Trade Strategies

[CrazyOne]

Just wondering how others think about this. Would you always avoid trading with your very next opponent?

 

Also, if you are well into the playoff hunt, would you avoid trading with other teams that are also competitive?

 

In my case, for example, I'm 6-3 in a competitive 10-team league with 2 divisions. I am tied by record for lead of division and would currently win tiebreaker by a handful of points (YTD points is first tiebreaker). There are two 4-5 teams in the division, then a 3-6. In the other division the leader is 7-2, and there's a 5-4 team, then 4-5, then two more 3-6. Since it's a 4-team playoff that doesn't start until Week 15, there are 5 more weeks to sort this out. The two division leaders get in, but the two wild cards can be from either, so being second in the division is no guarantee of anything.

 

Knowing that a trade will improve the other team as well, does that make you more hesitant to trade with all but the teams with the worst records? Would you trade with a team just 2 games back? Or even closer?

 

(Details: I have some depth at WR and RB, and with Stafford and Cutler could use some QB help. But the idea of improving, say, a 4-5 or better team gives me a little pause, which is probably stupid. One team that could truly use some WR and RB help and is also 3-6 is my opponent for Week 10.)

[MTSuper7]

I will make any trade that I think improves my team. I don't get too worried about what it will do to someone else's team. I do try to make it so that the timing of the trade doesn't hurt me somehow, but if I can't, I won't sweat it. For instance, Michael Turner had the Bucs on his schedule this week. If I intended to trade him, I wouldn't want to do it with the guy I'm playing this week if I can help it.

[dbforbes]

I just did it last week in the league that matters. I'm 6-3 and he is 4-5, and I play him this week. I asked myself the following questions: (1) Will the trade definitely make my team better? (2) Do I have to make the trade with that team over all others? and (3) Can I wait for better timing for the trade? In my case, the answers were yes, yes and no (due to the trade deadline expiring this week), so I made the trade even though it may potentially hurt me this week. Best of luck to you!