2023 Midseason Review & Trade Deadline Primer
Written by: DatBoiFuzz
We’re halfway through the year and four weeks away from the trade deadline. Some would-be contenders are throwing in the towel, others are ready to double down on this year. Also, there’s Logger. Let’s get into where everyone stands.
Dormant:
Mason Minutemen (6-2, 2nd)
Jerry is once again on pace for a Round 1 bye. With Kamara past his suspension and looking like his old self, Swift the 1a in a potent Eagles offense, and Montgomery cucking Gibbs in Detroit, the RB concerns are long gone. While not as deep as some other teams, this bench has enough talent to overcome a couple injuries. Trading Mike Evans for a ’25 1st should be evidence enough for how Jerry feels about his depth. There’s still no third option at QB, and with $17 left in FAAB there’s some injury concern. But I expect Jerry to take that risk and let this team ride for the remainder of the season.
Belmont Bukakke (5-3, 3rd)
Things have not gone super well for Brent thus far, with the JT holdout, Burks injury, Claypool being a head case, a major Chubb injury, Penny getting buried on the Eagles depth chart, and now Kirk Cousins tearing his Achilies. And yet the Bukakke are in third and in serious contention for a bye. They shouldn’t be in danger of missing the playoffs and aren’t holding their 1st so any kind of tank job is out of the question. Yet I don’t see Brent being a buyer either. This team may shuffle some parts around at the deadline and are in the market for a third QB, but I think they just hold onto their major pieces and see how the playoffs shake out.
Wiesbaden Wichsers (4-4, 11th)
The Wichsers have very slowly been coming around. There are still massive needs at virtually every position, but this team is no longer an automatic win for everyone else. With no aging vets to offload, I expect this team to stand pat until the off-season. Be ready for Darren trades soon though, as he is currently holding ten (10!!) picks in the upcoming draft. Although only four picks are 1sts or 2nds, Darren has the capital to trade up and go get his guys in 2024.
WrightPatt Chairforce (0-8, 14th)
Logger would probably sell if anyone wanted to buy…
Buyers:
Chickasaw Chafed Chodes (7-1, 1st)
This is a young team possibly on its way to a playoff bye, and they already traded their 1st and 2nd this year. Kevin is likely content to let this current roster ride for the year. But if the goal is to win it all, that may be a mistake. If any team is set up to pull a Jry and push all of their draft capital in, it’s the Chodes. I’m not sure who is willing to give up their QB1, but this team should be looking hard at an all-in move with such a young, productive roster to support it.
Needs: QB1, vet WR1
Sellable assets: Bevy of young WRs, 2 1sts, 2 2nds
Burrow of Brooklyn (5-3, 4th)
Squirt continues to surprise and is firmly in the playoff race once again, but I’m still dubious he has the depth to really put together a deep run. Selling Waddle for Kittle, Evans, and Henderson certainly addressed this problem, but it may not be enough. With so many stacked teams this year, it might be wise to hedge his bets and hold his picks again. But I think he’s in a prime position to buy, especially if he has serious intentions about getting in the money again. It might need to be the sellers reaching out to him to get a deal done, though.
Needs: QB2, Flex depth
Sellable assets: Michael Mayer, 3 1sts, 3 2nds
Cassella Cucks (4-4, 9th)
This season started poorly for the defending champ at 0-3. But Siegrist was indubitable in his belief of his team, sending his ’25 1st for James Cook to push them over the edge, going 4-1 since. After selling his 1sts for the next two years, Eric is all-in on this team for the foreseeable future. He may as well keep on buying and go for the league reset. Right?
Needs: Flex, QB3
Sellable assets: Jonathan Mingo, Kadarius Toney, Cole Kmet, one 1st, one 2nd
Sellers:
Anna Apollos (4-4, 10th)
I’m not sure if the Apollos expected to contend this year, but that’s not how this season has gone. Anthony Richardson is out for the year, while Higgins/Young/Mattison/Miller/Pierce/Kincaid/Chig have all been disappointing, though Kincaid at least is coming around. This team is going to control the 2024 draft with four 1sts, although three of them are currently in playoff contention (Kevin, Caleb, Scott). Eric seems inclined to look towards the ’24 season. Better times are on the horizon.
