Another week of football, another round of injuries and performances to factor into our dynasty values. Heading into week 6, readers can turn to Shawn’s updated rest-of-season tiered RB rankings for help with lineup and trade decisions in redraft, but it’s also a useful roadmap for maneuvering through dynasty leagues.
I’ll run through the tiers providing notes on what I’m seeing in my leagues and ideas on how to capitalize on this list that goes 73 players deep. The numbered ranks aren’t included, but the players in each tier are listed in order. Of course, we kick off with the most dominant player of the last half-decade who sits in a tier of his own.
Tier 1 – Christian McCaffrey
I have McCaffrey on two superflex/tight end premium teams and both lead their leagues in scoring by about 50 points. Unfortunately I’ve caught some tough matchup luck and I’m 3-2 in one and 2-3(!) in the other. Nevertheless, I fully expect his bankable scoring to help even things out over the coming weeks and help these teams secure playoff byes.
I acquired McCaffrey for the 2-3 team in April of 2022, and he helped power me to a title that he’ll now help me defend. Here was that crucial trade:
Traded away: Aaron Rodgers, 2022 2.07, 2023 R1
Acquired: Tom Brady, Christian McCaffrey, 2022 3.10 (drafted Sam Howell)
Seeking to replicate that success in another league where I failed to advance past round one of the 22 playoffs, I made this trade back in February.
Traded away: Kenneth Walker, Chris Olave, Trey McBride, 2023 R2, 2023 R4
Acquired: Christian McCaffrey, T.J. Hockenson, Hunter Renfrow 2023 R3, 2023 R3
If McCaffrey stays on his current trajectory in an elite offense and can close out the year healthy, I can see trying to acquire more in the 2024 offseason if age and usage concerns lead managers to once again sell one of the most dominant players to ever score fantasy points. Even buying now isn’t a bad idea, since he’s certainly more affordable than the player at the top of the next tier and perhaps even some in tier 3, but good luck finding the McCaffrey team that isn’t contending and is therefore willing to entertain offers. (Check out the regularly updated dynasty rankings from Shawn and Curtis to see where they have this stud).
