Fantasy Football Week 1: Updated Rankings for Sunday's Action

Fantasy football managers have a lot of decisions to make before the NFL season's opening weekend commences.

Lineup construction can baffle owners this early in the year, when everyone starts with a fresh slate and every draft pick flashes superstar potential in their minds. After spending months thinking big picture, they must adjust their thought processes to a micro level and examine the Week 1 matchups.

This early in the season, some anxious owners are probably panicking after drawing a deficit following Thursday night's opener. Patience, young grasshopper. Fifteen games remain on the docket to pile up the fantasy points.

In order to make your lives a tad easier, here are some updated rankings for every position.

Quarterback

Rank	Player	Opponent
1	Peyton Manning	Indianapolis Colts
2	Drew Brees	at Atlanta Falcons
3	Matthew Stafford	New York Giants
4	Andrew Luck	at Denver Broncos
5	Tom Brady	at Miami Dolphins
6	Colin Kaepernick	at Dallas Cowboys
7	Matt Ryan	New Orleans Saints
8	Jay Cutler	Buffalo Bills
9	Nick Foles	Jacksonville Jaguars
10	Tony Romo	San Francisco 49ers

Stud to Start: Colin Kaepernick, San Francisco 49ers (at Dallas Cowboys)

Christian Petersen/Getty Images

The Dallas Cowboys brandished the league's worst defense last season. They made no significant improvements during the offseason, but they will play without DeMarcus Ware and Sean Lee.

Relish any opportunity to start offensive players against them, especially a talented one such as Colin Kaepernick.

Remember how he started last season? The dual-threat quarterback spent 2013's season opener showcasing his arm, compiling 412 passing yards for three touchdowns against the Green Bay Packers. He should once again produce points in bunches, as he has exploited easy matchups early in his career.

Rant Sports' Adam Pfeifer tweeted a table, courtesy of RotoViz, that shows Kaepernick's dominance against bottom-tiered defenses:

The signal-caller wouldn't take the Richard Sherman approach to psyching out his opponents, instead offering empty praise to ESPN.com's Paul Gutierrez:

"

They’re physical in nature. They play fast, they play hard. Last year really doesn’t mean anything when you start a new season. So, they’re going to have a new defense, revamped defense. It’s not something that we’re looking at as far as them being bad. We’re trying to focus on what we have to do to counteract what they’re doing.

"

Either he is simply playing nice, or he's just wrong. Kaepernick isn't a starter his owners should roll out every week, but this is the game to employ him comfortably.

Running Back

Rank	Player	Opponent
1	LeSean McCoy	Jacksonville Jaguars
2	Jamaal Charles	Tennessee Titans
3	Matt Forte	Buffalo Bills
4	Adrian Peterson	at St. Louis Rams
5	Giovani Bernard	at Baltimore Ravens
6	Montee Ball	Indianapolis Colts
7	Andre Ellington	San Diego Chargers
8	DeMarco Murray	San Francisco 49ers
9	Frank Gore	at Dallas Cowboys
10	C.J. Spiller	at Chicago Bears
11	Zac Stacy	Minnesota Vikings
12	Arian Foster	Washington Redskins
13	Rashad Jennings	at Detroit Lions
14	Le'Veon Bell	Cleveland Browns
15	Alfred Morris	at Houston Texans

Studs to Start: C.J. Spiller and Fred Jackson, Buffalo Bills (at Chicago Bears)

Tony Tribble/Associated Press

Will the Chicago Bears defense not be the worst by a wide margin this season? Let's find out by utilizing the Buffalo Bills' two-headed rushing monster.

The Bears ranked last in 2013 with an anemic 161.4 yards allowed per game on 5.3 yards per carry. Meanwhile, no other team attempted more rushes than the Bills, so expect EJ Manuel to hand the ball off early and often.

Having averaged 5.1 yards per carry over his career, C.J. Spiller flashes immense upside, but he disappointed owners by scoring two touchdowns in 2013. Scores fluctuate greatly, however, and he still amassed 1,188 all-purpose yards through 15 games.

Aside from Spiller's health, his biggest concern is that everyone always assumes Fred Jackson will go away and he never does. Playing his first 16-game season since 2010, he split the workload with the younger, faster back. His pass-catching and goal-line skills made him a sturdier fantasy back at a fraction of a cost.

Player	Rushes	YDs	YPC	Rushing TDs	Receptions	Rec. YDs
C.J. Spiller	202	903	4.6	2	33	185
Fred Jackson	206	890	4.3	9	47	387

Don't make the mistake of waiting for Jackson to disappear, but the backfield is big enough for both of them to rack up the yards against Chicago this Sunday.

