Drafting a player soley to trade him (1 Viewer)

[Max Power]

Lets just say you are drafting and there is a player who you can't start, but is just vaule, value, value, sitting out there.

Do you draft him? I don't really mean a RB#3 with great vaule, but more if a QB that is falling further than he should.

 

[Loomba]

Yes.

 

[Carver]

I've had lots of success with this over the years. Especially @ the QB position.

 

[bentley]

If you think you can get more value out of him than someone else you might draft at that spot, then you should absolutely do it.

 

[Mr. Black]

I've had lots of success with this over the years. Especially @ the QB position.

X2

 

[Tigerbot Hesh]

Lets just say you are drafting and there is a player who you can't start, but is just vaule, value, value, sitting out there.Do you draft him? I don't really mean a RB#3 with great vaule, but more if a QB that is falling further than he should.

If you don't draft him, then someone else will. That's a plus for them and a negative for you if that happens.

 

[Pickle Rody]

Yes.

 

[kinghill]

Good question. I have this kind of situation where I can keep both Kurt Warner and Aaron Rodgers this year in exchange for my 10th and 11th round draft picks (yup last year I drafted Warner in the 12th, Rodgers in the 13th) and I'm considering keeping both with the intent on trading one of them early on.

With that said I don't recall ever being in a situation during a draft where I thought I would draft someone for the sole purpose of trading them. In late rounds I'm usually eyeing young RB/WR, getting a good defense, backup QB, etc. I'd be curious to see what situation specifically the OP is in - who is the player in mind? Who do you already have on your roster?

 

[RC94]

I always like drafting for value, but I wouldn't do it solely to trade him. If another team really wanted that player they would have drafted him themselves. You can get good trade value later on but oftentimes you will have to wait a while after the draft and when he proves he was a good value to trade him.

 

[SSOG]

I've done it before, just make sure that you're in a league that's ready/willing/able to trade. Even if you can't get a trade consummated right away, if you trust your rankings you should feel confident that a few weeks into the season, people will be sniffing around your roster for him. Worst case scenario, he's decent insurance in case one of your "better" guys busts.

 

[Darko M]

Don't like doing it. The guy you draft may be valuable but there's no guarantee you'll get fair value for him in a trade since he's on your bench.

 

[FUBAR]

I do this often in dynasty leagues, I'm more hesitant to do so in redrafts but probably still would in an active league.

 

[vikingdave]

happened last night in my first real redraft of the year...guy took Romo when he already had Brady...now hes already looking to deal Romo for a WR or RB of value about where he took Romo...now he is kinda weak at RB and WR, so now he has to hope someone will trade with him...he shoulda taken the value at another position of need, which I think there was some of that too...

 

[dwarfboy]

Yes, but you might want to look at it a bit different. Since you perceive the value, but others haven't caught on yet you will have trouble getting good value in a trade, especially early in the year. You will have wait until they have a big game, but you will still have to convince somebody he's not a one week wonder. If they are truly a huge value you might not have to wait very long to establish themselves, but remember other owners will have a certain level of committment to the players they drafted much higher.

If they are really a huge value it will probably be easier to trade the guy you drafted earlier and plug your huge value into your own lineup.

Say you draft Antonio Gates early. There are proabably several other owners that wish he had fallen to them. If you grab Brandon Pettigrew really late and he becomes the safety valve for the rookie QB Stafford and starts having 6-10 catches a game and quickly becomes a top 3 TE you will still probably get a better return by trading Gates.

 

[Wadsworth]

I draft with the goal of having the strongest possible roster, not the strongest possible starting line up. As the season progresses I trade to have the strongest possible starting line up(match ups included) by play off time. I wouldn't think twice about drafting a player for depth or a potential trade before I had addressed other starting positions.

 

[barista]

I wrote a piece called "drafting to trade" long ago... on whotostart.com (way back when that was active).

I was advocating a RB-RB-RB-RB-RB strategy.

So not only would I draft a player to trade him. I'd trade anyone if the price was right.

 

[Biabreakable]

Yes. If that player is clearly a tier above the other players available I take that player regardless of position.

Knowing your league is important however if your intention is to trade this player.

Using the QB example - Lets say you already got Brees and then a bit later in the draft you are able to draft McNabb who slid a lot further than you think he should have. This sometimes happens with the guys who like to wait.. wait and wait some more to draft thier starting QB. The reason these guys wait is because they are counting on the teams who have already drafted QB to keep passing on them because it is not a position of need.

So you draft him because he is the BPA. However keep in mind that this being a value pick, the other owners in your league may not be as high on him as you are. If that is the case then you may do better by trading Brees to a team who needs a starting QB to fill your other needs and then just keep McNabb as your starter who you got for good value.

Same can be said about any player. But QB is where I think this happens more often because most leagues only require that you start one.

 

[barista]

Yes. If that player is clearly a tier above the other players available I take that player regardless of position.

Knowing your league is important however if your intention is to trade this player.

Using the QB example - Lets say you already got Brees and then a bit later in the draft you are able to draft McNabb who slid a lot further than you think he should have. This sometimes happens with the guys who like to wait.. wait and wait some more to draft thier starting QB. The reason these guys wait is because they are counting on the teams who have already drafted QB to keep passing on them because it is not a position of need.

So you draft him because he is the BPA. However keep in mind that this being a value pick, the other owners in your league may not be as high on him as you are. If that is the case then you may do better by trading Brees to a team who needs a starting QB to fill your other needs and then just keep McNabb as your starter who you got for good value.

Same can be said about any player. But QB is where I think this happens more often because most leagues only require that you start one.

That's a good point. The thing to consider is whether you have willing trading partners in your league. I'm in a few where trading is active and a couple where it never seems to work out. You should really know that before directing a draft that way.

 

[RTB1]

Yes, I have done it, and I'll continue to do it. As other have said above, there's risk involved. If everyone had perceived the same value for the player as you had, he would have been drafted earlier than you got him.

Essentially, this becomes a sales job. Most folks suck at sales. I sell for a living, and even I could be better.

If you do this, be prepared to "shop" this player to all owners in your league. Show the "value add" this player brings. Understand that you have to take something in trade for this player. Likely, that means you have to take someone that you passed on or demonstrate that the player you want is a "luxury" to the team that you're trying to take him from.

It's not an easy transaction, but it can pay off. It can also backfire.

 

[Neil Beaufort Zod]

Yes, but your plan for success can't be dependent on trading Player X. If it works out, great. But if it doesn't, you have to be okay with keeping that guy.

 

[shredhead]

I was tinkering around with Draft Dominator the other day, I was plugging in picks from a mock draft at fantasyfootballcalculator.com and looking to see who DD told me to pick at my spot. DD had me picking Brady in the 2nd round and Rodgers in the 4th. My team ended up being pretty weak at RB and WR. I really didn't like my team other than QB. I wouldn't draft a player solely to trade him too early in the draft, and I'd also want to have some other positions solidified before trying it as well.

 

[Traders2001]

I do that often .

I usually know in advance who i am going to get for the player and i manage to get more then what i paid for .

i do that 2 - 3 times every off season .