The Top 20 Quarterback Rankings For The 2013 Fantasy Football Season
The 2013 fantasy season is right around the corner and drafts will be popping up all over the place over the next 50 days or so. So it’s time to bring you up to speed on the Top 20 players at each position this year. The rankings are for Standard Redraft PPR (Points Per Reception).
Yesterday we started with the Running Backs, today, we continue on with the Top 20 Quarterbacks. Tomorrow I'll unveil the Top 20 Wide Receivers followed up with Tight Ends on Friday.
So let’s get started with the Top 20 QBs, here we go…
#1 Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints (Age 34) Bye: 7
4,975 passing yards, 42 TDs and 15 picks with 5 rushing yards and 1 rushing score
Bounty gate really screwed the Saints last year and Brees still tossed for 5,177 passing yards and had a total of 45 scores. He did throw 19 picks, but some of that could be blamed on not having his play caller last year. As if Brees really needs the talk up, but he can only do better with Payton back. LOOK OUT NFL as Brees gets mad at the world this year. He has thrown the ball over 650 times and completed over 420 of them in each of the last 3 seasons, so don't expect any shortness of opportunity this year either.
#2 Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers (Age 30) Bye: 4
4,720 passing yards, 38 TDs and 8 picks with 280 rushing yards and 3 rushing scores
ARod just got paid, and will show he is well more than worth it. What makes him better than some of the other top end QB’s, is the fact he can get yards on the ground, too. He has managed to compile a total of 18 rushing scores in the past five seasons. That’s not bad for a guy who throws 35 plus each year and manages to stay healthy while on the move in and out of the pocket. Rodgers has no shortage of weapons to help keep him as an elite signal caller, so take him early and often in all your drafts.
#3 Peyton Manning, Denver Broncos (Age 37) Bye: 9
4,700 passing yards, 34 TDs and 9 picks with nothing to speak of running the ball
It’s Peyton “Freaking” Manning, when he sucks, then you start not drafting him as a Top 3 QB. Guess what, he does not suck. We can talk about the addition of Welker, but what for? A stud gets more weapons so he is still as elite as they get. He has only thrown for less than 4,000 yards twice in his long 15 year career, so that’s not a bad thing to have in your favor.
#4 Tom Brady, New England Patriots (Age 36) Bye: 10
4,550 passing yards, 30 TDs and 10 picks with 15 rushing yards and 2 rushing scores
Let’s see, Tom lost Hernandez, Welker, Woodhead, Lloyd and may not have Gronk for the early part of the season, but studs are studs. Brady does have the newly signed Danny Amendola and not much else. He will produce, because he makes people around him better, but he could use a little help from the emergence of ANYONE else on the roster.
#5 Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons (Age 28) Bye: 6
4,400 passing yards, 31 TDs and 15 picks with 50 rushing yards and 1 rushing score
Matt Ryan posted his career best stat line of 4,719 yards and 32 scores last year. That should only get better with the addition of Jackson and with Jones getting another year of experience under his belt. Team that with White and that gives you the best WR duo in the NFL. I like the fact that Ryan keeps his picks low, as he has never thrown more than 14 in a season, and anyone who has owned a QB who throws a ton of picks knows too many of those can cost weekly wins.
#6 Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions (Age 25) Bye: 9
4,850 passing yards, 30 TDs and 16 picks with 40 rushing yards and 1 rushing score
Now that injuries are a thing of a past for this kid, let’s talk about he is still an elite QB who has thrown for 10,003 yards and 61 TDs in his past 2 seasons. Stafford has the ultimate Weapon in Calvin (What more do you need?) and gained an elite pass catcher in Bush out of the back field to help bolster options. I believe the 20 passing TDs last year were the anomaly (Even though he ran for an additional 4) not the 41 the year prior. Stafford is a huge value play this year as he is being taken much later than people in his same tier.
