Once the season begins, the most difficult parts of any fantasy manager’s week are start or sit decisions. These lineup choices can make or break a week, but unfortunately, not everyone has time to sit down and read lengthy fantasy advice articles. That’s where Quick Grades comes in. Each week of the football season, I’ll be providing a condensed and easily digestible chart of grades for over 250 fantasy-relevant players based on the following four criteria:
Fantasy Ability
Dalvin Cook is a week-winner due to his big-play ability and proficiency as a receiver out of the backfield
Expected Volume
Travis Kelce is always heavily targeted as one of Kansas City’s top pass-catching options
Matchup
David Montgomery finished 2020 as an RB1 thanks to a highly-favorable end-of-season schedule
Surrounding Talent
Sam Darnold has a strong group of skill-position players around him now that he’s in Carolina
Each of those criteria will be graded on a scale of 1-25, with the cumulative total resulting in a final grade (A+ to F) and a recommendation based on that grade. The criteria are weighted differently based on position, so it’s not a direct 1-for-1 conversion. Surrounding talent refers to offensive line for RB, quarterback play for WR and TE, and skill-position talent for QB.
The players are sorted by grade in descending order with the highest grades at the top and the lowest at the bottom. The highest-graded players receive A+ (Must start), and the lowest receive F. However, there are varying degrees of the F grade, and some players with this grade are flex plays, desperation plays, Hail Mary plays, or should remain on your bench, depending on the grade and position.
I’ll also include DST grades, and just like the skill-position players, there will be four criteria used for grading on a scale from 1-25, and final grades will be from 1-100. The four criteria for a DST grade are: Matchup, Turnovers, Sacks, and Points Allowed.
The link to the original Quick Grades Google Document can still be found below. In addition to the player grades, I’ll provide:
- Start of the Week: A player outside of the elite, weekly must-starts who could have a big week
- Stream of the Week: The best player who will likely be available on your waiver wire
- Fade of the Week: A notable player who could be in for a let-down performance
Link to Full Quick Grades Document
It’s easy to see that an ‘A+’ or ‘A’ grade makes a player a must-start, but it might not make sense at first glance why some players are rated ‘C’ or worse and still have ‘Start,’ ‘Strong Start,’ or ‘Flex’ attached to their names. Because of all the different variables that go into a player’s performance in any given week, only those players with the absolute highest potential, best matchup, and strongest talent get ‘A+’ or ‘A’ grades. Therefore, even solid plays will earn grades that may appear sub-optimal on the surface, but it’s all relative from position-to-position. The hard cutoff is 50 for every position, as grades lower than this will earn a ‘Desperation’ or ‘Hail Mary’ tag in every situation.
Now that I’ve covered the basics, let’s get to the grades. Best of luck in all your matchups this week, and if you have any questions, please hit me up on Twitter @ZaktheMonster.
Note: As always, remember to check back on FantasyPros ahead of kickoff to get the latest injury news. These grades assume full health at the time the article is published on Friday morning.
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Running Backs
- Start & Stream of the Week: Kenneth Gainwell
- Fade of the Week: Devontae Booker
Wide Receivers
- Start of the Week: Sterling Shepard
- Stream of the Week: Marquez Callaway
- Fade of the Week: DeVonta Smith
Quarterbacks
- Start of the Week: Sam Darnold
- Stream of the Week: Carson Wentz
- Fade of the Week: Derek Carr
Tight Ends
- Start of the Week: Zach Ertz
- Stream of the Week: Ricky Seals-Jones
- Fade of the Week: Ross Dwelley
D/STs
- Start & Stream of the Week: New York Jets
- Fade of the Week: San Francisco 49ers
Player Search, Find
Running Back
- Alvin Kamara A+ Must Start
- Derrick Henry A+ Must Start
- Aaron Jones A Must Start
- Jonathan Taylor B+ Must Start
- Darrell Henderson Jr. B+ Must Start
- D'Andre Swift B+ Must Start
- Joe Mixon B Strong Start
- Cordarrelle Patterson B Strong Start
- Damien Harris C+ Strong Start
- Miles Sanders C+ Strong Start
- Darrel Williams C+ Strong Start
- Antonio Gibson C+ Strong Start
- Josh Jacobs C+ Strong Start
- Leonard Fournette C+ Strong Start
- Mike Davis C Start
- Chuba Hubbard C Start
- Rhamondre Stevenson C Start
- Chase Edmonds C Start
- James Conner D+ Start
