Fantasy Football Trade Targets: George Pickens & More Fantasy Trades To Make For Week 5

No, I will not write about Bhayshul Tuten for the third consecutive week.

But I really, really want to. Seriously, continue to try trading for him. Instead, this week’s fantasy football trade targets will feature a red-hot wide receiver who is still being undervalued by too many people, as well as three potential buy-low candidates.

Let’s break it down.

RELATED: Fantasy Football Trade Analyzer

Players To Trade For Ahead Of Week 5 In Fantasy Football

George Pickens | WR | Dallas Cowboys

I like to dive into advanced data, film, and stats as much as anyone. And believe me, we will be here. But sometimes you just have a simple feeling about a player. Simply put?

George Pickens is too damn good and in too good of an offense to not post huge numbers.

Sunday must have been extremely tilting for anyone with Pickens on their fantasy teams. Watching CeeDee Lamb see 21 (!) targets against the Texans, while Pickens caught just two passes. Luckily, those passes gained 53 and 22 yards, but a 7% target share is not what we were expecting. Through four weeks, Lamb has operated as the clear alpha in Dallas, and it was pretty foolish to think anything else would happen. The schemed, high-percentage looks mostly go to Lamb, while Pickens has to work a lot more to get his.

I’m a little surprised and disappointed by how the Cowboys are deploying Pickens in his second season in Dallas. His role from Pittsburgh to Dallas drastically changed last year, all for the better. During his three seasons in Pittsburgh, Pickens ran go routes 31.4% of the time, the ninth-highest rate in all of football during that span. His 43 targets and 760 receiving yards off go routes were both the most in the league, too. But Pickens had to work so hard to get the football, as the Steelers simply viewed him as a vertical, field-stretching, contested catch wideout. Pickens ran in routes just 6.2% of the time during his Steelers tenure, including just 2.8% during his final season.

In Pickens’ first season with the Cowboys, he ran in routes a career-high 11% of the time, while any in-breaking route made up 38% of his usage. In his final season in Pittsburgh, just 27.7% of his routes were either slants, in, posts, or crossers. On those routes last year, Pickens averaged 7.9 yards after the catch per reception, the fifth-most among wide receivers, while only Puka Nacua had more receiving yards (501).

Fast forward back to 2026 and Pickens’ go route rate is back over 30%, while he’s run just 10 routes from the slot, an area Dallas said he’d see more usage this year. Still, despite the slow start, I believe the Cowboys will get him going, and we know this offense will be in pass-happy game scripts more often than not.

Michael Wilson | WR | Arizona Cardinals

Most of the time when discussing trades, the terms buy low and sell high are featured. But you can absolutely buy-high on players, too.

I promise it’s allowed.

One of my favorite buy-high candidates is Wilson, who saw 13 more targets this past weekend, converting seven of them for 95 yards. Wilson is now averaging 11 targets per game through the first four weeks, as he continues to operate in the Nacua role in Mike LaFleur’s offense. We scoffed at the idea in the offseason, and while he’s obviously not Puka, Wilson is essentially playing his fantasy-friendly role for the Cardinals.

Through the first four weeks, Wilson ranks fourth among all wide receivers in routes from motion (24), while also ranking third in targets (9). We’ve also seen Rams receivers benefit from seeing a boost in target share in 12 and 13 personnel. LaFleur has brought that over to Arizona. The Cardinals have deployed 13 personnel on about 20% of their plays thus far, one of the highest rates in the league. Wilson, meanwhile, trails only Davante Adams in routes from 13 personnel (14), while his four targets also rank inside the top-five. So you see, there’s a reason Wilson is averaging double-digit targets per game to go along with a 29% target share. It also helps that he’s just a good football player.

With a home matchup against Detroit’s league-worst pass defense on tap, this might be your last chance to trade for Wilson.

Dalton Kincaid | TE | Buffalo Bills

After a red-hot start, Kincaid has slowed down over the last two weeks, catching just 3 passes for 4 scoreless yards during that span. The usage this past Sunday was brutal, as Kincaid dipped below 60% of the routes, while seeing just two targets. Buffalo ran a lot more three-wide sets this week, and have now seen their use of 13 personnel drop every week of the season. I expect the Bills to get back to their bread and butter in Week 5, especially if DJ Moore, who aggravated his shoulder injury, can’t play.

Regardless, more usage should be on the horizon for Kincaid. Head coach Joe Brady mentioned how he needs to get Kincaid more opportunities going forward, so perhaps there’s a squeaky wheel narrative here. I’d be interested in seeing if someone is worried about Kincaid after consecutive bad showings.

D’Andre Swift | RB | Chicago Bears

Yes, Swift was just outshined by Kyle Monangai this past weekend. And everyone who has Swift on their fantasy teams is worried that he’s no longer the lead running back in Chicago.

Time to pounce.

Per usual, Swift started the game on Sunday and was busy right away, seeing 6 carries on the opening drive. Of course, Monangai mixed in like usual, but everything changed when Swift lost a fumble early in the third quarter. After putting the ball on the ground, Swift did not see a single carry for the rest of the game. Monangai, meanwhile, carried the ball 30 times for 146 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Not only did Swift not see a carry the rest of the game, but he didn’t even play a snap. There were some questions about whether Swift, who was slow to get up following the fumble, may have aggravated his knee, but HC Ben Johnson said his lack of playing time had nothing to do with it.

Things like this happen all the time around different backfields in the NFL. And just about every time, the very next week the starter goes back to being the starter. Don't get me wrong. Monangai is going to continue to have a role. But it won’t be as the unquestioned lead option, and it sure as hell won’t result in 30 carries. The Bears are going to run the ball enough for both players to produce, as Chicago currently ranks second in the league in rush rate (49%). From Weeks 1-3, Swift was handling 64% of the snaps and 59% of the rush attempts. Perhaps last week’s events will tighten that split a bit more going forward. Still, Swift is a rock-solid RB2 who some may suddenly view as a more volatile option.