Fantasy Football Week 5: Tips, Trade Value Rankings for Top 100 Players

Everybody panic!

After a quarter of the NFL season, a slew of players with huge expectations coming into the season are struggling. October and November tend to be the months when fantasy owners start wheeling and dealing, so you may be wondering if it’s time to sell on some disappointing players, buy on some other surprising options and what sort of deals you should be looking to make in either scenario.

If you find yourself in this boat, my weekly fantasy football trade chart is here to help.

So, what exactly is up with Todd Gurley, Odell Beckham Jr., DeAndre Hopkins, Dez Bryant, Amari Cooper and Rob Gronkowski? And is it time to start panic selling?

The first answer will take some analysis. The second answer is “No, not yet. Don’t…sell…low!” But let’s start with the analysis.

We have to start with Gurley because, honestly, his slow start may be the biggest surprise in all of fantasy football. After Week 3, it appeared he was back on track after rushing for 85 yards and two touchdowns. And then on Sunday, he rushed 19 times for just 33 yards. He’s averaging just 2.6 yards per carry.

The panic is building.

The fact is teams to this point of the season simply haven’t feared Case Keenum in the passing game. Keenum did throw for 266 yards and two scores last week, but nobody is going to suddenly confuse him for Aaron Rodgers.

But here’s the thing: Other running backs are facing stacked boxes and are still managing to be more productive than Gurley, as Scott Barrett of Pro Football Focus tweeted:

Having some fun with @MikeClayNFL’s adjusted yards per carry stat this morning. Here are your most/least efficient RBs by package-adj YPC. pic.twitter.com/jd0hdaU8Ke

— Scott Barrett (@ScottBarrettDFB) October 3, 2016

It doesn’t look like “stacked boxes” are entirely to blame for Todd Gurley’s disappointing start. 11 RBs have faced stacked boxes more often pic.twitter.com/PWaPiWCmYB

— Scott Barrett (@ScottBarrettDFB) October 3, 2016

So did Gurley just forget how to run the ball?

No, of course not. His offensive line is playing poorly and isn’t generating a push against stacked boxes. The playing-calling has been…uninspired. And teams are building game plans to slow down Gurley and daring the rest of the Rams offense to beat them.

The Rams offense isn’t beating anyone. The Rams defense, on the other hand, has been excellent, hence the team’s 3-1 record. And so Gurley continues to struggle.

“As long as I keep winning, I can care less,” Gurley told Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com. “It don’t even matter to me.”

It matters to fantasy junkies, though.

Perhaps some relief is coming. Gonzalez suspects the Rams will continue to employ Gurley in the passing game more often, as they did in Sunday’s win. At this point, fantasy owners will take …

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