Why You Should Avoid 1-for-1 Trades of the Same Position

          A 1-for-1 trade offer of the same position (in a redraft format) is like offering someone an opportunity to be wrong.

Assuming both players are healthy, and bye-week usage isn’t a part of the pitch, why would someone offer to swap two players of the same position unless they thought you had the better player, and that they’d be better off with your player on their roster instead of their own?

 

It’s like having someone come to you and say:

 

“Hey, you got a 10, wanna swap for my 9?”

Uhm, no…

 

Even if you DO wanna swap because you think that their guy is actually the 10 & your guy is actually the 9, why would you let them know that?

 

They are straight up telling you that they value your positional player more than their own – that’s leverage.

 

Play stupid. Exploit it.

 

For example, if your opponent comes to you & offers their Kenyan Drake for your Joe Mixon, and you prefer Drake, don't tell them that! At least not right away!

They obviously value YOUR Mixon > THEIR Drake, otherwise they wouldn’t have offered to swap the two straight up.

 

So play along, even if you think THEIR Drake > YOUR Mixon.

Play dumb, counter:

“If my Mixon is worth more than your Drake, like your offer suggests, you’re going to have to give me a little something extra to make the swap.”

Ask to make it a 2-for-2 where they swap 3^rd WR’s… backup TE’s… 3^rd QB’s… defenses… hell, anything.

 

At the very least you have to ask – to ask for some sort of sweetener, because they obviously value your positional player more.

 

If they won’t budge & refuse to include anything on top of Drake to make the swap, you can always just say:

“Fine, screw it. I’ll take the original 1-for-1 offer.”

It’s very unlikely that someone who came to you offering a 1-for-1 trade of the same position is going to change their mind about their willingness to execute that offer – even if you push them to give you more first.

 

So generally, assume a 1-for-1 trade offer of the same position will still be on the table – even if you push for it to become a 2-for-2, as long as your timely with the negotiation.

That means there’s really nothing to lose pushing for a 2-for-2, even if you're willing to take the 1-for-1.

 

With that being said, if the original 1-for-1 offer for players of the same position is coming out of left field from someone who:

- isn’t active or responsive

- you have no open line of communication with

or

- you can’t depend on to either respond to a negotiation or not make multiple offers to other teams...

Then ya, maybe don't risk losing a 1-for-1 of the same position that’s been offered & you're ready to accept. But, if you have any sort of open line of communication with someone & can at least somewhat trust that they’ll hear you out before moving onto the next person, always try and leverage a 1-for-1 trade of the same position that’s been offered into a 2-for-2, even if you're willing to accept the original 1-for-1 that’s been offered.