Fantasy Football Week 1 Rankings: Reviewing All Positions Before Season Openers

If you are playing in a season-long fantasy football league with friends, co-workers or relatives, you may be able to shake off an early season loss or two and battle your way back into the playoffs.

However, that mindset must be eliminated. The fantasy football season is trying and difficult, and even the best rosters will be tested by injuries and slumps.

Getting off to a slow start and recovering? Forget about it. If you want to win, there must be some urgency, and that means you need to have the most promising players in the lineup in Week 1.

This is the week to look at the players at the top of your roster and insert them in your lineup. You drafted Alvin Kamara in the first round for a reason, so don't outthink yourself and try to sub in an eighth- or ninth-rounder just to show how smart you are. That could be a crucial mistake.

Those playing daily fantasy football understand there is no starting slowly. You have to put your best players in the lineup and let the backups sit on the bench. You have a limited amount of money to spend, so every choice must be a wise one. 

We present our rankings for Week 1, and we provide some explanation for some of our top choices at quarterback, running back, wideout and tight end. We also include our rankings at placekicker and defense, but selections at those positions are almost always quite random, with luck playing a key role.

Standard League, Top-10 Rankings and Projections

Quarterback

1. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers, vs. Chicago Bears: 315 yards, 3 TDs
2. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints, vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 300 yards, 3 TDs
3. Philip Rivers, Los Angeles Chargers, vs. Kansas City Chiefs: 285 yards, 3 TDs
4. Kirk Cousins, Minnesota Vikings, vs. San Francisco 49ers: 300 yards, 2 TDs
5. Tom Brady, New England Patriots, vs. Houston Texans: 280 yards, 2 TDs
6. Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions, vs. New York Jets: 275 yards, 2 TDs
7. Deshaun Watson, Houston Texans at New England Patriots: 240 yards, 1 TD; 70 rushing yards, 1 TD
8. Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers at Cleveland Browns: 250 yards, 2 TDs
9. Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks at Denver Broncos: 240 yards, 1 TD; 40 rushing yards, 1 TD
10. Marcus Mariota, Tennessee Titans at Miami Dolphins: 240 yards, 2 TD

There's always a touch of nerves at the start of every NFL season for the majority of players, no matter how many years they have been in the league. The belief here is that Tom Brady may know how to deal with those nerves better than any other player, but he will feel some anxiety when he takes the field in Foxborough, Massachusetts, against the Texans.

However, Kirk Cousins may feel more nervous/excited than most veterans. The former Redskins quarterback is making his first start for the Minnesota Vikings, and he will be leading a team that many believe have an excellent shot at winning the NFC North for a second straight year and representing the NFC in the Super Bowl.

Looking good on paper and coming off an excellent 2017 season means little in the NFL. It's a "what have you done for me lately" type of league, and both Cousins and his teammates are under pressure.

The belief here is that both Cousins and the Vikings are going to live up to the hype and come through this season, and they will take their first step in the season opener at home against the San Francisco 49ers.

Jimmy Garoppolo is good enough to push the excellent Minnesota defense hard for at least a half, and that will help inspire Cousins to come through with a big game of his own.

Look for Cousins to rank at least fourth among quarterbacks in Week 1.

Running Backs

1. Todd Gurley, Los Angeles Rams at Oakland Raiders: 165 rushing yards, 45 receiving yards, 2 TDs
2. David Johnson, Arizona Cardinals vs. Washington Redskins: 150 rushing yards, 55 receiving yards, 2 TDs.
3. Alvin Kamara, New Orleans Saints vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 120 rushing yards, 84 receiving yards, 2 TDs.
4. Ezekiel Elliott, Dallas Cowboys at Carolina Panthers: 145 rushing yards, 2 TDs
5. Melvin Gordon, Los Angeles Chargers vs. Kansas City Chiefs: 115 rushing yards, 1 TD
6. Kareem Hunt, Kansas City Chiefs at San Diego Chargers: 91 rushing yards, 1 TD
7. Leonard Fournette, Jacksonville Jaguars at New York Giants: 90 rushing yards, 1 TD
8. Saquon Barkley, New York Giants vs. Jacksonville Jaguars: 88 rushing yards, 1 TD
9. Dalvin Cook, Minnesota Vikings vs. San Francisco 49ers: 80 rushing yards
10. Jordan Howard, Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers: 78 rushing yards

Alvin Kamara had a dramatic impact on the New Orleans offense as a rookie, and he should play an even bigger role this year for Sean Payton and Drew Brees.

Kamara is nearly the prototype for today's running backs in the NFL because of his speed, quickness and ability to fiy through tackles. In addition to his ability to slash between the tackles and get to the outside, he is also a stellar receiver.

