Fantasy Football Player Rankings After Week Seven
By: John Belaska
We are now moving into the second half of the fantasy football season. More than likely the trade deadline has passed in your league and it is up to you to find players on the waiver wire. This is the most important time in the fantasy season. The playoff race is heating up and bye weeks are in full force. The following are considered to be the best players moving forward in 2013.
Quarterbacks
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5. Andrew Luck (Indianapolis Colts)
Andrew Luck proved to everyone he is able to fill the shoes of future hall of famer and former Colts’ quarterback Peyton Manning. In week seven, Luck threw 228 yards and scored four times. His ability to score on the ground has made him a very valuable fantasy asset. His three interceptions show t he has the ability to not turn the ball over and decrease his point total. It is a little discouraging Reggie Wayne is now sitting out with an injury, but last season we saw the emergence of T.Y. Hilton as Luck’s top receiving option. If Hilton can step up and beat the double coverages, Luck will remain one of the best quarterbacks for the rest of the season. The Colts have a bye in week eight, so be looking for a good replacement option before game time.
4. Matthew Stafford (Detroit Lions)
Matthew Stafford is really starting to come alive. This past weekend, with the help of star wide receiver Calvin Johnson, Stafford gained 357 passing yards and threw three touchdowns. Getting his best receiver back to full strength will definitely help him continue to put up excellent stats. He should be able to have a field day this weekend against the Dallas Cowboys. The Cowboys have a decent rushing attack, but have not been able to stop the pass at all this season. It would not be surprising to see Stafford duplicate his stats from last weekend.
3. Aaron Rodgers (Green Bay Packers)
Last week, Aaron Rodgers dropped out of the top three for the first time all season. After last week’s three touchdown passes and 260 yards, he reclaims his rightful spot as the third best fantasy quarterback. Aaron Rodgers has now thrown for 1906 yards and touchdowns. One of the most exciting things about Rodgers going forward is Green Bay has already had their bye week, so owners will not need to worry about looking for a quarterback to start in him place. Instead, people who own Rodgers are now able to carry a single quarterback and dedicate an extra roster spot to a different position. This weekend the Packers play in Minnesota. The Vikings have been very poor against the pass meaning Aaron Rodgers should be able to put up great numbers.
2. Drew Brees (New Orleans Saints)
Even after a week off, Drew Brees continues to maintain his spot as the best quarterback next to Peyton Manning. Hopefully, the bye week allowed Jimmy Graham to recover from the injury he sustained against the Patriots. However, even without Graham, Brees has so many options in the passing game. The future hall of famer plays his best in the Superdome. This weekend the Saints host the Buffalo Bills. Brees will come into the game refreshed and the extra preparation will allow him to destroy the Bills’ 20th ranked passing defense.
1. Peyton Manning (Denver Broncos)
Peyton Manning and the Broncos lost for the first time this season to the Indianapolis Colts. However, this has nothing to do with how he performed as a fantasy quarterback. Manning put up great stats, throwing 386 yards, three touchdowns, and only a single interception. He has thrown for a total of 2565 yards, which is 433 more than the next highest total. Manning should be able to produce another good game this weekend against the Redskins. It should be noted, the Broncos’ bye week is just around the corner.
Honorable Mention- Philip Rivers (SD), Tony Romo (DAL), Russell Wilson (SEA)
Runningbacks
5. Knowshon Moreno (Denver Broncos)
Knowshon Moreno continues to find the endzone very often. He has scored eight times and there is no sign he will stop hitting pay dirt anytime soon. He has been very good out of the backfield as well, catching the ball 23 times for 198 yards. More than likely, he will not put up another three touchdown outing like he did with against the Jacksonville Jaguars, but he will continue to be one of the Broncos’ go to guys in the redzone. The Redskins rank 27th against the run, so there is no reason not to have Moreno in the starting line-up this weekend
4. Matt Forte (Chicago Bears)
Matt Forte was an absolute stud in week eight. Forte ran for 91 yards and three touchdowns. Fantasy owners cannot ask for much more out of a player than that stat line. He continues to be a very dangerous weapon in the passing game as shown by his 35 receptions and 262 receiving yards. It is very encouraging to see the Bears doing everything they can to get him the ball as often as possible. The Bears are on bye this week, but Forte will continue to be a top five fantasy football runningback for the rest of the season.
