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In part 2 of this case study, I will discuss my strategy going into the 2020 season, including my trades and waiver claims. Sadly, I did not make any waiver moves worth noting, so I will be talking about five trades that I made in the 2020 season. If you would like to check out part 1, click here.
Superflex Dynasty Regular Season: August-December 2020
Traded Ben Roethlisberger, Giovani Bernard, & N’Keal Harry FOR Drew Lock, Andy Isabella, & Gerald Everett
As I mentioned in part 1, my goal of drafting Big Ben was to move him for a younger QB with upside. During the 2020 season, Drew Lock showed a lot of promise after 15, 20, and 30 point games towards the middle of the 2020 season. I decided to make a move for him to build my team for the future. I liked the potential of Andy Isabella and Gerald Everett in 2020 as well. This trade was not a slam dunk, but my team did get younger and with more upside potential.
Traded Drew Lock, Marquise Brown, & Hunter Henry FOR Dak Prescott & Zach Ertz
This next trade was a slam dunk for my team. I moved a young QB with question marks plus two other good pieces for Dak and Zach Ertz. At the time, Dak was my dynasty QB2. After the trade, my team had my dynasty QB1 in Mahomes and QB2 in Dak. Moving Marquise Brown and Hunter Henry stung at the time, but my team really needed stable assets, and an injured Dak proved to be the right price and extremely stable. Also, Dak was out for the year, so trading for him as a rebuilding team was a no-brainer.
Traded Eric Ebron FOR 2021 2nd
Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
To make this trade happen, I had to play hardball. There were a lot of negotiations, including a 2022 2nd and two 3rd round rookie pick trades sent, but I continued to hold out because I knew this team needed a TE, and I was holding all the cards. Eventually, the team agreed to my original trade offer, and I added another 2021 2nd to my plethora of picks.
Traded Chad Hansen FOR 2021 3rd
This trade is not sexy by any means, but it is a great example of trading any player with hype that will only last for the regular season for anything. By anything, I mean a 2021 3, 2021 4, or a young player with potential upside. The odds of the draft picks or players truly hitting are super slim, but it is always worth taking the chance.
My Trade Philosophy
I want to take a moment to talk about my trade philosophy. My general trade philosophy is always to know if the team I am trying to trade with is a contender or a rebuilding team. If you do not know, simply ask what type of players or picks the team is looking for. For this example, I am looking to make moves with contending teams that help them now while also helping me in the future.
Another strategy I like to use always leaves room in a trade to add a rookie 2nd or 3rd to get the deal done. If I am a contending team, I am much more likely to add a 2nd or 3rd round pick to finalize a trade, while if I am rebuilding, I will hold onto my picks unless if the trade looks like it will work in my favor in the future.
FINAL THOUGHTS
- I was unable to find solid waiver claims in the 2020 season, but you should always be on the lookout for them. The waiver wire could end up leading to you getting an extra draft pick or two or getting a very good deal on an injured player. In a league that I will not talk about in my case study series, I was able to turn Cordarrelle Paterson, Devonta Freeman, & Michael Thomas FOR Juju, Jordan Love, & 2023 1st. Slam dunk trade for the future!
- As I have mentioned a billion times, always be looking to make a trade for high upside youth players or players with stability longer than two years.
- Lastly, I would look at trading for injured players who have injuries that will not affect their careers. The one injury that I am nervous about is Achilles injuries, but Cam Akers may prove us all wrong (and D’Onta Foreman has had a fantastic end to the 2021 season).
In part 3, I will talk about the trades and draft picks I made in the 2021 offseason to set myself up for the 2021 season.
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