Fantasy Football Week 4 Rankings: Kyle Orton and 3 Most Unreliable QBs

Sometimes, fantasy football GMs fool themselves into thinking that a certain player can either turn around his slumping performance or can replicate successes from seasons past with no clear reasons to think so.

That's why sometimes you get stuck with an inconsistent player on your roster—even worse is if that player is your starting quarterback.

Here, I will detail three quarterbacks that shouldn't be anywhere near your starting roster (and, ideally, not on your bench either.)

Kyle Orton, Denver Broncos

In two years, Orton has gone from a workable fantasy starting quarterback known for racking up garbage time yards and touchdowns to a fantasy must-avoid, and some of this has to do with new Denver head coach John Fox's system. 

The rest of it, however, is squarely Orton's problem. While he's not helped by a rotating cast of receivers, because of numerous injuries on offense, his 224 yard-per-game average and 57.3 completion percentage can't be explained away by a coaching change.

He's had one 300-yard passing game—Week 1, versus the Oakland Raiders—and has steadily declined since, throwing for just 173 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions in the Broncos' Week 3 loss against the Tennessee Titans.

It's only going to get worse for Orton this week as his team travels to Green Bay to take on the Packers. If you've got Orton as a starting quarterback, my condolences. If you can, try to find a better option on the waiver wire.

I'd suggest doing so even if he's your QB2; if your starter goes down with an injury, you don't want to be stuck relying on Orton for the rest of the season. Time will tell if the Broncos agree.

Jay Cutler, Chicago Bears

It's quite telling that the two most unreliable fantasy (and real-life) quarterbacks come from each other's former teams. For Jay Cutler, however, his issue is less about his shortcomings as a professional player and more about struggles on the offense surrounding him.

Cutler has a bit more going for him in terms of yardage than Orton, with 858 on the season, and five touchdowns, but his completion percentage is just 54.4 percent. He's thrown three interceptions, and has been sacked a league-leading 14 times in just three games.

Now, he's stating publicly that he's sensing defensive pressure that isn't even there, throwing passes too quickly in fear of taking yet another sack. Play like that won't help his completions, nor his interception-touchdown ratio.

With a respectable offensive line and two legitimate receivers, Cutler could be an excellent starting fantasy quarterback. That he lacks these things, however, makes him a risk to even have on the bench. Cutler is currently a victim of circumstance—don't let it infect your fantasy team.

Eli Manning, New York Giants

At least Cutler and Orton are reliably unreliable fantasy quarterbacks. The same can't be said for Eli Manning, and it makes him a major risk as either a starter or backup.

Last week, Manning had a surprising four-touchdown, zero-interception performance against the Philadelphia Eagles that saw him completing just shy of 70 percent of his passes, for 254 yards.

He's never finished a season with a completion percentage higher than 63 percent, and his average so far in 2011 is just 62.4 despite the win over the Eagles.

The Giants also do not depend on Manning to win games—they just pray he doesn't lose them. He's attempted just 85 passes through three games, which means he has less of a chance to help your fantasy team (though, ideally, less of a chance to harm it as well.)

While Manning is less of a risky play than Orton or Cutler, that doesn't make him an ideal fantasy starter. He is well-suited as a bench QB2 for a bye-week fill in (while you keep your fingers crossed), but he certainly can't be trusted as an every-week QB1.