NOTE: These player rankings track a player’s value for the remainder of the season and are intended to be used as a tool, not necessarily a definitive guide to player valuation. The scoring system is performance PPR.

There is no exact science behind season-long rankings, considering all of the variables and situational uncertainties at work. Defensive teams have been added but will not have analysis.

QUARTERBACKS

Rk	Mv	Player	Team	Bye
1		Patrick Mahomes	KC	12
2		Deshaun Watson	HOU	10
3		Aaron Rodgers	GB	11
4		Baker Mayfield	CLE	7
5		Matt Ryan	ATL	9
6		Cam Newton	CAR	7
7		Jared Goff	LAR	9
8		Carson Wentz	PHI	10
9		Drew Brees	NO	9
10	13	Lamar Jackson	BAL	8
11		B. Roethlisberger	PIT	7
12	15	Dak Prescott	DAL	8
13		Russell Wilson	SEA	11
14	18	Tom Brady	NE	10
15		Philip Rivers	LAC	12
16	12	Jameis Winston	TB	7
17		Kyler Murray	ARI	12
18	16	Kirk Cousins	MIN	12
19		M. Trubisky	CHI	6
20		Derek Carr	OAK	6
21	24	Andy Dalton	CIN	9
22		M. Stafford	DET	5
23		Sam Darnold	NYJ	4
24		Josh Allen	BUF	6
25		Jimmy Garoppolo	SF	4
26		Jacoby Brissett	IND	6
27		Joe Flacco	DEN	10
28		Eli Manning	NYG	11
29		Marcus Mariota	TEN	11
30		Dwayne Haskins	WAS	10
31		R. Fitzpatrick	MIA	5
32		Case Keenum	WAS	10
33	NR	Gardner Minshew	JAC	10
34		Daniel Jones	NYG	11
35		Josh Rosen	MIA	5
36	26	Nick Foles	JAC	10
37		Ryan Tannehill	TEN	11

QUARTERBACK MOVEMENT

Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens

Overreacting to Week 1 performances is a time-honored tradition, but it’s hard not to get excited about the game Jackson played yesterday. He was accurate, decisive and produced huge numbers without running the ball. Yes, it was against the Dolphins, but they have some quality CBs and coverage wasn’t as bad as you might expect. He was already a fringe QB1 thanks to his rushing ability. After watching him drop dimes Sunday, I’m moving him into the top 10.

Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys

Like Jackson, Prescott torched a bottom feeder in Week 1. Unlike the Dolphins, however, the Giants looked lost in the secondary and their complete lack of pressure made things way too easy for Prescott. Add to that a smaller dose of Ezekiel Elliott than we’ll get most weeks and it created ideal conditions for Prescott to shine. Still, I liked what I saw enough to move him up a bit.

Baker Mayfield, Cleveland Browns

On the other end of the spectrum, Mayfield and the much-hyped Browns offense authored a stinker in a blowout loss to the Titans. You can’t pin it all on Mayfield, who got beat up behind a shaky line that had its left tackle ejected and piled up the penalties. There’s too much talent here to overreact to one bad game, which is the same approach I’m taking with other high-profile QBs — Aaron Rodgers, Matt Ryan, Jared Goff, Cam Newton — that struggled in Week 1. Better days are ahead.

Kyler Murray, Arizona Cardinals

I deliberated a lot over Murray, who looked pretty bad for three quarters before lighting up the Lions in the fourth and overtime. It felt like the Lions took their foot off the gas and/or wore down as players are wont to do after playing sparingly for the past eight months. Week 2 presents a much tougher test on the road at Baltimore, so I’m keeping Murray where he is for the time being.

Others of note

Jameis Winston is the kind of player that may well finish the year with QB1 numbers, but throwing three INTs in the opener underscores how stressful it can be to stick him in your lineup … Tom Brady looked great, and they added Antonio Brown so up TB12 goes. Knock on wood if you’re with me … What you saw in Minnesota yesterday is exactly how Mike Zimmer wants to win football games: run and play tough defense. I’m mildly concerned what this means for Kirk Cousins and the passing game … You have my curiosity, Gardner Minshew.

