2008 Fantasy Football Rankings: Quarterbacks

Quarterbacks are faster to rank, as there is only one starter per team, usually, with a few training camp battles here and there. Those players that are on the bubble will rank lower.

The highest rankings will go to the relatively young, proven players that will count on the support from solid wide receivers. The entire Maniaxs' staff compiled their own rankings, assigning 32 points to a No. 1 rank going down to assigning one point to a No. 32 rank. Then we added all the points and determined the final 2008 QB rankings.

Let me reassure you that nothing particularly crazy happened during the ranking process like ranking Tom Brady No. 32. He received all but one first-place vote. Peyton Manning received all but two second-place votes. The lone occasion where Brady didn't get a first place vote, Peyton didn't take his place, Carson Palmer did. We will have a few articles later into the offseason about Manning's declining rankings in 2008.

For now, enjoy our OFFICIAL 2008 Fantasy QB Seasonal (predraft) Rankings. We have included the final rankings' grid/table for your ease, and a PDF link so that you can download them for your draft(s).

1) Tom Brady: The No. 1 consensus QB pick in 2008, after a career season in which he passed for 4,806 yards and was responsible for an astonishing 50 TDs. He lost Stallworth (who didn’t have a good year anyhow—697 yards and three TDs), but Gaffney is ready to replace him. Randy Moss and Wes Welker are still there to receive his passes and solidify his top-rank. Even a 75 percent repetition of last year's numbers will warrant him the top pick at the position.

2) Peyton Manning: His good, but diminished, production of 4,040 yards (second career-lowest) and 31 scores in 2007 was shadowed only by Tom Brady’s (and a few others) exceptional season. He may fall to the second round of drafts this year, and Tony Romo might even be taken ahead of him in some of them.

Peyton is still a first-tier QB by all means. His fantasy numbers may suffer because of the Colts' "cruise control" mode they adopted last year, of controlling the clock via the running game and using the aerial attack only if needed. Missing favorite target Marvin Harrison for a handful of games contributed to his "dipping" numbers. 

3) Tony Romo: Last year’s sleeper, who went from posting 2,903 yards and 19 TDs in 2006 to accumulate 4,211 yards and 36 TDs in 2007, is now ready to be a top-five selection, as long as Terrell Owens (34-years old) and Witten continue to shine.

4) Drew Brees: After a slow ’07 start, he regrouped and produced as advertised. It was too late though, and fantasy owners will be scared of another slow start in '08. Take advantage of that and fly with him. After all, he managed to produce career-highs in yards (4,428), TDs (28), YPG (276.8), and completed 67.6 percent of his passes. The fact that his main target, Marques Colston, will be a “magical” third-year WR next season will only increase his upside.

5) Carson Palmer: He endured an up and down ’07 season, causing his stock to fall a little. His final 2007 stats show that he threw for a career-high 4,131 yards, 575 pass attempted,  373 completions, 258.2 YPG, and five 300-yard games, but also saw him toss 20 interceptions, another career-high.

Troubled WR Chris Henry (who provided some protection for the other WRs, when eligible to play) is finally out of Cincinnati, Chad Johnson is steadily becoming a locker-room distraction, and his best 2007 receiving weapon, T.J. Houshmandzadeh, will be a free agent at the end of this season, raising concerns among all parties involved.

However, the talent is still there for the fifth-year player to have another productive season, especially with RB Kenny Watson being efficiently involved in the receiving aspect of the Bengals’ offense. Newly acquired WR Doug Gabriel, who spent his entire career with the Oakland Raiders before missing the whole 2007 season as a free agent, should fill the void left in the WR’s depth chart by Chris Henry's release. 
 

6) Derek Anderson:

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