By Calvin K (Twitter: @Calvin_SGF)

For most leagues, fantasy championship week has arrived, and the heartbreak and jubilation set to occur on the coming weekend will signify the end of the 2021 fantasy season. For purely redraft players, this time of year marks the beginning of a long wait for next season, but for dynasty players, a whole new season of trading and startups begins. Dynasty trades often occur mostly in the first few months following a previous campaign, so there’s never a better time to try to acquire and ship off players. Here are three flex-caliber guys you should look to trade away.

1. Elijah Mitchell (RB, San Francisco 49ers)

I’d recommend holding onto Mitchell through the season if your league doesn’t have a trade deadline, as it’ll likely give potential suitors one more good performance in Week 17 against Houston to consider. Mitchell is a talented player who had a great season this year, but he’s still someone you should look to trade away, as his role isn’t particularly safe in San Francisco.

Mitchell has had a great season statistically, but Kyle Shanahan’s tendency to use multiple RBs and rotate starters often means his role is not necessarily locked in, even for next year. Shanahan’s running-back-by-committee approach has made many average or decent RBs look like superstars, with players such as Raheem Mostert, Jeff Wilson, Tevin Coleman, Carlos Hyde, and others putting up solid production in recent years.

The fact that San Francisco drafted not one, but two rookie RBs this year in Mitchell and Trey Sermon signifies their willingness to move on to the next guy, a trait that is concerning when considering Mitchell’s dynasty value. Wilson, Sermon, and others, possibly including Mostert, will be around to challenge Mitchell for next year’s starting role, and while Mitchell’s youth may keep him as the starter, fantasy managers should be wary of possible sudden changes and look to trade him away after this year.

2. JuJu Smith-Schuster (WR, Pittsburgh Steelers)

Smith-Schuster’s dynasty value went down after he got hurt and went out for the rest of the year, but it’s still time to trade him away in dynasty as soon as possible. Smith-Schuster will be a free agent this offseason, but wherever he signs, his situation likely won’t ever be as good as it was with Pittsburgh over the last few seasons.

Smith-Schuster’s breakout year came alongside lots of soft coverage with Antonio Brown taking double-teams, but since Brown left, Smith-Schuster has struggled to produce similar numbers. His average depth of target has tanked tremendously, and his skillset now makes him almost exclusively a player who operates close to the line of scrimmage. With rare exceptions (Deebo Samuel), that role is not good for fantasy, and because Smith-Schuster doesn’t have WR1 talent or running back ability like Samuel does, it should be tough for him to compile major fantasy points in the future.

NFL teams seem to sense Smith-Schuster’s non-alpha skillset, as they allowed him to return to Pittsburgh on a relatively cheap one-year deal, so whatever team signs him probably would do so to make him a WR2 or WR3. That won’t represent much of an upgrade, if any, from his value in Pittsburgh even if he does manage to produce, and it could spell total disaster for his fantasy value if he lands on a WR-needy team that generally struggles to move the ball. Free agency often springs excessive hype for available WRs in dynasty leagues, so the time to capitalize on that potential value is now.

3. Tyler Lockett (WR, Seattle Seahawks)

Lockett should be someone you’re looking to sell high in dynasty for multiple reasons. For anyone who’s followed my content for a while, you know that I often rail against Lockett in general. This is for the reason that his inconsistency often causes him to tank your fantasy week, making him often left on the bench for when his outlier big weeks do come.

On top of that aspect, which is my usual narrative, the struggles of this Seahawks team as a whole leaves potential for QB Russell Wilson to exit Seattle via a trade after this year, potentially tanking Lockett’s value. Without Wilson, who he has played with for his whole career, Lockett’s value could plummet as the Seahawks go into rebuilding mode, which would only exacerbate his inconsistency. Finally, Lockett has been thoroughly outplaying DK Metcalf over these last few weeks, but historically, Metcalf has been this offense’s WR1, so there’s regression potential there as well.

Lockett’s production over the last few games has been very good. However, overall, the harm he does to fantasy teams with inconsistency, along with the other factors mentioned, means he should be someone you’re looking to trade away.

