Arian Foster’s matchup is so good this week, that anyone playing a team with him rostered needs to be given the fantasy equivalent of five strokes on every hole. Seems totally fair and legit.
We return with our weekly composite rankings compiled by myself and fellow spreadsheet enthusiast Devang Desai, and the usual cast of characters checks in (Michael Fabiano and Matt Smith from NFL.com, and Jeremy Eisenberg and Dave Richard from CBS).
Annnd go…
Quarterbacks
| Player | Fabiano | Smith | Eisenberg | Richard | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drew Brees vs.Phi | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 2.25 |
| Aaron Rodgers vs.Ari | 2 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 2.75 |
| Robert Griffin III vs.Car | 1 | 1 | 8 | 4 | 3.5 |
| Peyton Manning @Cin | 4 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 3.5 |
| Cam Newton @Was | 5 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 4.75 |
| Matthew Stafford @Jac | 6 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 5.25 |
| Matt Ryan vs.Dal | 8 | 10 | 6 | 5 | 7.25 |
| Michael Vick @NO | 9 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 7.75 |
| Ben Roethlisberger @NYG | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 8.5 |
| Andrew Luck vs.Mia | 11 | 9 | 12 | 9 | 10.25 |
| Josh Freeman @Oak | 10 | 11 | 14 | 12 | 11.75 |
| Eli Manning vs.Pit | 13 | 13 | 11 | 11 | 12 |
| Matt Hasselbeck vs.Chi | 0 | 0 | 24 | 24 | 12 |
| Tony Romo @Atl | 12 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 12.75 |
| Matt Schaub vs.Buf | 16 | 16 | 10 | 13 | 13.75 |
There was a time not so long ago when a matchup against Nnamdi Asomugha would lead to Drew Brees being knocked down a notch or two. That was when Asomugha didn’t look woefully human on a weekly basis.
Morris Claiborne could someday be the new Asomugha, and the combination of him and Brandon Carr leads to lowered expectations for Matt Ryan.
Running Backs
| Player | Fabiano | Smith | Eisenberg | Richards | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arian Foster vs.Buf | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| LeSean McCoy @NO | 2 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 2.75 |
| Ray Rice @Cle | 3 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 3.75 |
| Matt Forte @Ten | 6 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 5.25 |
| Marshawn Lynch vs.Min | 10 | 8 | 7 | 2 | 6.75 |
| Adrian Peterson @Sea | 5 | 5 | 8 | 10 | 7 |
| Doug Martin @Oak | 8 | 10 | 9 | 6 | 8.25 |
| Trent Richardson vs. Bal | 4 | 9 | 12 | 9 | 8.5 |
| Willis McGahee @Cin | 11 | 12 | 6 | 5 | 8.5 |
| Alfred Morris vs.Car | 7 | 6 | 14 | 8 | 8.75 |
| Ryan Matthews vs. KC | 9 | 11 | 4 | 13 | 9.25 |
| Darren McFadden vs.TB | 12 | 4 | 11 | 11 | 9.5 |
| DeMarco Murray @Atl | 23 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 11.5 |
| Jamaal Charles @SD | 13 | 13 | 10 | 12 | 12 |
| Reggie Bush @Ind | 14 | 14 | 16 | 15 | 14.75 |
| Darren Sproles vs.Phi | 16 | 16 | 22 | 14 | 17 |
| Ahmad Bradshaw vs.Pit | 17 | 17 | 18 | 20 | 18 |
| Michael Turner vs.Dal | 15 | 15 | 24 | 19 | 18.25 |
| Rashad Jennings vs.Det | 18 | 18 | 20 | 17 | 18.25 |
| Jonathan Stewart @Was | 21 | 21 | 15 | 23 | 20 |
Foster against a defense allowing six yards per carry is just cruel. It’s as if the football overlords gazed upon Buffalo, and decided that despite shattering the city’s hope yearly, they still haven’t done enough.
As I write this there’s about 90 minutes left until kickoff of the Thursday night Chiefs-Chargers game, and we still can’t guess Jamaal Charles’ workload with any confidence after he had only five carries last week. For what it’s worth, in Week 2 he had only nine touches (six carries), and then the following week he came back with 39 touches (33 carries) for 288 yards.
Wide Receivers
| Player | Fabiano | Smith | Eisenberg | Richards | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brandon Marshall @Ten | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 2.25 |
| Steve Smith @Was | 4 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 3.25 |
| Percy Harvin @Sea | 3 | 2 | 7 | 5 | 4.25 |
| A.J Green vs.Den | 1 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 4.5 |
| Demaryius Thomas @Cin | 8 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 4.75 |
| Vincent Jackson @Oak | 6 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 7.25 |
| Eric Decker @Cin | 11 | 5 | 5 | 11 | 8 |
| Calvin Johnson @Jac | 5 | 6 | 12 | 12 | 8.75 |
| Jordy Nelson vs.Ari | 16 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| Victor Cruz vs. Pit | 7 | 8 | 9 | 13 | 9.25 |
| Roddy White vs. Dal | 15 | 19 | 2 | 4 | 10 |
| Andre Johnson vs.Buf | 9 | 13 | 16 | 6 | 11 |
| Marques Colsten vs.Phi | 12 | 12 | 13 | 15 | 13 |
| Reggie Wayne vs. Mia | 10 | 10 | 20 | 16 | 14 |
| Denarius Moore vs.TB | 19 | 11 | 18 | 9 | 14.25 |
| Larry Fitzgerald @GB | 13 | 15 | 14 | 21 | 15.75 |
| Julio Jones vs.Dal | 22 | 17 | 10 | 17 | 16.5 |
| DeSean Jackson @NO | 20 | 14 | 15 | 19 | 17 |
| Mike Wallace @NYG | 14 | 18 | 21 | 18 | 17.75 |
The goose eggs and skewed ranking for Jordy Nelson are a reflection of his very iffy status, with Green Bay’s default No. 1 receiver still unable to test his injured hamstring until tomorrow. At this point his odds of playing are split evenly, making this a situation you should monitor closely, and be prepared with a backup option. Hopefully that’s either Randall Cobb or James Jones.
