Fantasy Football Week 4 Rankings: Updated Overview for All Positions

Welcome to the weekly rankings grades, where instead of asking how many points a player will score this week, we instead ask how smart it is to start that player based on his ability, matchup, offense and his overall consistency.

Then, we give each player a grade on his "startability." It's a dumb name, sure, but it's a concept that should help you set the smartest possible lineup. 

In this week's rankings, we'll examine which quarterbacks are trending upwards, try to sort through the mess at running back, ask which players are for real and which are particularly scary this week and even give the first-ever perfect grade. It's exciting stuff, folks. 

Notes: For a full explanation of the rankings, go here. Abridged version: "Ability" measures a player's overall talent, proficiency at his position and ability to produce fantasy numbers. "Offense" measures how much that team's offense improves his fantasy stock. The overall "startability" grade is weighted. All point totals and points-against statistics via ESPN standard scoring leagues. 

Schedule

Thursday, Sept. 25	Time (ET)
Sunday, Sept. 28	Time (ET)
Monday, Sept. 29	Time (ET)
Bye Week Teams
NY Giants at Washington	8:25 p.m.
Miami at Oakland	1 p.m.
Green Bay at Chicago	1 p.m.
Buffalo at Houston	1 p.m.
Tennessee at Indianapolis	1 p.m.
Carolina at Baltimore	1 p.m.
Detroit at NY Jets	1 p.m.
Tampa Bay at Pittsburgh	1 p.m.
Jacksonville at San Diego	4:05 p.m.
Philadelphia at San Francisco	4:25 p.m.
Atlanta at Minnesota	4:25 p.m.
New Orleans at Dallas	8:30 p.m.
New England at Kansas City	8:30 p.m.
Cincinnati	Cleveland
Denver	St. Louis
Arizona	Seattle

Quarterbacks

Rank	Player	Ability (0/50)	Matchup (0/25)	Offense (0/15)	Consistency (0/10)	OVERALL GRADE (0/100)
Rank	Player	Ability (0/50)	Matchup (0/25)	Offense (0/15)	Consistency (0/10)	OVERALL GRADE (0/100)
1	Matt Stafford	48	23	13	8	A+ (92)
2	Drew Brees	49	14	14	9	A (86)
3	Philip Rivers	42	24	10	7	A (83)
4	Aaron Rodgers	49	10	14	9	A (82)
5	Colin Kaepernick	44	23	10	5	A (82)
6	Matt Ryan	46	12	11	7	B+ (76)
7	Kirk Cousins	39	21	11	5	B+ (76)
8	Nick Foles	40	13	14	7	B (74)
9	Cam Newton	47	9	10	8	B (74)
10	Jay Cutler	41	15	13	4	B (73)
11	Andrew Luck	48	5	12	8	B (73)
12	Tony Romo	42	14	10	6	B- (72)
13	Tom Brady	45	15	4	5	C (69)
14	Ben Roethlisberger	41	15	7	4	C (67)
15	Jake Locker*	36	21	4	3	C- (64)
16	Eli Manning	38	15	6	4	C- (63)
17	Joe Flacco	39	8	5	3	D (55)
18	EJ Manuel	34	11	4	3	D- (52)
19	Ryan Fitzpatrick	30	14	6	2	D- (52)
20	Mike Glennon/Josh McCown	29	12	7	1	F (49)

In Matt Stafford you must trust. I know he burned you against the Green Bay Packers, but he's wont to do that from time to time. A matchup against the dreadful New York Jets secondary is so tasty, however, especially given New York's excellent run defense. I wouldn't blink if Stafford threw the ball 45 times this week. 

And I wouldn't blink if he threw three touchdowns to Calvin Johnson alone. 

There shouldn't be too many surprises atop the rankings this week although excellent matchups launch Philip Rivers and Colin Kaepernick into the top five. Meanwhile, players like Matt Ryan, Kirk Cousins, Nick Foles and Jay Cutler are proving that they'll be QB1 considerations every week while Tony Romo and Tom Brady appear as though they'll be banished to the land of QB2s for much of the year.

Rob Foldy/Getty Images

Finally, yes, I have Andrew Luck outside of my top 10. I know he's the top scorer in all of fantasy football thus far this year, but the Tennessee Titans are giving up just 10.3 fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks, second in the NFL, and are allowing just 170 passing yards per game, also second in the league.

I have a feeling the Colts will feature a run-heavy attack this week against Tennessee's solid pass defense, and Luck's numbers could suffer. I'm not saying you can't start him, I'm just saying there are smarter options this week.

