WEEK 6 BODOG FANTASY FOOTBALL

October 13, 2005 3:00 PM ET

Early this week, my Inbox has been flooded with proposals, rejections, controversy, and outrage.

No, my colleagues and I have not been discussing the most recent episode of "The OC". Yes, it's the height of fantasy football's trade season.

With five weeks in the books, fantasy owners not only have a pretty clear picture of their roster's composition, but in addition, they also have a fairly good idea about where they stand in the playoff race. In standard leagues in which the playoffs begin in week 14, the halfway point of the regular season is quickly approaching.

Combine that with major injuries to key players, and bye weeks that many owners frankly do not consider carefully enough, and you've got yourself a scorching hot stove.

In virtually every league, there is a seemingly unbeatable team sitting pretty at 5-0. Likewise, there's a hard-luck loser looking up from the cellar at 0-5 (and almost assuredly complaining about how unfair it is that they face the highest-scoring team every week). And while both owners have very different priorities, they and all the other owners in your league should be busy scouring rosters to better their lot for week six and beyond.

If you're a clear contender, you don't have many immediate needs. You likely have scored both because of early-round success (LaDainian Tomlinson, Terrell Owens) and late-round sleepers (Carson Palmer). At 5-0 or 4-1, you are well on your way to a playoff berth, and assuming there are no byes in your playoff brackets, it doesn't matter a whole lot what seed you earn.

But that doesn't mean that you can rest on your laurels. If you're a forward-thinking future champion, you should be looking at your matchups in those critical postseason weeks and assessing your chances. For example, do you own Corey Dillon? You're probably pretty happy about his five touchdowns and your stellar record, but do you realize that in weeks 13-16 he will face four top-10 scoring defenses (the Jets twice, the Bills, and the Bucs)?

My hunch is that you could easily swap him for Brian Westbrook (along with perhaps a receiver for depth). B-Rabbit may not be the workhorse back that Dillon is, but he does have four scores and faces the Seahawks, Giants, Rams, and Cardinals in weeks 13-16. It doesn't get much more attractive than that, and those are the exchanges you sure-fire contenders should be looking at in the coming weeks.

On the flip side, those of you at 0-5 or 1-4 in non-keeper leagues must treat week six like your Fantasy Bowl. It's must win, baby, and you can't afford to go to battle without exhausting all possibilities for putting the best possible team on the field. For those of you in this situation who have studs like Donovan McNabb and Larry Fitzgerald on the bye collecting dust, I'm sorry to say that you have very little choice but to move your precious commodities. Hey, the truth hurts, but what good will six weeks of Donnie Mac do when you're mathematically eliminated and can't hold onto him after the season?

 

Target a fellow owner with depth at quarterback or an undefeated team that can afford to take a gamble this week. Make him an offer he can't refuse. Turn McNabb into two position players who can help you win this week and can serve as trade commodities going forward. Is someone sitting on both Jake Delhomme and Matt Hasselbeck? Swap McNabb for Delhomme and a buy-low candidate like LaMont Jordan. One thing is certain: Delhomme and Jordan will out-produce McNabb this Sunday. Unfortunately, that's all that matters in your situation.

We've discussed the two extremes, but that doesn't give the rest of you a pass. Fantasy owners everywhere underestimate how devastating bye weeks can be. Did you build your receiving corps around vacationing receivers Owens and Anquan Boldin? Ouch. If you're staring 1-5 in the face and trail several teams in the playoff race, strongly consider moving Boldin to one of those contenders, even if it means you accept a slightly less valuable receiver (Jimmy Smith) and a high-upside guy for your bench (Chester Taylor).

Not necessarily hurting from injuries, bye weeks, or a horrible start? That doesn't mean you can't take advantage of others' misfortunes. In one league, I've collected quite a bit of running back depth with guys like Willie Parker, Ronnie Brown, Tatum Bell, and T.J. Duckett backing up Dom Davis and Cadillac Williams. One of my competitors appears to have lost Thomas Jones from what was already an exceptionally thin backfield.

I've suggested a trade in which I send him Fitzgerald and Brown for Owens. For a slight (yet still significant) downgrade at receiver, he gets a guy he can plug into his backfield immediately. And for my No. 2 wide receiver and one of several backs I've been cultivating on my bench, I get the best receiver in fantasy football. It's a win-win situation, and just the sort of thing that is burning up that stove this time of year.