Week 5 Fantasy Football Tips: Key Matchups And Trade Advice

Fantasy Matchup Of The Week, Week 5: Strangely, the most intriguing fantasy matchup of the weekend might be an early game between the St. Louis Rams and Detroit Lions. Detroit's defense, particularly its secondary, is bad enough to make fringe fantasy plays like Sam Bradford and Mark Clayton - and perhaps even guys like Danny Amendola and Daniel Fells - worthy of a play on Sunday. Meanwhile, Detroit's offense is performing at a high enough level to keep guys like Shaun Hill, Calvin Johnson and Jahvid Best as must-starts in your lineup, even with the Rams' defense performing rather admirably of late. This could be a very fun game to watch.

Rising Star In For A Down Week: If you were to tell me that, with a quarter of the NFL regular season under our belts, that Kyle Orton would lead the league in passing yardage, I'd have laughed in your face. Good on you, mate. Orton is averaging 355 passing yards per game, and while most owners would be even happier with a higher touchdown total (six), most Orton owners are downright giddy at how he's producing. Orton, however, will play a Ravens defense in Week 5 that ranks first in the NFL in total defense, and first in the NFL in passing defense. Don't expect Orton to continue his frantic production this week.

Slow Starter About To Get Right: Mike Sims-Walker might be the most frustrated player in the NFL right now, as he's been an afterthought in Jacksonville's offense, going without a catch in Weeks 1 and 4. With the Jaguars' Week 5 opponent, the Buffalo Bills, likely to key on Jacksonville's running game, look for Sims-Walker to closely mimic his Week 2 numbers (10 catches, 105 yards, 1 TD) against a very weak Bills defense. Sims-Walker ripped Buffalo a year ago, as well, catching 8 passes for 91 yards and a score in a Week 11 win over Buffalo in 2009.

"Sell High" Trade Bait: Bears quarterback Jay Cutler. We might be a week late on this, now that Cutler has been concussed and the Bears' offense was exposed on Sunday night. If you're in leagues that don't penalize quarterbacks for interceptions and other poor plays, by all means, keep Cutler - he'll be throwing a lot this season. The Bears, however, are perpetually hovering on the verge of implosion, and their horrendous performance in New York could be the catalyst to start that breakdown. If you can get good value for Cutler right now, do it, and rid yourself of the headache.

"Buy Low" Trade Target: Bills running back C.J. Spiller. Owners hoping that the rookie speed back would burst onto the scene have been gravely disappointed, as Spiller has logged just 14 carries in four games while the Bills showcased Marshawn Lynch for a trade. That trade has now materialized, however, and while veteran Fred Jackson is the new starting running back in Buffalo, Spiller's role should increase dramatically - and he's a far better scoring threat than the under-appreciated Jackson. Expect anywhere from 10 to 20 touches per game for Spiller from this point forward, and he's already displayed the ability to make big plays if he's given opportunities.