Fantasy Football Dynasty Draft Trades: Strategies for Startup Leagues

Scott's fantasy football draft pick trading strategies and advice for fantasy football dynasty startup leagues. His comprehensive dynasty trading guide and tips.

The fantasy football dynasty league experience is the ultimate replication of owning an NFL franchise from the fantasy perspective. Nothing else comes closer to playing the roles of a general manager and head coach, all in one hybrid fantasy role, plus you get to draft rookies every year and sign free agents, too.

Of course, there are still nuances and other clear factors that separate dynasty fantasy football and the real pro game, yet dynasty leagues are the most immersive and challenging leagues possible. The startup draft is also unique to the dynasty format because you are building a team based on a longer-term outlook for the very first time.

Another distinctive highlight of dynasty league participation is the elevated levels of draft-related trading. In seasonal leagues, draft-day trades are much rarer. Even before dynasty startup draft day, the offers start flying through inboxes or texts. I am in two Fantasy Football Players Championship (FFPC) dynasty leagues and the flurry of offers throughout added a fresh level of excitement that new players in the format will truly enjoy. In this article, I outline strategies for handling early round trade considerations and timing for potential deals as the draft progresses.

Dynasty Startup Draft Pick Trade Advice

I will start by saying that I am personally not a major pursuant of dynasty fantasy football trades in startup leagues, yet will always consider respectable offers. My base stance is like in any other draft, to let the board come to me and simply take the best available player, fill or need, or get both requirements satisfied with one player pick. But the feature is to help you successfully execute startup draft trades, as every fantasy player has his own approach, and take on if and when to attempt to complete dynasty startup deals.

The RotoBaller Fantasy Football Dynasty Rankings give you a good framework to work off when planning for the first dynasty draft, especially for the early picks. You should then review the Average Draft Position reports from the FFPC to get an even better feel for the projected flow of the early picks, even though every single draft is different and there will be natural twists and turns that will always deviate from the reports.

The ADPs indicate that the first half of the first round will likely be dominated by wide receivers, who occupy five of the first six slots on average. If you are in a position to nab one of CeeDee Lamb, Justin Jefferson, Ja'Marr Chase, Amon-Ra St. Brown, or Marvin Harrison Jr., and want to start off with one of those WRs, then there is no need to trade out of the top half of Round 1.

Others who are in the back half of the first round and want to trade up for one of those WRs will likely have to pay a steep price to get into that range of picks and might have to part with a very high draft choice from next season. A first-rounder for next year will often be a demand to have a chance at moving up in the first round this season. But it does depend on who you are making the offer to, as sometimes piling up a few picks may get the job done, although you then can possibly hurt team depth or the core of the starting lineup to get one player and will have to mull over such a risk.

Are you investing in Bijan Robinson?@YoitsEllis_FF tells you why he thinks Bijan is in for a Christian McCaffrey-type season and also highlights his other top dynasty assets in the NFC South

📝 https://t.co/OdbnlPn3JQ pic.twitter.com/gB8MveIeyF

— RotoBaller NFL (@RotoBallerNFL) July 15, 2024

Bijan Robinson is the one RB being slotted in the top six of dynasty ADPs, so if you must have the Atlanta RB as an anchor of your squad, then it does make more sense to move into the top half of Round 1. Breece Hall is the only other elite RB among the younger players to target at the position before we see an increase in age to 28-year-old Christian McCaffrey and then an overall drop-off to the next tier at RB. So, positional scarcity can motivate you to trade up for a prime RB over a WR.

Dynasty League Trade Targeting: Strategies and Tips

Puka Nacua is still available at an ADP of 19.0 and 27-year-old A.J. Brown can be nabbed at 21.0. I don’t see a major sense of urgency to deal up for a top-5 WR1. I also don’t recommend strictly trying to pinpoint guys under, say, 27 when building a dynasty roster. The focus doesn’t have to be on 5-10 years down the line when so much changes in a 3-4 year window in the NFL and fantasy football. Brown can still give you at least another five seasons of quality output, so consider not firmly sticking to a totally set age range when targeting early round players.

