After a long offseason and over a month of hype out of training camp and the preseason slate, Week 1 of the 2026 NFL regular season has arrived. It’s about at this time that dynasty leagues really pick up steam as fantasy managers make last-minute moves to perfect their lineups before the full schedule kicks off on Sunday.
If you’ve been playing the format for a while, you know the drill. Whether buying, selling, or just playing the market, there are always transactions to be made in dynasty fantasy football. To be frank, this is a set of receivers who are all clearly talented and could potentially be staples of your lineup, but each carries a legitimate case to capitalize on surrounding hype and sell high at peak value before they take the field for the first time.
With that caveat out of the way, here are the best sell candidates to trade away at the wide receiver position in dynasty fantasy football as the new season begins.
Best wide receiver sells to trade away in dynasty fantasy football
Luther Burden, Chicago Bears (WR16)
The dynasty community went wild for Luther Burden this offseason. Really, it was a perfect storm of factors that created one of the most memorable hype trains in recent memory. He posted a massive 27.8-point performance in PPR formats with a receiving line of 8-138-1 in Week 17 last season, ending the fantasy season on a very high note that remained in managers’ memories all summer. Then, the Bears traded DJ Moore to the Buffalo Bills, clearing a path for Burden to assume the veteran’s role as an after-the-catch threat with layup targets in the short and intermediate passing game. And of course, Ben Johnson spoke very highly of the now-sophomore during training camp, which was followed by a slew of praise from media members on the sidelines.
To be entirely clear, I’m not advocating to trade Burden away because he’s bad. By all means, I believe he’s a good wide receiver who’s positioned to pop off this season for an ascending Chicago offense that’ll likely be throwing the ball a ton if the defense plays as poorly as anticipated. There’s a reason the Missouri product is a breakout candidate, after all. He broke the ever-relevant 525-yard mark as a rookie with 652 yards and two touchdowns on 47 receptions, ranking third among all NFL wideouts with 2.69 yards per route run (minimum 100 routes). He also finished 16th among all players at the position with 334 total yards after the catch, a particularly notable stat given that he tied for the fewest receptions of any player ranked inside the top 30. Given that efficiency, his 7.1 yards after catch per reception actually ranked third among all receivers to catch at least 30 passes. We’re talking about elite per-catch numbers here, so it’s evident that Burden has what one may refer to as, “the juice.”
Burden is primed for an excellent second pro season, but if there’s any argument to sell high on him, it would be a WR16 price tag via KeepTradeCut’s crowdsourced dynasty rankings. Arguing that it’s too high based on the fact he has just four games of double-digit PPR points under his belt would be a bit disingenuous given that he didn’t crack a 50% snap share until Week 12 as a rookie. Still, most of the valuation stems from very bullish projections based on a pretty limited sample. The Bears’ offense should be excellent, but it’s tough to see Caleb Williams supporting three fantasy studs on a consistent basis. As such, the highs should be high for the pass-catching trio of Burden, Rome Odunze and Colston Loveland, but the lows may be frustrating as well – good luck figuring out which of them will eat in any given matchup.
There’s some serious risk in selling high, but given the price tag Burden commands after a much-hyped offseason (especially with a valuation of an early/mid first-rounder, per KTC), I’m comfortable trading him away if I can get a haul in return. One idea? Tier down for a more proven wideout, plus a little bit of draft capital.
DeVonta Smith, Philadelphia Eagles (WR17)
The next name currently slots in immediately behind Burden as the dynasty WR17 in KeepTradeCut’s rankings. On one hand, he’s been a very consistent contributor over his five seasons in the NFL and now gets to operate as the clear-cut top option in his team’s aerial attack after years of playing second fiddle. On the other hand, the offense has ranked near the bottom of the league in passing volume lately and a quarterback whose talent and staying power as a passer has been called into question at times. Let’s talk about DeVonta Smith, shall we?
Smith has averaged double-digit fantasy points in every season of his career with marks of 15.0, 14.2 and 15.3 over three of the last four years. He’s finished as high as the overall WR9 and has never ended a season outside the top-30 wideouts in total scoring, even despite missing four games in 2024. He’s also an excellent route runner who knows how to get open downfield in particular. There’s plenty to like about his profile, even coming off a down 2025 in which he posted 1,008 yards and a career-low four touchdowns on 77 catches and 113 targets. Now-fired coordinator Kevin Patullo’s poor play-calling aside, this is a guy who fantasy managers can typically pencil into lineups as a set-and-forget WR2 with a high ceiling. Given his elevation to the Eagles’ top target following the trade that sent A.J. Brown to the New England Patriots, why would we want to trade Smith away?
It’s all about the hype, baby. Is Smith capable of succeeding as a team’s top wideout? Probably so – he’s one of the most perennially underrated players at his position. He simply knows how to get open and can command targets at the pro level; for what it’s worth, he was one of four receivers to ever win the Heisman Trophy during his days in the NCAA, too. Smith is deserving of a role as the top dog in Philadelphia, but there are some yellow-ish flags. The Eagles have finished lower than sixth in total rush attempts just once in five years under head coach Nick Sirianni, with the lone exception last year’s offensive disasterclass. Whispers about Jalen Hurts’ arm talent and staying power with the organization have grown louder since January. The organization also just drafted Makai Lemon in the first round back in April.
Those aren’t totally bearish for Smith’s fantasy viability or his dynasty value moving forward, but there are enough factors here to raise an eyebrow for a moment. Is he a talent who can flirt with top-12 production if he gets peppered with targets? Sure, but the pass volume may not arrive to really live up to the expectations people have for him following the role promotion. There’s a case to trade him away given the spike in his value to its highest point in two years.