Tight Ends
| Player | Fabiano | Smith | Eisenberg | Richard | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jimmy Graham vs. Phi | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Heath Miller @NYG | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2.75 |
| Tony Gonzalez vs. Dal | 2 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3.5 |
| Jason Witten @Atl | 3 | 4 | 3 | 6 | 4 |
| Owen Daniels vs. Buf | 4 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 5 |
| Antonio Gates vs. KC | 6 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 6 |
| Jermaine Gresham vs. Den | 8 | 8 | 8 | 4 | 7 |
| Greg Olsen @Was | 7 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 7.75 |
| Brandon Pettigrew @Jac | 9 | 15 | 9 | 9 | 10.5 |
| Brent Celek @NO | 10 | 6 | 14 | 15 | 11.25 |
| Kyle Rudolph @Sea | 13 | 9 | 13 | 13 | 12 |
| Jared Cook vs. Chi | 11 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 13.25 |
| Martellus Bennett vs. Pit | 14 | 14 | 12 | 16 | 14 |
| Scott Chandler @Hou | 15 | 16 | 18 | 11 | 15 |
| Jacob Tamme @Cin | 23 | 12 | 22 | 12 | 17.25 |
He was given a low grade here, but watch for Martellus Bennett. Last week the Steelers gave up a 31-yard reception to Logan Paulsen, the longest reception of his career. There’s a similar nugget connected to Brent Celek, who’s opposing a Saints defense that allowed Denver’s Vigil Green to finish with three receptions for 44 yards last week. In 2011 during his rookie season, Green only had 24 yards throughout the entire year.
Defense/Special Teams
| Player | Fabiano | Smith | Eisenberg | Richard | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bears (@Ten) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1.25 |
| Packers (vs. Ari) | 2 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 2.75 |
| Texans (vs. Buf) | 4 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 3.25 |
| Chargers (vs. KC) | 3 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 3.75 |
| Broncos (@Cin) | 7 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4.75 |
| Falcons (vs. Dal) | 5 | 5 | 10 | 6 | 6.5 |
| Seahawks (vs. Min) | 6 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 7 |
| Lions (@Jac) | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7.5 |
| Giants (vs. Pit) | 9 | 13 | 11 | 11 | 11 |
Be worried about that Falcons defense, with Peyton Manning and his receivers now catching fire, and Willis McGahee ready to gash a run defense that’s allowing 136.4 yards per game after he had 5.3 yards per carry against the Saints last week.
Would just like to point out Denver is playing Cincinnati this week, not the Falcons
Can I bounce a trade offer off you here?
I would give up Dez Bryant, Jermichael Finley and Jamaal Charles, and get Miles Austin, Aaron Hernandez and CJ Spiller. I’m extremely tempted. Thoughts?
I like it a lot. Finley is a mess, and as much as I love Charles, his usage has been wildly inconsistent, and with the Chiefs unable to not be the Chiefs and avoid being terrible, his opportunities may decrease even further.
Meanwhile, Austin has been more production (561 receiving yards, four TDs), than Bryant (488 yards, 2 TDs), and while his speed and home run ability I suspect that Spiller’s production will equal Charles’ most weeks going forward, especially since the Bills can at least stay in games.
Exactly my thoughts. Pulling the trigger.
I don’t get the reasoning behind listing 15 QB’s but only 20 each of RB’s and WR’s. You need to list at least 25-30 for ppl who play in 12+ team leagues.
While I certainly understand the challenges of a deep league, I don’t see what we’re gaining by listing nearly every starting quarterback in the league, which is what we’d be doing with a list of 25-30. If you’re seriously considering starting, say, Matt Cassel (who would be listed somewhere around 30th) you’re in trouble no matter how deep your league is.
We’re already listing nearly half of the starting quarterbacks at a position where most leagues only start one player.
“We’re already listing nearly half of the starting quarterbacks at a position where most leagues only start one player.”
I think you misread my earlier post. That’s why I asked why you don’t list 25-30 of RB’s and WR’s if you are going to list 15 QB’s. Makes no sense.
Oh you’re right, I did, and I’ll blame it on the lack of caffeine in my system this morning. Our office has Muldoons, and it’s pretty much the best non-alcoholic liquid that’s ever hit my lips.
But I digress. Frankly, the reason is time. Although I’m sure I’ll find very little sympathy about the fact that it’s my job to compile the rankings of several other experts while providing my own commentary, this post is significantly more time consuming than anything we do all week. At some point, it simply has to be cut off.
However, with the fantasy playoffs fast approaching, I’ll maybe, probably increase our coverage of those positions going forward. Thanks for the feedback.