The post Three Flex Players to Trade Away in Dynasty appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Adam Martin

Jonathan Taylor (Running Back for the Indianapolis Colts)

Jonathan Taylor has had a great season for a rookie running back and is in a great situation with the Colts. Taylor rushed for 1,169 yards from 232 attempts during the 15 games he was involved in. Only Derrick Henry and Dalvin Cook rushed for more yards this year. Not only was his yardage impressive but he also rushed for 11 touchdowns and an average of 14.5 points per game.

Not only has Taylor had a great rookie year but he also has a bright future at the Colts. Although he doesn’t do much in the passing game he does own the rushing side of it. Nyheim Hines does not offer the strength of Taylor and so will not eat into his attempts. Also, with Phillip Rivers as quarterback the run game will always play a significant role.

Antonio Gibson (Running Back for the Washington Football Team)

Antonio Gibson is another rookie running back that has shown he can do it in the NFL. His rushing yards might not have been amazing at 795 yards but his 11 touchdowns is impressive. He has also shown that he can be part of the passing game by adding another 247 yards to his overall total in 14 games. He has averaged 11.9 fantasy points per game which would be great for your flex position.

Gibson also is in a great position at the Washington Football Team. He is the main guy at running back for this team and that wont change anytime soon. They currently have J.D McKissic, Peyton Barber and Lamar Miller but none of them will concern Gibson’s workload.

J.K Dobbins (Running Back for the Baltimore Ravens)

J.K Dobbins might not have been the best rookie running back but his stats are very impressive. Dobbins rushed for 805 yards over 15 games and he got nine touchdowns from only 134 attempts. 

He didn’t do loads in the passing game but still managed to gain another 120 yards. He averaged 10.0 points per game which is a solid amount for a rookie and you would expect that to increase next year.

The biggest positive for Dobbins is that he is in a great situation for the next few years. Baltimore is a well known run first team and Dobbins is now their number one guy. 

For the first half of this year Mark Ingram was playing but that has changed. Also, Baltimore has Lamar Jackson at quarterback and with him running the ball as well it provides misdirection. This is something that will help Dobbins in the long run.

Justin Jefferson (Wide Receiver for the Minnesota Vikings)

Justin Jefferson had a superb rookie year for the Vikings breaking the receiving record for a rookie. He amassed 1,400 yards from 125 targets finishing the number six wide receiver for the season. 

Only Stefon Diggs and Deandre Hopkins had more yards this season. Also, he managed to get seven touchdowns which is a decent total for a rookie receiver. Another positive is that he averaged 11.6 points per game showing he would be big for your team.

Also, Jefferson is in a great position for many years to come at Minnesota. He has a quarterback who although not great is capable of making big plays. Along with that he has another quality receiver in the team that takes the defence away from Jefferson. Adam Thielen only had 925 yards but he had 14 touchdowns showing the opposition he is still a threat. This can only be a good thing for Jefferson and his future with the Vikings.

CeeDee Lamb (Wide Receiver for the Dallas Cowboys)

CeeDee Lamb had a good first year in the NFL but is someone you want in your flex position for the future. Lamb managed to amass 935 receiving yards from 111 targets which tipped him into the top twenty. He also managed to get five touchdowns in a team that struggled throughout the season. He averaged 9.0 points per game showing that he was decent but there is scope for improvement.

Lamb is in a really good situation at Dallas due to the team’s strong offensively minded team. The main reason you would expect Lamb to improve next year is the comeback of star quarterback Dak Prescott. 

Dak only played five games due to his injury and him playing all year will be a big positive for Lamb. Also, in a similar story to Justin Jefferson, Dallas have other quality receivers who will cause defensive problems. This is another big plus for Lamb.

Tee Higgins (Wide Receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals)

Tee Higgins is another wide receiver who had a good rookie year and will be great for your flex spot. Higgins received 908 yards from 108 targets and also six touchdowns. 

Higgins averaged 8.0 points per game which is a bit low but he has loads of potential. He finished as the wide receiver 28 for the season and with a quarterback like Joe Burrow you would expect him to improve.

Another positive for Higgins is that fellow receiver, A.J Green, is a free agent this year and “does not look likely to stay in Cincinnati”. This is great for Higgins as not only can he see more targets but also he has another quality receiver already there in Tyler Boyd. 

Tee Higgins is worth picking up and putting in your flex and will get better as his relationship develops with Joe Burrow.

The post Dynasty: Top 6 Flex Players Under Age of 23 appeared first on Pro Football Mania.