The Fantasy Impact of Brett Favre's Likely Retirement

Not that any of us believe it, but future Hall of Famer and former fantasy starter Brett Favre is calling it quits for the third time.

It remains to be seen if this is the final time, but for now, let’s assume he isn’t playing next season.

So, how does the retirement affect the fantasy world?

The ripple effect of Favre is reaching far and wide. Don’t be the knucklehead this year that doesn’t think this move matters to your draft plan.

Here is a slideshow of whose draft stock is rising or falling because of Favre’s retirement.

Draft Stock Rising: Tarvaris Jackson and Sage Rosenfels

As of right now, the job of starting quarterback for the Vikings is Jackson’s job to lose.

He takes over a team that is loaded on offense and on defense, but doesn’t have the physical or mental tools to mimic the statistical success Favre had.

In his 19 starts as quarterback, Jackson has never had a 300-yard game and he has a career 58.7 completion percentage.

Jackson might be a good gamble to draft as a backup quarterback late in the draft, and just because the Vikings are his team now, it doesn’t mean you should draft him as your starting quarterback. The same goes for Rosenfels.

The perennial backup Rosenfels played sparingly during his time with the Texans, but never showed any fantasy stardom.

Rosenfels is more of a prototypical quarterback than Jackson, but doesn’t have the physical abilities Jackson has.

Unless Jackson does indeed lose the job, Rosenfels will launch himself into the backup fantasy talk. Until then, there is no need to draft him.

Draft Stock Falling: Vikings' Receivers

Sidney Rice and Percy Harvin have been drafted as number one and number two receivers, respectively, in many mock drafts this summer.

Their rankings should be automatically be downgraded without Favre. The same with tight end Visanthe Shiancoe.

If Rice’s hip injury and surgery wasn’t enough to question him, consider this:

In the two seasons Rice played without Favre, he had 537 yards combined.

Rice is expected to be a number one receiver on the Vikings this season. But he will not replicate the 1,312 yards and eight touchdowns he had in 2009.

Harvin, I don’t believe, will be as negatively affected as Rice. Harvin has a rare gift to do it all. He can run, he can catch, and he can return.

The Vikings will still put him all over the field. We were all thinking of Harvin as a player on the rise. Without Favre, Harvin will probably have similar receiving numbers he had last season.

Shiancoe is 30 years old and has never had more than 596 yards in a season. His 11 touchdowns last year came out of nowhere.

As with Rice, don't assume Shiancoe to build on the success he had last season. You don't get fantasy points for being a good blocker.

Draft Stock Steady: Adrian Peterson

“All Day” is still going to get the ball frequently. He is still going to run over defenders. He is still going to get goal line carries.

The difference this season is defenses are going to put more men in the box to slow Peterson down because there is less of an air attack.

AP could see a decline in his yards per carry, but (barring injury) he’ll still gallop for 1,200 yards and 10 touchdowns. Peterson is about as safe as a bet you can make this season.

AP should still be the second overall player taken in your drafts this season.

If anything, Favre’s retirement has cemented Chris Johnson as the top overall player.

Draft Stock Rising: The Rest of the Quarterbacks in the League

Before the retirement, I had Favre ranked as the eighth-best fantasy quarterback for 2010.

Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Tony Romo, Matt Shaub and Philip Rivers all remain untouched in their rankings.

After that, I now rank Jay Cutler at eighth, Kevin Kolb at ninth, Joe Flacco at tenth, Donovan McNabb at eleventh, and Eli Manning at twelfth. Draft accordingly.

As I stated earlier, Jackson and Rosenfels should not be drafted as a starting quarterbacks.

If you are a Vikings homer or a risky fantasy owner, take Jackson in the later rounds. Other than that, wait until the season starts to see the situation shakes out.