Fantasy Football 2012 Week 2: Top 20 Quarterback Rankings

Whether you were pleasantly surprised by Matt Ryan or frustrated by Matthew Stafford, the quarterback position likely had an impact on your fantasy team’s performance in Week 1 of the NFL season.

In Week 2, of course, the matchups shuffle and quarterbacks who faced off against tough defenses may face easier matchups. QBs with favorable situations in Week 1 may face tougher tests in Week 2.

Below are my top 20 fantasy quarterbacks for the second week of the 2012 season.

1. Tom Brady, New England Patriots (vs. Arizona Cardinals). It’s Tom Brady.

2. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers (vs. Chicago Bears). Rodgers has no time to lick his wounds from the Packers’ Sunday loss to the San Francisco 49ers. He gets the Bears on Thursday night.

3. Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers (vs. New Orleans Saints). The reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year gets a Saints team that found itself unable to pick off a rookie (Robert Griffin III) in his first career start. At its own place. Now the Saints will be angry, but they have to go to Cam, who is looking to avoid any talk of a sophomore slump.

4. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints (at Carolina Panthers). This guy is no slouch, either.

5. Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions (at San Francisco 49ers). If there’s one thing the 49ers do very well, it’s stop the run. Luckily for the Lions, they don’t really want to run the ball, anyway. Look for Stafford to chuck the ball around the field and avoid his second straight three-interception outing.

6. Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons (vs. Denver Broncos). Week 1’s top scorer takes his show back home to the Georgia Dome on Monday night.

7. Eli Manning, New York Giants (vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers). Eli gets the upstart Bucs defense at home after a long delay since the season opener.

8. Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys (at Seattle Seahawks). Romo takes his talented cast up to the loud CenturyLink Field in Seattle on 11 days rest.

9. Peyton Manning, Denver Broncos (at Atlanta Falcons). Look for the Monday Night Football game to be a shootout.

10. Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles (vs. Baltimore Ravens). The Eagles’ home opener will see Vick looking to bounce back against a Ravens defense that harassed Andy Dalton and the Bengals in Week 1.

11. Robert Griffin III, Washington Redskins (at St. Louis Rams). The RG3 show stays on the road as Griffin looks to follow up his incredible season debut.

12. Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers (vs. Tennessee Titans). Rivers has a short week, but is facing a Titans defense that could still be reeling from being picked apart by Tom Brady in Week 1.

13. Josh Freeman, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (at New York Giants). The Giants have lost some of their cornerback depth, while Freeman gained depth at wide receiver in the offseason.

14. Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers (vs. New York Jets). The Jets’ Darrelle Revis suffered a concussion in his Week 1 appearance against the Bills. If he sits out in Week 2, Big Ben could have a huge game.

15. Jay Cutler, Chicago Bears (at Green Bay Packers). Cutler will look to go 2-0 after a short week against the Packers on Thursday night.

16. Alex Smith, San Francisco 49ers (vs. Detroit Lions).

17. Matt Schaub, Houston Texans (at Jacksonville Jaguars).

18. Carson Palmer, Oakland Raiders (at Miami Dolphins).

19. Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens (at Philadelphia Eagles).

20. Mark Sanchez, New York Jets (at Pittsburgh Steelers).