RUNNING BACKS

Rk	Mv	Player	Team	Bye
1		C. McCaffrey	CAR	7
2		Saquon Barkley	NYG	11
3		Ezekiel Elliott	DAL	8
4		Alvin Kamara	NO	9
5		David Johnson	ARI	12
6		Joe Mixon	CIN	9
7	10	Dalvin Cook	MIN	12
8		James Conner	PIT	7
9		Todd Gurley II	LAR	9
10		Le’Veon Bell	NYJ	4
11	13	Josh Jacobs	OAK	6
12		Nick Chubb	CLE	7
13		Devonta Freeman	ATL	9
14		Aaron Jones	GB	11
15		Chris Carson	SEA	11
16	12	Kerryon Johnson	DET	5
17		Derrick Henry	TEN	11
18	13	L. Fournette	JAC	10
19		Sony Michel	NE	10
20		M. Gordon III	LAC	12
21		Duke Johnson	HOU	10
22		D. Montgomery	CHI	6
23		James White	NE	10
24		Mark Ingram II	BAL	8
25	31	Austin Ekeler	LAC	12
26		Derrius Guice	WAS	10
27		Marlon Mack	IND	6
28		Phillip Lindsay	DEN	10
29		Damien Williams	KC	12
30		D. Singletary	BUF	6
31		Tarik Cohen	CHI	6
32		Miles Sanders	PHI	10
33	38	Matt Breida	SF	4
34		Jordan Howard	PHI	10
35		Latavius Murray	NO	9
36		LeSean McCoy	KC	12
37	33	Tevin Coleman	SF	4
38		Royce Freeman	DEN	10
39	30	Kenyan Drake	MIA	5
40		Rashaad Penny	SEA	11
41	53	Malcolm Brown	LAR	9
42		Kareem Hunt	CLE	7
43	41	Peyton Barber	TB	7
44	50	Ronald Jones II	TB	7
45		Kalen Ballage	MIA	5
46		Jaylen Samuels	PIT	7
47		Justice Hill	BAL	8
48		Tony Pollard	DAL	8
49		A. Mattison	MIN	12
50	63	Carlos Hyde	HOU	10
51		Justin Jackson	LAC	12
52		Darwin Thompson	KC	12
53		Frank Gore	BUF	6
54		Dion Lewis	TEN	11
55	42	D. Henderson	LAR	9
56		Nyheim Hines	IND	6
57		Jalen Richard	OAK	6
58		Jamaal Williams	GB	11
59		Chris Thompson	WAS	10
60		Darren Sproles	PHI	10
61		C.J. Anderson	DET	5
62	NR	Raheem Mostert	SF	4
63		Damien Harris	NE	10
64		Ty Montgomery	NYJ	4
65		Giovani Bernard	CIN	9
66		Adrian Peterson	WAS	10
67		R. Armstead	JAC	10
68		T.J. Yeldon	BUF	6
69		Chase Edmonds	ARI	12
70		Ito Smith	ATL	9
71		Mike Davis	CHI	6
72		Wayne Gallman	NYG	11
73		Jordan Scarlett	CAR	7

RUNNING BACK MOVEMENT

Dalvin Cook, Minnesota Vikings

Cook accounted for 120 of Minnesota’s 270 yards in Week 1 and tallied half of their four TDs. It was an excellent performance for a back that has flashed his talent but dealt with significant injuries during his first two seasons. He looks poised to be the focal point of the Vikings offense and is eying up a spot in my top five if he can stay healthy.