Running Backs

Rank	Player	Ability (0/50)	Matchup (0/25)	Offense (0/15)	Consistency (0/10)	OVERALL GRADE (0/100)
Rank	Player	Ability (0/50)	Matchup (0/25)	Offense (0/15)	Consistency (0/10)	OVERALL GRADE (0/100)
Rank	Player	Ability (0/50)	Matchup (0/25)	Offense (0/15)	Consistency (0/10)	OVERALL GRADE (0/100)
Rank	Player	Ability (0/50)	Matchup (0/25)	Offense (0/15)	Consistency (0/10)	OVERALL GRADE (0/100)
1	Matt Forte	47	21	14	10	A+ (92)
2	DeMarco Murray	46	15	13	9	A (83)
3	Jamaal Charles*	48	10	14	10	A (82)
4	Le'Veon Bell	46	12	13	9	A (80)
5	Alfred Morris	43	14	13	9	A (79)
6	LeSean McCoy	49	3	15	10	A- (77)
7	Eddie Lacy	44	15	12	6	A- (77)
8	Arian Foster*	47	6	13	10	A- (76)
9	Donald Brown	33	25	13	5	A- (76)
10	Frank Gore	42	15	11	7	B+ (75)
11	Lamar Miller	39	20	8	4	B (71)
12	Matt Asiata	30	22	14	3	B (69)
13	Ahmad Bradshaw	36	15	8	7	B (66)
14	Doug Martin*	40	14	6	5	B (65)
15	Rashad Jennings	41	2	11	8	B - (62)
16	Darren Sproles	41	3	12	6	B - (62)
17	C.J. Spiller	43	6	8	5	B - (62)
18	Darren McFadden**	35	18	5	4	B - (62)
19	DeAngelo Williams*	34	13	10	4	B - (61)
20	Trent Richardson	34	15	8	3	B- (60)
21	Reggie Bush	43	1	9	6	C+ (59)
22	Bernard Pierce*	35	10	8	5	C+ (58)
23	Chris Ivory	38	6	8	6	C+ (58)
24	Fred Jackson	37	6	8	5	C (56)
25	Stevan Ridley	36	9	7	4	C (56)
26	Joique Bell	40	1	9	6	C (56)
27	Carlos Hyde	35	15	4	2	C (56)
28	Khiry Robinson	33	10	7	4	C- (54)
29	Pierre Thomas	36	10	4	4	C- (54)
30	Toby Gerhart	35	15	1	3	C- (54)
31	Shonn Greene	31	17	4	2	C- (54)
32	Chris Johnson	37	6	6	5	C- (54)
33	Shane Vereen	35	9	6	3	D +(53)
34	Bishop Sankey	32	17	3	1	D +(53)
35	Steven Jackson	31	13	4	4	D (52)
36	Justin Forsett	32	10	5	3	D (50)

There's enough to discuss at running back to fill a novel. Where to begin?

How about the handcuffs? With the possibility of several stars or starters missing action this week, your handcuff order is as follows:

1. Knile Davis of the Kansas City Chiefs, an RB1 if Jamaal Charles can't go.
2. Lorenzo Taliaferro of the Baltimore Ravens.
3. Bobby Rainey of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
4. Alfred Blue of the Houston Texans.

All are viable starters this week if thrust into the starting role.

One player who put up big numbers last week but is probably worth disregarding for now is LeGarrette Blount, whose 50-yard touchdown run in garbage time caught the eye of many fantasy owners but isn't worth getting too excited about. He's firmly behind Le'Veon Bell on the pecking order, who has looked like one of the best backs in football this year.

So crazy is the running back position between injuries, bye weeks and committee situations that Donald Brown and Lamar Miller are among the smartest 11 players to start at the position this week. We're truly through the looking glass at running back, folks.

Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images

Speaking of committee situations, I'd be hesitant to start any running backs from the Detroit Lions, New England Patriots, New York Jets or New Orleans Saints. You may not have a choice given the fact that players like Marshawn Lynch, Montee Ball, Giovani Bernard, Zac Stacy, Andre Ellington and more are all on bye, but none of those players in committee situations have a terribly high ceiling this week, and it's hard to know which players stuck in committees will actually perform.

Do stick with Ahmad Bradshaw, however. He's been excellent thus far this season, and the Titans have given up a total of 50 points to opposing running backs in the last two weeks. Bradshaw is far more likely to exploit that fact than Trent Richardson.

