Fantasy Football 2019: Early Preseason Rankings Before Hall of Fame Game

The 2019 Pro Football Hall of Fame Game is scheduled to take place on Thursday, which means the official start to the NFL preseason is upon us. For fantasy football enthusiasts, now is the time to start putting together draft and roster strategies for the upcoming season.

The only real issue with drafting at the start of the preseason—or beginning to build your "big board"—is that the next month can bring a lot of changes to the overall fantasy outlook.

Players regularly win and lose jobs during training camp and the preseason, and injuries are always an ever-present obstacle. Plus, as Le'Veon Bell drafters would tell you last year, contract issues can completely derail your fantasy plans.

Here are some of the early preseason developments that could impact your draft and roster decisions, along with an early fantasy big board based on the current league-wide landscape.

Early 2019 Fantasy Rankings (PPR)

1. Saquon Barkley, RB, New York Giants

2. Christian McCaffrey, RB, Carolina Panthers

3. Alvin Kamara, RB, New Orleans Saints

4. DeAndre Hopkins, WR, Houston Texans

5. Michael Thomas, WR, New Orleans Saints

6. Alvin Kamara, RB, New Orleans Saints

7. Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Dallas Cowboys

8. Davante Adams, WR, Green Bay Packers

9. Julio Jones, WR, Atlanta Falcons

10. Le'Veon Bell, RB, New York Jets

11. Odell Beckham Jr., WR, Cleveland Browns

12. Joe Mixon, RB, Cincinnati Bengals

13. JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers

14. Travis Kelce, TE, Kansas City Chiefs

15. Mike Evans, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

16. James Conner, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers

17. Tyreek Hill, WR, Kansas City Chiefs

18. George Kittle, TE, San Francisco 49ers

19. Nick Chubb, RB, Cleveland Browns

20. Keenan Allen, WR, Los Angeles Chargers

21. T.Y. Hilton, WR, Indianapolis Colts

22. Patrick Mahomes, QB, Kansas City Chiefs

23. Dalvin Cook, RB, Minnesota Vikings

24. Damien Williams, RB, Kansas City Chiefs

25. Adam Thielen, WR, Minnesota Vikings

26. Stefon Diggs, WR, Minnesota Vikings

27. Zach Ertz, TE, Philadelphia Eagles

28. Aaron Jones, RB, Green Bay Packers

29. Devonta Freeman, RB, Atlanta Falcons

30. Brandin Cooks, WR, Los Angeles Rams

Ezekiel Elliott Holding Out

Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott is avoiding training camp as he tries to leverage a contract upgrade. Unlike Bell last season, Elliott actually has a fair amount of leverage, as the Cowboys have based their entire offense around the two-time rushing champion. 

However, this doesn't mean that Dallas is simply going to cave and make Elliott the highest-paid back in the league. For now, the Cowboys are at least pretending that they don't need Elliott to succeed.

"That's one of the dilemmas at running back is that the league knows that you can win Super Bowls and not have the Emmitt Smith back there or not have Zeke back there," owner Jerry Jones told CBS 11 Dallas-Fort Worth.

Dallas recently signed Alfred Morris as a bit of Elliott insurance, which does at least provide a fallback option. While Morris hasn't been a 1,000-yard back since 2014, he does have familiarity with the Cowboys, having played in Dallas in 2016 and 2017.

Elliott's situation is worth watching, and it knocks him down the rankings just a bit—he'd be a top-two choice if his status was more certain. However, my belief is that the Cowboys will find a way to get him into the fold before the start of the regular season. Jones desperately wants to win another Super Bowl, and Dallas is going to need Elliott to do so.

Expect Dallas to offer some sort of high-paying, short-term extension in order to get Elliott into camp.

Melvin Gordon Also Holding Out

Steven Senne/Associated Press

Elliott isn't the only top-tier running back holding out of training camp. Los Angeles Chargers back Melvin Gordon is doing the same. The issue for Gordon is that he doesn't have nearly as much leverage as Elliott does.

Los Angeles managed to keep rolling when Gordon was out due to injury last season. The combination of Justin Jackson and Austin Ekeler is more than enough to provide the Chargers with a functional rushing attack.

The Chargers appear fully content to roll into 2019 with those two leading the charge.

"We love Melvin, but we're going to go with what we've got. It's a pretty dang good group," quarterback Philip Rivers said, per Matt Szabo of the Daily Pilot.

Perhaps more importantly, the Chargers aren't as reliant on the running game as Dallas is. They have a Hall of Fame-caliber quarterback in Rivers and a plethora of quality receiving options—like Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, Travis Benjamin and Hunter Henry.

Don't be afraid to take a third- or fourth-round flier on Gordon, but do not overdraft him. Even if he does end his holdout, the rise of Ekeler and Jackson may mean that Gordon is no longer the centerpiece of L.A.'s ground game. If his holdout continues deep into the preseason, it will increase the value of Ekeler, Jackson and the Chargers' top receiving options.

A.J. Green Likely to Miss Games

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green has been a first-round-worthy target in years past, but that is not the case this year.

In addition to the uncertainty surrounding the rebuild in Cincinnati—new head coach Zac Taylor is implementing a new offense—Green is likely to miss regular-season time with an ankle injury he suffered at the start of camp.

"I don't like to make that projection because everybody heals a little bit differently, but we're ready for him to come back when he feels healthy and ready to go," Taylor said, per Ben Baby of ESPN.com. "Hopefully, it's not more than a couple of games."

Ankle issues can be particularly problematic for a downfield receiver like Green. This further hurts his already declining stock—Green has failed to reach 1,000 yards in two of the past three seasons. Even if Green does return within the first month of the season, he's unlikely to be at 100 percent.

You should be fine to take a mid-round flier on Green, but grabbing within the first couple rounds would be a mistake when there are healthy players available. His injury also means you should upgrade Tyler Boyd, who did top 1,000 yards last season and who should slide into Cincinnati's No. 1 receiver role during Green's absence.