Fridays are for Five Lists of Five here at DKNetwork, and we’re approaching the home stretch of the fantasy football regular season. Christian McCaffrey makes his big return; uncertainty surrounds high-profile players like Michael Pittman, Dak Prescott, Trevor Lawrence, potentially Tyreek Hill—the list goes on. We need fantasy football stashes. Fantasy football streamers. Now more than ever!
I, once more, digress. Fantasy Fridays!
A reminder of the premise behind this specific series of lists: All I want is for you to be better than your friends. You’re going to be surrounded by them on Sunday, probably. How sweet would it be if you could be sure you’ve checked every box possible that might guarantee you a resounding victory this week? Some kick-your-feet-up insights? I’ve got some.
Again—I know my audience. The smoke-break audience. The quick-scan-of-the-phone-on-the-way-to-the-fridge audience. The give-me-as-much-info-as-possible-as-fast-as-possible audience. I’m a man of the people.
And so, once more: Five Lists of Five. Think of these as byte-sized, two-minutes-to-yourself lists to scan during your weekend as you foam at the mouth for any competitive fantasy edge. As much relevant analysis as I can fit into, like, 250 words per player.
Keeping it rolling this week with top five players to trade for to prepare the home stretch.
Also available from my NFL Week 10 Fantasy Friday’s Five Lists of Five:
- Top five fantasy football stash players before NFL Week 10
- Top five fantasy football smash spots and must-starts for NFL Week 10
- Top five fantasy football streamers for NFL Week 10
- Top five wide receivers due for fantasy football breakouts in NFL Week 10
Trade for ‘Em
Patrick Mahomes, QB, Kansas City Chiefs
Week 9’s 24.54 FPT performance is the beginning of Mahomes’s second-half run. The Chiefs’ acquisition of DeAndre Hopkins might just be what this passing attack needed to finally transcend to its next level.
Superficially, Patrick Mahomes is fantasy football’s QB17. It’s entirely possible that whoever owns him in your league is disgruntled, or not entirely convinced geriatric old D-Hop is the answer to KC’s air raid woes.
Mahomes faces Buffalo, Carolina, and Las Vegas in Weeks 11-13. Those are likely all to be matchups where he needs to carry the team, and where Andy Reid & co. will want to start expanding their passing game bag.
Mahomes might not be the answer for the fantasy playoffs, but, somehow, he’s presenting himself as a value for the home stretch, and he’s well worth a high-end FLEX if you need QB help.
Amari Cooper, WR, Buffalo Bills
It’s not going to be perfect. It’s not going to be consistent. But it will be, at times, explosive.
Such has been the story of Amari Coopers career, strangely, given that his prowess as a route runner would suggest much more predictable fantasy performances. But whether it was as a Raider, a Cowboy, or a Brown, Cooper’s had trouble staying on the field. When he does, it’s turbulent.
As I gear up my lineups for the home stretch, I’m looking for upside plays. Consistency wins you regular seasons, games like Ja’Marr Chase’s last night win you fantasy championships.
I’d like to believe that Josh Allen will be at the helm of two of those for Amari Cooper in the next six weeks. I’m betting on it. And, as such, I’m trading for Cooper. I value him as a WR1, but am seeing if I can get him at low-end WR2 price.
Ladd McConkey, WR, Los Angeles Chargers
Ladd qualifies as one of those consistent producers I’d want on my roster during the home stretch. But McConkey’s situation on this Chargers team is likely to make it so that he’ll need to put up big numbers in key late-season games if the Chargers want to make the playoffs.
Health is a concern, always, with McConkey. But we are back to the mentality we had when we drafted: we are trading for upside, not so as to avoid risk. With upside comes risk.
There is nothing about this Chargers offense that is going to throttle down over the next two months of the season. McConkey, if healthy, could have a 2021 Hunter Renfrow second-half of his rookie year.
I’m pricing him as a solid WR2 in my trade evaluations, and offering accordingly.
Tyrone Tracy, RB, New York Giants
This has all the makings of a Wayne Gallman run ahead of us. And I’m so in on Tyrone Tracy. The Giants are going to soon switch to evaluating their roster for the future, as their playoff hopes are all but dashed. Devin Singletary is not the future.
Tyrone Tracy, however, is. And the Giants are unlikely to cap his carries as the season goes on. He’ll soon be the lead back in this offense, if you can’t call him that already. I value him around the same as I do Ladd McConkey, and am trying to get him on every roster I can.
He feels, to me, like a running back whose game statuses I won’t need to worry about so much in the second-half of the season, when some contenders rest their stars.
Chuba Hubbard, RB, Carolina Panthers
Unless the Panthers are playing coy with the public re. Jonathan Brooks’s health, it sure seems like Chuba Hubbard has a shot to be the lead back for Carolina the rest of the year. Brooks, though much-ballyhooed, is still a rookie, after all, and Chuba’s had to endure quite the tumultuous tenure in Carolina.
They rewarded him with lucrative extension. He’s fantasy’s RB10, and averaging 15.3 PPR points per game. There might be someone out there who’s a bit spooked by Brooks’s activation.
See if you can trade someone like Brock Bowers for him. A big name who’ll likely have a slower second half of the season.
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is z.thompson) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.
