The HOW-TO Guide for making a successful trade.

In lieu of a long drawn-out ranking this week, I will rank all teams with a brief blurb about how good/bad/bland your team is. I will use the time saved by creating a public service announcement to try and get some trades flowing (we haven’t had a trade in our league since before the draft last year.)

I have noticed a flurry of proposals over the last couple of weeks, but nothing that has been close to being accepted. Let’s break down the different ways to construct a trade depending on the position your trade partner is in:

1. A Trade between a contender and non-contender. – Probably the most common trade and the easiest to execute. A contending team should go to a non-contender to build line-up depth, not bag a keeper. Someone with an 0-4 record and is struggling to score points is not interested in making a blockbuster trade. So please stop with the “4 guys I grabbed off the waiver wire for the guy who was a keeper this year” proposals. Instead, try to fill the bye week holes on your roster. For instance, Dan has RB’s Alvin Kamara, Clyde Edwards Helaire and Miles Sanders along with WRs Keenan Allen, Chris Godwin and Allen Robinson. Guess what? He isn’t trading Kamara or Allen, but I bet you can get a combination of CEH, Godwin and A-Rob. But you are going to have to pay for it. Dan is not interested in your waiver wire pickups because he is playing for next year. You need to give him back a keeper, or a young guy who has a chance to be a keeper.

So maybe a guy like CJ decides he has a good starting lineup but wants some depth at the RB position. If you want to trade with Dan, you will need to cough up a guy like Mike Williams or Deandre Hopkins in exchange for CEH, Godwin and A-Rob. Throw in a few waiver wire pickups and that’s a trade that can help both teams.

2. A Trade between 2 contenders. Does giving up that much to build depth make you queasy? It should if you want to make a trade with a non-contender. A trade between 2 contenders is a little trickier but can get you what you want. This trade starts out a little differently. Your best bet is to go to the league leaders and look for a team that has more than 2 players in the top 25 at the position you are looking for. For example, Glenn has Najee Harris, Kareem Hunt and Antonio Gibson. Newsflash: He’s not trading you Harris or Gibson, but I bet you could get Kareem Hunt or Jamaal Williams for a decent QB2.

In this case, Ray has 3 good QBs on his roster and he can only play two. Patrick Mahomes is not going anywhere, but I am sure he would be willing to deal Derek Carr or Jalen Hurts for an upgrade. Hurts and Brandon Bolden for Hunt and Hunter Renfrow could be a starting point for a trade.

3. A trade between 2 non-contenders – I don’t really see the point in this as both teams should be building for next year. But… if you recall we have changed the rules for the top pick in the draft. There will be a tournament at the end of the regular season where the bottom 4 teams will play during the playoffs to determine who gets the first overall draft position. So even though all hope may be lost for this season, making sure you still have a competitive lineup may benefit you for the draft lottery tournament. In that case, the same rules that apply in scenario 2 apply here. Trade from your teams strength with a team that has depth at your position of need.

So please think about the other team’s position when making a trade proposal. Doing so may actually lead to a trade actually being accepted.