- Ben Tate – RB HOU
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Ben Tate – RB HOU
Let’s start off with some caution… Ben Tate is struggling through some serious rib issues. He has four broken ribs, which is extremely tough to play through. So, realize that there is a chance he injures himself further in the coming weeks, or that he just can’t play through the pain enough to earn full-time carries. That is all possible. Ok, now let’s address the upside… with Arian Foster (back) out for the year, Tate can easily be a top 10RB down the stretch if the carries are there for him. If Houston doesn’t decide to roll with a RBBC through Tate’s recovery, Tate could produce elite numbers in Weeks 11-16. As a insurance measure, Tate owners will want to snag Dennis Johnson just in case Tate does suffer further injury, but the duo can be sneaky-good down the stretch! The key is to trade for Tate at low-risk value, though. Do not buy-high!
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- Tom Brady – QB NE
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Tom Brady – QB NE
No one is going to sell-low on Tom Brady coming off his 432 yards and 4TDs in Week 10, but if you own the guy, don’t sell the passer. If you don’t own Brady, but want to, it’s possible his season-long struggles will have his owner willing to send him packing in some more complex 2-for-2 or 3-for-3 type deal, as a more complex deal can often dilute certain feelings toward one player. For example, maybe you own Tony Romo, or another passer slightly-below Brady’s perceived ceiling… you could attempt to upgrade into Brady by doing some sort of lateral trade that you feel is even, or quietly in your favor (but the other owner feels that they are upgrading). A full example: You send Tony Romo and DeMarco Murray to someone for their Tom Brady and Ben Tate (or let’s say an Andre Brown). Clearly those are just scenarios, so use other players if you’re not a fan of Tate or Brown, but the point is Brady might have one fantastic finish to the 2013 fantasy football season, and his early struggles still might have some of his current owners hesitant.
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- Victor Cruz – WR NYG
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Victor Cruz – WR NYG
Victor Cruz was off to a hot start this season, with 4TDs and three 100-yard games in the first four weeks of action. Well, his last five games have been extremely disappointing, as he has not one single touchdown, and his yardage totals have been 48, 68, 50, 86 and 37. The good news? Cruz was targeted 10 times last game, and the Giants’ offense is going to balance out with the reemergence of Andre Brown. While anything can happen, and a continued slump for Cruz is certainly possible, I love his trade value right now, and I think the guy is easily capable of returning to his fantasy WR1-type level down the stretch in Weeks 11-16.
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- Bernard Pierce – RB BAL
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Bernard Pierce – RB BAL
This is definitely one of those “don’t invest a lot” recommendations, as so much about this situation is still cloudy. Ray Rice has been awful this year, and he is easily one of the biggest busts of 2013. The Ravens have said they could use a “hot hand” type approach moving forward when it comes to their rushing game, and that could open the door for Bernard Pierce. The keyword here is “could”, as one good game by Rice could have him back in that full-time role. Buy-low, and I mean real low, and hope for a lot. If given starter carries, I have no doubt Pierce would shine in a major way.
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Hey smitty,
I’m in a 14 team (keep 4 players) non ppr
Start 1 qb, 3wr, 2rb, 1te, k def
Here’s my lineup
Cam
M forte
Andre Brown
L Bell
L miller
M bush
Fitz
Harvin
Gordon
Welker
Den Moore
J Reed
My question is, the Cruz owner is out of contention, what would you offer him?
Also trade deadline is next week- I feel I’m ready to roll into the playoffs with the deepest team in the league- do you see any two for ones I should try to make my starting line up a bit stronger for playoffs?
Cruz would definitely help your line-up IMO, and as stated above, I think now is the time to strike despite there being some risk his situation doesn’t improve. Can you start with Bell or Lamar Miller? The tricky part is, you could use a solid game by either this week to get you some more trade value, however, if you wait, Cruz could go off and then trading for him on the cheap goes out the window. You could always try just Fitz, I think Cruz can be had that cheap in some cases, but in others people still feel, like I do, he has extreme bounce-back potential, so it’s tough to say what it will take. I don’t trade Forte or Andre Brown, or Welker… I think I only try using Harvin, Fitz or Miller at first. Harvin isn’t a bad idea. Sure, he could be real good down the stretch, I’m not suggesting he can’t, but it’s hard to trust him, and I myself would take Cruz over him every time. Could that change? Sure, anything can. It’s all a gamble at this stage, and with guys like Harvin coming back. Nice team, let us know how it all goes!
Thanks for the advice! I think ill try harvin and see where that goes, I don’t want to trade bell, brown, or forte just to keep that rb depth (most teams only have one rb1/high rb 2) having three is a huge advantage in this league
You think Cruz has higher value than a healthy harvin (talking next year)
Could Harvin be as good long-term, or short-term? Sure, but injury history and all, mixed with Cruz’s track record, I roll Cruz every time. But, that’s me!
Have you even considered cutting richardson in redraft 12 teams yet? Im with you on I think he has talent but man his situation keeps getting worse. Hes become untradeable and unstartable for me almost feels like i have a wasted bench slot.
Food for thought:
Seriously, what is wrong with T Rich? Is he stuck in mud or does he have ankle weights on?
For real, watch Alshon Jefferies vault into top 10 WR by end of 2014… at least.
Bold prediction: Peyton Manning will meet his demise in 2014 with the “hit that was”. He’s how old? Brady is next.
Ray Rice is fried rice…too many carries. Buy low on Doug Martin or Gio Bernard, even if you have to package somebody with Rice.
Watch out for the Melvin Gordon of Wisconsin. He’s the next Jamaal Charles.
Oh and Mike Evans of Texas A & M has to be on your fantasty football team. He’s an outright stud!
I think TRich is meeting too many defenders in the backfield. I honestly still have no doubt he could thrive if given 20 carries per game. Problem is, he wont sniff that with the current line of thinking. I’ve seen him have big runs in IND… not a ton of them, but the ability is there, but now it’s all just a head game when you get just a couple good carries per game. Horrible situation, even though it looked like a good one at first.
Rice could be done, but he sure bounced back last week, and ran tough. Tough to say now, but he has had a lot of carries. Most wrote him off for the long haul already (Weeks ago), so we shall see.
Great takes/comments!
Smitty, by the way, thanks for the advice several weeks ago. I sold on Ray Rice and bought on Doug Martin. I’m in a keeper league and was already out of playoff contention. I love the fact I’m keeping Muscle Hamster and not Fried Rice!
No prob. Rice is tough to figure. I’m not 100% sure he is done, as even Pierce isn’t producing (so is it BAL?). The thing is, even if it’s part wear and tear and part BAL, will they fix things in BAL before Rice is done? Probably not, his bounce-back is unlikely. Crazy fall from elite, that happened face with Rice if it did in fact happen.
Now you just wanna cheer against Rainey having a strong finish!