Needs: RBs, QB1, picks?
Sellable assets: Jared Goff, Gardner Minshew, Alex Mattison, Adam Thielen, Tyler Higbee
Centerville Cheekburgers (2-6, 12th)
It looks like Jim has finally hit the reset button on this roster after losing Jefferson to injury (and then trade) and starting the year slow. He is missing his 2026 1st, so a moderate two-year tank seems to be in order. The good news is he already has a solid core with Stroud and Addison. The bad news is he still has a lot of olds to offload, and may have to give them up cheap just to get anything for them.
Needs: Injured players, picks
Sellable assets: Matt Stafford, Aaron Jones, AJ Dillon, DeAndre Hopkins, Christian Kirk?
St. Henry Scallywags (2-6, 13th)
Another perennial pretender ready to reset the roster after a slow start. Except rather than a two year window, Brandon is likely looking for a quick off-season turnaround as he is missing his ’25 1st. And that seems doable. Justin Herbert, Tony Pollard, Dameon Pierce, and JSN should all hold or gain value through the off-season, and Aaron Rodgers should be available next year. He will need to hit big in the upcoming draft, but if he can land the 1.02, should have the capital to do so.
Needs: Injured players, WR, picks
Sellable assets: OBJ, Zach Wilson, oh dear God this roster looks dreadful does anyone want any of these guys??
Wildcards:
Gem City Titties (5-3, 5th)
What do you do when you’re trying to rebuild, but you don’t have your 1st and can’t get it back, but you’re winning games, but your Max PF is low? What a mess. This team has a couple of win-now QBs and a nice pack of young WRs to go with rookie breakout LaPorta, but clearly doesn’t have the juice to make a real title push. I don’t know what the move is and it feels like everything is on the table.
Needs : RBs
Sellable Assets (win-now direction): Quentin Johnston, Rashee Rice, three 1sts, five 2nds
Sellable Assets (rebuild direction): Geno Smith, D’Onta Foreman, probably still QJ
West Carrollton Wimps (4-4, 6th)
One of the best teams on paper to start the year, the Wimps have massively disappointed. It’s my own team so I won’t belabor how frustrating it’s been. The Wimps still own all three 1sts and 2nds, so a sell off of the older assets is possible if more matchups do not go their way. They could also use those picks in an all-in move if so desired. Both directions are in play.
Needs: QB2/3, TE1
Sellable assets (win-now direction): Luke Musgrave, Rashid Shaheed, Josh Downs, three 1sts, three 2nds
Sellable Assets (rebuild direction): Davante Adams, Cooper Kupp, Joe Mixon, Jerome Ford, Diontae Johnson, Logan Thomas
Oakwood Golden Gods (4-4, 7th)
The Golden Gods jumped out to a hot 4-2 start, but after dropping their last two are now stuck in a large group hoping to get into the playoffs. Caleb is not holding his 1st or 2nd this year, so it makes sense to keep pushing and see what happens. But many key pieces of this roster are pretty damn old, so a failed playoff push could leave this team in the basement for the foreseeable future. Caleb can be unpredictable so I won’t bother trying; either direction has pros and cons.
Needs: TE1, high level WR/RB
Sellable assets (win now direction): Romeo Doubs, Joshua Kelley, two 1sts, four 2nds
Sellable assets (rebuild direction): Austin Ekeler, Keenan Allen, Derek Carr, Courtland Sutton, Raheem Mostert
Dayton Doughboys (4-4, 8th)
If there is a direction this team is going, I don’t know what it is. A high Max PF combined with a poor record can make men do crazy things. Zer is notoriously our most active trader and will at least talk about anyone. He’s holding all his 1sts. I have no predictions. Everyone is available.