The first week of six teams on bye in the NFL not only can mean change for season long teams, but for dynasty rosters as well. Teams that are primed for the playoffs will be adding pieces to ensure their league standing and dynasty teams that have fallen on rough luck will look to plan for the future. The line of playing to win now versus building your team’s future is blurry at best, but savvy dynasty owners will find values when teams are looking to either go for it or tear it down and rebuild.

This week we take a look at a few dynasty trades from teams looking for the future and some others that are looking to win now. There is a focus on trading away Russell Wilson and Marcus Mariota and a decision for a win-now team about which wide receiver they should be trading for: Demaryius Thomas or Doug Baldwin.

If you would like to be included in next week’s mailbag, please email dynasty@rotoballer.com or tweet with #dynastyadvice. Let’s get to the questions.

Dynasty Mailbag Questions

I’m in a rebuild and the other team needs a QB. Would you trade Marcus Mariota for Andrew Luck and a 2018 mid 2^nd rounder?

Marcus Mariota and the Titans offense has been a disappointment this season. Mariota has only thrown for four touchdowns in six games this season and added three touchdowns on the ground. That simply is not good enough for a team and a player that were looking to take the next step in 2017. Mariota has played three top 10 passing defenses in Jacksonville, Seattle and Houston, but his inability to exploit matchups against the Raiders, Colts and Browns is certainly troubling. Shipping him off now while he is still seen as a sure-fire long term dynasty asset is sound strategy, especially in a rebuild. What’s even better is that you are receiving a potential top-5 quarterback in Andrew Luck and a 2^nd round draft pick back. Luck not only has 40 and 31 passing touchdown seasons already under his belt, but also ran for at least two rushing touchdowns in every season where he has played at least 15 games. Even though Luck might not play in 2017, he should be heading into 2018 fully healthy and ready to continue his fantasy prominence. That deal looks good.

My team is pushing for the playoffs. Which is the better buy: Doug Baldwin for a 2018 1^st or Demaryius Thomas for a 2018 2^nd?

Considering the circumstances of this trade, either option would no doubt provide a boost to a potential playoff team’s roster. Doug Baldwin is coming off one of his best games of the season seeing double digit targets for just the second time in 2017, and catching nine of his 12 targets for 92 yards and a touchdown. He has outperformed Demaryius Thomas so far this season with one more target than Thomas and scoring two touchdowns to Thomas’ zero. That being said, the fact that an owner would take less than one first round draft pick for Demaryius Thomas is something that cannot be passed up. Thomas has seen 50 targets in six games this season and has some great matchups through the remainder of 2017 with games against the Chiefs, Eagles, Patriots, Raiders, Jets and Colts. All of these teams are ranked in the bottom half of the NFL in pass defense. Even though Thomas may not have the better production as of right now, expect Thomas to start to turn it around in the second half of the season.

In a 14-team PPR league who wins this trade: Curtis Samuel for Wendell Smallwood and a 2018 3^rd round pick?

These two players should certainly be two ancillary pieces for any dynasty roster at this point in time. It appears that Samuel is certainly far off from having a large impact on the Panthers as he duplicates a lot of what Christian McCaffrey already brings to this offense in the short passing game and quickness to move the chains. Even if an injury occurs to either Kelvin Benjamin or Devin Funchess, Samuel may not be the “next man up” with Russell Shepard outsnapping Samuel 37-19 in Week 7.

On the other hand, even though Wendell Smallwood is in a timeshare with LeGarrette Blount for the remainder of season barring injury, he could have value beyond this season. Blount is on a one year contract and with the injury to Darren Sproles causing some doubt as to whether he will return to football; Smallwood could be the next in line. That opportunity is enough to warrant moving on from Samuel.

Contending team in a 12-team superflex. Have Palmer and Luck out. Already have Big Ben do I: Roll with Jacoby Brissett, Trade a 2019 2^nd rounder for Josh McCown or trade a 2019 1^st rounder for Tyrod Taylor?

There are a few factors in play when evaluating this potential deal. First, since this team is already a contender, there is a want to potentially make a play for the playoffs and fight for a fantasy championship. The second factor is the potential long term outlook on your fantasy team. Big Ben and Carson Palmer are on the tail end of their careers and might retire in the next season, so adding a quarterback with a long term outlook should be a priority. Tyrod Taylor may not be the long term quarterback solution in Buffalo, but he has demonstrated enough to get a shot on another NFL roster. Josh McCown clearly is not the long term solution for the Jets either and is 38 years old. He isn’t long for the league.

The final option is keeping Jacoby Brissett in the superflex, but for a team that is contending, Brissett just doesn’t provide the weekly upside of these other passers. Trading for Tyrod Taylor would be the best option for this team. It provides some longer term stability with a solid play for the superflex for the foreseeable future. Also the fact that the draft pick doesn’t occur until 2019 allows for time to build an even stronger contender after Andrew Luck returns.

Gave away Russell Wilson and received Philip Rivers and a 2018 2^nd round pick. Who wins this trade?

Unfortunately, the owner that gave up Russell Wilson came up on the short end of the stick. Wilson not only is a better player in the short term, but has another potential elite level of play for the next seven to eight seasons. Wilson adds the extra dynamic of rushing as well, already adding in 164 yards and a touchdown in 2017. Even as Wilson ages and his rushing production starts to decline, his passing prowess will long outlive Philip Rivers time in the NFL. Rivers has been the model of consistency over the last four seasons, throwing for at least 29 touchdowns and 4,286 yards, but does not offer the long term option for a fantasy team at the age of 35. Adding the draft pick in is still not enough to pry away Wilson.

To be featured in a future mailbag article, email dynasty@rotoballer.com or reach out to me on Twitter @TheRealHalupka using #dynastyadvice or #dynastytrades.

More 2017 Dynasty League Strategy