#7 Andrew Luck, Indianapolis Colts (Age 24) Bye: 8
4,520 passing yards, 28 TDs and 18 picks with 260 rushing yards and 4 rushing scores
If talent was based off looks, this guy would be the worst QB in the league, good thing it’s not though. In his rookie season he threw the ball 627 but only completed 339 passes. That percentage must come up in order for Luck to be a true elite QB. Luck has all the makings and a year experience under his belt, add to that the ability to get the rushing yards and scores when need be and he is a QB1 for years ahead. The only worry I see is former OC Bruce Arians becoming HC in Arizona as he is the one who loved to air it out.
#8 Robert Griffin III, Washington Redskins (Age 23) Bye: 5
3,750 passing yards, 25 TDs and 13 picks with 580 rushing yards and 7 rushing scores
I said it last year with ADP and I’ll say it this year with RG3, he will be back Week 1 and will have no limitations. This guy is a point producer in the air and on the ground. Dude ran for 833 yards and 7 scores in his rookie year while passing for over 3K. It’s no Cam rookie season production, but it’s darn good. He has a good OLine, solid RB and One option at WR, but he needs another passing option to step up for him to have a chance at elite passing production. His ground stats keep him in the Top 10, but the injury is not his issue, its passing options.
#9 Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers (Age 24) Bye: 4
3,900 passing yards, 23 TDs and 17 picks with 600 rushing yards and 8 rushing scores
Cam was not worth the spot we all drafted him to start the season, but he sure came on in the playoffs when everyone needed him. He managed 18 total scores while tossing just three picks in the last six weeks of the fantasy season. Newton lost his OC Rob Chudzinski who was a big part of the late season turnaround last year, and the lack of passing options still scares me. Cam should continue to produce, just do not draft him where you drafted him last year.
#10 Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys (Age 33) Bye: 11
4,255 passing yards, 30 TDs and 16 picks with 40 rushing yards and 1 rushing scores
Romo benefited greatly from the emergence of Dez down the stretch which was enough to help overcome the early part of the season where the typical Romo showed his face. In the late season turnaround just like Cam had, he threw for 17 TDs while tossing just three picks in the last seven weeks of the fantasy season. During that stretch he managed six, 300 yard passing games. Romo needs a solid running game to help take off some of the pressure that causes his mistakes and disasters, so let’s all hope Murray stays healthy.
#11 Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks (Age 24) Bye: 12
3,620 passing yards, 24 TDs and 12 picks with 510 rushing yards and 5 rushing scores
This guy came out of nowhere, sure he knocked off Flynn in camp, but that was not a testament to his skill. He didn't show potential until week six against the Patriots when he threw for three scores. This spot in the list is based solely off potential as he gained a weapon in Harvin and will have gained a year of experience as well. Wilson has his legs to help him, and he needs them as he has yet to throw for a 300 yard game and three of his four rushing TDs came in week 15 against the Bills. This is still a run first team so expect a lot of Lynch still, but Wilson should benefit in the passing game from it.
#12 Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers (Age 32) Bye: 8
4,200 passing yards, 28 TDs and 17 picks with nothing doing on the ground
This guy fell from the earth pretty quick. Just a few seasons ago he was talked about as a Top 5 QB, but that changed. Last year, he suffered his worst stat line since 2007, and his pathetic offensive line didn't help. The new head coach in McCoy can only help out with the reemergence of Rivers this year. Expect him to bounce back to a low end #1 or top #2 QB this year. Players like Gates, Woodhead and a healthy WR core can do wonders in making that happen.
#13 Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers (Age 31) Bye: 5
3,950 passing yards, 25 TDs and 13 picks with 125 rushing yards and 2 rushing scores
Big Ben was on pace for a career year, even though he missed 3 games, he still tossed for 3,265 yards and 26 scores. He has few options as Brown is not a number one, Miller is recovering from his knee injury and he the Steelers will have a rookie carrying the ball this year. Big Ben’s talent and ability to make thing happen will keep him as a top end number two QB, but his chances of being an every week starter took a hit with the loss of a true number one receiver.
#14 Colin Kaepernick, San Francisco 49ers (Age 25) Bye: 9
3,450 passing yards, 21 TDs and 15 picks with 480 rushing yards and 6 rushing scores
I’m not his biggest fan. Kaeps is still very much unproven as a QB and he lost his number one option when Crabtree popped his Achilles. His upside is undeniable and his running ability is helpful enough to pick you up when you need some points, just ask Green Bay last year in the playoffs. Now that the league has a year to study tape, I think that could cause for some worries, but his playoff performance showed what he has in the tank. High upside, huge bust potential. Draft as a high #2 QB, not as your starter.