The 23-year-old is coming off a season in which he ran for 728 yards and scored eight touchdowns and also caught 81 passes for 826 yards and five touchdowns. 

Look for Kamara to take advantage of the Bucs in Week 1. Kamara had 84 receiving yards in both games against Tampa Bay last year, so look for him to reach that figure this time around as well.

Wide Receiver

1. Antonio Brown, Pittsburgh Steelers at Cleveland Browns: 10 catches, 175 yards, 2 TDs
2. DeAndre Hopkins, Houston Texans at New England Patriots: 8 catches, 150 yards, 2 TDs
3. Michael Thomas, New Orleans Saints vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 8 catches, 125 yards, 2 TDs
4. A.J. Green, Cincinnati Bengals at Indianapolis Colts: 8 catches, 115 yards, 1 TD
5. Julio Jones, Atlanta Falcons at Philadelphia Eagles: 7 catches, 100 yards, 1 TD
6. Davante Adams, Green Bay Packers vs. Chicago Bears: 7 catches, 95 yards, 1 TD
7. Keenan Allen, Los Angeles Chargers vs. Kansas City Chiefs: 6 catches, 90 yards, 1 TD
9. Odell Beckham Jr., New York Giants vs. Jacksonville Jaguars: 6 catches, 85 yards 1 TD
10. Doug Baldwin, Seattle Seahawks at Denver Broncos: 8 catches, 95 yards

The Cincinnati Bengals are almost always associated with the word "disappointment." The Bengals have played well in the first half of the season and disappointed in the second half.

They have also had poor seasons from the start and disappointed their long-suffering fans. The Bengals have also built playoff teams in the Marvin Lewis era and lost each postseason game they have played, which is another disappointment.

However, the Bengals have quite a bit of talent on both sides of the ball, and they have looked sharp in many areas this summer. 

Veteran receiver A.J. Green is one of those who has gotten positive reviews for his work ethic this summer, and he should be in a position to get off to an excellent start in the opener when the Bengals go to Indianapolis.

It's difficult to see the Colts having enough talent on defense and playing well enough to slow Green down. He will have a banner day as the Bengals start the season with a convincing win that includes a big day from their best wide receiver.

Tight Ends

1. Rob Gronkowski, New England Patriots vs. Houston Texans: 8 catches, 140 yards, 2 TDs
2. Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs at Los Angeles Chargers: 7 catches, 105 yards, 1 TD
3. Greg Olsen, Carolina Panthers vs. Dallas Cowboys: 7 catches, 100 yards, 1 TD
4. Zach Ertz, Philadelphia Eagles vs. Atlanta Falcons: 6 catches, 85 yards, 1 TD
5. Kyle Rudolph, Minnesota Vikings vs. San Francisco 49ers: 6 catches, 85 yards
6. Jordan Reed, Washington Redskins at Arizona Cardinals: 5 catches, 78 yards
7. Trey Burton, Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers: 5 catches, 75 yards
8. Delanie Walker, Tennessee Titans at Miami Dolphins: 5 catches 70 yards
9. O.J. Howard, Tampa Bay Buccaneers at New Orleans Saints: 5 catches, 68 yards
10. David Njoku, Cleveland Browns vs. Pittsburgh Steelers: 5 catches, 60 yards

Greg Olsen is the NFL's version of a metronome.

It may be somewhat ironic that he plays with quarterback Cam Newton on the Carolina Panthers, because the signal caller is not known for his consistency. Newton has a lot of highs and lows, but Olsen continues to do his thing even when the quarterback is struggling.

The reason for that is when Newton is getting hit hard or struggling with his accuracy, he knows he can go to Olsen because the 12-year veteran has excellent hands and will almost never drop the ball.

Olsen missed nine games with a broken foot last year, but that injury is in the past and he is healthy this year. Look for Olsen to get off to a good start at home against the Cowboys and once again show off his consistency.

Placekickers

1. Justin Tucker, Baltimore Ravens
2. Stephen Gostkowski, New England Patriots
3. Greg Zuerlein, Los Angeles Rams
4. Matt Prater, Detroit Lions
5. Wil Lutz, New Orleans Saints
6. Jake Elliott, Philadelphia Eagles
7. Harrison Butker, Kansas City Chiefs
8. Chris Boswell, Pittsburgh Steelers
9. Matt Bryant, Atlanta Falcons
10. Adam Vinatieri, Indianapolis Colts

Defense

1. Los Angeles Rams
2. Baltimore Ravens
3. Jacksonville Jaguars
4. Minnesota Vikings
5. New Orleans Saints
6. Tennessee Titans
7. Denver Broncos
8. Detroit Lions
9. Carolina Panthers
10. Arizona Cardinals