With the NFL regular season winding down, your average redraft player is getting ready to hibernate, likely checking out from fantasy football until at least training camp. But dynasty managers are not your average redraft player, and managing your roster has no off-season. While some dynasty managers might be in redraft mode, shutting it down until the NFL draft at minimum, active dynasty managers are already thinking about how to position their roster for success.
Sharp managers are always getting an edge however they can, and if you’re that kind of dynasty manager, you’re in luck because it’s time to kick off the Get Better At Dynasty series. This whole offseason, I’ll be breaking down the specific things you can do to dominate the NFL offseason and get a leg up on your league mates. By putting in the work during the offseason, you’ll get an edge over your league mates and lay the foundation for a title-winning team.
Tiering Your Roster
The key to any successful offseason starts with knowing, really knowing, what function each player on your roster actually serves. A good dynasty roster is like a good story. It’s driven by the cast of characters, but it has a point–it’s going somewhere. By sitting down and really thinking about where your roster is going and whether each player on your roster is getting you there, you’ll come up with insightful ideas for how to trade and draft your way to a dynasty.
Using the following tiers, and even getting more specific once you go through this process a couple of times, you’ll start noticing and jumping on opportunities to trade with your league mates, and you’ll end up making efficient, lethal rosters that can compete indefinitely.
Now open up a spreadsheet and classify all of your players according to the following tiers. These are (very) loosely ordered by trade value, but more importantly, you will have a different plan for managing players in each tier. Instructions for what to do with each tier differ between rebuilders and contenders. Crucially, whenever you receive a trade offer, return to these tiers and see if that trade is taking you where you want to go.
The Untouchables
This is the cream of the crop, the biggest difference-makers in dynasty, but too often, dynasty managers fumble players in this tier. This tier includes high-end QB1 scorers, fantasy QB2s who are the undisputed franchise player on their team, high-end WR1s, high-end RB1s on their rookie contracts who are not going to holdout this offseason, and in TE premium, it includes Trey McBride and Brock Bowers.
To be successful in dynasty, you have to remember the following.
1. Compared to their league mates, dynasty champions always, always have a disproportionate share of players in this tier. Do not think of these guys as items available at a store. They are gem mint collectibles. You never, ever trade one dollar for four quarters in dynasty.
2. If you offload a player in this tier for any reason, you will rarely (if ever) get a chance to trade for one without giving up excessive value. Even if you think you’re getting value in exchange for packaging down from these players, you will give it all back, with interest, later when you try to add somebody in this tier.
While “have the best players” may sound obvious, not enough dynasty managers actually act according to these two axioms. The biggest mistake rebuilders make is packaging down from the younger players in this tier. It does not matter if you’re bereft of assets or looking to get fantasy points off your roster. Disciplined and bold dynasty managers can get draft capital from the rest of their roster, and they can position themselves for high draft picks (yes, I mean tank) while still holding the two or three irreplaceable studs.
Contenders, on the other hand, are not proactive enough about raiding rebuilders for these players. As soon as somebody starts posturing to rebuild, give them the excuse to start a fire sale. Be aggressive and bold about offering prospects and excess picks. If it’s near the deadline and you’re a playoff team, be bold about offering your own picks, too. Don’t be stingy with the players in the tiers that come next. One of the biggest edges in dynasty is that dynasty managers like to role play as GMs, and making a dramatic package down from a star in order to kick off a rebuild makes for a fun story.
One big mistake made by both contenders and rebuilders is to trade away franchise quarterbacks who are not performing like a high-end QB1 in the current season. Players like Justin Herbert and CJ Stroud will be providing value for your roster for years and years, and you would be surprised how quickly their situation can change and result in them accumulating volume and, consequently, fantasy points.
For that reason, do not package down from these guys to a QB prospect plus an asset. You’re putting yourself in a situation where the trade is only good for you if the QB prospect smashes, and nine out of ten times, they won’t.
Studs
These are players who have proven to be outstanding real-life football players at a young age, who, for one reason or another, are not quite as impactful week-to-week as the guys in the Untouchables tier. This can include elite wide receivers who are victims of bad QB play (Garrett Wilson, Chris Olave, and Malik Nabers), players who are efficient and profile as high-end fantasy scorers but who are in crowded rooms or don’t have seniority over their teammates (Jaylen Waddle, Jayden Reed), or outstanding rookies who could potentially join the untouchables tier if they keep improving and consolidating the opportunities in their offense (Brian Thomas Jr., Ladd McConkey).
