Selling high on players is a key tactic in fantasy football for maximizing team value and minimizing risk. Identifying trade targets after a standout week can set managers up for success later in the season.
Carefully evaluate recent performances and upcoming matchups before making a move in your fantasy football league. This list will highlight several intriguing names that could be worth trading, leaving you curious for the details.
Trade Targets to Sell: Caleb Williams, QB, Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears and Cincinnati Bengals produced one of the games of the season in Week 9, in a back-and-forth 47-42 Bears win. Given the scoreline, it’s no surprise that Caleb Williams and Joe Flacco finished Sunday as QB1 and QB2 overall, respectively.
Williams’ 38.7 fantasy points are a career-high, with his previous best week (29.64) coming against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 6 of his rookie year. But the second-year quarterback’s career has been defined by its inconsistency, making this week a great time to sell high.
Williams has produced nine top-10 fantasy weeks over his career so far, but only twice have two of those performances come in back-to-back games. Beyond those two instances, the highest ranking Williams has achieved after a top-10 week is QB18 overall, with the others landing outside the top 20.
Williams has the talent, and you certainly shouldn’t be rushing to cash in, but if you can get a league mate to bite on his latest spike week, there could be a sell-high opportunity. Williams should be viewed as a boom/bust, low-end QB1 for the rest of the year; if you can’t get an offer of similar value, he’s best left on your roster.
Kyle Monangai, RB, Chicago Bears
Similar to Williams is rookie Kyle Monangai, in that Week 9’s shootout with the Bengals will likely be his best week of the season. The powerful runner torched Cincinnati’s frail defense for 198 total yards, including 176 rushing yards on 26 carries.
Many have tipped Monangai as a buy-low in recent weeks, after his carries spiked against the Saints in Week 7. However, most of those carries didn’t come until Chicago was already two scores ahead and looking relatively safe.
While his most recent opportunity came as a direct result of an injury to D’Andre Swift, Monangai has earned more playing time moving forward. If Swift misses Week 10, the New York Giants offer another mouthwatering opportunity for the young star.
That creates a dilemma, with Swift’s eventual return likely to impact Monangai’s production and fantasy value significantly. After the Giants, the matchups get far trickier for Chicago’s run game, with multiple games against top run defenses.
Monangai has RB1 potential in Week 10 if Swift is out, but an RB2 ceiling over the rest of the year once the veteran returns. If you can get a solid RB2 value for him this week or next, you should probably take it; anything less, his upside makes him worth holding onto.
Ashton Jeanty, RB, Las Vegas Raiders
Like Monangai, Ashton Jeanty certainly isn’t a sell-at-all-costs, but his future looks far more challenging than his past. The Raiders looked to click into gear against the Jaguars in Week 9, albeit mainly because of Geno Smith funneling the offense through Brock Bowers.
Jeanty finished the overtime loss with 19.9 fantasy points, his second-best return of the season, and is all but guaranteed his second top-10 finish of the year. However, even in an overall-productive week, Jeanty averaged only 3.23 yards per carry.
The rookie’s rushing efficiency has held him back all season, but for two spike weeks against the Bears and the Indianapolis Colts. Moving forward, Jeanty faces the Broncos twice, the Texans, the Chargers, and the Philadelphia Eagles.
The rookie has faced the Chargers once already, tallying 7.4 fantasy points, his third-fewest of the season. Meanwhile, the Broncos, Texans, and Cleveland Browns are among the best run defenses in the league, and the Eagles remain a formidable matchup for any team.
Jeanty still has significant name value and also has one or two friendly matchups to look forward to, but he will probably disappoint more often than not. If you can secure a high-end RB2 value or better, you should consider it this week.
Jameson Williams, WR, Detroit Lions
Jameson Williams has been consistently inconsistent all season, but still has alluring explosiveness and big-play upside. The Detroit Lions star has recorded two top-12 fantasy weeks at receiver this year, and is the WR18 in Week 9 with only Monday Night Football to play.
Unfortunately, outside of those three weeks, Williams hasn’t finished in the top 55 receivers in fantasy, despite maintaining a snap share of over 80%. However, he has scored over 15 fantasy points in two of his last three games, and that could have opened a small sell-high window this week.
Williams is still regarded as an exciting NFL receiving talent and one of the best deep threats in the league. If you can package him for a more consistent WR3/Flex option in a trade this week, it would save you a lot of anxiety moving forward.
Sam LaPorta, TE, Detroit Lions
For similar reasons, Sam LaPorta is a sell-high this week, after a monster game against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 9. The third-year fantasy favorite caught six of his eight targets for 97 yards and a touchdown, but it wasn’t enough to secure a win.
The Lions played from behind for most of their 27-24 divisional loss, a scenario they don’t often find themselves in. It was a similar situation in Week 1, when the Lions started the season with a loss to the Packers at Lambeau Field.
Not coincidentally, LaPorta’s eight targets in Week 9 were his most since the nine targets he received in that loss to Green Bay. What’s also no coincidence is that those targets correlate with Jared Goff’s highest passing volumes of the year.
LaPorta has had two good weeks beyond those two games; one came in Detroit’s other loss, to the Chiefs, and one came against the miserable Bengals defense. In the remaining four games of LaPorta’s season, he hasn’t recorded a top-20 week at tight end.
The Lions don’t trail too often, and run through most of the questionable defenses they face. LaPorta is a boom/bust option, with significant name value, and he could be worth more in a trade than he is on your roster moving forward.