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Every week, fantasy football owners run into roster issues and conundrums that can leave them flat-out stumped. Unsure how to handle an injured starter? How long should you hold out hope for a disappointing high-round draft pick? We’ll help fantasy football owners navigate all of these questions and more in our series ‘Fantasy Football Roster Renovation.’ Our writers tackle your roster issues below.
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One or more of my star players are off to terrible starts, and I don’t know what the best course of action is for Week 3.
The bad news is that there is no easy answer. Your decision on what to do should be based on looking at the circumstances of each particular player. Let’s use Stefon Diggs as an example. In Week 1 against the Falcons Diggs scored just 5.7 PPR points. Diggs was on the injury report all week, and he has a history of not scoring as highly when he’s on the injury report. Additionally, the Vikings dominated the game and only had 10 pass attempts for the entire game. Based on these factors it’s understandable that Diggs didn’t produce, and I wouldn’t panic. Look at the percentage of snaps played and targets (for wide receiver and tight end) to help you determine if there’s a legitimate reason for concern. Corey Davis produced a score of 0.0 in Week 1, but his 83% snap share dwarfed every other Titans’ wide receiver, so it’s likely Week 1 was just an anomaly.
– Shane Manila (@DFF_Shane)
If one of my top players isn’t performing well after a couple of weeks, there are a couple of options to look into; trade him, trade to replace him, or be patient. Obviously, he might not be worth much if he has put together a couple of fantasy duds, so you could wait until he has a decent game. The hard part is your mind will think he is back into form and you will want to keep him. Don’t get clingy — that will be the best time to cut bait. The other option is to trade away another piece of your offense that is expendable. For instance, if you have Joe Mixon right now you might be looking for options to replace Mixon’s lack of production. Say you also have Lamar Jackson. Since the quarterback position can be replaced or streamed, shop Lamar Jackson and see what you can get in return. I know you don’t have many games until the playoffs start so being patient might be the hardest option here. Robert Woods last year had only 16.9 half-PPR points going into Week 3 but finished as WR10 on the season.
– Kevin O’Connor (@22koconnor)
After seeing another lackluster performance by Mike Evans, all of the offseason suggestions that Chris Godwin will surpass him to be Tampa Bay’s top receiver seem true. The Buccaneers’ offense, despite its fire power, doesn’t seem to be lighting up the scoreboard. Winston is proving that he is never going to be elite. However, Evans has been regardless. This season, though, he seems to have lost a step. He’s too good and carries too much draft capital to be dumped, but considering him your team’s top wide receiver or even second best receiver might be a stretch. He’s been dominant every year in the league, amassing over 1,000 yards in his first five seasons. That feat looks like it is in jeopardy with the arrival of Bruce Arians and the emergence of Chris Godwin. It could be worse, however. You could have drafted teammate O.J. Howard hoping he might be a top-three tight end this year. While Evans has taken a step backward towards the flex conversation, Howard has disappeared and will soon disappear from many people’s rosters.
– Marc Mathyk (@Masterjune70)
Two games is hardly an entire season, but nobody wants to see a player putting up donuts to start the year. I think the big question you have to ask is whether the slow start is matchup-driven, talent-driven, or scheme-driven. Matchup driven would be Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers. He has been a great fantasy quarterback in the past, and he has not done much in two games. He also played a Bears’ defense that was first in points allowed and third in yards allowed last year. He followed that up with a game against a Vikings team that was ninth in points allowed and fourth in yards allowed. His slow start is learning a new offense against two of the toughest defenses in the league. The whole Packers’ offense should improve, and people need to calm down about the bad numbers in the tough matchups. Talent driven is harder to fix. Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton does not look like he can physically play the position, and that makes it harder to stay the course when something does not look right. Scheme driven is Chicago Bears wide receiver Anthony Miller having two targets in two games or San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Dante Pettis with one target in two games. The Bears and 49ers do not seem interested in involving those guys in the offense. You need to figure out which group your struggling player falls into. A matchup problem you need to wait out for a few games until you see how the player does against easier competition. A talent problem is someone you need to cut bait with immediately because that probably is not going to improve. A scheme problem is someone that you should park on your bench until the player is involved in the scheme. If you can’t afford to keep that player, you can cut him, but if you can hold onto him, that is a situation that could improve later in the season. You must know why your fantasy player is struggling before you can figure out the problem. Just cutting or trading everyone is probably not the answer this early in the season.
– Derek Lofland (@DerekLofland)
Hang on to that star player for now unless you’re able to move them for the right price. Since it’s only Week 2, you don’t have to panic quite yet. Most teams will look to buy low, but if you really want to move on, wait until they have a huge week. For example, O.J. Howard was one of the touted breakout tight ends this offseason. Howard played 60 snaps last week and wasn’t even targeted. He has a get-right matchup against the Giants coming up. If he can’t do anything decent against a defense who is woefully bad against the tight end, then it’s time to move on. If he goes off Week 3, his stock is high again making him easy to move for pieces you would potentially need to make a playoff run. Stay patient for now unless something unforeseen happens.
– Brad Camara (@beerad30)
It depends on who your “star” player is. If it’s Mike Evans, George Kittle, Aaron Rodgers, Nick Chubb, or Adam Thielen, chances that they will get back on track. If the player is Devonta Freeman, James Conner, or Stefon Diggs, you might want to shop around and see if they still have that high name value. The key here is not to sell low, otherwise, you’ll end up with a team that has no chance of going anywhere. You should only sell if A) you believe that a player is at his highest value now because of name recognition and that it will only go down from here, or B) you can get proper value return.
