Quarterback

Matthew Stafford, Lions

Let me preface this by saying that Matthew Stafford is one of the most overrated players in football. With that said, we aren’t looking at a 16-game schedule. Instead, the fantasy football season is down to five weeks, assuming Week 17 doesn’t count.

As far as Stafford goes, he is the right quarterback at the right time. He has been better as of late – of course, that isn’t saying much considering he was downright terrible early on. The Lions have favorable matchups against the Eagles, Saints, and 49ers over the next five weeks and Stafford should have strong games against those weak teams. He would be fine to plug in as a starter if you’re a Joe Flacco or Peyton Manning owner and I’d even go as far as using him over Matt Ryan in the right matchup.

Verdict: BUY. My feelings on Stafford over a full season are clear, but he has several solid matchups over the next month and they should be exploited. The Lions have plenty of weapons and Stafford will be in a good spot to produce.

Running Back

Chris Ivory, Jets

Over his first four games this year, Chris Ivory looked like one of the better running backs in the league as he posted 460 yards with four rushing touchdowns. Since then, Ivory has left a lot to be desired. During a Week 8 matchup against the Raiders, Ivory ran the ball 15 times for 17 yards that equated to a 1.1 YPC average. Not to be outdone by himself, he followed up with the same exact YPC number during a Week 9 win over Jacksonville. Only this time, he was even more inefficient carrying the ball 23 times for 26 yards.

This past week against Houston, it looked as though New York had seen enough. Ivory saw just 17 snaps against the Texans compared to 39 from Bilal Powell. While it’s possible the Jets will go back to Ivory this week, it isn’t the time of year to wait around and find out. Use whatever stock Ivory has left and get rid of him now.

Verdict: SELL. Ivory has been grossly inefficient over the past month and has seen his stock fall sharply. You’d have to move him in a package deal as his recent numbers likely wouldn’t allow a one-for-one deal.

James White, Patriots

Exit Julian Edelman, Dion Lewis, and (maybe) Danny Amendola. Enter James White. Look, this is very simple. The Patriots grab players off the scrap heap or those that have minimal experience and make them into fantasy gold for a week or two. White scored two touchdowns against the Bills on Monday night and that will likely go down as his best performance of the season.

He is unlikely to see many touches and will only be used sparingly in the passing game. While most people will be jumping on the White bandwagon, now is your time to get way more out of White than he’s actually worth. The workload just won’t be there even with the injuries that New England is currently dealing with.

Verdict: SELL. This may go against the grain, but fortune favors the bold. Use White’s one good game of the season and make an upgrade. You know there is someone in your league clamoring to own him.

Wide Receiver

Calvin Johnson, Lions

I would be remiss to mention Matthew Stafford and not give some shine to his favorite receiver, Calvin Johnson. As mentioned in the Stafford write-up, the Lions have three premium matchups in the coming weeks and a monster like Megatron should be able to dominate.

Johnson has only gone over 100 yards just once this season, but he’s been relatively consistent, posting at least 81 yards during the Lions’ last six games. With three touchdowns on the season, he has a real chance to double that total in the coming weeks. It’s worth noting that Golden Tate is also another decent candidate to trade for, but Johnson is the cream of the crop in Detroit.

Verdict: BUY. It may take a WR/RB combo to land Megatron, but he’s in a great spot to succeed over the next few weeks.

Demaryius Thomas, Broncos

We all know about the controversy in Denver at the quarterback position. It seems very apparent that Peyton Manning overstayed his welcome by a year and the Broncos’ offense has suffered as a result. Overall, Demaryius Thomas has strong numbers. They are by no means MVP quality – or even similar to the stats he posted last season – but still, they are solid. He has been targeted 111 times this season, good for fourth in the league. On the flip side, he only has two touchdowns.

The jury is out as to whether the Broncos will perform better with Brock Osweiler under center, but the good news is that Thomas has been his favorite receiver over his first six quarters. Thomas has 15 looks from Osweiler and that should continue, especially if Emmanuel Sanders misses more time. It’d be logical to assume that Thomas’ numbers would regress now that Manning is out, but that is unlikely to be the case.

Verdict: BUY. Osweiler and Thomas hooked up for a touchdown last week against the Bears and will continue to be on the same page going forward. Considering all of the drama in Denver, this is a solid buy-low opportunity as you look to bolster your playoff squad.

Tight End

Jacob Tamme, Falcons

It was a nice run for the veteran tight end, but with Leonard Hankerson back in the fold, there are more mouths to feed in Atlanta. After seeing double-digit targets during Week 9 and 10, Tamme saw a sharp drop against the Colts and was targeted just three times. He really doesn’t have gaudy numbers that you can sell, but it’s worth a shot to throw him in as part of a multi-player deal.

Verdict: SELL. Tamme was never expected to put up the type of numbers that he has up to this point, so if you can get anything for him, consider it a win.

Just a note: Thursday is Thanksgiving and I want to send my sincere thanks to each and every one of you that have read my Trade Market article this season. It’s been very successful and I have enjoyed interacting with all of you in the comments section and on Twitter. Eat a lot, drink even more, watch nine hours of football, and have a Happy Thanksgiving!