We’re three weeks into the NFL season, and the injuries are already piling up. Even worse than injuries to several top picks are the busts, massive duds such as C.J. Anderson, DeMarco Murray, and LeSean McCoy, who are doing almost nothing for their owners, yet cost so much that they’re being forced into starting lineups.
If your team is in dire straights because of injuries or lackluster production from top picks, here are some strategies to try and save your fantasy football season.
Target Free Agents With Upside
Whether you use FAAB dollars (auction style bidding on free agents with a $100 or $200 budget over the course of the season), or a traditional numbered waiver wire system, it’s important to spend your money on players that can help you now. If you started 0-3, you can’t afford to speculate on a rookie RB like David Johnson, who might eventually take on a featured role with the Cardinals, but is primarily a stash right now.
If you need wins now, you have to use whatever means you can to secure injury replacements (such as Karlos Williams), or players that are breaking out in front of our eyes (such as Donte Moncrief). You need to find a way to add depth to a roster that might lack options, so that you can bench your busts if they happen to draw another tough matchup.
Trade Aggressively
Get on the horn with your league mates and start feeling out the market for some of their underperforming studs. Perhaps you want to try and pry an underachieving stud away from one of your opponents, or you want to use their optimism about one of your struggling players to work a solid 1-for-2 deal and add depth to your roster.
Regardless of the specifics of your trades, the goal should be to win now. Look at the players you might acquire in terms of their matchups over the next four weeks, rather than their playoff-schedule. Do they have a bye week coming up? Are they a RB that faces stout fronts in 3 of their next four matchups? This will be key if you want to right the ship and get back to .500 with a couple of wins.
Take Risks
In DFS, playing a risky cheap option is the best way to win giant tournaments, and it can also be an effective strategy to overcome the negatives of a “terrible” fantasy squad. Don’t be a slave to the projected FPs on each site, because chances are, you’re the underdog anyways. Instead, embrace the YOLO-style of fantasy football, and take a chance on “home run” players such as Ted Ginn Jr., Travis Benjamin, or even a pass-catching back like Darren Sproles.
Remember that you probably got into fantasy football to have fun, so if you’re going to go down, you might as well go down swinging.