The trade deadline in your fantasy football league is likely coming up. Most set the deadline for somewhere between Weeks 11-13 to make teams have to either buy or sell a few weeks before the playoffs start.
It's not that you can't get any better after the trade deadline, but it only gets harder to find an impact player on waivers when the rest of your league is focused on the same thing. That's why it's nice to buy players with upside now, a few weeks before the deadline. If they go off in November, you'll be able to get more in return than what you paid. If they don't, there's not going to be much opportunity cost in holding them for a breakout into the playoffs.
Reminder that the Steelers and Titans are on bye this week. Here are 10 fantasy
football trade targets for Week 9:
Week 9 fantasy football players to buy
RB Tony Pollard, Titans
Of all the veteran skill position players who might get traded before the Nov. 10 trade deadline, Pollard seems like the most likely. Yes, he's been the overall RB1 the past two weeks and is going to be a lot more expensive now, but just as I wrote last week, he was really mediocre to start the season. There's a chance the Pollard owner isn't going to make the playoffs and thinks they are selling high. You should pay up for Pollard, who has shown a huge weekly ceiling even if he doesn't get dealt.
WR Drake London, Falcons
The Falcons WR1 has two games over 100 yards this season and only one touchdown. It's been gross. Trading for London would be a bet on talent for a player with huge upside, especially if you can get him as your WR2 or Flex.
RB Dylan Sampson, Browns
The Browns are still 5-3 but have also given up 51 points combined the last two weeks to the Titans and Steelers. Sampson has played in both, his first two of the year after coming back from a knee injury, and caught nine passes for 94 yards (plus another 52 yards on the ground). Nothing crazy, but young pass-catching RBs with mediocre defenses are the kind of bets we want to make before Week 9.
QB Carson Beck, Cardinals
Beck is a rookie quarterback drafted in the third round, which means there's a good chance he's not good. But! It seems likely that he's going to end the year as Arizona's starting QB. Benching Jacoby Brissett for Gardner Minshew is not the Cardinals' long-term move. If you want some QB depth to end the year, Beck should be cheap right now and will drop into a team built for fantasy production – great playmakers, bad defense.
QB Kirk Cousins, Raiders
I would not trade for Cousins unless you can get him for peanuts, because the Raiders will almost certainly hand the keys over to Fernando Mendoza at some point in November. But the Ravens are reportedly looking into other QB options in the wake of injuries to Lamar Jackson and Tyler Huntley, making Cousins an intriguing buy. He could be nothing, but he could also be a top 10 QB down the stretch if he's traded to Baltimore (or, dare I say, Minnesota).
WR Antonio Williams, Commanders
Williams didn't win anyone a matchup, but he led the Commanders in WR snaps and showed us just enough in Week 8 (five catches for 54 yards on seven targets) that he's a buy as Washington's potential top pass-catcher down the stretch.
Week 9 fantasy football players to sell
WR Matthew Golden, Packers
Golden led the sell list last week and I'm doubling down on offloading the second-year Packers receiver, even after he caught seven balls for 79 yards and a touchdown in Week 8. Golden continues to have some of the worst pass-catching metrics in the league and let's let someone else bet on that improving in Green Bay in December.
RB Rhamondre Stevenson, Patriots
Starting running backs are really hard to come by as we hit midseason, and you might be able to get an upgrade at a different position for New England's RB1. Stevenson had a mediocre day against the Dolphins (19 carries for 82 yards, three catches for eight yards) and is now averaging under four yards per carry without a rushing touchdown on the season. He's a good sell if you can get another manager excited about his pass-catching (23 catches for 212 yards and a touchdown this season).
QB Deshaun Watson, Browns
After taking another eight sacks against the Steelers, Watson has now been sacked 33 times – 10 more than anyone else in the NFL headed into "Monday Night Football." He also threw for 324 yards, his second consecutive game with 300-plus. While I'm not a doctor and we can't predict injuries, it's hard for any QB to get hit that much. Sell off the yardage bump while you can.
WR Tee Higgins, Bengals
We'll end on a hot take. Higgins has been incredible in 2026, even outplaying Ja'Marr Chase, and won many fantasy managers matchups with his 10 catches for 155 yards and two touchdowns against the Titans. I wouldn't sell unless you can get a haul in return, but if the, say, Chase manager in your league is frustrated, bet on the true WR1 in Cincinnati to end the season.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fantasy football buy, sell: 10 trade candidates for Week 9
