It's six hours before the start of the 2014 NFL season. That means it's time to release my final FF4W preseason positional rankings. There have been some tweaks (Russell Wilson and Jeremy Hill have moved up the board) and drop-outs (Wes Welker, Vernon Davis). I believe these rankings will be more accurate than the "expert" rankings on which so many of us base our fantasy decisions.
Last year, my rankings proved more accurate than ESPN's, but a little less accurate than SI.com's and Yahoo's. This year I'm adding CBS Sports to the mix. My goal is to bring you the most accurate rankings in the business. Injuries, suspensions, and depth chart changes have major impacts on final results. But there are no excuses: I can put up or shut up, and so I'm putting up my picks for all to embrace or scrutinize, or more likely, to embrace a little and scrutinize a lot. Time will tell whether they're right.
If anyone on this list is available in your league(s), I suggest adding them immediately, provided you don't have to drop anyone reasonably valuable. Championship seasons are built not on the Peyton Mannings and LeSean McCoys, but on the Josh Gordons (ESPN's 42nd ranked WR in 2013), Knowshon Morenos (ESPN's 43rd ranked RB in 2013), Keenan Allens (ESPN's 68th ranked WR in 2013), and Zac Stacys (ESPN's 88th ranked RB in 2013).
If you'd grabbed these four guys in the latter stages of your 2013 draft--along with your array of other fantasy studs--you could have not only won your league, but gone undefeated. Think about that before deciding that anyone's rankings--including mine--are accurate. There are players existing well beyond our fantasy universe who could be dominating by Week 10.
With that, here are my rankings for standard scoring leagues. Good luck to everyone tonight and throughout Week 1.
QB
(1) Peyton Manning
(2) Drew Brees
(3) Matt Ryan
(4) Matthew Stafford
(5) Aaron Rodgers
(6) Tom Brady
(7) Tony Romo
(8) Andrew Luck
(9) Jay Cutler
(10) Russell Wilson
RB
(1) LeSean McCoy
(2) Jamaal Charles
(3) Matt Forte
(4) Eddie Lacy
(5) Adrian Peterson
(6) Marshawn Lynch
(7) DeMarco Murray
(8) Doug Martin
(9) Giovani Bernard
(10) Andre Ellington
(11) Zac Stacy
(12) Montee Ball
(13) Joique Bell
(14) Alfred Morris
(15) Shane Vereen
(16) Reggie Bush
(17) Le'Veon Bell
(18) Ryan Mathews
(19) Arian Foster
(20) Jeremy Hill
WR
(1) Calvin Johnson
(2) Dez Bryant
(3) A.J. Green
(4) Demaryius Thomas
(5) Alshon Jeffery
(6) Antonio Brown
(7) Julio Jones
(8) Keenan Allen
(9) Brandon Marshall
(10) Michael Floyd
(11) Randall Cobb
(12) Larry Fitzgerald
(13) Roddy White
(14) Andre Johnson
(15) Jordy Nelson
(16) T.Y. Hilton
(17) DeSean Jackson
(18) Vincent Jackson
(19) Torrey Smith
(20) Victor Cruz
TE
(1) Jimmy Graham
(2) Julius Thomas
(3) Rob Gronkowski
(4) Jordan Cameron
(5) Jordan Reed
(6) Kyle Rudolph
(7) Zach Ertz
(8) Greg Olsen
(9) Jason Witten
(10) Travis Kelce
K
(1) Stephen Gostkowski
(2) Steve Zuerlein
(3) Justin Tucker
(4) Mason Crosby
(5) Steven Hauschka
(6) Dan Bailey
(7) Nick Novak
(8) Blair Walsh
(9) Robbie Gould
(10) Matt Bryant
DST
(1) Seahawks
(2) Texans
(3) Bengals
(4) Broncos
(5) Patriots
(6) Rams
(7) Browns
(8) Saints
(9) Panthers
(10) Buccaneers
Last year, my rankings proved more accurate than ESPN's, but a little less accurate than SI.com's and Yahoo's. This year I'm adding CBS Sports to the mix. My goal is to bring you the most accurate rankings in the business. Injuries, suspensions, and depth chart changes have major impacts on final results. But there are no excuses: I can put up or shut up, and so I'm putting up my picks for all to embrace or scrutinize, or more likely, to embrace a little and scrutinize a lot. Time will tell whether they're right.
If anyone on this list is available in your league(s), I suggest adding them immediately, provided you don't have to drop anyone reasonably valuable. Championship seasons are built not on the Peyton Mannings and LeSean McCoys, but on the Josh Gordons (ESPN's 42nd ranked WR in 2013), Knowshon Morenos (ESPN's 43rd ranked RB in 2013), Keenan Allens (ESPN's 68th ranked WR in 2013), and Zac Stacys (ESPN's 88th ranked RB in 2013).
If you'd grabbed these four guys in the latter stages of your 2013 draft--along with your array of other fantasy studs--you could have not only won your league, but gone undefeated. Think about that before deciding that anyone's rankings--including mine--are accurate. There are players existing well beyond our fantasy universe who could be dominating by Week 10.
With that, here are my rankings for standard scoring leagues. Good luck to everyone tonight and throughout Week 1.
QB
(1) Peyton Manning
(2) Drew Brees
(3) Matt Ryan
(4) Matthew Stafford
(5) Aaron Rodgers
(6) Tom Brady
(7) Tony Romo
(8) Andrew Luck
(9) Jay Cutler
(10) Russell Wilson
RB
(1) LeSean McCoy
(2) Jamaal Charles
(3) Matt Forte
(4) Eddie Lacy
(5) Adrian Peterson
(6) Marshawn Lynch
(7) DeMarco Murray
(8) Doug Martin
(9) Giovani Bernard
(10) Andre Ellington
(11) Zac Stacy
(12) Montee Ball
(13) Joique Bell
(14) Alfred Morris
(15) Shane Vereen
(16) Reggie Bush
(17) Le'Veon Bell
(18) Ryan Mathews
(19) Arian Foster
(20) Jeremy Hill
WR
(1) Calvin Johnson
(2) Dez Bryant
(3) A.J. Green
(4) Demaryius Thomas
(5) Alshon Jeffery
(6) Antonio Brown
(7) Julio Jones
(8) Keenan Allen
(9) Brandon Marshall
(10) Michael Floyd
(11) Randall Cobb
(12) Larry Fitzgerald
(13) Roddy White
(14) Andre Johnson
(15) Jordy Nelson
(16) T.Y. Hilton
(17) DeSean Jackson
(18) Vincent Jackson
(19) Torrey Smith
(20) Victor Cruz
TE
(1) Jimmy Graham
(2) Julius Thomas
(3) Rob Gronkowski
(4) Jordan Cameron
(5) Jordan Reed
(6) Kyle Rudolph
(7) Zach Ertz
(8) Greg Olsen
(9) Jason Witten
(10) Travis Kelce
K
(1) Stephen Gostkowski
(2) Steve Zuerlein
(3) Justin Tucker
(4) Mason Crosby
(5) Steven Hauschka
(6) Dan Bailey
(7) Nick Novak
(8) Blair Walsh
(9) Robbie Gould
(10) Matt Bryant
DST
(1) Seahawks
(2) Texans
(3) Bengals
(4) Broncos
(5) Patriots
(6) Rams
(7) Browns
(8) Saints
(9) Panthers
(10) Buccaneers