We have officially passed Week 1 of both the NFL and College Football season. With all of this new information flooding in, let’s take a look at some buy-low candidates for the fantasy season, on top of looking into a couple of sell-high players, trade targets, and waiver wire additions you should make!
Buy Low Candidates
NFL:
- Joe Burrow – Quarterback
Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals lost their season opener to the New England Patriots. It was a day that he didn’t do much fantasy-wise, but that makes him a great buy-low candidate. The Bengals have historically played badly in season openers for the past few years, and Ja’Marr Chase hadn’t been practicing ahead of this game, Tee Higgins was out with an injury. Burrow should be fine.
- D’Andre Swift – Running Back
I wasn’t high on D’Andre Swift and still am not. However, he didn’t do much in Week 1, so his fantasy value is incredibly low. On top of that, he played over 70 percent of the snaps for the Chicago Bears, dominating the backfield in a way that I didn’t expect. If he continues to play that many downs, he’s a must-have on usage alone.
- Marvin Harrison – Wide Receiver
Someone out there is going to try and part ways with Marvin Harrison after he had just one catch for four yards in his first NFL game. Try to get him if possible, because there is no chance that he won’t get more involved down the stretch of the season.
- Dalton Kincaid – Tight End
This is similar to Marvin Harrison. Kincaid had just one catch for 11 yards, and you know there will be managers attempting to move him already. Kincaid played 83 percent of the snaps and eventually, he’ll get his fair share of targets plus receptions. It just didn’t happen in the opener.
College:
- Mikey Keene – Quarterback
Mikey Keene threw for 235 yards, a touchdown, and two interceptions against Michigan in Week 1. Not the greatest stat line, but it was a tough matchup, and he still showed signs of life. With not many difficult matchups down the stretch, he could be huge in fantasy.
- Jevon Jackson – Running Back
This is another one of those usage candidates. Jevon Jackson had 10 of the 16 rushes from the backfield in Week 1, and, despite only having 32 rushing yards, is likely to continue leading the team in attempts. That might be all you need.
- Tez Johnson – Wide Receiver
Tez Johnson started the season with 12 receptions for 81 yards and two touchdowns. Last week, he had three catches for negative one receiving yard. His value probably took a dip, and I don’t believe he has another stinker of a performance like that again.
- Brant Kuithe – Tight End
Brant Kuite, similar to Tez Johnson, started the year hot. He had four catches for 69 yards and three touchdowns. Last week, he had one catch for five yards. The value dropped similar to Johnson’s, and he’ll bounce back from this disappointing performance.
Sell High Candidates
NFL:
- Trevor Lawrence – Quarterback
It’s grown increasingly obvious each season that Trevor Lawrence just isn’t the guy we thought he was. In Week 1, with a great matchup in front of him, he threw for 162 yards and one touchdown. For fantasy purposes, that isn’t going to win you anything. But people still buy into his pre-draft hype.
- James Cook – Running Back
This is a bit of an interesting one. James Cook has a ton of production and usage, though he can’t score. Why? Because Josh Allen steals all of his goal-line touches. In a good trade, somebody would give up an awful lot for Cook, and you can get back touchdown production in return.
- Jayden Reed – Wide Receiver
With Jordan Love out, it doesn’t matter how great Jayden Reed played in the opener, he likely won’t do it again. Reed had 138 total yards and two touchdowns, but let’s face it, if he has either Malik Willis or a guy like Ryan Tannehill throwing passes, he doesn’t do that. With Love out for around six weeks, you can sell high on that big opener.
- Kyle Pitts – Tight End
There was an outstanding amount of hype for Kyle Pitts now that he has Kirk Cousins. In the opener, Cousins didn’t look good, and despite Pitts scoring a touchdown, he had just three catches total on another bad offensive day that included multiple turnovers and 10 total points.
College:
- Kaidon Salter – Quarterback
It’s still early, but it might be time to sell high on Kaidon Salter. He’s putting up mediocre numbers yet was supposed to be a fantasy powerhouse. He’s not throwing many touchdowns, and he isn’t finding room to run.
- Treshaun Ward – Running Back
Treshaun Ward had two touchdowns this week, but his touches are a concern. He had 15 in the opener and just nine in his second game. If his touches continue to fluctuate, he will become heavily touchdown-dependent. In that case, it might be better to just sell high when he’s coming off a good day.
- Marquarius White – Wide Receiver
Marquarius White is rostered in 98 percent of leagues, and despite a big 45-yard reception this week, he hasn’t done much. He has just four total receptions for a little under 100 total receiving yards in two games. I don’t know what to make of him, but he’s such a known name that there might still be value.
- Justin Joly – Tight End
This one is truly difficult. Justin Joly had four receptions for 30 yards last week, and five receptions for 75 yards in the opener. He’s continued to be impactful, though you have to wonder if it’ll last. His value is pretty high for tight ends, so you’ll have to make a difficult choice on selling him high or not.
Strategic Insights
The best way that you can identify buy-low opportunities is to look for players that other managers seem to be bullish on. Players that might be on a cold stretch, or have gotten injured recently, look at their potential down the line. As for sell-high opportunities, if you foresee a player potentially dropping in production soon, then take advantage of their current value and ship them off for a great return rather than waiting and getting nothing when they drop off.
An example of a buy-low strategy would have been last season. Let’s say you see Puka Nacua get drafted and you had high hopes for him in the NFL, but the manager that owned him didn’t feel that way. You could aggressively try and trade for him because you see past his draft position and look at his potential. Then, Nacua has his breakout season, and you got him for almost nothing. The same goes the other way, if you have Tyreek Hill who says that he’s going to retire around 31, and you know he’s getting up there despite being a top player at his position, you can trade him away at peak value before he retires and get a great return.
