Brady.
Kareem Hunt, RB, Kansas City Chiefs: Hear me out. I love the guy, and in no way is his inclusion a criticism of his raw ability, or his team or its offense, for that matter. This one's simply about the math and the lofty return you might get for a player whose future returns should be limited. The Chiefs have the misfortune of a Week 12 bye -- playing only six times in the seven weeks is a huge disadvantage at this late seasonal stage -- not to mention difficult upcoming matchups against the Baltimore Ravens (Week 14), Los Angeles Chargers (Week 15) and Seattle Seahawks (Week 16). In addition, with the Chiefs sporting a 1.5-game lead in the AFC West, the possibility of early clinching and a reduced role for Hunt in Weeks 16 or 17 is present. Again, cashing in the Hunt chip means getting a top-shelf player, probably a fellow RB1. Count me, though, as someone who prefers Ezekiel Elliott, Alvin Kamara or Christian McCaffrey the rest of the way.
Marlon Mack, RB, Indianapolis Colts: His value has skyrocketed during the past month, after he posted back-to-back games of 28-plus PPR fantasy points (Weeks 7-8) and totaled 84 rushing attempts in a five-game span after returning from a hamstring injury. Consider it time to cash in this chip, however, as Mack's injuries this season -- he also dealt with a foot issue in the week leading up to this past Sunday's game -- put him at increased risk of additional missed time, and he does have a few more tough matchups (Week 13 at the Jaguars and Week 17 at the Titans stand out on that side of the ledger).
Adrian Peterson, RB, Washington Redskins: As an older player -- he's now 33 years old with 2,745 career carries on his legs -- Peterson ranks among the most likely players to tire in the season's waning weeks, much as he did in 2017 when he totaled 38.7 PPR fantasy points on 100 touches in his final four games played before missing the final five weeks with a neck injury. He's on pace for 274 carries and 296 total touches, the former of which would be the fourth most by any player age 33 or older, and he has to tangle with the Philadelphia Eagles' (twice), Jaguars' and Titans' run defenses in the final seven weeks.