Hopefully, your NFL fantasy football season is going as smoothly as you had imagined after drafting your roster. We have your back with wall-to-wall coverage as it’s time to start turning an eye toward the playoff race. That includes the Week 13 fantasy football trade analyzer, where we break down key players to trade for and away.
Week 13 Trade Analyzer | Players To Trade For
The arrival of Week 13 means there’s no time left to waste. There are players with a value that is too low for their opportunity — it would help if you tried to swoop in and add these two players at a reasonable cost.
Deebo Samuel, WR, San Francisco 49ers
It’s been a disappointing season for Deebo Samuel. Despite the 49ers having to move back to Jimmy Garoppolo due to Trey Lance’s injury, Samuel hasn’t been able to grab the superstar role he found last year. His receiving numbers have plummeted to career lows, including yards per reception and yards per game.
Samuel hasn’t been bad, of course, playing more of a possession role and rotating into the backfield for the occasional carry. The addition of Christian McCaffrey has given head coach Kyle Shanahan a shiny new toy to work with. Unfortunately, he’s lost the magic he found with Samuel, making their $73.5 million extension look questionable if this is all they’ll get out of him.
You can take Samuel’s higher or lower for props in his difficult matchup in Week 13 over on Underdog Fantasy, where you can include him on a Pick’em entry this week.
MORE: Week 13 Waiver Wire Pickups
That being said, I think now is a good time to trade for Samuel. He had six straight games with at least 10.2 fantasy points to start the season. That’s dropped over the last four games he’s played, as he’s reached more than 6.9 points in one contest.
We have to trust the trends and matchups. Samuel has seen at least six targets in every game this season, and he’s still a threat to get a few carries as a booster. Upcoming matchups against Miami, Tampa Bay, Seattle, and Washington are quite favorable. Try to pry him loose from any frustrated or desperate managers.
Mike Evans, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
After seeing Mike Evans produce three straight games under eight fantasy points, it’s completely reasonable to wonder whether he’ll be a solid option anytime soon. But instead of panicking that Evans failed to make the most of his advantageous matchup against Cleveland in Week 12, we have to continue trusting his volume and talent. He’s a buy-low candidate before the trade deadline.
Evans was targeted nine times in Week 12 despite catching only two passes for 31 yards. There’s no question his numbers have been hurt by Chris Godwin’s emergence as a healthy star, but quarterback Tom Brady still likes Evans. He’s just been more of a consistent performer than a touchdown God like he’s been in the past.
With five games of 10+ fantasy points and five under eight this season, Evans is more reliant on volume than ever. The offense around him isn’t getting to the red zone nearly enough for him to notch his third-straight season with double-digit touchdowns. And that is the only reason why he’s WR20 and not a top-six receiver on the year.
I still want a playmaker who is averaging over 10 targets a game over the last five outings. Brady is fighting for his playoff life, and Evans has more favorable games coming up. Expect the Buccaneers to ditch the run game in favor of slinging the ball around, meaning Evans is a trade for target.
Week 13 Trade Analyzer | Players To Trade Away
It’s also time to cash in on some players who’ve exploded in recent weeks but are unlikely to continue at that rate. That doesn’t mean these two players are bad or not worth having on your roster, but it’s worth exploring their trade value to see if you can land someone in a better situation to succeed through the rest of 2022.
Dameon Pierce, RB, Houston Texans
It’s easy to say this now after Dameon Pierce produced two fantasy clunkers in a row, but we might’ve missed the ideal window to capitalize on Pierce’s trade value. If you’re not in a keeper league, it’s hard to justify keeping him on your roster as the playoffs near.
Defenses have figured out this woeful Texans offense, and Pierce has just 16 rushing yards and 17 receiving yards total over the last two games.
Week 12’s matchup against Miami might’ve been more fruitful if the Texans didn’t bench quarterback Davis Mills for Kyle Allen. Mills has been bad, but Allen isn’t better than him at anything on a football field. The Dolphins, who have a below-average run defense, were never threatened by the Texans’ ground game.
MORE: Buy Low, Sell High Week 13
The prospect of facing Cleveland does make Pierce more intriguing for Week 13, but fantasy managers need to look long term. You won’t want to start Pierce from Weeks 14-16, as the Texans will be heavy underdogs against Dallas, Kansas City, and Tennessee. Those are critical weeks in the fantasy season.
Swapping Pierce for Kenneth Walker III, Miles Sanders, or even Devin Singletary would be a wise decision.
Rachaad White, RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
In Week 12, on their first drive against the Browns, the Buccaneers’ offense looked as dangerous as they have all season. On the drive, running back Rachaad White sprinted through a massive gap for 35 yards to help set up a touchdown. But White only added 29 more yards on the ground and finished with 109 total yards.
Getting 10.5 and 15.4 fantasy points from White over his last two games is a steal considering he was a waiver wire pickup in most leagues before his Week 10 breakout. White is no longer a surprise breakout, as he supplanted Leonard Fournette as the starter even before Fournette suffered a hip injury. However, now is the perfect time to sell White.
Tampa’s offense is simply not as potent or consistent as we had hoped. They were hit with another blow Sunday, as star offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs suffered a left ankle injury that could keep him sidelined. While early reports are more positive than what it looked possible during the game, the combination of losing Wirfs for even one game and the re-addition of Fournette into the rotation will hurt White’s value.
Additionally, keep in mind that White is slated to face elite defenses against running backs in New Orleans, San Francisco, and Cincinnati in the next three weeks. Unless you have a relatively barren roster in a keeper redraft league, White should be on your trade list before the deadline this week.