- Myles Gaskin D+ Start
- Alex Collins D Flex
- Kenneth Gainwell D Flex
- Damien Williams D Flex
- J.D. McKissic D Flex
- Jamaal Williams D Flex
- Devontae Booker D Flex
- Sony Michel D Flex
- AJ Dillon D Flex
- Michael Carter D Flex
- Nyheim Hines D Flex
- Elijah Mitchell D Flex
- Khalil Herbert D Flex
- Le'Veon Bell F Desperation
- Kenyan Drake F Desperation
- Jerick McKinnon F Desperation
- Devonta Freeman F Desperation
- Ronald Jones II F Desperation
- Malcolm Brown F Desperation
- Mark Ingram II F Desperation
- Chris Evans F Desperation
- Samaje Perine F Hail Mary
- David Johnson F Hail Mary
- Trey Sermon F Hail Mary
- Ty Johnson F Hail Mary
- Jaret Patterson F Hail Mary
- Salvon Ahmed F Hail Mary
- DeeJay Dallas F Hail Mary
- Rashaad Penny F Hail Mary
- Phillip Lindsay F Hail Mary
Wide Receiver
- Davante Adams A+ Must Start
- Tyreek Hill A+ Must Start
- Cooper Kupp A Must Start
- D.J. Moore B+ Must Start
- Calvin Ridley B+ Must Start
- Mike Evans B+ Must Start
- DeAndre Hopkins B+ Must Start
- Chris Godwin B Strong Start
- Deebo Samuel B Strong Start
- Robert Woods B Strong Start
- A.J. Brown B Strong Start
- Terry McLaurin B Strong Start
- Cordarrelle Patterson B Strong Start
- Brandin Cooks B Strong Start
- Ja'Marr Chase B Strong Start
- Marquise Brown C+ Strong Start
- Jaylen Waddle C+ Strong Start
- D.K. Metcalf C+ Strong Start
- Tyler Lockett C+ Strong Start
- Sterling Shepard C Start
- Mecole Hardman C Start
- DeVonta Smith C Start
- Michael Pittman Jr. C Start
- Allen Robinson II C Start
- Robby Anderson D+ Start
- Darnell Mooney D+ Start
- Tyler Boyd D+ Flex
- Tee Higgins D+ Flex
- Jakobi Meyers D+ Flex
- Corey Davis D Flex
- Rondale Moore D Flex
- Amon-Ra St. Brown D Flex
- Marquez Callaway D Flex
- DeVante Parker D Flex
- A.J. Green D Flex
- Henry Ruggs III F Desperation
- Hunter Renfrow F Desperation
- Christian Kirk F Desperation
- Kenny Golladay F Desperation
- Rashod Bateman F Desperation
- Van Jefferson F Desperation
- Quez Watkins F Desperation
- Allen Lazard F Hail Mary
- Jalen Reagor F Hail Mary
- Brandon Aiyuk F Hail Mary
- Jamison Crowder F Hail Mary
- Bryan Edwards F Hail Mary
- Nelson Agholor F Hail Mary
- Zach Pascal F Hail Mary
- DeSean Jackson F Hail Mary
Quarterback
- Patrick Mahomes II A+ Must Start
- Kyler Murray A+ Must Start
- Tom Brady B+ Must Start
- Lamar Jackson B Must Start
- Aaron Rodgers B Must Start
- Matthew Stafford C+ Strong Start
- Jalen Hurts C+ Strong Start
- Sam Darnold C Strong Start
- Ryan Tannehill D+ Start
- Carson Wentz D+ Start
- Matt Ryan D+ Start
- Joe Burrow D+ Start
- Derek Carr D 2QB/Superflex
- Daniel Jones D 2QB/Superflex
- Taylor Heinicke F 2QB/Superflex
- Jameis Winston F 2QB/Superflex
- Tua Tagovailoa F 2QB/Superflex
- Jared Goff F Hail Mary
- Jimmy Garoppolo F Hail Mary
- Justin Fields F Hail Mary
- Davis Mills F Hail Mary
- Mac Jones F Hail Mary
- Geno Smith F Hail Mary
- Zach Wilson F Hail Mary
Tight End
- Travis Kelce A Must Start
- Darren Waller A Must Start
- Mark Andrews B Must Start
- Kyle Pitts B Must Start
- T.J. Hockenson C+ Strong Start
- Dallas Goedert C+ Strong Start
- Zach Ertz C+ Strong Start
- Mike Gesicki C Strong Start
- Hunter Henry C Strong Start
- Tyler Higbee D+ Start
- O.J. Howard D Start
- Ricky Seals-Jones D Start
- Robert Tonyan D Start
- C.J. Uzomah D Start
- Cole Kmet F Desperation
- Jonnu Smith F Desperation
- Evan Engram F Desperation
- Mo Alie-Cox F Desperation
- Gerald Everett F Hail Mary
- Cameron Brate F Hail Mary
- Anthony Firkser F Hail Mary
- Jack Doyle F Hail Mary
- Ross Dwelley F Hail Mary
- Adam Trautman F Hail Mary
- Tommy Tremble F Hail Mary
- Will Dissly F Hail Mary
D/ST
- Los Angeles Rams A+ Must Start
- New England Patriots A+ Must Start
- Arizona Cardinals A+ Must Start
- Carolina Panthers A Must Start
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers C+ Must Start
- New York Jets C+ Must Start
- New Orleans Saints C+ Strong Start
- Baltimore Ravens C+ Strong Start
- Miami Dolphins C Strong Start
- New York Giants D+ Start
- Chicago Bears D+ Start
- Cincinnati Bengals D+ Start
- Indianapolis Colts D Start
- Las Vegas Raiders F Desperation
- Kansas City Chiefs F Desperation
- Green Bay Packers F Desperation
- Philadelphia Eagles F Desperation
- Atlanta Falcons F Desperation
- San Francisco 49ers F Hail Mary
- Detroit Lions F Hail Mary
- Houston Texans F Hail Mary
- Seattle Seahawks F Hail Mary
- Tennessee Titans F Hail Mary
- Washington Football Team F Hail Mary
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Zachary Hanshew is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Zachary, check out his archive and follow him @zakthemonster.