Todd Gurley, Los Angeles Rams

Gurley’s health was arguably the biggest fantasy story of the offseason and after one game there isn’t a lot of clarity. He was a non-factor in the passing game and carried 14 times. That’s just three more than Malcolm Brown, who scored both of the team’s rushing TDs and is ahead of Darrell Henderson on the depth chart. As such, I’m essentially swapping Brown and Henderson, but don’t be too quick to cut bait on the rookie.

Philadelphia Eagles

It was textbook running back by committee time in Philly on Sunday with Miles Sanders (12 touches), Darren Sproles (12) and Jordan Howard (eight) splitting time. While Sproles and Howard did more with their opportunities, I’m not inclined to start moving guys around just yet-and don’t forget that Sanders had a 21-yard touchdown run wiped out on a penalty.

Tevin Coleman, San Francisco 49ers

A high-ankle sprain will keep Coleman sidelined for a bit, though he’s not headed to IR. Minus Coleman, Matt Breida gets a bump and Raheem Mostert becomes an interesting short-term waiver option. Keep in mind that the 49ers have a bye in Week 4, which will help minimize the amount of actual game action that Coleman will miss.

Others of note

I didn’t like the split between Kerryon Johnson and C.J. Anderson, which smacked of last year’s ill-fated idea to waste precious touches on LeGarrette Blount … Another thing I didn’t like was the Miami running game. It was brutal, and it makes me wonder if Kenyan Drake or Kalen Ballage can be more than FLEX plays most weeks this year … Despite a putrid rookie season, Ronald Jones has more pure talent than Peyton Barber. Jones got more touches and was more productive than Barber in Week 1. I’ll be watching Thursday night to see if a trend is developing … Melvin Gordon: If the “miss six to eight weeks” chatter is accurate, and he plays, say, nine or 10 games, top-20 placement is reasonable. If he returns when he has to for Week 10, with LA’s Week 12 bye, we’re looking at a max of seven games. Since fantasy typically runs through Week 16, it’s basically six. Give it another week for more clarity. … Derrius Guice will be updated once we know more about his prognosis. It is said he may miss only a couple of games. He’ll go down a few spots, while Adrian Peterson will ascend.