3. LeSean McCoy (Philadelphia Eagles)
LeSean McCoy will be the first player to notch 1000 yards from scrimmage this season. He will most likely be able to do it this weekend against the New York Giants. Shady has tallied 685 rushing yards and 267 receiving yards. The only problem is he is still struggling to find the endzone. Even without the touchdowns, McCoy is still one of the most consistent players in the game this year. He definitely has a chance to be the top runningback in the league, but that will not happen until he starts to score on a regular basis.
2. Marshawn Lynch (Seattle Seahawks)
Marshawn Lynch is showing he is the most dangerous player in fantasy football. Any given week, he has the ability to put up a huge number of fantasy point. Lynch has rushed for 578 yards and six touchdowns. He has also caught 14 balls for an additional 177 yards and a touchdown. The only knock on him is his consistency. Many times this season, he has put up a monster game and followed it up with a mediocre outing. This does not happen to the top fantasy runningback. The good thing is he is starting to become a more consistent player. If he can continue this trend, he will be making a strong claim for the top spot. The Seahawks play the Rams this week. The Rams have given up massive fantasy points to DeMarco Murray and Frank Gore, so it is extremely likely Lynch will be the top producer of points this weekend.
1. Jamaal Charles (Kansas City Chiefs)
Earlier this week, we proclaimed Jamaal Charles the most valuable player in fantasy football. Charles is the model of consistency. He is tied for the league lead in touchdowns with Knowshon Moreno and Wes Welker. He has rushed for 561 yards and caught 36 passes for 337 yards. Charles is always a threat to put up a great game, but even on his bad days he is still putting up at least 16 fantasy points. As it stands right now Charles is locked in at the number one spot and it does not appear anyone will be pushing him out of it. The Chiefs have a tough matchup against the Browns defense this weekend. They will have to rely on Charles a lot in order to continue their win streak.
Honorable Mention- Adrian Peterson (MIN), Frank Gore (SF), Reggie Bush (DET)
Wide Receivers
5. A.J. Green (Cincinnati Bengals)
A.J. Green is coming off a huge week seven performance. Last week, the Bengals’ star receiver caught six passes for 155 yards and a touchdown. He now leads all receivers in yards with 619. It appears Andy Dalton is starting to come alive. This is a major factor in the way Green has been performing. Earlier this season, Dalton was struggling and as a result, Green was not putting up the stats that were expected coming into the season. It appears Dalton is now back to form and Green is the one benefitting the most. The Bengals are playing on the top defenses in the league this weekend. The New York Jets have played lights out football. Their main strength is against the run, so it looks like the Bengals will be forced to throw a lot on third downs. On a third and long situation there is no reason not to throw to the best pass catcher. Green should be able to have a decent game.
4. Calvin Johnson (Detroit Lions)
It has been a while since Calvin Johnson has made the list. The injury definitely hurt his performance. Now the injury is behind him and he is going to go back to producing the way we expected him to. Last weekend, Johnson was the top wide receiver posting 155 receiving yards and two touchdowns on nine receptions. Fantasy owners should be seeing a lot more performance like this one in the second half of the season. Expect a great game from Calvin this weekend against the Dallas Cowboys.
3. Demaryius Thomas (Denver Broncos)
Every time it looks like Demaryius Thomas has fallen off Peyton’s radar, he comes back with a good game. The Broncos’ star deep threat has now caught 41 passes for five touchdowns and 610 yards. It is still a bit concerning he is only catching four to five passes each week, but as long as he is still posting at least that many catches he belongs in the top three. Thomas might have some problems this weekend against the Washington Redskins since he will be covered by the hard hitting cornerback, DeAngelo Hall.
2. DeSean Jackson (Philadelphia Eagles)
DeSean Jackson has a bit of a consistency problem. After a huge game two weeks ago, he only caught three passes for 21 yards in week seven. The emergence of Riley Cooper has decreased the number of passes Jackson sees each game. However, Jackson is such a threat to score at any time regardless of field position that it is very hard to make an argument against him being in the top three. Jackson should have a big week eight against the New York Giants.
1. Wes Welker (Denver Broncos)
Wes Welker leads all wide receivers in touchdowns. He scored in each of the first six games of the season. Though he was unable to find the endzone in week seven, he still caught seven passes for 91 yards. Consistency is such an important factor when choosing the best player at a position. This is especially true with the wide receiver position. Wide outs have been very difficult to predict this season. It seems like every week a player who was expected to perform turns out to be a bust and a player who was previously unknown has a spectacular game. Wes Welker is the only wide receiver that has had a good game each week of the season. There is no reason to doubt his ability to produce good stats this weekend against the Washington Redskins.
Honorable Mention- Brandon Marshall (CHI), Vincent Jackson (TB), Dez Bryant (DAL)
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