The ADP reports highlight that Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen are being taken in the top seven, so if you are drafting in the back half of the first round and definitely want one of those two QBs, the sacrifice will have to be made to trade up a few spots. But I don’t see any true need to do so when Jalen Hurts is available at 19.6 and Lamar Jackson is available at 26.2. Again, though, every draft has its own unique flow, and all of those four may go earlier in some drafts. If you see three of them taken before your pick and want to get the last one of the “Big Four QBs,” then a quick offer is necessary.

Just a reminder CJ Stroud paced to lead the league in passing yards as a rookie with Tank Dell missing half the year and on the team that drafted him 2nd overallpic.twitter.com/JbNHRj6ifZ

— Snoog’s Dynasty Society (@FFSnoog) July 16, 2024

In superflex leagues, of course, there will be a higher priority on trading up for one of the top-4 QBs, and they will certainly expect a heavy return in terms of future picks in most cases. If you can be satisfied with Anthony Richardson or C.J. Stroud as a prime alternative or wait a bit on Dak Prescott or Joe Burrow, the QB1 spot should still look stable without having to cut into future prime draft stock or significant depth picks from this season.

If you are in the position of being offered a package to trade out of a top-6/7 pick, then remember that a good WR1 or QB1 can still be targeted after sliding down in the order while gaining valuable draft capital. Moving out of position to pick Robinson or Hall, though, may not be a comfortable path to take. In TE Premium formats such as the FFPC, trading up for a top-4 player at the position will command a hefty offer, and those who are in a position to land Sam LaPorta or Trey McBride might want to stay where they are.

Dynasty League Trading Advice: When To Make A Move

While there will be a lot of significant action focused on deals for early selections in the first round or two, once the draft progresses, the aim will be to move up for players that you want to aggressively pursue, or dealing down to load up on more picks for this or next season. Such decisions will have to be made on the fly and it will be easier to exchange offers and flesh out a trade in a slow draft. In a regular draft, in-draft offers will have to be made quickly or you can start to discuss an offer prior to another person’s pick, setting up a potential trade when the time comes.

As the draft moves on, many offers will fly around, as people will be trading for the fun and rush of completing a trade along with the intent to build out a roster in an ideal fashion. It is best to trade up when you see a tier drop-off about to happen at a position of need or see a guy that you really want slipping down the board and want to ensure that he is landed before someone else can take advantage of the possible value.

Always be open to trading down, as an experienced player can deftly pick off values and bargains. My mode of draft operation is to always have groups of players queued up rather than to hope that a certain player or two falls to my slot. Via this methodology, I never get “sniped” because an alternative pick is always ready at the top of the queue. If someone wants to give me more picks after the early rounds of a draft, such offers will always be considered. Of course, the package has to be respectable. Don’t offer me a sixth- and ninth-rounder for a fourth-rounder.

Staying where I am in the draft order is just fine, too. As others make maneuvers to jump ahead, one can patiently wait to pick off whoever falls to the usual slot in every round. It does seem hasty to trade away future higher draft choices when the season hasn’t even started yet. If I am going to deal away an early draft pick, then it will happen during the season if my team is in contention to win this year.

Also, as pointed out earlier, others may focus mainly on not drafting players over a certain age in the early rounds, and even in the middle rounds. So, I will gladly take a 30-year-old Tyreek Hill if he slips to an ADP of 25.3 because he will give me a very good shot of winning in 2024 and 2025.

There are many different ways to attack your dynasty startup draft, yet all of us have to be ready for a lot of fun on the fly in what should be a hectic and highly compelling player-selection process. If you are ready for a great fantasy football roller-coaster ride, join a fantasy dynasty startup league now and buckle in for the wheeling and dealing.

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