WIDE RECEIVERS

Rk	Mv	Player	Team	Bye
1		DeAndre Hopkins	HOU	10
2		Davante Adams	GB	11
3		Julio Jones	ATL	9
4		Michael Thomas	NO	9
5		J. Smith-Schuster	PIT	7
6		O. Beckham Jr.	CLE	7
7		Mike Evans	TB	7
8		Adam Thielen	MIN	12
9		Antonio Brown	NE	6
10		Brandin Cooks	LAR	9
11		Keenan Allen	LAC	12
12	7	Tyreek Hill	KC	12
13		Robert Woods	LAR	9
14		Amari Cooper	DAL	8
15		Kenny Golladay	DET	5
16		Cooper Kupp	LAR	9
17		Tyler Lockett	SEA	11
18		Stefon Diggs	MIN	12
19		Chris Godwin	TB	7
20		Julian Edelman	NE	10
21		Robby Anderson	NYJ	4
22		DJ Moore	CAR	7
23		Tyler Boyd	CIN	9
24		A. Robinson II	CHI	6
25		T.Y. Hilton	IND	6
26		Mike Williams	LAC	12
27	34	Tyrell Williams	OAK	6
28		Calvin Ridley	ATL	9
29	38	Sammy Watkins	KC	12
30		S. Shepard	NYG	11
31		A.J. Green	CIN	9
32	41	L. Fitzgerald	ARI	12
33		Dede Westbrook	JAC	10
34		Jarvis Landry	CLE	7
35	35	Corey Davis	TEN	11
36		Josh Gordon	NE	10
37		E. Sanders	DEN	10
38	67	Marquise Brown	BAL	8
39		Will Fuller V	HOU	10
40		Alshon Jeffery	PHI	10
41		Curtis Samuel	CAR	7
42		M. Valdes-Scantling	GB	11
43	48	DeSean Jackson	PHI	10
44		Donte Moncrief	PIT	7
45		C. Sutton	DEN	10
46	53	Michael Gallup	DAL	8
47		Christian Kirk	ARI	12
48		Jamison Crowder	NYJ	4
49		Dante Pettis	SF	4
50		John Brown	BUF	6
51		Kenny Stills	HOU	10
52		M. Jones Jr.	DET	5
53		J. Washington	PIT	7
54		Anthony Miller	CHI	6
55	49	G. Allison	GB	11
56		Tre’quan Smith	NO	9
57	60	DJ Chark Jr.	JAC	10
58		Golden Tate	NYG	11
59		Trey Quinn	WAS	10
60		DeVante Parker	MIA	5
61		DK Metcalf	SEA	11
62		Randall Cobb	DAL	8
63	71	Chris Conley	JAC	10
64		Mohamed Sanu	ATL	9
65		Rashard Higgins	CLE	7
66		P. Richardson Jr.	WAS	10
67	80	Terry McLaurin	WAS	10
68		Danny Amendola	DET	5
69	76	KeeSean Johnson	ARI	12
70		Deebo Samuel	SF	4
71		Keke Coutee	HOU	10
72		Adam Humphries	TEN	11
73		Hunter Renfrow	OAK	6
74	91	John Ross	CIN	9
75		Willie Snead IV	BAL	8
76	90	P. Dorsett II	NE	10
77		Zay Jones	BUF	6
78	89	A.J. Brown	TEN	11
79		Albert Wilson	MIA	5
80		Robert Foster	BUF	6
81		Ted Ginn Jr.	NO	9
82		M. Goodwin	SF	4
83		Miles Boykin	BAL	8
84		Mecole Hardman	KC	12
85		B. Perriman	TB	7
86		D. Hamilton	DEN	10
87		Quincy Enunwa	NYJ	4
88		P. Williams	MIA	5
89		Taylor Gabriel	CHI	6
90		Chad Beebe	MIN	12
91		Nelson Agholor	PHI	10
92		Andy Isabella	ARI	12
93		Jalen Hurd	SF	4
94		D. Thomas	NE	10
95	74	Devin Funchess	IND	6

WIDE RECEIVER MOVEMENT

Tyreek Hill, Kansas City Chiefs

Hill suffered a collarbone injury in Week 1, but word is he won’t need surgery and won’t be placed on IR, which means he might only miss a few games. Until there’s more clarity about the duration of the injury I’m moving Hill down a few slots and bringing up Sammy Watkins, who embarrassed the Jacksonville secondary to the tune of 198 yards and three TDs. The talent has always been there. If Watkins can stay healthy he could pay huge dividends in that offense.

Marquise Brown, Baltimore Ravens

Despite maintaining a healthy skepticism of rookie receivers, I’m moving Brown way up in the rankings after his 147-yard, two-touchdown debut. Why? For starters, I had him pretty low after an offseason spent recovering from Lisfranc surgery. I needed to see something, and I saw it. Second, there are no established top-tier receivers in Baltimore. Lastly, speed kills, and Brown is a threat to take it to the house every time he touches the ball. I expect some peaks and valleys, but there’s no way Brown shouldn’t be owned in all formats now.

Arizona Cardinals

Murray threw 54 passes on Sunday, 35 of which went to the trio of Larry Fitzgerald (13), Christian Kirk (12) and KeeSean Johnson (10). I certainly anticipated Fitzgerald being a frequent target for the rookie, but it was eye opening to see Fitzgerald working downfield — he had two 40-plus yard grabs in Week 1 after having zero over the past three seasons combined. As a result, I have to move the ageless one up the rankings.

