Dynasty Fantasy Football: Traversing the Trade Finder

Welcome back to Traversing the Trade Finder, a series where I pick two 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 week I’ll be taking a look at two wide receivers whose situations have been hampering their 2024 seasons.

For all trades, I will be using the following filters: 12 Teams, 2QB, and 1 point PPR.

Tyreek Hill, WR MIA

Like every year, Hill was expected to be one of if not the best fantasy wide receiver for 2024. Hill started the season with a bang, scoring 26 PPR points in week one but everything changed in week two when Tua Tagovailoa suffered a concussion and was subsequently placed on the injured reserve. Since then, the Dolphins have a mix of Skylar Thompson, Tim Boyle, and Tyler Huntley start for them at quarterback and none of them have come remotely close to filling Tagovailoa’s shoes causing all the weapons including Hill to suffer. Since week one Hill is averaging just 7.9 PPR points per game.

Fortunately, the current reports for Tagovailoa are that he could be back in week seven or eight so we could see Hill return to form soon. But, although it’s exciting that Tagovailoa could be back soon, we’ll always have the worry that he could suffer another concussion and sink Hill’s season yet again. Is it time to buy Hill? Let’s find out.

This trade is very interesting because of Rashee Rice’s injury and possible future suspension combo. Rice is clearly a talented player, was Patrick Mahomes’ number one target while he was healthy, and would rival Hill in weekly production if there were no injuries. Rice is also significantly younger and is the better long-term play. This trade comes down to what your team is doing. If you’re a competing team who lost Rice, Hill could be a nice target to buy to replace the production and this is an acceptable price to do it. If you have Hill but your season is going poorly and you need to look towards next season, getting Rice and a second-round pick is a good return.

There looks to be a little bit of pre-week six Bijan Robinson panic in this trade. It’s not a trade that I would expect to happen in most leagues but it does show that people still have plenty of faith in Hill to help them compete this year. You don’t trade away a top young running back, even while they were disappointing, for a player you wouldn’t expect to put up serious fantasy points even while getting a plus. Tyrone Tracy is a nice player and one we may be able to put in our flex spots but he’s not closing the gap between Robinson and Hill. I’m easily taking the Robinson side of the trade and would have done so before week six but this truly does help show that there’s still excitement for Hill. With that said, if you can use Hill to buy Robinson with a deal like this, I’m trying to get it done.

Amari Cooper, WR BUF

Believe it or not, there was reason to be excited for Cooper playing with Deshaun Watson. In 2023, Cooper actually scored more fantasy points per game in the games he played with Watson than not. Unfortunately, 2024 is a new year and that trend has not continued. Watson has easily been the worst quarterback in the NFL outside of Bryce Young and Cooper has suffered because of it. Cooper isn’t completely free of blame though as his play has been inconsistent, to say the least.

Cooper, who’s had some of the surest hands around throughout his career, seems to drop at least one pass every game and they’re frequently at inopportune times. He dropped a touchdown in week one, what would have been a 30-plus-yard completion in week two, and the list continues. Now there is new hope for Cooper who was just traded to the Bills which hopefully reinvigorates his play. Cooper should easily slot in as the top target earner for Josh Allen. The only concern now is: do the Bills continue to throw at a low rate and how many targets does Allen’s top target actually get?

This has competitor vs rebuilder written all over it and that’s what would decide which side of the trade I prefer. Amari Cooper should be a WR2 rest of season and Tyler Lockett is a nice depth piece for competing teams but both of them have seen their dynasty value fall although Cooper may bounce back. After this season Lockett will likely be worth close to nothing and Cooper will depend on how the rest of the season plays out. When thinking about future values that means the package side is really equivalent to about three second-round picks. When you think of it that way, you might rather have the first-round pick. But, if you care about this season, the package is pretty enticing. It’s a trade I’d be ok with making but if you’re looking to send a first-round pick for wide receiver help, you might be able to do better.

Two disappointing wide receivers but for two different reasons with Cooper now having a light at the end of the tunnel. Marquise Brown had been failing to fully live up to his potential and expectations but there was plenty of excitement for him after signing with the Chiefs this off-season before being lost for the year. Now Brown has an uncertain future as the deal he signed with the Chiefs was for only one year and he may not have too many suitors in free agency as he returns from injury. There’s a world where next off-season Brown’s dynasty value isn’t worth more than a couple of third-round picks. I feel comfortable adding Brown onto a second-round pick to acquire Cooper. I’m not counting on much from Brown moving forward so I won’t let him stop me from making this deal.

Aging veteran players like Tyreek Hill and Amari Cooper can be some of the biggest values in dynasty as some managers devalue them compared to their real production. Sometimes though those same players can be landmines whose value and production are quickly fading. Choose wisely.