Finally, is it time to start worrying about players like Matt Forte, Eddie Lacy, LeSean McCoy or Frank Gore?

As for Forte and Lacy, the answer is no. Both have had brutal matchups to open the season, and things should clear up from here on out. Forte's pedigree should speak for itself while with Lacy, you're trusting his talent to shine through. 

Now would be a great time to buy low on Lacy, however. 

Yes, McCoy had just two fantasy points last week, but he's about as steady as they come for fantasy owners, and if anything, the fact that the Philadelphia Eagles have spread the wealth around this year should keep Shady fresh for the long haul. He might not have a huge afternoon against the San Francisco 49ers, but the worst idea ever would be to panic-sell him if he does. He'll produce.

As for Gore, we might be seeing him slowly being phased out in favor of Carlos Hyde, a younger and talented running back with a bright future. I still think Gore is an excellent start against Philadelphia and shouldn't be dismissed just yet, but the days of him carrying the rock 20 or more times a game consistently are probably behind us. In fact, in deeper leagues you could make a strong argument for flexing Hyde. 

Wide Receivers

Rank	Player	Ability (0/50)	Matchup (0/25)	Offense (0/15)	Consistency (0/10)	OVERALL GRADE (0/100)
Rank	Player	Ability (0/50)	Matchup (0/25)	Offense (0/15)	Consistency (0/10)	OVERALL GRADE (0/100)
Rank	Player	Ability (0/50)	Matchup (0/25)	Offense (0/15)	Consistency (0/10)	OVERALL GRADE (0/100)
Rank	Player	Ability (0/50)	Matchup (0/25)	Offense (0/15)	Consistency (0/10)	OVERALL GRADE (0/100)
1	Calvin Johnson	50	22	14	10	A+ (96)
2	Antonio Brown	47	20	11	10	A (89)
3	Dez Bryant	49	18	13	9	A (89)
4	Brandon Marshall	48	13	14	10	A (85)
5	DeSean Jackson	47	21	11	6	A (85)
6	Jeremy Maclin	39	20	14	8	A- (81)
7	Julio Jones	49	10	13	8	A- (80)
8	Jordy Nelson	48	9	14	8	A- (79)
9	Michael Crabtree	40	23	10	6	A- (79)
10	Pierre Garcon	40	21	11	6	B+ (78)
11	Victor Cruz	43	20	8	6	B+ (77)
12	Randall Cobb	45	9	13	8	B (75)
13	Julian Edelman	39	16	12	8	B (75)
14	Andre Johnson	46	15	5	8	B (74)
15	Alshon Jeffery	44	13	12	5	B (74)
16	Cordarrelle Patterson	42	18	9	5	B (74)
17	Kelvin Benjamin	38	19	10	6	B (73)
18	Mike Wallace	44	8	12	7	B- (72)
19	DeAndre Hopkins	43	15	7	6	B- (71)
20	Golden Tate	35	22	10	4	B- (71)
21	Vincent Jackson	45	10	7	6	C+ (68)
22	Roddy White	38	10	11	6	C (65)
23	Sammy Watkins	41	13	7	4	C (65)
24	Anquan Boldin	34	23	5	3	C (65)
25	Keenan Allen	35	17	10	3	C (65)
26	Steve Smith	36	10	10	7	C (63)
27	Brandin Cooks	37	9	10	6	C- (62)
28	Reggie Wayne	40	6	8	6	C- (62)
29	Marques Colston	38	9	8	5	C (60)
30	Terrance Williams	33	18	4	4	D+ (59)
31	Kendall Wright	36	12	5	5	D+ (58)
32	Malcom Floyd	28	17	10	2	D+ (57)
33	Torrey Smith	38	10	4	3	D (55)
34	T.Y. Hilton	35	6	8	4	D (53)
35	Markus Wheaton	26	20	3	2	D (52)
36	Eric Decker	37	2	6	6	D (51)
37	Hakeem Nicks	32	6	8	4	D (50)
38	Mike Evans	33	10	3	1	D- (47)
39	James Jones	32	5	3	5	D- (45)
40	Cecil Shorts	30	7	3	4	D- (44)
41	Allen Hurns	30	7	3	3	D- (43)

Megatron is going to score all of the points this week, folks. All of them. I just don't see the Jets slowing him down. 

The first surprise in these rankings doesn't come until No. 9, I'm sure, when Michael Crabtree appears on the list. But the Eagles secondary is atrocious—I know firsthand, I'm an Eagles fan—and Crabtree has quietly registered 14 fantasy points in two straight weeks. He'll feast against Philly. 

