Welcome to our Week 5 edition of Buy or Sell, where we look to provide fantasy football trade advice. With Week 4 now concluded and the halfway point of the fantasy season officially on the horizon, it’s time to start weeding out the solid players from the hot starters.

Every year there are a handful of players that explode in the early-goings of the season only to taper off near the end, and trading for those players—or not trading them away—can hurt a fantasy team. Regardless, this is an important time of year.

That said, here are a few players worth gauging the trade market for and some to stay away from.

 

Week 5 Fantasy Buys

Calvin Johnson (WR, DET)

Megatron threw up another lackluster performance on Monday night, his third in four games this season.

Things would have looked better if it weren’t for the bang-bang play at the goal-line with Kam Chancellor erasing a potential game-winning touchdown. He still only managed 56 yards on seven catches, though, and it’s beginning to look like father time—and more importantly a lack of protection for Matthew Stafford—have sapped a great deal of Johnson’s fantasy appeal.

He’s still Megatron, however, and when it’s all said and done it’s hard to see him as anything less than a WR2 come season’s end. In PPR formats he's still a machine and this may be your last chance to buy low.

Jimmy Graham (TE, SEA)

It’s starting to look less and less like the Seahawks are even aware that they traded for Graham this off-season. The once record setting tight-end had only four catches for 29 yards on Monday night, his second lowest output of the season.

Graham has only caught 18 balls now in four games, an average of just over four a game, and that number is augmented somewhat by a lucrative Week 3 match-up against the lowly Bears. He has found the end-zone twice, but has also been held below 30 yards twice now as well. That kind of inconsistency isn’t what owners were looking for in their TE1.

Chances are Graham turns things around at some point, although the Seahawks inability to protect Russell Wilson and lack of desire to throw the ball are worrisome. Either way, Graham could come at a relatively cheap price if you have a need at tight-end.

Jordan Matthews (WR, PHI)

Double digits in the first couple of weeks seems like a long lost memory after Matthews was held to 50 yards or less in both weeks since.

A solid Washington secondary held the Eagles’ top receiver to only three catches for 50 yards on Sunday, a yard more than Matthews managed against the Jets the week prior. Those numbers don’t scream promise, and neither does watching Sam Bradford throw. But fear now, Matthews owners. Bradford and the Eagles actually looked impressive on Sunday, torching the Redskins on deep balls and moving down the field. If they can continue that, the explosiveness we're used to seeing from a Chip Kelly offense could become more and more of a reality.

Either way, Matthews is the top option in a dynamic offense and still has WR1 appeal. Factor in an Eagles defense that continues to fight injuries and the offense may find themselves throwing the ball more often than not. Matthews didn’t benefit much from that on Sunday, but he will in the future.

 

Week 5 Fantasy Sells

Joseph Randle (RB, DAL)

Randle accrued only 26 yards on 11 carries on Sunday night, but managed to find the end-zone for the fourth time in the last two weeks.

The other three of those TDs came in Week 3 when the Atlanta Falcons forgot how to play defense, and that week alone has greatly inflated Randle’s numbers. Aside from it, Randle has 45 carries for 142 yards which equates to a YPC barely higher than 3.0—yet he ranks as a top-5 RB.

Even with Lance Dunbar done for the season, Darren McFadden and Christine Michael make this a three-headed monster in Dallas. Randle is a serviceable RB2 but may have RB1 market value to your competitors. Go test the waters.

Vincent Jackson (WR, TB)

A 20 point fantasy week in Week 4 has Jackson 23^rd among receivers thus far in 2015, but that solid outing may have a bittersweet flavor to it.

Simply put, Jackson scored only four points the week before. It’s that kind of inconsistency that has plagued the towering receiver throughout his career, and 2015 hasn’t been any different. Jackson had 51 yards in Week 1, then put up 54 and a TD in Week 2 only to catch two passes for 40 yards in Week 3. He’s hit or miss, especially with Jameis Winston under center, and that is makes him a stressful player to start and a stressful player to watch.

Yes, Jackson belong in the starting lineup of most fantasy teams, but he's almost assuredly going to suffer several dud games throughout the season. Especially with Mike Evans hogging targets and Austin Sefarious-Jenkings set to return at some point. If last week’s outburst inflates his value, he may be a good trade chip.

David Johnson (RB, ARI)

A receiving TD bolstered Johnson’s point total in Week 4 and somewhat masked the fact that the rookie had a rough game and only managed 18 yards on the ground.

Now with Andre Ellington set to return and Chris Johnson firmly atop the depth chart, David may not have much of an offensive role moving forward. In fact, talk is that Ellington will likely assume the same role that the younger of the Johnsons has held over the last few weeks, an almost certain kiss of death for the explosive rookie.

David will still have solid games—he’s too explosive not too—but the consistent double digits that we’ve seen thus far in 2015 are a stretch. If someone is willing to give RB2 or even RB3 value for him, do it. That’s not a bad deal for a potential kick returner.

 

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