Wide Receiver 

Rank	Player	Opponent
1	Calvin Johnson	New York Giants
2	Demaryius Thomas	Indianapolis Colts
3	Brandon Marshall	Buffalo Bills
4	Dez Bryant	San Francisco 49ers
5	A.J. Green	at Baltimore Ravens
6	Alshon Jeffery	Buffalo Bills
7	Antonio Brown	Cleveland Browns
8	Andre Johnson	Washington Redskins
9	Julio Jones	New Orleans Saints
10	Michael Crabtree	at Dallas Cowboys
11	Victor Cruz	at Detroit Lions
12	Keenan Allen	at Arizona Cardinals
13	Larry Fitzgerald	San Diego Chargers
14	Malcolm Floyd	San Diego Chargers
15	Cordarrelle Patterson	at St. Louis Rams

Stud to Start: Michael Floyd, Arizona Cardinals (vs. San Diego Chargers)

Christian Petersen/Getty Images

Guess who led the Arizona Cardinals in receiving yards last season. Go ahead. Take a wild shot.

You said Larry Fitzgerald, right? Wait. What's that? Upon seeing Michael Floyd's name and picture you realized it was obviously him? Well, OK then. No need to show off.

Fitzgerald gained more receptions with more touchdowns, but Floyd was Arizona's only wideout to exceed 1,000 receiving yards. 

This isn't to bash the veteran, as he has been held back by subpar quarterback play since Kurt Warner's retirement. If anything, the 24-year-old receiver prevents defenses from double-teaming Fitzgerald, allowing both to thrive together. But you all know about the eight-time Pro Bowler, and Brandon Flowers could limit his production anyway on Monday night.

So Floyd it is. During the final half of the season, Floyd netted 608 receiving yards with three touchdowns. He'll look to continue against last season's No. 29 passing defense. Sounds like a blueprint for a monster day.

Tight End 

Rank	Player	Opponent
1	Jimmy Graham	at Atlanta Falcons
2	Julius Thomas	Indianapolis Colts
3	Rob Gronkowski	at Miami Dolphins
4	Vernon Davis	at Dallas Cowboys
5	Greg Olsen	at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
6	Jordan Cameron	at Pittsburgh Steelers
7	Jason Witten	San Francisco 49ers
8	Jordan Reed	at Houston Texans
9	Antonio Gates	at Arizona Cardinals
10	Zach Ertz	Jacksonville Jaguars

Stud to Start: Zach Ertz, Philadelphia Eagles (vs. Jacksonville Jaguars)

Al Bello/Getty Images

Drafters bold enough to take a chance on Zach Ertz might as well see what they got this week.

Under ESPN's scoring, only the Arizona Cardinals and the Minnesota Vikings surrendered more opposing points to tight ends than the Jacksonville Jaguars last season. Tight ends reeled in 92 catches against the 4-12 squad, which finished second-to-last behind Arizona.

Ertz put himself on the map by exploiting those Cardinals for five catches, 68 yards and two touchdowns during Week 13 of his rookie season. Although he didn't match those outputs during any other game, he gradually gained more playing time over Brent Celek, who barely finished over Ertz with 502 yards.

All tight ends tout low floors, meaning none is a sure bet to provide consistent production. Given that unpredictability, owners might as well gamble on the high-upside sophomore against a favorable opponent.

Note: If he leads your team to victory, ask your opponent if he or she wants an "Ertz Doughnut."

Defense

Rank	Team	Opponent
1	Carolina Panthers	at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
2	San Francisco 49ers	at Dallas Cowboys
3	St. Louis Rams	Minnesota Vikings
4	Cincinnati Bengals	at Baltimore Ravens
5	New England Patriots	at Miami Dolphins
6	Tampa Bay Buccaneeers	Carolina Panthers
7	Kansas City Chiefs	Tennessee Titans
8	New York Jets	Oakland Raiders
9	Chicago Bears	Buffalo Bills
10	Philadelphia Eagles	Jacksonville Jaguars

Stud to Start: Cincinnati Bengals (at Baltimore Ravens)

Andy Lyons/Getty Images

Deny it all you want, because their Super Bowl rings blinded you into ignorance, but the Baltimore Ravens were a terrible offense last season. The offense ranked 29th in total yards, ahead of the St. Louis Rams, the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Nobody would have any qualms about starting a top-notch defense over any of those teams, would they?

Conversely, Cincinnati ranked fifth against the pass, fifth again the run and third overall. The unit, which won't have to worry about the suspended Ray Rice, also compiled 43 sacks and 20 interceptions, both top-10 marks.

Kicker

Rank	Player	Opponent
1	Stephen Gostkowski	at Miami Dolphins
2	Phil Dawson	at Dallas Cowboys
3	Robbie Gould	Buffalo Bills
4	Dan Bailey	San Francisco 49ers
5	Nick Novak	at Arizona Cardinals
6	Adam Vinatieri	at Denver Broncos
7	Justin Tucker	Cincinnati Bengals
8	Blair Walsh	St. Louis Rams
9	Brandon McManus	Indianapolis Colts
10	Matt Bryant	New Orleans Saints

Stud to Start: Phil Dawson, San Francisco 49ers (at Dallas Cowboys)

Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

Kickers don't warrant shiny, new points, so scroll back up to the Kaepernick section. For those who hate following orders, the thesis is that the Dallas defense stinks. Dawson should get plenty of scoring opportunities; just hope they're not all extra points.