Dynasty Fantasy Football: Traversing the Trade Finder
Welcome back to Traversing the Trade Finder, a series where I pick a couple of players and try to find what opportunities are available to us using the amazing Dynasty League Football Trade Finder tool. For those who are unfamiliar, this tool helps you find real trades being made in dynasty leagues with the ability to search for specific players or draft picks and to filter by various settings. We love to talk about finding opportunities in the dynasty trade market and this tool literally shows you these opportunities in action.
This time around, I wanted to take a look at two running backs who I believe I value higher than the market but wanted to check and see if the real trades that are happening support that. Let’s take a look at if I’m actually as in on these players as I think I am.
Chuba Hubbard, RB CAR
This off-season, I have felt like I’ve been on an island with my love for Hubbard, which is truthfully new to me. Everyone seems to be enamored with Miles Sanders following his career-best season and signing what was a very nice contract in free agency but I just don’t see it. After looking like a three-down back as a rookie, Sanders has shown to be one of the worst receiving running backs in the league and is only actually above average as a runner, ranking 29th in breakaway run rate in 2022. He also played in the perfect situation last year with the Eagles behind the best offensive line in the league and quarterback Jalen Hurts opening up running lanes for him.
Meanwhile, Hubbard has exceeded expectations to this point as a fourth-round NFL Draft pick. After filling in for Christian McCaffrey as a rookie admirably (although not impressively), Hubbard looked quite good as a sophomore, averaging 4.9 yards per carry and 10.1 yards per target. Not only is Hubbard a great handcuff to Sanders and isn’t priced like it, but I believe there’s a chance he could have some weekly standalone value as Frank Reich has always used two running backs in his offense. Even with Jonathan Taylor, Reich featured Nyhiem Hines as his pass-catching back. Sitting as RB68 in the latest Dynasty League Football Startup ADP, Hubbard should still be easily acquirable.
League Settings: 12 Teams, 1QB, and 0.5 point PPR.
If this is the price to pay to get Hubbard on my team, I’d do it in every league I’m in. Fourth-round rookie draft picks seem like they’re valuable, especially during the rookie draft, but the hit rates on those picks are so low they’re not actually worth that much. Too often people have rose colored glasses with these late picks assuming they’ll be able to hit on the right players to make them worth it. Instead, take the running back we’ve already seen be a fantasy asset in the NFL.
League Settings: 12 Teams, 1QB, and 1 point PPR.
This one is much closer. Rashaad Penny offers some serious upside as one of the best pure runners we’ve had in the NFL during his career now playing behind the best offensive line in the league. But, Penny’s contract with the Eagles is one that means they are not attached to him in any way and could move on at a moment’s notice. Also, we all know about his injury history as one of the only true players in the league who can be labeled as injury-prone. I have Penny and Chuba Hubbard in the same tier making this an easy trade for me as I gain the extra rookie draft pick and avoid Penny’s injury risk.
Rachaad White, RB TB
I really liked White coming out of college as he checked a lot of the boxes we look for. He’s got good size, is a very good athlete, and is one of the better pass-catching running backs coming into the NFL we’ve seen in recent history. The only knocks against him were that he was a late-declare player who went to a smaller school. Unfortunately, his rookie season did leave a lot to be desired ranking 44th in breakaway run rate, only had 3.7 yards per carry, and averaged 5.8 yards per reception.
On the bright side, he did command an 8% target share, a high number for any rookie, while splitting time with Leonard Fournette and even started to play ahead of Fournette at times as the season went on. Now in his second year, he’s got the backfield to himself as Fournette is gone to free agency while Ke’Shawn Vaughn, Chase Edmonds, and Sean Tucker battle to be his backup. Without Tom Brady at the helm, we expect the Buccaneers offense to worse than it was in 2022 but this can be counterbalanced for White with the potential workload he has in front of him, especially as a receiver.
As RB21 in the Dynasty League Football August Startup ADP, I think White is actually being valued properly. But, because he can be a divisive player, his value league to league can actually vary a decent amount. With that in mind, I wanted to use the Trade Finder to see what kind of deals are actually getting done.
League Settings: 12 Teams, 2QB, and 0.5 point PPR.
Alvin Kamara has gained a little bit of steam back as of late after his suspension was announced as only 3 games. Still, this is a player who has seen his receiving work diminish over the last two years and failed to reach the expectations he had compared to early in his career and his price. Kamara, who is now 28 years old, is likely on the downswing of his career. It’s possible he and White’s production is similar this year. I think White would be my betting favorite to have the better year, but Kamara’s dynasty market value is at a point where even if he plays well it will not go up. This is a nice pivot to a younger player who should at minimum give you equivalent production.
League Settings: 12 Teams, 1QB, and 1 point PPR.
This trade is on the opposite side of the spectrum. Being able to use White to get to an elite asset like Amon-Ra St. Brown while only having to add Isiah Pacheco to facilitate it is a trade I would make every single time. While I have hope for White this season it’s important to recognize the risk, he has with him (Pacheco as well). Being able to convert that risk into a top-tier wide receiver, which is a position that retains value easier and longer, is a winning dynasty move.
Exploring trades for these two running backs was a lot of fun. Chuba Hubbard looks to be a great buy-low for basically any team considering the price is so cheap. Rachaad White on the other hand could be a buy or sell depending on the league you’re in as his market value seems to vary greatly depending on your league mates. Good luck to all in your future trading endeavors. Until next time, like always, I’ll be traversing the trade finder.
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