As we head into draft season, veterans become much more expendable. Everyone wants the shiny new toy over the aging and potentially dead roster spot. Some veterans on this list will be obvious to you, but others might be newly worthy of your consideration. Either way, here are some veterans I’m trying to trade away before my dynasty rookie draft kicks off in the coming months.
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Dynasty Veterans to Trade Away
Patrick Mahomes (QB – KC)
The first name on my list is a name that all dynasty managers are familiar with. However, a player’s name isn’t what scores fantasy points. Mahomes finished as QB12 overall last season in 16 games, averaging 17.7 points per game, landing him at QB13. The worst part is that this is not a fluke. He finished with a very similar points-per-game average in 2023, so this might just be his new normal. If that’s the case, now might be the last time you can sell high on Mahomes as it sure seems like the Chiefs might be heading straight into full rebuild mode.
Jared Goff (QB – DET)
Unlike Mahomes, Goff finished with his highest points-per-game average since 2018. He was QB9 in that metric and was firing on all cylinders for Detroit in 2024. He also passed for over 4,600 yards for the third time in his career and threw for a career-high 37 touchdowns. So why am I selling him? Easy, he lost the mind of the offense in Ben Johnson. The new Bears HC leaving Goff and the Lions makes me nervous. Was Goff’s great year a result of him turning a corner or a result of Johnson’s offensive magic? I’d rather get out now than wait to find out.
Joe Mixon (RB – HOU)
Mixon is entering his ninth season and turns 29 before the season starts. That right there should be enough to convince you to move on, but for the sake of argument, let’s go deeper. Mixon played well in 2024, finishing as RB9 in points per game while playing in 14 games. Mixon has only played in every game of a season twice in his career, once before the season went to 17 games and once after. If he plays even half of the season, he should hit 2,000 carries for his career. I just think his time is running out, and I’m fine moving off of him and using his RB9 weekly finish to do so.
Christian McCaffrey (RB – SF)
Another soon-to-be-29-year-old running back is coming off of a terrible season due to injury. Unlike Mixon, McCaffrey has been all of nothing for fantasy. He’s played 16 or more games in five of his eight seasons, but seven or fewer in the other three. Coming off of his most recent knee injury is not a good sign for McCaffrey’s future prospects. In addition to that, the 49ers seem to be shedding their vets and turning the page on players like McCaffrey. If you can get something meaningful for him heading into the draft, go for it, but I doubt it’ll feel very good doing that.
AJ Brown (WR – PHI)
Receivers tend to have a longer shelf life, but Brown just feels older than his age of 28 as of Week 1. After he had won the Super Bowl, Brown was quoted as saying, “I thought my hard work would be justified by winning it all. It wasn’t.” Something seems off here. I’m not questioning his athletic ability at all, but perhaps his motivation has changed slightly. I don’t think he’ll go full Antonio Brown or anything, but I’m starting to think this might be the peak of his value, in dynasty anyway. If you can get out of him for a younger solid asset and a pick, it might be worth considering. Otherwise, you might need to hold on and enjoy the ride with him.
Terry McLaurin (WR – WAS)
McLaurin turns 30 at the start of the 2025 season. That right there is enough of a reason for some managers to move on. The Commanders also added Deebo Samuel for a 5th-round draft pick and have others already on the roster to challenge him for targets. McLaurin hasn’t missed a game in four seasons and has over 110 targets in each of the last five seasons as well. The age cliff makes me very worried this is the year the wheels fall off. If you can move him now on his WR16 points-per-game finish, then I say do it.
Brandon Aiyuk (WR – SF)
I’m blurring the line by calling Aiyuk a veteran, but going into his sixth season seems close enough for me. That being said, 2024 was a brutal year for Aiyuk managers. He played in a meager seven games and averaged an even more mediocre 8.9 points per reception (PPR) points per game in those games. Woof. Add to that the fact the team seems very interested in moving him, and I want out. I get the idea of holding until some positive news comes out, but if you get any nibbles, I’d consider moving him sooner.
Travis Kelce (TE – KC)
Just like his quarterback, the writing may be on the wall for Kelce as well. After losing the Super Bowl, the news has come out that Kelce is coming back for another season, but perhaps his heart isn’t in it as much. Kelce finished as TE6 in points per game last year, and his name still carries some value, but any active dynasty manager will know that he’s already 35 and on the decline for his career heading into his 13th season. I’d probably try packaging him with a younger asset to tier up somewhere, but even that could be a tough one to sell.
Mark Andrews (TE – BAL)
Finishing just behind Kelce at TE7 in points per game was the veteran from Baltimore. Andrews turns 30 this year and had his lowest PPG since his rookie season in 2018 with 11.1. His scoring was bolstered by his touchdown production, which is unlikely to repeat. He caught a career-high 11 touchdowns on a very average 55 catches. A 20% touchdown rate is insane, and with the rise of fellow TE’s Isaiah Likely and Charlie Kolar, I really don’t think this will happen again. Sell Andrews for parts before the rust destroys what’s left of his dynasty value.
Andrew Hall is a featured writer for FantasyPros. For more from Andrew, check out his profile and follow him @AndrewHallFF.
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