– Elisha Twerski (@ElishaTwerski)
The best course of action is sometimes to just stay the course. This is where draft capital often comes into play. If you spent an early or mid-round pick on a player the chances are often very low that you will be willing to cut bait in Week 2. If the player in question is someone you landed in the double-digit rounds — all bets may be off. In practice, each case needs to be judged individually based on the specific set of correlative factors. Stefon Diggs has been struggling but he was an early-round pick. He has a struggling quarterback and a running back who looks like one of the NFL’s best. O.J. Howard has been a disaster but as an early-round pick at a premium position, it is better to send him to the bench than to cut him. Damien Williams has been a massive disappointment. Some had RB1 hopes for him when they drafted him as early as the second round this summer. He is still tied to one of the best offenses in the league and is still worth considering as a weekly flex (when healthy). Donte Moncrief was handed a massive role on a silver platter and stumbled his way to an in-game benching. With Mason Rudolph taking over under center the smart money is his top receiver at Oklahoma State James Washington stepping into the number two role. Moncrief is a cut candidate in leagues with one flex and/or small benches.
– Raju Byfield (@FantasyContext)
I have multiple bench players who are good enough to start – but not for me. What should I do?
If you find yourself in this position, all I have to say is “Good for you!” For the most part, I am envious. If you do have a star-studded lineup full of surprises then you can decide which ones you think are worth selling high on in case you think they are having early breakouts that will not be sustainable. If you believe in all of your guys then it is best to hold and try to play the right player based on defensive matchups. It is nice having an embarrassment of riches rather than having a roster of well-known players who are underwhelming. They are big headaches because you feel compelled to hold on to them, hoping they will come good. If a player doesn’t make a turnaround by the fifth week, however, it might be time to cut the umbilical cord and find yourself a shinier, happier option. Beware of some of the emerging rookie wide receivers that seem to have hit the ground running. Most likely, only one of Marquise Brown, Terry McLaurin, A.J. Brown, D.K. Metcalf, and KeeSean Johnson will be able to keep up this torrid rookie pace.
– Marc Mathyk (@Masterjune70)
The old “my team is too good” problem. Bundle and trade. The first step is to look at your roster and determine your biggest weakness. Do you need a legitimate game-changing WR1? Scour the rest of the league’s rosters. Find the rosters with strong singular assets but overall lacking multiple assets. If a team is starting DeAndre Hopkins as their WR1 but their WR2 is DeSean Jackson offer them multiple wide receivers that are better than Jackson for Hopkins. Your depth will allow you to trade away those lesser assets while gaining one stronger asset.
– Shane Manila (@DFF_Shane)
You are in a good spot if you have multiple bench players that are performing at a high level. A couple options to consider — trade away some of your assets or just keep them. The NFL season is a grind and most players don’t play all 16 games. Having reliable options to plug in for their absences is critical to making the playoffs. If you find yourself weak at a certain position, you could also package a couple of players to replace your area of weakness. Injuries happen every week so find a team that might have lost players you can help replace. If you have a good backup quarterback right now, go look for the Drew Brees owner and see what you can get. Even if you don’t think someone would complete the trade it never hurts to ask.
– Kevin O’Connor (@22koconnor)
Congratulations on having an abundance of riches, but the NFL season is a long one and there will be bumps in the road. At the very least, you need players for bye weeks and as we saw this week, a season-ending injury is one play away. If you are completely loaded at running back but have no receivers, this may be the time to trade one of those players that you are not using to improve the team. However, you do not want to sell solid players at a discount, because you will have to go against them later in the season and in a game where injuries are so common, it is never a bad thing to have depth. My experience is that owners that started 0-2 and are in danger of going to 0-3 are going to be in panic mode right about now. This is the time you can sell high with your bench players and broaden the depth of your team but embrace your depth. You may need it later in the season and the only reason to make a trade is if it is going to help your team in the long-term. You never know when those bench players you are not using right now will be able to help you over the course of a long season.
– Derek Lofland (@DerekLofland)
Package one of them with a starter from your team to upgrade to a better starter (e.g., package a WR3 and an RB2 and try to get an RB1). There is no prize for bench points in most leagues, so it’s all about improving the total power of your starting lineup in any way possible.
– Mark Leipold (@LeipoldNFL)
Post an “on the block” and try to package these players for better starters. You need to evaluate your starting lineup and try to trade your depth to upgrade your starters. Only make a deal if it makes sense, it’s a 16-week grind, multiple injuries could erase your depth in any given week. If you have a chance to upgrade a starter, make the move. Having good depth will get you through the bye week gauntlet but will create start/sit headaches as the season goes on. Evaluate rosters and make trades to better your starters.
– Brad Camara (@beerad30)
You should always be putting feelers out to see if there are value trades to be had, but especially in these circumstances. If you have an embarrassment of riches as far as depth is concerned, use that depth to consolidate for better stars. Though, you must make sure that you leave yourself enough depth to survive injuries because they happen … often. If you’re sitting at 2-0, you should be waiting for a trade you are salivating at. If you’re 0-2 with all this depth, you should be more inclined to trade the depth and consolidate in order to start winning.
– Elisha Twerski (@ElishaTwerski)
If you have multiple players on your bench who are producing that is good news for your fantasy team. As the last couple weeks have taught us, football, and fantasy football as a result, is very often a war of attrition. Depth is key. Having high-end bye week fillers or trade pieces is a luxury you should hope to exploit. There is no such thing as too much depth. There is only ‘not enough bench spots’ or ‘not enough starting spots.’ If you find that you are constantly in a position of having too many good players on your bench, try to move up in league size (eight-man to 10, 10 to 12, 12 to 14 etc). You could also join or create a league where you have multiple flex spots allowing you to start more players weekly. The key here is that you have identified that the players on your bench are indeed starter worthy. That should be the goal of every fantasy owner.
– Raju Byfield (@FantasyContext)
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