Others of note

It was a slow day for Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs, but I’m not doing any tweaking just yet … Devin Funchess was already a fringe contributor, and now that he’s out until at least Week 10 with a broken clavicle I’m dropping him to the bottom of the rankings … DeSean Jackson has always been feast or famine from one week to the next, so even though I’m moving him up a little he’s still a risky play … While that was a great showing from John Ross, I’m not inclined to move him to must-own status; one game doesn’t wash away two seasons of being almost invisible … That sentiment applies to Philip Dorsett as well … I’m keeping an eye on the Robby Anderson/Jamison Crowder dynamic … Terry McLaurin had a great debut, and as with Brown there are no alpha dogs in DC to keep him down. I don’t like the QB situation, however, despite a strong Week 1 from Case Keenum.

TIGHT ENDS

Rk	Mv	Player	Team
1		Travis Kelce	KC
2		Zach Ertz	PHI
3		Evan Engram	NYG
4		George Kittle	SF
5		O.J. Howard	TB
6		Hunter Henry	LAC
7		Austin Hooper	ATL
8		Jared Cook	NO
9		Darren Waller	OAK
10	16	T.J. Hockenson	DET
11		Vance McDonald	PIT
12		Mark Andrews	BAL
13	12	Delanie Walker	TEN
14		Jimmy Graham	GB
15		Eric Ebron	IND
16		David Njoku	CLE
17		Trey Burton	CHI
18		Kyle Rudolph	MIN
19		Jack Doyle	IND
20		Jordan Reed	WAS
21		Greg Olsen	CAR
22		Mike Gesicki	MIA
23		Dallas Goedert	PHI
24		Chris Herndon	NYJ
25		Noah Fant	DEN
26		Tyler Eifert	CIN
27		Cameron Brate	TB
28		Gerald Everett	LAR
29		Matt LaCosse	NE
30		Jonnu Smith	TEN
31		Jason Witten	DAL
32		Tyler Higbee	LAR
33		Nick Vannett	SEA
34		C.J. Uzomah	CIN
35		Vernon Davis	WAS
36		Hayden Hurst	BAL

TIGHT END MOVEMENT

T.J. Hockenson, Detroit Lions

Rookie tight ends are supposed to struggle with the transition to the NFL. Don’t tell Hockenson that. The Iowa product looked excellent and was a primary part of Detroit’s passing attack, finishing tied for second with nine targets and turning it into a 6-131-1 line. Even with the unavoidable bumps in the road, I’m in on Hockenson being a legitimate TE1 this season.

Others of note

If you were ready to throw dirt on Jimmy Graham (3-30-1) or Delanie Walker (5-55-2), it’s time to rethink that. Walker looked spry and was heavily involved for the Titans, while Green Bay picked their spots with Graham rather than playing him every down to get abused as a blocker … That was not an inspiring Week 1 showing from Eric Ebron, which included failing to hold onto a touchdown pass.

DEFENSE

Rk	Mv	Team		Team	Bye
1		Bears	1	CHI	6
2		Rams	2	LAR	9
3		Ravens	3	BAL	8
4		Patriots	4	NE	10
5	8	Vikings	8	MIN	12
6		Chargers	5	LAC	12
7		Cowboys	9	DAL	8
8		Texans	10	HOU	10
9	7	Jaguars	7	JAC	10
10		Eagles	11	PHI	10
11	6	Broncos	6	DEN	10
12		Seahawks	12	SEA	11
13		Saints	13	NO	9
14	18	Packers	18	GB	11
15		Chiefs	15	KC	12
16		Browns	16	CLE	7
17		49ers	17	SF	4
18	21	Titans	21	TEN	11
19	14	Redskins	14	WAS	10
20		Jets	19	NYJ	4
21	32	Panthers	32	CAR	6
22		Colts	20	IND	6
23	31	Raiders	31	OAK	11
24		Falcons	23	ATL	5
25		Lions	24	DET	9
26		Cardinals	25	ARI	5
27		Bengals	26	CIN	12
28		Bills	27	BUF	9
29		Steelers	28	PIT	6
30		Buccaneers	29	TB	7
31		Giants	30	NYG	7
32	22	Dolphins	22	MIA	7