Fantasy Football 2014: Week 1 Positional Rankings and Projections Following TNF

The 2014 fantasy football season kicked off on Thursday, and while some owners are already sitting pretty through one game, others will need to climb out of a deep hole. Whether you fall into one of those two categories, or you have yet to see any of your team take the gridiron, it's crucial to start the right players on Sunday and Monday.

This is where Week 1 positional rankings and projections come in handy.

It's common practice for many fantasy owners to simply start the players they drafted first. However, that strategy may not yield the best results when taking matchups, injuries and other factors into consideration. With that in mind, here's a full list of positional rankings—sans defense and kickers—that will lessen the burden of selecting a starting lineup.

Quarterbacks

Joe Mahoney/Associated Press

Player	Opponent	Points
Peyton Manning	Indianapolis Colts	27
Drew Brees	Atlanta Falcons	25
Nick Foles	Jacksonville Jaguars	22
Philip Rivers	Arizona Cardinals	22
Andrew Luck	Denver Broncos	21
Jay Cutler	Buffalo Bills	20
Matthew Stafford	New York Giants	20
Colin Kaepernick	Dallas Cowboys	18
Tony Romo	San Francisco 49ers	18
Tom Brady	Miami Dolphins	17

While most of these rankings are pretty straightforward, don't sleep on Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles this week.

Some fantasy owners are a little hesitant with the third-year signal-caller and expect him to take a step back this year. While he may not have the kind of touchdown-to-interception ratio that he did last season—he threw 27 touchdowns and was picked only twice—he proved he can flourish in Chip Kelly's system.

Even without DeSean Jackson in the fold, he has a healthy Jeremy Maclin, the addition of rookie Jordan Matthews—who had a very nice preseason—and one of the league's biggest weapons in running back LeSean McCoy.

The fact that Jacksonville ranked 25th in the league against the pass last season, and didn't look overwhelmingly impressive in the preseason, only helps make the case for Foles this week.

Running Backs

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Player	Opponent	Points
LeSean McCoy	Jacksonville Jaguars	24
Jamaal Charles	Tennessee Titans	22
Adrian Peterson	St. Louis Rams	18
Matt Forte	Buffalo Bills	16
Arian Foster	Washington Redskins	15
Montee Ball	Indianapolis Colts	15
Giovani Bernard	Baltimore Ravens	14
Andre Ellington	San Diego Chargers	14
Frank Gore	Dallas Cowboys	14
Reggie Bush	New York Giants	14

While Cincinnati Bengals running back Giovani Bernard sits seventh on the list, don't expect him to run all over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. It's tough for any running back to gain yards on the AFC North. Luckily, Bernard is a skilled receiver as well.

Last season, the Ravens owned the league's 11th-ranked run defense, and it showed against the Bengals, limiting Bernard to 58 and 22 yards on the ground in their two meetings. However, Bernard also tallied 37 receiving yards and a score in Week 10 and 51 receiving yards in Week 17.

Adam Levitan of Rotoworld tweeted his expectations for Bernard heading into Week 1:

Expect to see more of the same type of production from the second-year ball-carrier this week. 

Wide Receivers

Ben Margot/Associated Press

Player	Opponent	Points
Demaryius Thomas	Indianapolis Colts	18
Calvin Johnson	New York Giants	17
A.J. Green	Baltimore Ravens	16
Julio Jones	New Orleans Saints	16
Larry Fitzgerald	San Diego Chargers	15
Dez Bryant	San Francisco 49ers	14
Andre Johnson	Washington Redskins	14
Brandon Marshall	Buffalo Bills	14
Cordarrelle Patterson	St. Louis Rams	14
Reggie Wayne	Denver Broncos	13

Any fantasy owner lucky enough to have Larry Fitzgerald this season will be rewarded right out of the gate. With Carson Palmer at the helm, Fitzgerald saw a huge spike in production from 2012 to 2013. That spike will continue this season, and his impending Week 1 showing against a San Diego Chargers secondary that ranked 29th in the league last season will help him get off to a hot start.

The Chargers brought in Brandon Flowers to be their top corner this season, but he struggled last year with the Kansas City Chiefs, ranking 110th among the league's cornerbacks with a negative-1.6 rating, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required).

Helping the veteran wide receiver's cause is a legitimate No. 2 option in the emerging Michael Floyd. He'll garner plenty of attention, leaving Fitzgerald in less double-coverage situations.

Tight Ends

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Player	Opponent	Points
Jimmy Graham	Atlanta Falcons	19
Julius Thomas	Indianapolis Colts	15
Jordan Cameron	Pittsburgh Steelers	14
Vernon Davis	Dallas Cowboys	14
Greg Olsen	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	13
Rob Gronskowski	Miami Dolphins	12
Jason Witten	San Francisco 49ers	12
Dennis Pitta	Cincinnati Bengals	11
Kyle Rudolph	St. Louis Rams	11
Zach Ertz	Jacksonville Jaguars	10

Dennis Pitta may be in for a big day against the Bengals in Week 1. Quarterback Joe Flacco missed his tight end severely last season, and it resulted in the quarterback's career-worst passer rating of 73.1. Expect the duo to quickly get back on track on Sunday.

CBS Fantasy Football tweeted what Pitta's return could mean for Baltimore:

While the Bengals had the league's fifth-ranked passing defense one season ago, the team has been historically average against tight ends.

When Pitta squared off against the Bengals in 2013, he racked up five receptions for 73 yards and one score. Last season after Pitta returned from injury late in the year, he posted eight receptions for 63 yards—both season highs—in Cincinnati.

Baltimore is without Ray Rice and if the Ravens rely heavily on the passing game, expect Flacco to utilize his now-healthy security blanket early and often.

All rankings and projections based on standard-scoring leagues.