Fantasy football trade targets: Week 6

We're five weeks through the season, and if your fantasy team isn't coming around by this point, it's time to start making some moves. This week I'm looking at several veterans and a few up-and-coming wide receivers to determine what move you should make on the trading block.

A few of the highlight from last week's column recommended selling Eddie Royal and Matt Asiata while buying Bishop Sankey and Golden Tate. Tate went off, Royal and Asiata came back down to Earth, and Sankey still couldn't get the ball enough. His time is coming, though.

Let's look at the buy and sell targets for Week 6.

Buy

Brandon Marshall

Head coach Marc Trestman said Monday that Marshall needs to get more targets. He's absolutely right. The Bears No. 1 wide receiver saw five targets on Sunday against the Panthers while Matt Forte racked up 12 catches on dump-offs from Jay Cutler.

Cutler struggled in the second half of that game, as Chicago only scored three points in the final two quarters. Alshon Jeffery, Martellus Bennett and Forte will always be in the mix, but Marshall has long been the favorite target for Cutler. This duo needs to find its rhythm again.

The Bears face the Falcons in Week 6. While Atlanta's secondary has some potential with players like Desmond Trufant, the Falcons have still allowed huge games from receivers like Jarius Wright and Brandin Cooks. Odell Beckham Jr. and Rueben Randle both scored touchdowns on this defense in Week 5.

Marshall and Jeffery are great plays for this coming week. While Marshall was dealing with an ankle injury earlier in the year, he looks healthy now. A breakout is coming once again, and the buy-low window won't be open for long.

T.Y. Hilton

He's not exactly a buy-low candidate with his recent numbers, but Hilton's potential is much greater than his numbers have shown so far. He has 50 targets through five weeks without a single touchdown. He's been right at the goal line several times.

Last year Hilton was a prime example of a boom-or-bust player. This season he is putting up reliable numbers in PPR leagues, as he has at least five receptions and 65 yards in each of his last four games.

Hilton's stock might drop in the coming weeks as he faces a tougher stretch of matchups leading up to the Colts' bye. But look at his schedule down the road. From Weeks 12-15 he faces favorable matchups with Jacksonville, Washington, Cleveland and Houston. That's exactly when you'll need him to step up.

Hilton faces Houston this week, a team that's given up six touchdowns to wide receiver in the past four games. I would not be surprised to see him finally score. He torched the Texans on the road last year for three touchdowns.

Rueben Randle

While his stat line from Week 5 wasn't the most promising, Randle's workload leaves more room for optimism once again. He saw 10 targets from Eli Manning, leading the Giants in that category. Even better, this was the third straight week Randle saw double-digit targets.

With 40 total targets in 2014, it's clear the Giants and Manning want to get Randle more involved. He saw several end zone targets again. Manning force fed him the ball which eventually led to a touchdown for the first score of the game.

Odell Beckham Jr.'s emergence in the passing game might take away from Randle's targets eventually, but he's seeing a ton of looks right now and you should capitalize on that. In Week 6 the Giants face the Eagles, the team giving up the most fantasy points to opposing wide receivers (30/game).

Sammy Watkins

Watkins saw his highest number of targets in a single game with Kyle Orton under center. The rookie wide receiver is now up to 44 total targets in 2014. You want to target high-volume players.

While E.J. Manuel was also looking for Watkins often, Orton has the ability to at least get him the ball consistently. Watkins caught seven passes for 87 yards in Week 5. His catch rate should continue to improve with a veteran quarterback.

All rookie wideouts are subject to volatility. That's just the nature of the NFL. Players like Watkins and Kelvin Benjamin see a high percentage of targets, though, raising their floor every week. There are some Watkins owners out there who probably don't feel confident about Orton starting. See if you can capitalize.

Sell

DeSean Jackson

I'm not a fan of players who can completely disappear at time. Jackson has been one of those players in 2014, and really for most of his career.

Jackson has two weeks with one catch this season (he did only play 14 snaps in Week 2). But with an unpredictable Kirk Cousins under center, Jackson seems to be even more, well, unpredictable.

If you believe Jackson can be the difference maker you need, keep him. I'm not one of those people. I would sell Jackson after his huge performance on Monday night. Find a player who offers consistency with upside every week instead of upside with little consistency.

Pierre Thomas

Another player with tendencies like Jackson, Thomas has two miserable games in 2014. Weeks 2 and 4 he barely showed up on the stat line for owners. Now he's coming off his biggest game of the season.

Thomas hasn't rushed for more than 35 yards in a game this year. He has three games with 21 or fewer receiving yards. Mark Ingram is also shooting for a return after the Saints bye week.

While it's not the easiest thing to sell a player who is on bye, now is the time to move Thomas. He's a good PPR flex play every week with upside, but in the Saints offense he is bound to disappear some games. Hopefully you can cash in on his monster Week 5.

C.J. Spiller

The Bills don't know how to get Spiller in space. He's averaging 3.5 yards per carry. He just rushed for eight yards on 10 carries in Week 5. Is anything going right for him?

If Fred Jackson's ankle injury causes him to miss time, Spiller's value sees a boost. But Jackson looks like he'll play in Week 6. Spiller's name might warrant a decent return in a trade. If you hold onto him and he does happen to go off one week, sell immediately afterward.

Cordarrelle Patterson

Once a player on the "buy" section of this list, Patterson just isn't getting the ball in Minnesota. You can reference all the Norv Turner quotes you want, but he isn't designing plays to highlight Patterson's talent.

It still might be too early to sell on him. However, eight yards on four targets is the most discouraging stat line we've since in a while. Like Spiller, Patterson's value is all in his name right now. Some owners are likely willing to bet on him despite a rough first quarter of 2014. Gauge Patterson's market and see what you can come up with.