Fantasy Football Implications of the Jakobi Meyers Trade: Brian Thomas, Tre Tucker and More

The NFL trade deadline is usually pretty quiet in terms of fantasy football implications, but a big one just went down.

The Raiders and Jaguars made a trade, with Jakobi Meyers being the main piece of the deal. Let's break down the deal for both teams from a fantasy football perspective.

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The Trade

The Raiders sent Meyers to the Jaguars, getting fourth- and sixth-round picks in return.

Meyers requested a trade several months ago, and finally got his wish.

At first glance, this kind of looks like a nothing trade, but I believe Meyers is now in a better situation. Let's break it down.

Jaguars' Fantasy Outlook

Jacksonville has dealt with injuries to wide receivers and pass catchers all year, so this deal makes a ton of sense for them, and it didn't cost the team a ton either.

Meyers has played in seven games so far, logging 352 receiving yards and no touchdowns on 33 receptions and 49 targets.

He could immediately step into the top wideout role in Jacksonville with Brian Thomas, Travis Hunter, Dyami Brown, Tim Patrick and tight end Brenton Strange all battling injuries right now. 

Parker Washington and Austin Trammell are the only wideouts on the active roster who aren't dealing with reported injuries right now. Hunter is on the injured reserve list, and is expected to miss several weeks.

Thomas has struggled to get rolling this season after a big rookie year. Injuries have hampered him, but if he can get right, the presence of Meyers could really help Thomas out.

More and more fantasy owners are bailing on Thomas as a weekly starter, but this trade could maybe bump that start percentage back up a bit, and make Thomas a more reliable fantasy option moving forward.

Meyers essentially is being brought in to replace Hunter though. Even with Thomas struggling this season, nobody else has really stepped up for Jacksonville. Washington is the only other wideout with any fantasy relevance outside Thomas and Hunter, and Washington is only rostered in 22% of leagues.

The trade for Meyers will hurt Washington's fantasy outlook, unless Thomas and others miss time going forward. I only see Thomas and Meyers being the only fantasy relevant wideouts for Jacksonville.

Strange is expected back soon, and his return could write Washington off for the season - again, that's if Thomas, Meyers and Strange stay healthy the rest of the way.

Jacksonville doesn't exactly have a prolific offense, and Trevor Lawrence isn't a top-end quarterback. I still believe he could help Thomas and Meyers be at least average-or-so fantasy assets the rest of the season.

I expect Thomas to continue leading the way, and then Meyers to be a flex-level option, or better. Strange will be next in line of the fantasy pass catchers once he returns, and Washington will only remain an option in really deep leagues.

Guys like Brown and Patrick are going to see their playing time shrivel up after this trade. They weren't very good fantasy assets before, and this trade will make it that much harder for them to contribute going forward.

As for Lawrence, the addition of Meyers helps him a bit, but doesn't alter his fantasy outlook very much. He's still probably an average fantasy QB at best, even in favorable matchups.

The Jaguars' running backs won't be affected too much by this move either. I expect Travis Etienne to keep leading the way (unless he's dealt away) and then Bhayshul Tuten to back him up. LeQuint Allen is a name to keep tabs on in case Etienne does get traded before the deadline.

Raiders' Fantasy Outlook

The Raiders' offense wasn't very good to begin with, and after losing Meyers, things are likely only going to get worse.

He was the team leader in targets, so others will need to pick up the slack.

The most likely recipient of those available targets is tight end Brock Bowers. He returned to the field last week and looked stellar. The trade of Meyers is only going to make Bowers that much better of a fantasy asset moving forward. Lock him into those starting lineups, and only take him out if he's not active.

Tre Tucker is actually the best fantasy pass catcher for Las Vegas right now, but it was one monster game early in the season that accounted for most of that production.

Tucker's role going forward will increase, so he will be a flex-level option most weeks. He's still probably one to only utilize if the matchups are favorable, but he's definitely a name to watch.

Rookies Dont'e Thornton and Jack Bech should see more playing time with Meyers no longer around.

Thornton has just five receptions for 94 yards across 19 targets so far. Bech has 73 yards on seven receptions and 10 targets. They can be added in some deeper leagues, but they'd need a breakout outing or two before sneaking into standard league conversations.

I think backup tight end Michael Mayer is an intriguing fantasy pass catcher after the trade of Meyers. He had seven targets last week, even with Bowers back, and with targets available now, Mayer could be a sneaky good option in the right matchups.

He's worth owning in some deeper leagues, and maybe starting in really favorable matchups. Mayer is a player I would keep close tabs on, because after Bowers and Tucker, it's really a tossup as to who else will contribute for the Las Vegas pass catchers.

Tyler Lockett is also on the Raiders now, and could be another option moving forward now. I'd think Vegas would give more opportunities to Bech and Thornton before the aging Lockett though. We'll see how things shake out.

Geno Smith is coming off a big fantasy outing, but the trade of Meyers is a negative for him. He now has one less proven pass catcher.

Defenses are going to swarm Bowers, forcing Smith to throw it to anyone else. I won't be very high on Smith as a fantasy asset for any of the remaining games as a result, even if he has a favorable matchup coming next.

I'd look to sell high on him in deeper fantasy setups if you still can.

In the backfield, things belong to Ashton Jeanty. This trade doesn't impact his fantasy outlook all that much.

It could mean Jeanty gets a few more touches a game, or gets more involved in the passing game. He's already a weekly fantasy starter though, and not having Meyers around won't change that.

We could see Raheem Mostert get some more snaps and touches going forward, but again, I'd think the Raiders will instead want to look toward the future and maybe look at other young backs or playmakers instead.

Speaking of that, I expect Las Vegas to keep tinkering with its lineup to set itself up better for the long haul. That probably means less work for Lockett, Mostert and other veterans, while young players like Thornton, Bech and Mayer get extended roles.

The fantasy football impact is definitely going to be felt more on the Jaguars though. The fantasy impact for Jacksonville is known, or at least can be guessed a bit easier. It's a total guess as to who will replace Meyers in Vegas outside Tucker and Bowers, so keep a closer eye on their stats over the next couple weeks to see who emerges.