Trade Targets
NFL:
- Caleb Williams – Quarterback
I think that Caleb Williams will continue to improve throughout his rookie season. With the weapons he has at his disposal, he’d be great down the stretch of the season (I hope). With that said, his value isn’t going to drop any lower from his opening performance.
- Zack Moss – Running Back
There were worries about who might lead Cincinnati’s backfield. Not anymore. Moss had nine carries for 44 yards and a touchdown with two receptions for 17 yards. He had 11 touches compared to Chase Brown’s six, and the only reason it was even close, was because the Bengals were losing the majority of the game.
- Malik Nabers – Wide Receiver
If you didn’t have faith in the Giant’s offense before, you have even less now. Still, Malik Nabers put up a solid Week 1 and can be even better if any other quarterback gets an opportunity to start this year.
- Mark Andrews – Tight End
This is a shaky trade target, but it’s likely that managers are pulling the alarm on Andrews very early. He had just two catches for 14 yards in the opener, while Isiah Likely had a monster day. However, Andrews is still working back from an injury and is likely going to pick up steam the longer the year progresses. If his value is low enough, there’s no downside to a trade for him.
College:
- KJ Jennings – Quarterback
Preston Stone was supposed to be in line for a huge season, instead, he’s losing snaps to KJ Jennings. We haven’t seen much of Jennings, but if he’s riping the job away from Stone during the season, then perhaps he’s better than what we’ve been seeing, or Stone is just that bad.
- Kaleb Johnson – Running Back
Kaleb Johnson had 25 carries for 187 yards and two touchdowns for an Iowa offense that looked lost in the passing game. It’s a confusing backfield, and if possible, you should get Johnson before Iowa starts to lean even heavier toward the run.
- Jimmy Horn – Wide Receiver
Jimmy Horn had three receptions for just 11 scoreless yards in his second game. It’s disappointing coming off a seventh catch, 198-yard performance with a touchdown. However, Colorado faced immense pressure in the passing game and fell behind before they got into any rhythm. Horn should bounce back next week.
- Luke Lachey – Tight End
Iowa consistently has great tight ends, and Luke Lachey is no different. Unfortunately, the team forgot how to throw the football last week, and he ended with zero receptions on four targets. Trying to trade for him could be a good bet.
Strategic Insights:
The best advice that I can give regarding trades is to be respectful to the other managers. Don’t horrendously lowball somebody for a player, and don’t insult them to make trades. Be nice and respectful and understand the value that you’re going for. Your first offer should be just thrown out there to see what happens, but both you and the other manager should just slowly throw offers out to see what works for each of you.
Waiver Wire Watch
NFL:
- Justin Fields – Quarterback
You probably don’t even need to trade for him, he’s likely a free agent, but look into Justin Fields. He threw for only 156 passing yards but had 14 carries for 57 yards. If he finds a rhythm and continues to start, he could offer great fantasy value again.
- Zach Charbonnet – Running Back
Zach Charbonnet played a little longer than anticipated due to Kenneth Walker exiting with an abdomen injury. If that injury continues, Charbonnet will rack up touches. And when you have a lead back on the waiver wire, you go after him.
- Wan’Dale Robinson – Wide Receiver
With the New York Giants playing catch-up all game, Wan’Dale Robinson had six receptions for 44 yards and a carry for 14. Negative game scripts actually turn Robinson into a sneaky pickup.
- Taysom Hill – Tight End
Yes, somehow Taysom Hill is listed as a tight end in most fantasy leagues. In a change of pace, he wasn’t just taking read-option snaps, Hill was straight-up taking handoffs from the backfield like a running back. That’s worth a look at a position that needs help.
College:
- Devon Dampier – Quarterback
Devon Dampier had a monster day. He threw for 260 yards and three touchdowns with two interceptions. However, he stacked up his numbers with 15 rushes for 130 yards and two more touchdowns. Rostered in under 50 percent of leagues, if Dampier is available, grab him.
- Anthony Tyus – Running Back
This one didn’t change from last week. Anthony Tyus is still under-rostered in most leagues, and he followed up his great opening performance with 17 rushes for 74 yards and a touchdown. He’s a must-have if he isn’t on a roster already.
- Tai Felton – Wide Receiver
He’s only rostered in around 50 percent of leagues, and it should be much higher. Tai Felton had 11 receptions on 15 targets for 152 yards and a touchdown. Last week, he had seven receptions on nine targets for 178 yards and two touchdowns. He’s not slowing down.
- Grayson Barnes – Tight End
In Week 1, Grayson Barnes had five receptions for 96 yards and a touchdown. He’s leading the team in targets this season as well, and with the tight end position, this makes Barnes a must-have on the waiver wire.
Strategic Insights
The easiest way to prioritize waiver wire claims is to simply rank the players you want before going after them. Take them one at a time and understand that you’re not going to get all of them. Waiver wire claims usually go based on the order you place them in, so target your top guys first.
Conclusion
At the end of the day, it is very important to keep up with things every week, otherwise, key players can slip through your fingers. Be sure to consistently search for buy-low, and sell-high opportunities, relentlessly look through the waiver wire markets, and don’t be afraid to shoot out a couple of trade offers if you’re interested. Use all of the above information to keep yourself at the top of the standings. above information to get your year started off right.