In a stunning turn of events, Randy Moss has been traded back to the Minnesota Vikings in exchange for a third round pick in the 2011 NFL Draft.
This trade certainly comes as a surprise, though speculation has long existed that Moss and Brett Favre would somehow find a way to play together at some point.
For the Patriots, they rid themselves of a potential distraction. It was obvious they weren’t going to pay Moss at the end of the year, so they did well to get some compensation for him.
The Vikings are obviously going for broke here. They tried and failed to lure Vincent Jackson from the Chargers, and have looked awful without Sidney Rice. The addition of Moss will give them a legitimate receiving core.
There is some major fallout from a fantasy football and dynasty league perspective. Here are some players who have seen their values change in the blink of an eye:
Randy Moss WR MINMoss will instantly become the primary target for Favre. Expect him to force him the ball at will from this point forward. While Moss is certainly aging, his skills haven’t deteriorated enough at this point to think he won’t flourish in his new surroundings. The trade went through without the Vikings signing him to an extension, so you can bet he’ll be playing hard.
Brett Favre QB MIN
Favre has to be ecstatic this morning. He’s looked rather uninterested and this will give his fantasy value a nice boost. While he’ll still struggle to put up the same numbers he did last season, this is great news for him. He’s been really limited by a worse than average receiving corps.
Visanthe Shiancoe TE MIN
Shiancoe will likely see a decrease in targets, but the Vikings should find themselves moving the ball much easier, so I don’t see a big dropoff for him.
Percy Harvin WR MIN
Harvin’s value doesn’t change much for now. He should still put up the same numbers as he did last year with Rice in the lineup. He’s versatile enough to make this work out nicely, though he’s bound to see a dip in production when Rice comes back. If Moss stays long-term, his dynasty value takes a minor hit.
Sidney Rice WR MIN
Rice won’t simply be the No. 2 when he comes back. He has great chemistry with Brett Favre and I could see Moss and Rice both putting up solid numbers.
Bernard Berrian WR MIN
Hello, waiver wire.
Greg Camarillo WR MIN
Hello, Bernard. Nice to see on the waiver wire.
Tom Brady QB NE
Brady’s value isn’t dramatically different to me this morning. He’ll still post a solid 25-30 touchdowns. If you were hoping for another 50 touchdown season, you were crazy anyway. He’s skilled enough to spread the ball around enough to maintain his current value. While it may go down a tick without the deep threat of Moss, I think the next guy on this list is pretty good.
Brandon Tate WR NE
Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner! Tate is going to be a huge beneficiary of this deal. We’ve already seen his open field ability and the Patriots wouldn’t have made this deal if they didn’t feel he could contribute immediately to their championship aspirations. He and Welker will make up the starting WR tandem on a team who throws the ball a lot. He’ll be a WR2 at worst, and I think the sky’s the limit for him. In fact, we did a piece on him many months ago figuring this could happen.
Wes Welker WR NE
His comeback isn’t all the way there, but this doesn’t hurt. He should be an even bigger part of the New England game plan. If it wasn’t for LT, he’d be well on his way to a comeback player of the year award.
Julian Edelman WR NE
Edelman makes for nice flex play. He’ll be put in more packages and see the field quite a bit more now. He could easily be a long-term gold mine in a PPR league.
Danny Woodhead RB NE
He was on our waiver pickup list a few weeks ago. He can make plays and will have a bigger opportunity to do so. He belongs on your bench for now, but certainly not on the wire.
SUMMARY
In a quick and stunning development, Randy Moss being shipped from the Pats to the Vikings has sent the fantasy world spinning.
The big winner may be ESPN, as we have a really fun game to watch on Monday night. We thought the story line would be Brett Favre against his “other” old team in the Jets, but now it’s going to be Moss vs. Revis part II.
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… and Tom Brady?
He’s on there…you just didn’t look close enough.
…or maybe I just added him.
OK. Thanks either way!
… and Adrian Peterson?
I actually don’t see a change in value for Peterson, regardless of what others are writing out there. He’s a dominant running back, regardless of the surrounding QB, TEs, or WRs.
Yes, Moss will command more attention, but game plans will still be designed to stop him (and likely fail doing so) first.
I still have him as the No. 1 running back in dynasty leagues. I can’t really move him up to “0.”
Who is a better pick-up (standard scoring) Brandon Tate or Aaron Hernandez?
Tough call there. I think Hernandez holds steady here. If it’s a standard league, I probably take Hernandez because of the premium on the position, but I’d take Tate in a dynasty league without question.
how about Taylor Price??? any long term value here??
Yes, Rob. I like Price quite a bit. This could open things up for him in the future. I should have really added him into the piece as well.
One guy you forgot to write about is AP he gets a big boost with Moss in town
You’ll see my notes about AP in the comments section here. I don’t feel this gives him a significant uptick in value. When you’re the best, you’re pretty much the best.
How does Brandon Tate rank in value in a dynasty league. I have to choose between Tate, Bess and Kenny Britt to pick up off of waiver.
PPR league?
Standard scoring. Dynasty league. 17 players plus 2 def
Also forgot to say its a 12 teams head to head league (the league is about 10 years old), I have the 1st, 5th and 8th WW pick this week (acquired through trades). I’m 2-2 and 2nd in my division. Points scored is 2nd highest in the league, just been unlucky with matchups.
My roster,
Michael Vick QB PHI
DeAngelo Williams RB CAR
Rashard Mendenhall RB PIT
Anquan Boldin WR BAL
James Jones WR GNB
Stephen Williams WR ARI
Jermichael Finley TE GNB
Neil Rackers K HOU
Pittsburgh Steelers D/ST PIT
Josh Freeman QB TAM
Marshawn Lynch RB SEA
Brandon Jackson RB GNB
Knowshon Moreno RB DEN
James Starks RB GNB
Vincent Jackson WR SDG
Santonio Holmes WR NYJ
Mike Williams WR TAM
Tony Moeaki TE KAN
Graham Gano K WAS
Cincinnati Bengals D/ST CIN
I just traded Tate for BJGE and a 2nd 2011 in dynasty (have Hernandez) and also needed a RB BAD!
Rob gronkowski? Have him, hernandez, tate, and woodhead (WR eligible). Who should i start (no issues at RB)? Will hernanez see slot?
you prob shouldnt be starting any of them since they are on bye this week.
I understand that, its a dynasty league, weeks dont matter as much as the grand scheme of things.
Yes Hernandez should be playing slot or outside on goalline situations.