Vinny's Variety Pack: Week 6: trade talks

I’ve decided to spice up today’s column. It’s been six weeks, and all of the “sleeper” picks you were hot on before the season are like first-year Vinny thirty minutes after his Comp 11 class started … still asleep. However, it’s not time to throw away your season yet. As my mom always told me growing up, “A bad season can be saved with a good trade.” Wait, that’s not right. Ah well. Time for my mom to save your fantasy season.

Who to trade for:

Dez Bryant, Wide Receiver, Dallas Cowboys

“Man, hasn’t Dez been disappointing these past two seasons? Injuries to him. Injuries to his quarterback. Dropped passes. The list goes on.” See that? That’s how you spin this trade to people. Bryant is coming back Week 8 after his bye, and he’s going to be healthy, he’s going to have an All-Pro quarterback either way (Dak Prescott or Tony Romo) and he’s going to have a lot of pressure taken off of him due to the success of running back Ezekiel Elliott.

Lamar Miller, Running Back, Houston Texans

Miller has had an underwhelming and disappointing year for owners who mostly drafted him in the second or third round. However, he’s set to turn that around after a 20+ point Week 6 performance. Last year, in Week 5, Miller put up a 17-point game. He then had the best five week stretch (weeks 6-10) of any fantasy running back. Basically, this kid can ball out — he just needed a good game to light his fuse.

Tyler Eifert, Tight End, Cincinnati Bengals

Eifert has not played a single down this season, which has Eifert’s fantasy owners citing another of my mom’s favorite quotes: “Son, you’re a disappointment.” However, don’t let his lack of play dissuade you. Eifert is set to return this week against the Cleveland Browns, when he will start his season off strong. For a team that’s struggling in the red zone (CIN is 28^th in red zone TD efficiency at 42.11 percent,) Eifert is going to end up being a touchdown machine once again.

Who to trade away:

Brandin Cooks, Wide Receiver, New Orleans Saints

Looks can be deceiving. Cooks is a top 15 receiver in standard formats with 60 points. Pretty good right? Yeah, except for the fact that half of his points come from two plays. That’s not even a joke. Cooks is the definition of boom or bust, and he’s been more bust than boom. I packaged him away in a trade to get Odell Beckham, so his trade value is definitely high. Use that to your advantage if you have him.

Jamaal Charles, Running Back, Kansas City Chiefs

This one kills me. I love Charles and was really hopeful for him, but Spencer Ware (Running Back, KC) is just too good. I’m not saying Ware will start (low-key he might start,) but he’s good enough to warrant a run-by-committee approach — especially after tallying a career high 131 rush yards last week. Charles is a big name player and can probably get you one of the guys I talked about above.