2014 Fantasy Football Ranks: Quarterback

Now to the most important position on the field and a relatively important position in fantasy football.

Tier 1: Elite

1)      Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints

2)      Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers

3)      Peyton Manning, Denver Broncos

4)      Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers

One of these things is not like the other… and it is Cam Newton. The big three all have three year completion percentages over 67%, adjusted yards per attempt above 8 and interception rates that are well above average. Newton for his part is not the passer that any of those three is but the positives he brings in the run game puts him in this class with the possibilities for rushing yards and touchdowns.

Tier 2: Good With Flaws

5)      Nick Foles, Philadelphia Eagles

6)      Tom Brady, New England Patriots

7)      Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions

8)      Andrew Luck, Indianapolis Colts

9)      Andy Dalton, Cincinnati Bengals

10)  Jay Cutler, Chicago Bears

11)  Colin Kaepernick, San Francisco 49ers

12)  Robert Griffin III, Washington Redskins

13)  Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons

14)  Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks

15)  Phillip Rivers, San Diego Chargers

Foles was superb in year one of the Chip Kelly era in Philadelphia and although I don’t expect him to recreate that exactly I believe in Kelly and the staff to put Foles in position to make the right decision and to be very good once again. Brady is the oddball in this group, he drops this season after a very average year last year in which all of his numbers took a step back and he was showing signs of decline. Stafford is also a QB on his own in this grouping, he puts up statistics but his peripherals are not what you’d want out of an elite quarterback and with an improving running game and defense he may not be asked to put the ball in the air as much. Luck, Dalton, Kaepernick, Cutler and Wilson are all young QBs that have specific issues. Luck, Dalton and Kaepernick all need to work on completion percentage, Cutler needs to cut down on his bad decision rate and Wilson and Ryan are in an offense that focuses more of its attention to the running game. Griffin and Cutler need to show they can stay healthy for a full season. Rivers is probably the closest comparison to Foles as he made major improvements on field last season after a coaching change, although unlike Foles, Rivers has a track record that he needs to overcome before I rank his in the top ten.

Tier 3: If This Is My Starter… Meh

16)  Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens

17)  Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers

18)  Alex Smith, Kansas City Chiefs

19)  Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys

20)  Eli Manning, New York Giants

21)  Brian Hoyer, Cleveland Browns

22)  Carson Palmer, Arizona Cardinals

23)  Sam Bradford, St. Louis Rams

24)  Mike Glennon, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

25)  Ryan Tannehill, Miami Dolphins

This is a group of starters who will put up solid numbers consistently but don’t have much upside. Romo, Palmer and Hoyer could move up but all have consistency issues and Hoyer and Romo are coming off of surgery that limits the upside while increasing the downside. Palmer for his part has the talent around him but has just been up and down throughout his career. Flacco, Roethlisberger and Smith are all entrenched starters but have shown the inability to solidify themselves in that next tier because of offensive philosophy and individual strengths and weakness. Flacco is in an offense that is predicated on the deep ball, Big Ben doesn’t have an offensive line and Smith doesn’t push the ball deep well and Andy Reid and staff don’t force him into areas of weakness often. Bradford needs to stay healthy, Gelnnon may not be the starter but is the best option on his roster and Tannehill needs a competent O-line before we can really judge his growth since entering the league.

Tier 4: Starters or Could Be Starters To Watch

26)  Matt Schaub, Oakland Raiders

27)  Kirk Cousins, Washington Redskins

28)  Josh McCown, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

29)  E.J. Manuel, Buffalo Bills

30)  Teddy Bridgewater, Minnesota Vikings

31)  Blake Bortles, Jacksonville Jaguars

32)  Jake Locker, Tennessee Titans

33)  Johnny Manziel, Cleveland Browns

34)  Matt Cassel, Minnesota Vikings

35)  Geno Smith, New York Jets

36)  Michael Vick, New York Jets

37)  Chad Henne, Jacksonville Jaguars

38)  Ryan Fitzpatrick, Houston Texans

The last group are veterans on the downswing or without a track record of high performance, rookies who need to see playing time before being actual options and guys who just don’t inspire any confidence.

For me the clear strategy with QBs is I want one of the top 4 if I can get them in round 3 or 4 but I don’t want to spend a round 1 or 2 pick on them. If I don’t get one of the top 4 I’m going to wait ‘til much later in the draft to get my guy and probably a backup from the second tier or tier 3. Other than that tier 4 players are just in season pick up options. Thanks for reading, let me know what you think.