Fantasy Football Buy/Sell & Trade Candidates For Week 9

Joe Gallina analyzes the top buy/sell and trade candidates for Week 9 of the fantasy football season. These undervalued or overrated players should be targeted or avoided.

You're Going To Have To Work Hard

So That Your Season Doesn't Go Bye Bye This Week!

What were the NFL schedule makers thinking when they included three weeks that have six teams on a bye this season? You got through week four, but now you’ve got to endure weeks nine and ten. You are going to have to be very crafty the next couple of weeks. Of course, you’ll have to scour your league’s waiver wire for substitutions, as fantasy standouts like Aaron Rodgers and Matt Forte will be unavailable, but you may also have to resort to improving your team via the trade route.

I’m going to help you get through these troubled times with some buy/sell candidates. I’ve found another four fantasy football players who can help your team for this week and beyond and as usual I’ve also chosen two players who should be jettisoned from your team before they wreck your fantasy season. Good luck in week nine! Share your thoughts with me. Let me know what you think about this article. Follow me on Twitter @joegallina.

Week 9 Fantasy Football Buys

Donte Moncreif - WR, Indianapolis Colts

Owned in 12% of Fleaflicker leagues

With the Colts possessing one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL you want to try to get a piece of the action in Indianapolis. In one of my earlier columns I suggested that it was time to cut ties with Hakeem Nicks and his performance since then has made me look like some sort of genius.

With Reggie Wayne out in week eight and Nicks not showing up as usual, Andrew Luck, who leads all fantasy quarterbacks in total fantasy points year to date, targeted rookie Donte Moncreif 12 times and he responded with a great line of 7-113-1. Moncreif has great upside and should be added in all deeper leagues. He is a speedy potential playmaker with great leaping ability and moves that will help him consistently add plenty of YAC. He should move ahead of Hakeem Nicks by the end of the season and with the guidance of veteran fantasy super stud receiver Reggie Wayne, Moncreif should continue to connect with Luck and develop his skills going forward.

Although he is currently not much more than a WR3 or a flex play, he will continue to chisel out playing time in the Colts offensive scheme and is especially valuable in dynasty leagues.

Denard Robinson - RB, Jacksonville Jaguars

Owned in 39% of Fleaflicker leagues

Denard Robinson’s two straight weeks in which he has rushed for over 100 yards has won me over. Buy him! Since he was installed as Jacksonville’s primary back he has averaged close to six yards per carry. Most of his 108 yards rushing in week eight came on his first two touches but to his credit, he was playing against a Miami defense that has had some success at stopping the run.

Robinson’s strength as a QB during his college years at Michigan was his mobility, and his experience in eluding big defensive linemen as well as his raw speed has definitely helped him achieve his recent success. He does have to remember that he is no longer a quarterback looking to complete a pass on the run and should lower his body when he runs so as to avoid injuries and durability issues. Although the play of the Jaguars’ offensive line has sometimes been offensive, Robinson became the first Jaguars’ running back in three seasons to rush for 100 yards in back to back games and any time he touches the ball he has the potential to break out a big run.

With the number of running backs dropping like flies he is definitely someone to focus on in your league’s waiver wire or on the trade market.

Jared Cook  - TE, St. Louis Rams

Owned in 37% of Fleaflicker leagues

With Austin Davis’ favorite target, WR Brian Quick, out for the rest of the season TE Jared Cook should see more action in the Rams’ offense. Don’t get me wrong he will not be a world beater but with six teams on a bye in each of the next two weeks you are going to be looking to fill some holes in your lineup and Cook could be a nice tight end or flex play that will help stabilize your lineup.

With the questionable state of the Rams’ running game, Davis will be looking for someone to throw the ball to and Cook should return to the form which he displayed during the season’s first five games when he saw an average of eight plus targets per week. He is a good sleeper play in PPR leagues.

If you play in a standard league and are desperate for a tight end it might be more feasible to pick up Rams tight end Lance Kendricks who won’t catch as many passes as Cook, but will see more action in the red zone, as evidenced by the four TDs he has scored to date.  

Martavis Bryant - WR, Pittsburgh Steelers

Owned in 28% of Fleaflicker leagues

Earlier this season I recommended that you buy Steeler WR Markus Wheaton and although I still think that he will develop into a solid receiver, I am a bit disappointed that he has just one touchdown thus far. He and Ben Roethlisberger haven’t clicked like I expected they might but Wheaton has put in some extra practice time with Big Ben and who knows maybe there is light at the end of the tunnel.

In the meantime check out Steeler rookie Martavis Bryant, all 6’4” of him. He made his debut on Monday night in week seven and promptly caught a 35 yard TD pass from Roethlisberger. In his second game Bryant caught five passes for 83 yards and scored two touchdowns. Now I know Big Ben had a career week and he was dolling out TDs like candy, but Bryant’s height and reach will continue to give Roethlisberger a great red zone weapon to target when Antonio Brown is covered.

With five targets in week 7, and seven targets in week 8, Roethlisberger is obviously looking to get him the ball. Look for Bryant to develop into a WR2/3 or a solid flex play as the season progresses.

Week 9 Fantasy Football Sells

Wes Welker - WR, Denver Broncos

Owned in 79% of Fleaflicker leagues

Peyton Manning targeted Wes Welker nine times in each of his first two games this season. In his next three games he received a total of six targets. In the first few weeks that Welker was serving his suspension Peyton Manning made use of the many options in his vaunted offense and unfortunately Welker now finds himself outside of the Manning “Circle of Trust”. Between Julius and Demaryius Thomas, Emmanuel Sanders and even Ronnie Hillman, Welker has become somewhat of an afterthought in the Bronco passing attack.

He is still a gritty player, as his heads up play in which he alertly recovered a fumble in week eight demonstrates. He still might have the occasional big game, and it might come against his old team the Patriots this weekend, but his days as a WR1 and maybe even a WR2 are behind him as long as he remains a member of the Denver Broncos. If you add in the fact that every time he takes a hard hit you have to worry that he is going to end up with a concussion, if you own shares in Welker, hope for a big week nine and put him on the trading block.

Marshawn Lynch - RB, Seattle Seahawks

Owned in 98% of Fleaflicker leagues

No matter how hard Pete Carroll tries, he can’t convince me that everything is fine and dandy in the Seattle locker room. First we heard about former Seahawk Percy Harvin giving Golden Tate a black eye the night before Super Bowl XLVIII and then when the Seahawks had had enough of his nonsense and finally traded him two weeks ago, it was reported that Marshawn Lynch was so irate that he refused to board the team bus.

Now Lynch had some issues with his contract that came to light during the preseason and wasn’t a happy camper to start off with, but it appears that the Harvin trade really pushed him over the edge. Lynch has joined the growing number of underperforming top 10 running backs who have put up lackluster numbers this season. He hasn’t rushed for more than 100 yards since week one and after three straight seasons with double digit touchdown totals he hasn’t scored a TD in four straight games. With the NFL trade deadline having come and gone, the Seahawks will have to put up with Lynch’s surliness for the rest of the season, but you don’t.

Let your league know that you are willing to move him. Trading Lynch is a bold move and once you put him on the trading block the offers should come pouring in. Try to work out a two for one deal and make sure to obtain the appropriate value for a top six fantasy football back.