#15 Eli Manning, New York Giants (Age 32) Bye: 9
4,250 passing yards, 26 TDs and 16 picks with 35 rushing yards and 0 rushing score
Last year Eli had a stretch of three games where he did not account for one single score. That is unacceptable from any starting fantasy QB, at least from one who is considered a weekly starter. If not for the 5 TDs in week 17, his stats would have been pathetic. He has two studly passing options and a new TE to go with a good backfield tandem. If he does not bounce back this year, his days of an every week starter are done, but I already think that anyways.
#16 Ryan Tannehill, Miami Dolphins (Age 25) Bye: 6
3,900 passing yards, 23 TDs and 16 picks with 180 rushing yards and 3 rushing scores
Well, if anyone had their prayers answered for getting some weapons this offseason, it was Tanny. Mike Wallace, Dustin Keller and they even kept Hartline around to stay in the slot to help Tannehill progress. Last year they did not even have any receiving options and Bush was the lead runner, that’s not going to cut it that offense. Ryan should definitely improve on last year’s stats while also benefiting from a better defense that will allow him to not always have to play catch up. That should help keep the picks down. Look to draft this guy as your number two and we may be talking about him as a number one in the near future.
#17 Andy Dalton, Cincinnati Bengals (Age 25) Bye: 12
3,820 passing yards, 25 TDs and 14 picks with 100 rushing yards and 1 rushing score
It’s not like Dalton posted some bad numbers last year with 3,669 yards and 27 scores, but those seem to me like that is as good as he can get until his arm gets stronger. Even though he has Green and gained some other pass catching options in Eifert and Bernard, I just don’t his stat getting that much better if at all. Dalton didn't even finish any of the last 10 games with 300 yards or more. Not saying he can't produce more in the future, but that’s not great when you have elite WR. Right now, Green is the one who makes things happen in Cincy, if you own Dalton, better hope Green can make more magic for him this year.
#18 Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens (Age 28) Bye: 8
3,800 passing yards, 24 TDs and 12 picks with 35 rushing yards and 0 rushing scores
People who are thinking Joe Flacco is a fantasy stud because he won a Super Bowl and was hot in the playoffs… STOP IT! He has never been anything special and in five years he has never thrown for more than 3,817 yards and 25 TDs in a single season. Flacco is way too spotty in production and lost Boldin, so that is not that helpful to doing better. He really needs to start being more consistent to take that next step in becoming a weekly starter. Take Flacco in drafts as a number two QB option, maybe Pitta can step up to fill the void of Boldin.
#19 Jay Cutler, Chicago Bears (Age 30) Bye 8
3,755 passing yards, 23 TDs and 15 picks with 150 rushing yards and 1 score
Speaking of inconsistency, that brings us to Jay Cutler. Let’s just be thankful he has Marshall, Forte and Bennett to help his numbers. Because he is not the play making QB that he thinks he is. He seems to get banged up a good bit over the past few years and threw for two touchdowns or less in five of his last six games while throwing for 300 just once all of last year. Sure he blows up here and there, but throwing up stud numbers once every 5 weeks does not get you drafted early. He has never thrown for more than 27 TDs and has not thrown for 20 in either of his last two seasons. Cutler is nothing more than a low end number two at this point.
#20 Matt Schaub, Houston Texans (Age 33) Bye: 8
4,020 passing yards, 22 TDs and 14 picks with nothing on to speak of on the ground
Houston has become a different team over the years. Since Wade Phillips joined the team and turned that Defense and team into one of the best, they have been able to feed Foster late instead of leaving it in Schaub’s hands. That is going to hurt any player’s value without getting some shot at garbage time scores. The thorn of not having a number two receiving option quickly changed due to drafting Hopkins. Schaub will still have to give Dre his, but Foster eats up a lot of TDs on the ground. Until things change, Schaub cannot be relied on to start on an every weekly basis with his inconsistency and low production.
More From 97.9 WGRD