It is rare for QBs to be in this tier because if they’re clearly franchise players but in bad situations, they’ll be in the Untouchables tier. Running backs are also harder to find in this tier because the really good ones usually consolidate opportunities, even on bad teams.
Rebuilders should almost always hold onto their studs, except in extreme circumstances such as overpays or a player imminently aging out of the tier. Even if these players need an improved situation to take the next step, rebuilders can and should wait out the situation. It is harder to amass players who are elite real-life football players than it is to find dudes who are temporarily in better situations. Situations are more changeable than talent.
Contenders can consider using players in this tier to package up into a player in the untouchables tier but should never package down from these players because they balance value insulation and lineup output too well.
Key Starters
These are players who are a crucial source of points for contenders but who are not untouchable for rebuilding teams. This tier includes
1. Veteran RB1s, such as Derrick Henry and Joe Mixon
2. Old WR1s or inconsistent WR2s having a career year, such as Chris Godwin or Courtland Sutton
3. Any young, productive RB who does not profile as a long-term RB1, such as Chuba Hubbard
4. Middle-end QB2s or journeyman QBs in the middle of a career year, such as Russell Wilson and Sam Darnold
5. Handcuffs filling in productively for a starting RB, such as Jordan Mason, earlier in the season
6. WR2s who do not have a path to being the best receiver on their team, such as Jordan Addison and Devonta Smith
This tier is the lifeblood of dynasty trading, as rebuilders should always be willing to trade these players to contenders, and contenders should primarily fill out the bottom end of their roster by acquiring these players as cheaply as possible from rebuilders. The number of rebuilding teams holding on to aging RBs, even in my highest-stakes league, is shocking.
Rebuilders should only hold on to the youngest wide receivers in this tier and never, ever hold on to the running backs in this tier. That being said, rebuilders should remain patient and take advantage of injuries or byes before shopping these players to contenders.
Finally, many rebuilders commonly make the mistake of acquiring players in this tier just because the player seems somewhat cheap. Dynasty owners do not get fantasy points for getting marginal value wins, especially when that move fails to move the roster in a coherent direction. Instead, the lost compensation makes it that much harder for the rebuilding owner to package up to a stud or untouchable player. This tier is extremely fluid, and players in this tier should only be acquired once the rest of the roster is ready to compete.
Contenders should not trade away these players unless their roster is exceptionally deep since this tier of players makes more sense on a contending roster than on anybody else’s. Rebuilders should be willing to take less value for the older players in this tier because this tier of players is actively hurting their draft position by scoring points.
Remember, dynasty is fun because a league’s managers can have complementary goals, meaning trading can be a win-win. In redraft, any trade requires somebody to be wrong. But when rebuilders trade away players in this tier, and when contenders trade for players in this tier, they should both forget about winning the trade and focus on whether this trade helps accomplish their goals for the season.
Strong Stashes
Strong stashes are players of varying skill and trade value who are all in this tier because there is a clear and specific reason to expect their value to increase imminently. While the value increase may not always come to fruition, the reason to expect it is tangible and unambiguous. Players in this tier have not quite shown the ability necessary to be in the Studs tier but have more upside and/or a clearer path to a value bump than weak stashes (more on them later).
Players in this tier include:
1. High-value players recovering from injuries who have a favorable long-term prognosis, such as clean ACL tears in young players or full cleanups of the meniscus. Players in this tier include Rashee Rice and JJ McCarthy. This tier does not include players with debilitating or degenerative injuries, such as Achilles tears or multi-ligament knee injuries. For this reason, Brandon Aiyuk is not in this tier. While he may come back at full strength, we cannot safely assume that.
2. Players with a clear, imminent path to a larger role in their offense. This would include somebody like Tank Dell, who would step into a larger role if Stefon Diggs left in the offseason. (Since this article was written, Tank Dell suffered a serious knee injury and should no longer be considered a strong stash) Another player in this tier is Isaiah Likely, who is one of my favorite rebuilder buys in all of TE-premium. Mark Andrews won’t be around forever, and at some point, patient dynasty managers will be rewarded with a stud player who has shown the ability to consolidate a large role in the Baltimore Ravens offense.
3. Young players who are earning their coach’s trust and are actively getting more snaps week-by-week, such as Bucky Irving. Never trade rookies in this tier at the trade deadline, or you’ll regret it in a matter of weeks. You cannot safely assume you know where their ceiling is.
4. Players with insulated value whose trade value will increase with a change in the offensive playcaller. For example, no matter how low you are on Caleb Williams, this is the absolute lowest tier he can go in because he has a long leash and there will be a market for him once a new coach and offensive scheme is brought in.