Christian Petersen/Getty Images

Speaking of Philly, I really like Jeremy Maclin against a San Francisco secondary that has allowed 27.7 fantasy points to opposing wide receivers per week, 31st in the NFL. Plus, not only is Maclin currently No. 3 on the wideout rankings with 46 fantasy points, but Nick Foles has overthrown him on two passes already that should have been touchdowns and didn't see him completely uncovered down the field against the Jacksonville Jaguars for what would have been a third score.

In other words, the Eagles offense has created enough opportunities for Maclin to currently be the top option in fantasy football. Expect him to continue to produce. 

Yes, I'm choosing to believe in a few players again after big weeks. Victor Cruz, I'm trusting you again, especially against Washington's porous secondary. Speaking of Washington, the promotion of Cousins has seemingly invigorated DeSean Jackson and Pierre Garcon. Alshon Jeffery, Kelvin Benjamin and DeAndre Hopkins proved themselves again this week.

I'm worried about certain players, however.

Vincent Jackson is trapped in quarterback hell. Roddy White's injury concerns are giving me flashbacks of last season. Keenan Allen is just blending into San Diego's offense, not standing out. Sammy Watkins is only as good as EJ Manuel is, a scary proposition. Reggie Wayne actually has less fantasy points than Hakeem Nicks and T.Y. Hilton, if you can believe that. Marques Colston has gotten lost in the shuffle of weapons in New Orleans. If anyone hears from Torrey Smith, tell him his fantasy owners are worried and just want to see him again.

With running back incredibly unpredictable this year, your stud wide receivers are more important than ever. Lean on them.

Tight Ends

Rank	Player	Ability (0/50)	Matchup (0/25)	Offense (0/15)	Consistency (0/10)	OVERALL GRADE (0/100)
Rank	Player	Ability (0/50)	Matchup (0/25)	Offense (0/15)	Consistency (0/10)	OVERALL GRADE (0/100)
1	Jimmy Graham	50	25	15	10	A+ (100)
2	Rob Gronkowski	47	15	13	9	A (84)
3	Vernon Davis*	44	15	11	8	A- (78)
4	Antonio Gates	37	24	10	6	A- (77)
5	Martellus Bennett	40	5	12	7	B (64)
6	Greg Olsen	41	2	11	8	B (62)
7	Delanie Walker	33	18	7	4	B (62)
8	Zach Ertz	40	5	11	6	B (62)
9	Jason Witten	40	7	7	7	B (61)
10	Owen Daniels	36	9	8	5	C+ (58)
11	Niles Paul	35	5	10	6	C (56)
12	Travis Kelce	40	3	7	5	C (55)
13	Charles Clay	34	10	5	5	C (54)
14	Larry Donnell	32	12	6	3	C- (53)

Yes, Jimmy Graham just got a perfect grade for this week. Not only is he easily the best tight end in football, he also plays a Dallas defense that gave up 8.8 fantasy points per week to opposing tight ends last year (29th in the NFL) and is currently allowing 17 points per week to the position this year (worst in the NFL).

There are rarely sure things in football. Graham is a sure thing this week. 

Beyond that, with players like Julius Thomas and Jordan Cameron on bye this week, the pickings are a bit slim. It's time to start treating Martellus Bennett like a weekly TE1 while a healthy Owen Daniels is the best target for Joe Flacco in the red zone and should notch his share of touchdowns with Dennis Pitta done for the year.

As always at the position, trust your studs. Especially Graham.

Defense

Rank	Defense
1	New England Patriots
2	Detroit Lions
3	Houston Texans
4	San Diego Chargers
5	Miami Dolphins
6	Carolina Panthers
7	Pittsburgh Steelers
8	Washington
9	Houston Texans
10	Buffalo Bills

Kickers

Rank	Kicker	Team
1	Nick Novak	San Diego Chargers
2	Dan Bailey	Dallas Cowboys
3	Shaun Suisham	Pittsburgh Steelers
4	Cody Parkey	Philadelphia Eagles
5	Stephen Gostkowski	New England Patriots
6	Matt Bryant	Atlanta Falcons
7	Robbie Gould	Chicago Bears
8	Mason Crosby	Green Bay Packers
9	Adam Vinatieri	Indianapolis Colts
10	Caleb Sturgis	Miami Dolphins

Hit me up on Twitter—I'll answer your fantasy questions and make some corny jokes, too. It's more fun than Andy Dalton and Johnny Manziel playing receiver.