Each week through the NFL season we’ll take a look at our rest of season rankings to help you make roster decisions. In addition to the rankings below, here are notes on a few key players.
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Tom Brady (QB – NE)
It doesn’t seem what kind of obstacles are put in front of Brady and the Patriots, he just keeps putting up fantastic numbers. He’ll only get better when Edelman and Sony Michel are in the lineup.
Drew Brees (QB – NO)
Imagine the kind of numbers Brees would put up if the Saints’ defense was always as bad as they played in the opener. It’s not.
Philip Rivers (QB – SD)
Overlooked seemingly every draft season, Rivers just continues to put up top-10 numbers in a loaded offense. Use that value to your advantage.
Matthew Stafford (QB – DET)
This could be a really rough year in Detroit. The Lions way over-achieved last season and these things have a way of working themselves out. Stafford could struggle to stay healthy if things turn south.
Dak Prescott (QB – DAL)
Dallas looked hopeless in their opener and it’s tough to envision Prescott turning the rags that are the Cowboys’ receiving corps into riches.
Saquon Barkley (RB – NYG)
You don’t invest the No. 2 pick in the draft on a generational running back to have him share touches with decrepit Johnathan Stewart. Barkley should approach 300 touches and be a lock for 1,500 total yards and approach double-digit touchdowns.
Kareem Hunt (RB – KC)
I don’t envision Andy Reid going to a committee with Spencer Ware so Hunt should still be a safe bet to exceed 300 touches.
Joe Mixon (RB – CIN)
Mixon really started to come on towards the second half of 2017, flashing solid receiving chops and three-down ability. It wouldn’t be a shock at all to see Mixon enter elite, top-5 RB status.
Derrick Henry (RB – TEN)
It’s a risky proposition selling Henry after his terrible performance against the Dolphins, especially when most fantasy owners spent a top-40 pick on him. While he shouldn’t have been going there, he’s not as bad as he looked in Week 1. Do not sell for pennies on the dollar, as this offensive line will create some holes, and he’ll have a massive week for you to sell on here soon enough.
Jay Ajayi (RB – PHI)
After I was going to list Ajayi as a sell, Doug Pederson’s comments after the game were telling. He said that while their plan was to mix-up the running backs, Ajayi clearly needs more snaps going forward. That was my gripe about him – that he played 32 snaps, which isn’t nearly enough to get consistent production out of a running back. I suggest holding to see if Pederson wasn’t blowing smoke.
Jordan Howard (RB – CHI)
The most efficient red-zone runner in the NFL by far in 2017, Howard worked hard to improve his pass-catching ability and should shine in Matt Nagy’s scheme.
Frank Gore (RB – MIA)
Do not base your judgments on a player from a game that had multiple rain delays that lasted multiple hours. It’s clear that the game was one that should be treated as an outlier, though most don’t realize that Gore played just 18 snaps compared to 46 snaps for Kenyan Drake. Gore is just a guy that takes up bench space in fantasy and not one you want on yours.
Josh Gordon (WR – CLE)
After hearing that Gordon was on a 20-ish snap count, he played 69-of-89 snaps against the Steelers. He’s going to be fine once he gets in sync with Tyrod Taylor, as it’s going to take a few weeks considering he missed all of the preseason. Gordon is too good for them not to use and Jarvis Landry attracts enough attention to leave Gordon one-on-one the majority of time.
Mike Williams (WR – LAC)
Despite ranking fourth among wide receivers in snaps, Williams has become a favorite of Philip Rivers as he out-targeted both Tyrell Williams and Travis Benjamin. In fact, when targeting Mike Williams and Keenan Allen, Rivers completed 13-of-17 passes for 189 yards and a touchdown, while completing just 3-of-10 targets for 9 yards and a touchdown to Tyrell Williams and Benjamin. He’s going to become the No. 2 in short order, so you should get him while you can.
John Ross (WR – CIN)
He only saw two targets in the Week 1 meeting with the Colts, but here’s the kicker – they were both end-zone targets and he caught the one for a touchdown. It was a good sign that the Bengals don’t view him as “just” a deep threat and knowing the Bengals played just 50 snaps in that game, there’ll be more opportunities going forward.
Below you can find our the complete rest of season rankings of several of our experts.
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