Rebuilders should never trade away these players, no matter how disappointing they might be, because there is simply no sense of urgency to trade strong stashes, and rebuilders can just wait for the value bump before trading or utilizing them.
Contenders can consider trading away these players to make impactful win-now moves but not to make surface-level additions to their depth. Dynasty managers frequently over-manage their rosters by shopping for low-end role players with their strong stashes.
Dynasty managers in both groups can consider acquiring players in this tier, either for their lineups or to flip later. This is the first tier mentioned that can justifiably be acquired solely with the motivation to flip. Never flip players in the previous tiers, as a market for them is not guaranteed and the reasons to expect a value bump are less clear.
Weak Stashes
These players are similar to strong stashes but for players with less upside or whose path to playing time requires more projection, including players such as Jalen Coker, A.J. Barner, and Erick All. While these might not be flashy names, last year, this tier included Chase Brown, which shows how rostering some of these players can pay big dividends.
Both contenders and rebuilders should be opportunistic about adding these players as throw-ins or by re-rolling busts into them. However, neither type of owner needs to prioritize giving up value to acquire these players.
Rentals
These are players who differ from Key Starters in that they can only be safely assumed to provide value in the current season. While some rentals can maintain value the following year, managers should never pay a price that assumes future production. RB2s with cuttable contracts or who are pending free agents are common in this tier.
The same goes for below-average wide receivers who are running hot. This tier also includes inefficient players who are getting opportunities by default on bad teams. Rebuilders should never keep these players past the trade deadline, as they are actively harmful by scoring fantasy points on tanking rosters. Contenders can try to acquire these players cheaply but should be wary that their production can stop at any moment.
Weak Re-Rolls
Weak re-rolls are players that you could try to move on from if you suspect a manager in your league is still too high on them. However, it’s also reasonable to stash them in the hopes of major improvement. These are usually players who look like busts but who have enough value insulation that it can be better to wait and see than to act too hastily. Most weak re-rolls are players with high draft capital who have played legitimately badly in the NFL or who have failed to take advantage of a clear runway.
This is distinct from players who bust in fantasy because of situation or role; these players should be considered strong stashes. Xavier Legette is an example of a weak re-roll. If you could turn him into a 2025 rookie with more potential and a fresh start, you should consider it, but continued development is not out of the realm of possibility and there is no sense of urgency to trade him. It’s not impossible he develops and becomes a valuable player, but most likely if he was *him*, he would have outcompeted Adam Thielen and Jalen Coker.
Both contenders and rebuilders should offer weak re-rolls to other owners in exchange for players in the strong stash tier or for a draft pick that is guaranteed to become a prospect you like more. In practice, that means you should never trade a weak-reroll for a draft pick until after the NFL draft has occurred and you’ve been able to make proper tiers for each player complete with landing spots.
Strong Re-Rolls
Unlike weak re-rolls, strong re-rolls are players who have done absolutely nothing with a clear opportunity, lost their coaches’ trust, or generally spent a season truly sucking at football. Both rebuilders and contenders should offer strong re-rolls for whatever draft pick they can get or for players in the weak stash tier. Players in this tier include Ja’Lynn Polk and Javon Baker.
Cloggers
Cloggers are players who score enough points to somewhat deserve a spot on your dynasty roster but who you can never actually start. Moreover, even though you feel like you should be able to trade them for something, they never move the needle as throw-ins and nobody wants to give a draft pick for them. Michael Wilson is the most classic clogger in the NFL. He isn’t bad at football, and he actually does score fantasy points every now and then, but when can you ever actually start him confidently?
Cloggers are characterized by occasionally average output but no floor whatsoever and no ability to predict whether you’ll see a decent game or a dud. Contenders and rebuilders should try their best to treat cloggers like weak re-rolls but should be ready to bite the bullet and cut them at draft time.
Churn
This is the bottom-most tier of player on your roster, the dudes you don’t remember acquiring and who might not be on the roster tomorrow. There isn’t much to say about this tier, but do think about each of these players and try to imagine their path to fantasy relevance. In almost all cases, you can jettison these players without a second thought, but be sure to take that extra moment to make sure you aren’t overlooking anything.
Conclusion
That’s it; you’re ready to tier your own roster. While this exercise takes less than ten minutes, in that time, you’ll brainstorm dozens of trade ideas, and you’ll start your offseason more prepared than your league mates. Get into the habit of thinking about your players this way, and you’ll be able to trade confidently and wisely. Stay tuned for Part II, where I talk about identifying your league mates trading habits. Once that’s done, it’s time to start sending offers.
Until next time, stay hungry and stay sharp.