There is a short turnaround as we gather around for some more quickfire footy, but trades are as important as ever, as we set up the rest of our seasons.

So here, we will talk about 15 of the MOST traded IN and traded OUT players as we head into Round 4 where we get a look at our Best 22 and can no longer hide poor scores on our field. Structure is KEY.

Sam Darcy – $123k (FWD) – 14%

This is probably looking like the gimme trade in of the round but it’s certainly not without buyer beware. We’ll start with the positives; he’s averaging 81 points per game and is attending 37.5% of all Bulldogs ruck contests over the last two weeks which is a quality number. The 109 in his system certainly helps inject a huge surge in cash generation this week, although bear in mind, if he scores poor this week, that score drops out and 2 poor scores are in the rotation instead going forward. The two obvious elephants in the room are his injury history and Rory Lobb lurking around kicking 5 goals in the VFL. He looks decent, but with these negatives, no way am I calling him a must have. SOLID.

Joshua Draper – $123k (DEF) – 1%

With more backline rookie carnage appearing, we are all hunting around for defender rookies so I can see why so many are jumping on Draper. But in all honestly, you’d be jumping on completely blind. I didn’t watch his second game, but he was very poor in his first outing. The number of injuries at Freo certainly helps his cause, but it also leaves murky water with Chapman, Worner and Wagner all due back in the very near future. He’s only averaging 51 SuperCoach per game, so it’s not exactly enticing with the unclear job security, but I can see people are desperate. RATHER NOT.

Tom Brown – $154k (DEF)– 3%

Brown is in a very similar boat to Draper. He’s a pick without a clear line of sight on him due to the number of injuries at Richmond. When you combine the injury list at Richmond and the fact two more key position players, (mainly Balta) have gone down, with the fact he is averaging slightly more than Draper; I’d say I’m slightly keener on him. But of course, the elevated price is the cost of these positives which may make him unattainable in your plans. I’d only consider these guys if you still had 3 of Hore, Coff, Reid or Gibcus. If you have just two, I’d honestly just hold Reid who is 3 weeks away and potentially wait for someone else for any of the others. RISKY.

Tom Powell – $375k (FWD) – 17%

This guy was my main trade in target for last week and he definitely didn’t disappoint. The score wasn’t huge as he was let down by some late clangers, but his role and his overall eye test were huge ticks. The role remained and is absurd for a forward pick this season. He looks to have taken the next step and I’m confident even at this elevated price, you’d be getting an under-priced keeper still, so he is definitely someone I’d still try to get in this week despite the price rise. 89% of centre bounces attended, 29 touches, 5 marks and a goal against tough midfield opposition. What more do you want! LOCK.

Oliver Dempsey – $219k (FWD) – 13%

This guy is just an unreal footballer, he does it all. He kicks goals, he pushes up to the wing, he gets involved in chains and he tackles hard.  It’s a bad, bad miss at $148k for anyone who didn’t get him last week, but he’s not out of reach. I genuinely think he still makes you 150k from this price pretty easily, and more importantly, looks a reliable F5/F6 on field option for us all. If you can make it work (because it is a tough price to trade in) I’d definitely say he is still worth it and is someone you should target this week. GET IN!

Tom Green, Sam Flanders, Touk Miller & Lachie Whitfield

I’ve roped all these players together as if you’re in the market for a premium this week, depending on your structure, picking one of these 4 guys coming off their bye should 100% be your priority. They’re all top liners and besides Green, I think are all underpriced on their projected output. There is a fair bit of injury history mixed in here, but the top line scoring is undeniable from them all. Its important to note the fixture isn’t ideal as they play each other this week, but these picks shouldn’t be short sighted. As an owner of Green and Flanders, I’m looking at trading in both Miller and Whitfield which goes to show how nice all 4 of these options are. If I had to rank them out of priority it would be Tom Green #1, Sam Flanders #2, Lachie Whitfield #3 and #Touk Miller at #4. JUMP ON!

Jack Billings – $305k (FWD) – 16%

What a roller coaster of emotions this guy has been… The 119 has rolled out of his system and he has been the sub or subbed in 2 out of 4 games. I think you just have to accept the L here, take the $305k on his head and work him to better your team. He is a good price to enable a one up, one down and we can forget this never happened! TRADE. 

James Jordon – $344k (MID/FWD) – 57%

I’ve seen a lot of people using this guy’s money to help enable some upgrades elsewhere. Off the bat I’ll say I don’t love it. He has 3 out of 4, 80+ scores so far and he’s playing the Eagles… I’d be shocked if he doesn’t go 80+ again. On the flip side, his BE is not that low, so the cash rise before having to trade him on his bye next week anyway won’t be huge. Its also important to note his time on ground was concerningly low again and Taylor Adams is sniffing around the team. I’d personally rather bank the nice score this week and offload next week instead. But if he is genuinely the way you can make an uber upgrade in your side elsewhere, I’d consider it. PREFERABLY HOLD.

Blake Howes – $215k (DEF) – 62%

I personally think if you’re culling him this week you’re going too early. He had a stinker game sure. But he has proven he can score with a 74 average over his first 3 games. 1 to 2 more of these games and his cash gen has been reset and you could easily miss 85K+. There is so much going on elsewhere, trading Howes early is not a priority. HOLD.

Nat Fyfe – $319k (FWD) – 52%

I have never been a fan of this pick, so I don’t want to sound bias, but I think Fyfe is perfectly expendable this week. The scoring doesn’t look good enough and every game he is an injury or sub risk. He has decent money on his head to enable an upgrade elsewhere. In terms of the 3 forward mid pricers, I’d trade Billings first, Fyfe second and Jordon third. But if you don’t have much going on, I think Fyfe is a perfectly fine hold for now. EXPENDABLE.

Ollie Wines – $474k (MID) – 11%

This pick goes from bad to WORSE. Ken Hinkley suggested Wines was back to his best, fit and firing as a fulltime midfielder, when in reality we bought a winger/half forward with poor time on ground who now has sustained a hamstring injury… I was tempted to rage trade him before the hamstring news but now this has sealed his fate. Its important to note his injury is only listed as 1 game, but how often are hamstrings only 1 game? If you can get him to Green, Steele or Touk I’d definitely do those. TRADE.

Zac Fisher – $380k (FWD) – 21%

If you still own the Fish, it’s a hard realisation but he’s definitely a failure. A 380k forward averaging 73 points per game. The killer is his next two games are at Norwood Oval and GMS which are two of the smallest and contested grounds that the AFL use. These will be terrible for his half back, chip around the back, uncontested football style. Whether you don’t own Powell, or if you just trade him down to Dempsey/Darcy to allow an upgrade elsewhere, I’d definitely get this done this week. MUST TRADE