Fantasy football is at its most exciting when you spot the right trade targets before your league-mates do. This week, there are several intriguing players whose recent performances might raise concerns, but who also have upside for the rest of the season.
By keeping an eye on changing roles and upcoming matchups, managers can get ahead of the curve. Consider what’s happening behind the box scores, and you might land a league-winning piece.
Trade Targets to Buy: Sam Darnold, QB, Seattle Seahawks
Sam Darnold has been the centerpiece of several streamer articles lately, as fantasy managers took some time to trust him as a reliable weekly fantasy starter. Darnold’s stock has taken a hit after back-to-back disappointing weeks, though, and a buy-low window has likely opened.
Darnold has now scored fewer than 10 fantasy points in three of his last four games, and his four picks against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday will have caught the eye. Darnold has taken some time to prove himself with the Seattle Seahawks after crumbling against the Rams in the playoffs last season.
His latest flat performance, coupled with the similar disappointments in Weeks 7 and 10, will have current owners ready to drop him, let alone trade him. But two of those games were against elite defenses, the Rams and the Houston Texans, while the other was in a blowout win over the Arizona Cardinals.
The Seahawks scored two early defensive touchdowns against Arizona, and Darnold attempted just 12 passes in the entire game as they salted away the clock. The journeyman quarterback entered Week 11 ranked second overall in PFSN’s QB Impact metric and has four top-10 fantasy finishes in his last eight games.
Shedeur Sanders, QB, Cleveland Browns
Unbiased conversation about Shedeur Sanders has been in short supply since he was drafted back in April. The rookie quickly became one of the most divisive players in the NFL, as the Cleveland Browns’ quarterback depth chart became an unlikely focal point of the offseason.
It’s fair to say that Sanders’ NFL debut was a disaster; the rookie completed just four of his 16 pass attempts for 47 yards, no touchdowns, and one interception. But just as I felt Dillon Gabriel faced too much criticism, I believe it would be unfair to judge Sanders on an impromptu cameo against an impressive Baltimore Ravens defense.
I don’t feel strongly that Sanders will be a star, nor that he will prove to be a bust, but I think it’s worth picking him up for nothing in Superflex. Regardless of Gabriel’s health, the Browns will want to get a proper look at Sanders in the coming weeks. If he’s bad, cut him; if he’s good, he’ll prove a steal on waivers this week.
Jaylen Warren, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers
Jaylen Warren is the undisputed lead back for the Pittsburgh Steelers, but Kenneth Gainwell’s Week 11 explosion is impossible to ignore. Gainwell caught seven of his eight targets for 81 yards and two touchdowns, while Warren again did most of his work on the ground.
Nevertheless, Gainwell outscored Warren by 20.8 PPR points, as Warren totaled 67 yards on 10 carries and two receptions. There’s no getting around the disappointment of a single-digit fantasy week in what should have been a dream matchup, but there will be better days ahead.
Warren faces the Chicago Bears, Buffalo Bills, and Miami Dolphins in the next four weeks and should be a solid contributor in the run-up to the playoffs. His fantasy playoff schedule isn’t great, with the Detroit Lions and Cleveland Browns in Weeks 16 and 17.
For those needing a boost in the next few weeks, though, Warren should be a solid RB2 over the next few weeks, and a flex option if you make it to the later rounds.
Darnell Mooney, WR, Atlanta Falcons
Darnell Mooney has been hugely disappointing this year, recording just one top-40 finish at the wide receiver position through eight weeks. The receiver hasn’t managed to hit double-digit fantasy points once this season and has been limited to just one reception in half of his games.
That might make this an odd piece of advice, but buy-lows are rarely pretty on the surface. Starting quarterback Michael Penix left the Atlanta Falcons’ Week 11 loss to the Carolina Panthers early with a knee injury.
That injury is likely to keep him out for at least Week 12 and potentially much longer, with Kirk Cousins the next man up. Mooney averaged over six targets per game with Cousins starting last year, and tallied six top-20 finishes in fantasy.
There is a solid chance that Mooney will be on waivers in your leagues, and if he’s not, he should cost you next to nothing. Certainly don’t go all-out to acquire the receiver, but he’s worth picking up if you have a space for an upside stash on your roster.
Cedric Tillman, WR, Cleveland Browns
If Mooney isn’t available on waivers, Cedric Tillman almost certainly will be. Again, I’m not a fan of Cleveland’s offense this season, and I’m not convinced that any Browns player will provide much for fantasy in the coming weeks.
Joe Flacco’s success with the Cincinnati Bengals suggests that judging any quarterback on their performances in Cleveland would be harsh. However, I expect Sanders to get an extended opportunity on the field, and I expect him to target his receivers more than Gabriel has in recent weeks.
Tillman is a proven performer in both real life and fantasy football and is working his way back from a significant injury. Tillman has eight across the two games since his return, and tallied 52 receiving yards on Sunday. If you need a spark in your flex spot, the Browns receiver is a low-floor, high-ceiling option that should cost you nothing this week.
Theo Johnson, TE, New York Giants
Theo Johnson has caught the eye at times this season, and he is no longer an overlooked piece of the New York Giants’ passing game. The former Penn State standout has averaged 9.2 PPR points per game this season, and 11.3 since Week 4. That makes him the TE13 over that stretch, and his consistent red-zone usage is a big reason for that.
Heading into Sunday, only 12 players had more red-zone targets than Johnson (10) this season, and the tight end had at least twice as many as any of his teammates. However, while many would have expected Johnson to have a better game with Jameis Winston airing it out on Sunday, his four targets were tied for his second-fewest of the year.
Jaxson Dart will hope to be cleared to start again in Week 12, with a daunting matchup with the Lions awaiting the Giants. New York then faces the New England Patriots in Week 13, and there is a strong chance of pass-friendly game scripts in both games.
The Giants then go on bye in Week 14 before facing a miserable Washington Commanders defense. Johnson has been on waivers for much of the year and may even still be there in many leagues. He has five touchdowns in his last seven games with Dart, and could well be a top-10 fantasy tight end for the rest of the season.
