The Trading Floor: Week 4

Astute waiver wire moves aren’t the only way to strengthen your squad during the season; often, it’s the owner who makes the best trades who winds up laughing all the way to the championship. To help give you a few ideas on potentially profitable trades and complement the Waiver Wire Work column, let’s look at several players who might be available at prices lower than their true value … and a few other you may wish to shop.

Players to Trade For

Daunte Culpepper (QB, Min) – Odds are that Culpepper owners are still a bit gun-shy even after a Culpepper-esque week 3. Now is still the time to get him if you can. He seems to have his poise and confidence back, and it looks as if the offense may have found its running threat to complement the passing game in Mewelde Moore.

Peyton Manning (QB, Ind) – His value is at an all-time low after playing three tough, defensive games. Many owners who gambled on him in the first round are probably hurting now as they had to sacrifice at other positions in order to obtain Manning. It simply is a matter of time before the Colts’ offense explodes. With four rather easy games on the horizon, now is the time to pull the trigger on acquiring Manning from owners who may be getting desperate.

Jamal Lewis (RB, Bal) – Lewis’s problems getting out of first gear look to berelated more to fitness than schemes. He spent the off-season in a federal prison, and part of training camp at a halfway house. It is going to take him a couple more contests to get into game shape in order to perform at the level we are all accustomed to seeing from him.

Kevin Jones (RB, Det) – He may not be an every-week starter, but it wouldn’t cost much to acquire him as a #3 RB right now. There’s far too much talent on this team for the offense to stay dormant for much longer. Be warned though, the schedule does toughen up a bit soon.

Lamont Jordan (RB, Oak) – You might be surprised to know that of all NFL RBs, Lamont Jordan is currently the most-targeted in the passing game. His rushing numbers have been a bit lackluster to start the season, but you can see that the Raiders plan on using him as the center cog of their offense. Buy now while he is relatively cheap to come by. Once the Raiders start to roll, he’ll be hard to touch.

Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne (WR, Ind) – See Peyton Manning. Both of these guys will go as Manning goes.

Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin (WR, Ari) – Both receivers seemed to be prospering with Kurt Warner under center. Following the quarterback’s injury, many owners of these WRs are hitting the panic button after Josh McCown looked shaky in relief this past weekend. With a full week of practice and gameplanning under his belt, McCown should look better and be able to feed these two talented pass-catchers the ball. Get them now though while they can be had.

Derrick Mason (WR, Bal) – Mason still has it. Even while Baltimore’s passing game as a whole has stunk this year, Mason continues to make catches. Anthony Wright appears to be an upgrade at QB over Kyle Boller, which can only help benefit Mason. Look to obtain Mason for a relatively low price now.

 
Players to Trade

Donovan McNabb (QB, Phi) – The words “sports hernia” were mentioned this week in the same sentence as McNabb’s name. That’s a bit unnerving. While he certainly did perform well against the 49ers in week 2, it’s pretty easy to see that he has looked less comfortable than normal this entire season. If there is truth to this supposed injury, the Eagles would likely rest McNabb sooner rather than later if they have things sewn up for the playoffs. Look to see what McNabb can bring on the market while his stock is high.

Steven Jackson (RB, StL) – Jackson has definitely solidified his position as the starting RB in St. Louis. The trouble is, he seems to be underutilized in that offense. Jackson seems to be the perfect back to carry the ball 25 times a game; unfortunately, it doesn’t appear that he will get that chance this year. Start shopping him around now to see what his market value is and hope for one more big game out of him to drive his stock up.

Carnell Williams (RB, TB) – He is getting an obscene amount of carries right now, so chances are he’ll slow down or get used less as the season progresses. It also remains to be seen how effective he will be when the Bucs are behind in a ball game and they must pass the ball. Williams certainly will command a premium price at this point.

Willie Parker (RB, Pit) – Some of the hype has died down, but if you can still
get good value, ship him out. Duce Staley is starting to clamor for more playing time, and we all know that Jerome Bettis will steal goal-line looks down the road.

Stephen Davis (RB, Car) -What a spectacular run Davis has had to start the season. Capitalize on his high value now. The 31-year-old RB is still running on surgically repaired knees and is a danger to go down at any time.

TJ Houshmandzadeh (WR, Cin) – You could probably net a decent primary WR like Plaxico Burress or Chris Chambers for Houshmandzadeh, and given how #2 WRs are usually feast or famine, it is a good time to cash in on his value.

Randy McMichael (TE, Mia) – There is no way he keeps up his one-TD-per-game performance. McMichael would make perfect trade bait to obtain an underperforming TE like Tony Gonzalez.

(A special thanks to Cafe members ABC and Maddog60 for help with this compilation.)

 
Scott Houlding, known to forum regulars as MadScott, set the pace in this year’s Lucky Ladders contest by winning week 1. He’s currently in fifth place, just 14 points out of the lead.

Questions or comments for Scott? Post your thoughts in the Cafe’s forums!