Fantasy Football

2012 Fantasy Football Trade Deadline: Chris Johnson and Last Minute Buys and Sells

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Chris Johnson

All recommendations are given with a standard 12-team head-to-head league in mind. If you want more specific suggestions for your league format, use our Quick Fix or shoot me a message on Twitter.

There are under twelve hours until all trades must be completed in standard Yahoo! leagues. It’s never too late to put on your snake oil salesmen mask to try and wheel-and-deal.

Here are a few players I will be trying to swap until the deadline passes.


Three I’m buying:

Chris Johnson | RB | Tennessee Titans – It was extremely hard to determine who exactly Chris Johnson was going to be heading into the 2012 season. To the surprise of some, Johnson began his 2012 campaign right where he left of in 2011 — the crapper. However, after three games of being in said crapper — and failing to log 15 carries and more than 25 yards per contest — Johnson turned his season around. He has been one of the lone bright spots on the Titans offense over the last seven games, averaging 119 yards per contest and reaching pay dirt on four occasions. Football Outsiders indicates that the Titans have the sixth friendliest schedule to finish out the season, with the likes of the Colts, Jets and Packers on tap for the fantasy playoffs (weeks 14-17). Johnson and the Titans are on a bye this week, which could allow you to pry him away from a vulnerable owner in “must-win” situation in week 11.

Steve Smith | WR | Carolina Panthers – Talk about buying low, amirite? Smith entered 2012 as a top-flight receiver, but has failed miserably to meet or come reasonably close to those expectations — possibly as a result of the Cam Newton drama in Carolina. Smith has eclipsed 100 yards receiving in just three games this season while finding himself in the end zone just once. Common sense tells us that the regression monster should be on the prowl, right? I hope. The Panthers claim the second easiest schedule to finish off the year with teams like the Buccaneers, Chiefs, Raiders and Chargers lined up. With the dust on the Cam Newton drama settling and the pass friendly defenses on tap, Steve Smith should be a good bet to finish strong. The time is now and the price is right to try and trade for Steve Smith.

Andrew Luck | QB | Indianapolis Colts – Yes, I believe. So much, that, I went out and bought myself a pair of Andrew Luck pajamas — the Colts kind, not the Stanford kind. Luck doesn’t boast the best touchdown-to-interception ratio (10:9) or completion percentage (57.1), but the kid throws, throws a lot I said, and is only getting better. The rookie already has four games with 300 or more yards passing under his belt, plus his passing yards per attempt and the aforementioned completion percentage are steadily rising by the week. His schedule for the rest of the season isn’t exactly the friendliest, so buying on Luck is more of a long-term keeper league (obviously) type of acquisition. There is a likely a team in your league that took a shot on the rookie in the middle rounds after they already selected their top passer, leaving them two solid options on their roster. Find that owner, find what he needs and get the conversation going, quick!

Bonus Buy: Any and all Denver Broncos – Their schedule to finish out the season is by far the easiest of any team. I’d be putting out feelers on Peyton Manning, Willis McGahee, Eric Decker and Demariyus Thomas. That’s all I’m saying about that.

Three I’m Selling:

Adrian Peterson | RB | Minnesota Vikings – Let me beat you to the punch. Yes. Yes, I’m a bit out of my mind. Trading a guy currently ranked number one in standard Yahoo! leagues, a back with over 1,000 yards and seven touchdowns and a player on pace to become the “Comeback Player of the Year” is crazy. But, I want you to think of two things: schedule and value. He’s already the number one player in the league, so his value can’t get any higher. And Football Outsiders tells us the Vikings have the most difficult schedule to finish out the 2012 season. Four of his next six weeks include a bye, two games against the Bears and one contest with the Texans. The Bears and the Texans are two of the top three unfriendliest defenses to opposing fantasy running backs — and he’s slated to face them each once in the fantasy playoffs (weeks 14 and 16). Maybe try and deal him and a WR3 for a LeSean McCoy/Doug Martin/Trent Richardson type back and a WR2?

Brandon Marshall | WR | Chicago Bears – Most are claiming Marshall will be fine with his quarterback on the sideline, and they may be right, but I don’t want to wait and find out. Josh makes a good argument to sell Marshall here, so I’ll let him do the talking. Look to add a top-flight receiver like Demariyus Thomas, Eric Decker or Roddy White in a deal.

Matthew Stafford | QB | Detroit Lions – This guy just has a brutal schedule to finish the year — second toughest per Football Outsiders. Try and deal him in a package deal for a Peyton Manning or Andrew Luck (in keepers).

Thrown together by Alan Harrison  for TheFantasyFix.com. Follow Alan's rants on Twitter @TheFantasyFix.


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