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Dynasty Buy/Sell/Hold: Week 8

Dynasty Buy/Sell/Hold: Week 8

We’re almost halfway through the season already, and this year has been pretty ridiculous to say the least. James Robinson is the RB2 overall. Robby Anderson is a WR1, Lamar Jackson is the QB15, and Rob Gronkowski is a TE1. Some of the biggest names in fantasy football go down with injuries in Christian McCaffrey and Saquon Barkley, and now Odell Beckham Jr. is done for the season with a torn ACL. These are just a few of the odd things that have happened this year, and we’ve still got nine weeks to go. Once again, it’s time to look at some players to buy, sell, or hold in your dynasty leagues.

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Mike Evans (WR – TB)
Mike Evans is coming off his second game in a row with just two targets. Prior to that, he scored a touchdown in every single game this year with two 100+ yard performances and two games with two receiving yards. Evans tends to get a bit overlooked in the dynasty community, and right now there’s a nice opportunity to acquire him.

The way this team is playing, Tom Brady doesn’t need to force-feed Evans the ball. Yet Evans is still just 27 years old and has six straight 1,000+ yard seasons, though it seems he’s been in the league longer. With so many weapons on this offense and the defense playing at a high level, there really isn’t a need for Brady to target Evans as heavily as other Tampa Bay quarterbacks have in the past.

There’s definitely going to be some big games for Evans this year. As big of a threat as he is in the end zone, he’ll get involved. You might not get WR1 numbers like he’s recorded in the past, but I’m absolutely trying to acquire him right now. Evans will still produce and has plenty of years ahead of him in the NFL, whether or not it’s with Brady and the Buccaneers. He’s beyond proven and is a nice buy-low right now.
Verdict: Buy Low

Ezekiel Elliott (RB – DAL)
Ezekiel Elliott has struggled of late. Despite being the RB4 in PPR leagues right now, many managers are a bit worried after seeing him fumble twice against Washington, after which Tony Pollard came into the game and looked good. Elliott is in his fifth NFL season and has been an absolute stud for fantasy football purposes every single year, including finishing as the RB2 overall during his rookie campaign in 2016.

Elliott has seen a fairly significant dropoff in offensive snaps over the past two weeks, as he played in 62% and 67% of the snaps. This is low compared to his typical usage of roughly 80% or 90% that he normally sees. In both games, he saw 12 carries, and he didn’t crack 50 rushing yards in either. He also saw just two targets and caught one of them for six yards last week.

Elliott is far from cheap, but there’s potentially a bit of a buying window open. There’s concern surrounding his fumbling issues, as he has lost four of five fumbles on the year. I’d try to acquire Elliott if he’s on a team not looking to compete this year. Where rostering him, hold whether you’re competing now or not.
Verdict: Buy/Hold

Chris Carson (RB – SEA)
Chris Carson tends to get overlooked in the dynasty community more often than not, yet he continues to produce. He’s currently the RB11 in both standard and PPR scoring leagues. Carson has been a nice, low-end RB1 this year despite already having his bye week and leaving last Sunday night’s game against the Cardinals early with a mid-foot injury.

As of now, the injury isn’t considered serious, but it’s worth monitoring as we move on to Week 8. If Carson were to miss time, this backfield will be a mixture of Carlos Hyde (if a hamstring injury doesn’t take him out as well), Travis Homer (also dealing with a knee issue), and rookie DeeJay Dallas. Rashaad Penny is also looking to return in the next few weeks from his torn ACL. For what it’s worth, I like Dallas a fair amount and would be happy to buy him right now with the chance of an increased workload moving forward. Penny is also an interesting cheap buy right now.

Regardless of Carson’s injury, I’m using this time to sell high on Carson if you’re not looking to compete this year. If you are currently in contention, I don’t mind holding onto him, but I’d still consider putting him on the trade block.
Verdict: Sell High

Chase Edmonds (RB – ARI)
When given the chance, second-year running back Chase Edmonds has shown flashes in Arizona. Kenyan Drake has been a massive disappointment this year. To make matters even worse, he left Week 7’s game against the Seahawks with an ankle injury. Drake left the field in tears on a cart, and he’s expected to miss a few weeks with a slight ligament tear in his ankle.

This leaves Edmonds and rookie Eno Benjamin out of Arizona State to step up. I’d rather roster Edmonds out of these two, but he’ll definitely be more expensive. That said, I’m definitely buying where I can from what we’ve seen out of him. Edmonds will not be easy to acquire right now, but I’d still deal for him as long as the price isn’t too crazy.

If you’re looking for a much cheaper option, I liked Benjamin as a prospect with upside in the passing game. He’s worth going after as well.
Verdict: Buy

2021 Draft Picks
This isn’t very specific, but now could be a nice time to start looking to acquire future picks in the 2021 class. Obviously, first-round picks are ideal, but it can be so tough to acquire them. This time of year, I’d really try to get as many second or third-round draft picks wherever I can. Oftentimes, a manager may be a big fan of one player and not the other, even if they may be valued similarly. This is a perfect circumstance to do a “lateral” move while also getting a second or third-round pick.

For example, if you roster D.K. Metcalf and want to acquire A.J. Brown, you could likely get Brown and a third-round pick thrown on top. While both players are in a similar tier, the other manager may like Metcalf much more and would be fine giving up a pick as well to get “their guy.” These circumstances are always situational, but these types of moves are a good way to pick up extra future picks.

Of course, you can always simply sell off your assets for picks. If you’re not competing to win now, go through the bottom part of your roster and send offers out with some veteran players — or low-end options who are producing right now — to teams looking to win now. A few examples are guys like Jimmy Graham, Randall Cobb, or Devonta Freeman. They have produced enough this year that a contender might be willing to give up a future third or fourth-round pick for some immediate production.

Antonio Brown (WR – TB)
I’ll make this last one fairly quick, but it’s definitely worth noting as I’ve seen a few trades go down involving Antonio Brown already. Brown is officially back in the NFL, and after signing with the Buccaneers, I’m using this opportunity to sell high everywhere. This offense simply has too many mouths to feed, as we’ve already seen the targets drop for Evans and Chris Godwin. I won’t be shocked at all if Brown has a few good games, but is inconsistent on a weekly basis. Get whatever you can out of him.
Verdict: Sell High

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Aaron Schillinger is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Aaron, check out his profile and follow him @aaron_schill.

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