Fantasy Football Week One Rankings: The 10 Best Starters

With the NFL season just hours away, Fantasy managers worldwide are scrambling to get the right team "on the field." They are meticulously tweaking every little aspect to find that right matchup, that player who will garner the most points.

With so many matchups and games to choose from it’s a wonder that Tylenol sales don’t go flying off the shelves just before opening day.

Or do they?

In any event, I thought it may be a good idea to do a ranking list week-to-week highlighting the players who potentially will garner the top-10 greatest amounts of points based on history, conditions, and individual matchups.

Now, this sort of rankings is very good for PPR leagues, H2H leagues, and is incredibly optimal for Salary Cap leagues.  In addition I will track each week for those reading on a constant basis.

So let’s get started, shall we?

10. Aaron Rodgers-QB-Green Bay

Rodgers opens up what promises to be another big year, and he will get his start against Chicago who has been up and down defensively in the preseason. Last year, Rodgers threw for 537 yards and four touchdowns in both matchups with a not so healthy WR corps. You do the math.

Rodgers also has a tremendous upside for Salary Cap owners as he faces Cincinnati and St. Louis afterwards, giving you three solid weeks. You can either drop him before Minnesota or afterwards at the bye, but either way his stock will definitely be high, as well as his cumulative points.

9. Felix Jones-RB-Dal

Jones faces a Tampa team that is not the defensive team they used to be.  Considering Jones will be a focal point more so with the addition of the Wildcat, he is a must play and a definite top 10 guy in week one.

Jones owners in Salary Cap leagues could justify holding on to him all the way up to the team’s week six bye, and in general Jones should be a quick Fantasy stud.

8. Anquan Boldin-WR-Ari

Yup, that’s right I am saying Boldin, NOT Fitzgerald. Last year against the the 49ers Fitzgerald produced 11 catches for 77 yards and two TDs while Boldin produced 15 catches for 174 yards and two TDs, so the PPR value is very clear here.

Boldin was a 1,000+ yard receiver last year and will no doubt repeat or better his performance of a year ago, but I don’t like his value in Salary Cap leagues until after the week four bye.

7. Kurt Warner-QB-Ari

Well you had to see this coming shortly after No. 8 right? Warner torched the 49ers last year going a combined 525 yards and four TDs. With Wells in the mix you can bet Warner will have a monster day.

Same as above applies to Salary Cap leagues.  Keep him for week one and find another QB you can hold on to for week two.

6. Antonio Gates-TE-SD

Gates was a stud in the first matchup last year against Oakland with five catches for 58 yards and a TD but was M.I.A. in the second matchup, and because of this he has some unfinished business with the Raiders. This game should be big for any owner possessing a Charger player on their roster.

His Salary Cap value could be bigger than you may think. The Chargers play some pretty good defenses with better than average coverage which could mean a lot of red zone looks.

5. LaDainian Tomlinson-RB-SD

197 yards with three TDs in two matchups against Oakland and that was on a bad year! The rumor is his touches might go down a bit but you can bank on him tearing it up against Oakland in week one.

Salary Cap managers should keep a close eye on the box scores to gauge how much he is being used and whether or not it is worth it.

4. T.J. Houshmandzadeh-WR-Sea

Housh had a so-so year last year for good reason, and his new home in Seattle is going to be the perfect marriage between Housh and Hasselback; game one will be the first explosive example of that. Let's face it: the Rams have problems, and the majority of them are on defense. In addition, this game will be played in Seattle

Housh may cool down a bit, but not enough to warrant you selling high before the week seven bye; I say ride him as far as you can.

3. Phillip Rivers-QB-SD

Rivers threw for 394 yards and three TDs with a beat up Charger team while he was nicked up pretty good. This year the team is fresh and the QB is healthy, so there are no holds barred here.

Salary Cap owners could see some worth early on, but I see more balance in the offense which may make him a good third or fourth option depending on your cap amount.

2. Adrian Peterson-RB-Min

Forget about the fact that the man had 10 games over 100 yards last year. Forget that the man now has a better right side offensive line giving him even more options to explore on the ground. But for god sake do remember that he opens up the season against Cleveland.

And if that’s not enough, he goes on to play Detroit, San Fran, Green Bay, and St. Louis in his first five games. Against Detroit last year he combined for 216 yards, against Green bay he combined for 395 yards. Start him, keep him, and enjoy in all formats.

1. Drew Brees-QB-NO

I really hate to pick on Detroit, but Brees and the entire Saints club is coming into this year with a huge chip on their shoulder and Detroit just happens to be the first victim. Brees lit up the Lions last year for 351 yards and two TDs on 30 completions, and chances are he’ll do it again.

The ceiling is very high for his Salary Cap value as he will also face a banged up Eagles squad in week two, a suspect Bills squad in week three, and a porous Jets squad in week four before the bye, so if you have cap room pick him up and hold onto him till then.

Well, there you have it a small summary of week one. Be sure to come back next Thursday for the week two outlook and to see how these predictions held

For a more in-depth look at the NFC East click here.

Good luck everyone!