Saturday brought a ton of moves of note with teams attempting to trim their rosters down to size for the start of the 2019 NFL regular season. As a result, we’re sure those that are yet to draft, or who are preparing for Week 1, have questions as to the fantasy football impact of the moves made this weekend. You’ve come to the right place. We’ve asked our writers to provide their rapid reaction to all of the recent transactions. In this article, we’ll examine the trade that sent Carlos Hyde to the Houston Texans.

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What is the fantasy impact of Carlos Hyde being traded to the Texans?

Some may be jumping to conclusions that Hyde jumps into the lead role while others believe this is the best-case scenario for Duke Johnson. Truth be told, it’s somewhere in the middle. If the Texans are leading, Hyde is going to see significant snaps. If the Texans fall behind, it’s going to be almost all Johnson. They gave up a third-round pick for one of them (Johnson), while the other cost pennies (Hyde). We can’t forget that even though Lamar Miller averaged 18.3 touches per game with the Texans, Alfred Blue totaled 170 combined carries/targets.
– Mike Tagliere (@MikeTagliereNFL)

Anyone suggesting that Carlos Hyde’s arrival in Houston is good for Duke Johnson flat out has no idea what they’re talking about. It is nowhere near a death sentence. It likely doesn’t impact Johnson’s role that much. But when a team actively trades for a running back, it can’t ever be good for the presumed starter. Johnson is still likely to lead this backfield in touches. Hyde’s touch count should be somewhere around 75-80% of what Lamar Miller would have gotten. Hyde is worth a late-round flier, but not much more. He has a low ceiling. Johnson goes from a fifth-round pick to a sixth-round pick.
– Jason Katz (@jasonkatz13)

It’s remarkable how many acquisitions the Texans have made without having a true general manager. However, this deal makes plenty of sense for both sides, especially with Hyde’s roster spot on Kansas City in jeopardy. He’ll serve as the between-the-tackles guy for Houston, a role that Duke Johnson simply can’t handle. I wouldn’t say Hyde is an upgrade over the injured Lamar Miller, but he’s not a huge downgrade if he has anything left in the tank. Duke Johnson is still the more dynamic player who could see much more usage in Houston. As for Kansas City, this seals the deal that Darwin Thompson is the handcuff you need for Damien Williams.
– Matt Barbato (@RealMattBarbato)

It’s been a rollercoaster of emotions with Duke Johnson over the last three weeks, as he has gone from disgruntled Brown to change-of-pace flex in Houston to stud PPR back without Lamar Miller to now… possibly in a timeshare with Carlos Hyde? This is Hyde’s third team since leaving the 49ers last offseason, so it’s pretty obvious he doesn’t have much staying power. He’ll certainly have a lot more opportunities in Houston than he would have in Kansas City, and Johnson has never been a feature back. Hyde is a bench stash for now, but he could be flex-worthy if he can manage 10 touches per week. This move is more about Duke Johnson, though, and his value has taken a hit with the Hyde trade. Darwin Thompson needs to be owned as the clear backup to Damien Williams in Kansas City, though that was the case prior to Hyde’s exodus.
– Zak Hanshew (ZaktheMonster)

This is a trade that the entire fantasy community has seen coming for awhile now, ever since Lamar Miller went down with a torn ACL. Hyde will take some work from Johnson, of course, but he’s not coming over to be the lead back. The Texans gave up very little for Hyde who will be coming over on the eve of the season, and we knew the Texans were going to add a body at some point. Johnson is plenty capable of leading the way, and he’s going to. I haven’t moved Johnson down in my rankings much with this trade. As for the Chiefs, it was obvious that Darwin Thompson was the backup to Damien Williams before this trade. Bump him up a couple of spots and continue to view him as one of the best late-round selections in your draft.
– Dan Harris (@danharris80)

While there is reason to be a bit skeptical of Duke Johnson as a feature back, we can’t forget that Carlos Hyde couldn’t beat out Darrel Williams for the third RB position in Kansas City. This will be Hyde’s fifth team in the last two years, nothing to exactly be proud of. Let’s not kid ourselves, no one expected Duke Johnson to carry the load every single down for the Texans. What we did expect? Johnson to get 10-15 carries a game and at least catch a few passes. None of that has changed with the Texans’ acquisition of Hyde. In fact, it’s probably cemented that role for Duke. If Johnson does get those touches, expect him to put up solid RB2 numbers.
– Alex Altmix (@Altmix_23)

What was once a one-man show has now turned into a true timeshare. Carlos Hyde’s arrival signifies a truth we all knew would eventually be revealed, Duke Johnson wasn’t brought into Houston to be a workhorse running back. Over Hyde’s career, he’s averaged a serviceable four yards per carry, but he’s certainly not known to be a reliable pass catcher. Hyde and Johnson will split carries, and Johnson will see the majority of the passing-down work. However, Hyde figures to receive more goal line work, making him a high-end RB3 in standard formats. Johnson is a mid-tier RB2 in PPR, and like Hyde, a high-end RB3 in standard.
– Taylor Lambert (@TaylorSLambert)

Hyde is earning the name journeyman in a short two years of football, joining his fourth team in about a year. Duke Johnson is the best back on the team and getting Hyde might be tilting some people but if Houston is smart (and that’s a big ‘if’), Hyde will be depth only. I still think he will need to fight off Damarea Crockett, who is a similar-sized back, younger and most likely better. Best case scenario Hyde gets 8-10 touches a game and shows early on that he is solid enough to spell Duke and maybe earn some goal line touches. Worst case scenario he ends up being Alfred Blue and might get on the field from time to time.
– Marc Mathyk (@Masterjune70)

With just eight days until the NFL season kicks off, Houston traded for another running back to replace Lamar Miller in Carlos Hyde. Since he doesn’t have much time to get acclimated to the offense, there won’ be a lot of work headed Hyde’s way anytime soon. If anything, the backfield will be split between Hyde and their other running back acquisition, Duke Johnson. For those that were high on Johnson before the trade, the addition of Hyde might eat into some of Johnson’s workload. This is a backfield that will be hard to trust for consistent production.
– Kevin O’Connor (@22koconnor)

After losing out to Darwin Thompson for the backup job in Kansas City, Hyde was dealt to Houston in the midst of roster cuts. Everyone was wondering what the Texans were going to do once Lamar Miller went down, now that question has been answered with the acquisition of Hyde. There is a playing time path for Hyde, as he is poised to share the Texans’ backfield with Duke Johnson. He averaged a career-low 3.3 YPC and has played on four different teams since the beginning of the 2018 season. Hyde is not a pass catcher but will be worked into the offense when the Texans have a significant lead. The Texans paid a high price (third-round pick) to acquire Duke Johnson, and it’s his backfield to lose. Hyde is worth a flier in fantasy and should be the main handcuff for Johnson.
– Brad Camara (@beerad30)

One of the least surprising moves made on Saturday was the Houston Texans trading for running back Carlos Hyde. Ever since the Lamar Miller injury, everyone knew the Texans would be looking for more running back depth. I think Hyde is exactly that, depth. He’ll have a role in this offense, especially when leading but not enough of one to warrant a high draft pick. Duke Johnson is still going to be the guy you want in this backfield, especially in PPR.
– Eli Berkovits (BookOfEli_NFL)

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