Jameson Williams, Detroit Lions (WR25)
I’ll preface this section with a disclaimer that much like the previous two receivers, I really like the talent Jameson Williams brings to the table. The Lions’ standout put forth a scorching-hot second half last season and ended with a career-best campaign, displaying the kind up upside the franchise drafted him for. For those who rostered him, many victory laps were surely had. There’s context to consider here, though. Sorry to rain on the parade.
The start of Williams’ professional career was far from ideal that he spent much of his first two seasons sidelined while rehabbing a ligament tear and serving a multi-game suspension. It took some time for him to earn the trust of the coaching staff, but in 2024, he finally broke out with 1,001 yards and eight total touchdowns on 58 receptions, emerging as one of the NFL’s premier deep threats. Last year, he turned up the volume by a click with 1,117 yards and seven more receiving touchdowns thanks to 65 grabs and 102 targets – surpassing or beating his career-high marks across the board. Williams turned in his second straight campaign of 11+ yards per target and 17+ yards per reception, meaning he remains every bit the downfield demon that was promised coming out of Alabama back in 2022. He averaged 14.1 and 12.9 FPPG in these last two years, earning overall finishes as the WR22 and WR12.
As is the trend with the sell cases in this article, there’s some context to consider in Williams’ profile. He earned significant credit for one of the strongest back halves of the 2025 campaign among wideouts – once Dan Campbell took over Detroit’s offensive play calling in Week 10, Williams averaged 84.7 yards per game on 7.3 targets with four touchdowns over that nine-game sample, recording 70+ yards all but once with three outings of 110+ yards. His per-game scoring average in PPR formats jumped to 16.14 points, definitely a welcome sight. While Campbell did say he wanted to make an effort to get Williams the ball more often – and delivered on that wish – tight end Sam LaPorta also suffered a season-ending injury in Week 10. His absence likely played a role in the volume jump for Williams, who saw just 4.5 targets per game over the first nine games of the season when the pair were fully healthy and shared the field.
Does that mean that Williams can’t reproduce what he did down the stretch last year? Not necessarily, but the story remains the same as always since it’s tough to funnel consistent volume to he, LaPorta and Jahmyr Gibbs, all of whom are clearly complimentary weapons to the Lions’ volume king, Amon-Ra St. Brown. With his week-to-week stability likely shaky when all the pieces of this offense are healthy, there’s an argument to sell high on Williams’ hot finish from last season if you don’t love the variance and don’t mind missing out on some of his spike games.
Parker Washington, Jacksonville Jaguars (WR28)
I might be excommunicated from the fantasy football sphere thanks to this take. As such, I apologize in advance for what I’m about to say about everyone’s darling, Parker Washington. I will atone for these sins in advance by stating that his story as a sixth-round pick turned potential star is one of the most fun narratives in the NFL heading into 2026… it just doesn’t make up for the fact that he might not be the best receiver in a crowded offense like some believe him to be.
I know, I know. Washington posted a career-best line of 58 catches for 847 yards and five touchdowns last season and finished with an average of 10.8 FPPG in PPR formats. He was awesome following the Jaguars’ Week 8 bye, averaging 71.1 yards per game while scoring four touchdowns across the final nine contests and seeing his fantasy production increase to 14.23 FPPG. He did so on just 4.6 catches per game, and as pointed out by Mina Kimes, an incredible 39% of his receptions during the second half of 2025 went for 20+ yards. He showed an ability to command targets at an elite rate over his final three games, ending the regular season with a blistering 347 yards over that span – he drew at least nine looks in all three outings, finishing with 145, 115 and 87 yards. His fantasy scores from that same sample came out to 26.5, 19.0 and 19.7 points for three weekly finishes of WR9 or better. That heater is clearly fresh on the minds of dynasty managers, who catapulted Washington up the positional rankings and gave him another big bump after an offseason of glowing reviews from coaches, media and more.
Am I a fool for not buying into the hype, or is Washington fool’s gold? The answer probably lies somewhere between the two. On one hand, he clearly made significant strides on the field, earned the trust of a coaching staff that seems to love him, and for what it’s worth, it sounds like he’s set to see the field a ton. To top it off, he’s also tied to a bright head coach and ascending quarterback with Liam Coen and Trevor Lawrence in an offense that was one of the NFL’s best after the bye last year. Jacksonville stock is seemingly through the moon, with Washington stock probably in the Kepler Belt by now. Simultaneously, the 24-year-old was a sixth-round selection and has a grand total of 106 catches for 1,369 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns over the course of his three professional seasons. For reference, fellow Jags receiver Brian Thomas Jr. matched that touchdown total and came close to the yardage tally with 1,282 receiving yards in his rookie campaign alone. This offense is also quite crowded between those two wideouts, Jakobi Meyers, Brenton Strange and even Travis Hunter in a likely minor offensive role.
The fantasy community seems split between the Washington warriors and BTJ bros, with polarizing opinions at both ends of the spectrum leaving little room for both to produce. I’m not arguing that Washington doesn’t deserve his spot as the dynasty WR28, however, I am noticing that many managers seemingly expect him to flirt with back-end WR1 production and relegate Thomas Jr. in particular to the shadow realm, which feels like an overreaction. While I do genuinely believe both can and will be fantasy relevant this year, I’m simply more willing to sell high on Washington given his meteoric rise from a position as the dynasty WR105 at this time last year. Nine times out of 10, turning a former real-world sixth-rounder with relatively little statistical pedigree into a first-round pick or a more proven player would be a success by measure of the dynasty format. I just hope for my sake that this is one of those occasions – if it’s not, I’ll gladly own up to this call with hindsight.
