Post-NFL Draft 2018 Fantasy Football QB Rankings: Wilson Still No. 1
By Nick Ferris in NFL Football
Published:
- Are there any rookie QBs who can strike fantasy football gold for your team in 2018?
- Where does Deshaun Watson rank among QBs in fantasy after setting the NFL on fire for a brief five-week span in 2017?
- Read on to see the top 40 QBs heading into the 2018 fantasy football season
The 2018 NFL Draft saw five quarterbacks selected in the first-round, and a few of them have the potential to get under center early in their rookie seasons. But we’re not just here to talk rookie pivots.
There are many questions regarding signal-callers heading into the 2018 NFLÂ Fantasy Football season. Is Tom Brady still a top tier option even though he’ll be 41 years old before Week 1? What can we expect from Deshaun Watson after his brief, but incredible, handful of games in 2017? And where does San Francisco’s golden boy, Jimmy Garoppolo, fit in among fantasy QBs?
It may be a little early for some to start chatting fantasy, but for us fantasy football freaks, dynasty owners, and best-ball players, this article might even be a little late. Here are my QB rankings for the 2018 NFL season.
Scoring is based on the standard system:
- 4 pts per TD thrown
- 6 pts per rushing/receiving TD
- -2 pts per INT
- -2 pts per fumble lost
- 1 pt for every 25 passing yards
- 1 pt for every 10 rushing yards
| Rank | Name | Team | 2017 Fantasy Pts | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Russell Wilson | SEA | 347.9 | Added the nations leading rusher in the 1st-rd, Rashaad Penny. He’s made it work behind a Swiss cheese o-line before. |
| 2 | Aaron Rodgers | GB | 129.6 | In spite of the Jordy Nelson departure, and little help added through the draft, Rodgers is still one of the best QBs in the league. |
| 3 | Cam Newton | CAR | 299.5 | 1st-rd pick DJ Moore has made plays with inaccurate QBs throwing to him the last three years. It won’t change in the pros. |
| 4 | Tom Brady | NE | 295.9 | A new year brings a new weapon for Tom: 1st-rd pick Sony Michel. The RB will be a matchup nightmare. |
| 5 | Carson Wentz | PHI | 281.7 | A sneaky move in the 2nd-rd netted them Trey Burton’s replacement, Dallas Goedert. He’s an athletic, seam-stretcher who will make some plays for Wentz. |
| 6 | Matthew Stafford | DET | 273.6 | Stafford will benefit from a more balanced Lions attack, after they added center Frank Ragnow and RB Kerryon Johnson. |
| 7 | Philip Rivers | LAC | 270.4 | The Chargers didn’t add any sexy offensive players in the draft, but they didn’t need any more talent on offense. |
| 8 | Kirk Cousins | MIN | 277.6 | After seeing what Case Keenum did with the Vikings’ weapons in 2017, expect Cousins to shine in 2018. |
| 9 | Drew Brees | NO | 262.6 | Brees may be on the decline, but he has too many weapons around him to fall off the QB cliff. |
| 10 | Andrew Luck | IND | INJ | Hopefully it’s not too little too late as the Colts finally prioritized protecting their franchise QB. |
| Rank | Name | Team | 2017 Fantasy Pts | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Deshaun Watson | HOU | 168.9 | It was only a brief glimpse, but what a glimpse it was. If Watson can stay healthy in 2018, he’ll outperform this ranking. |
| 12 | Ben Roethlisberger | PIT | 260.7 | Like Big Ben said, the Mason Rudolph era isn’t starting yet. Roethlisberger will continue to lead one of the most productive offenses in the NFL in 2018. |
| 13 | Jared Goff | LAR | 255.3 | Look for Goff to take another step forward under the tutelage of Sean McVay. The loss of Sammy Watkins is voided by adding Brandin Cooks. |
| 14 | Jimmy Garoppolo | SF | 87.9 | The Niners got Garoppolo some more protection in the 1st-rd of the 2018 NFL Draft, and seem like a great landing spot for free agent WR Dez Bryant. |
| 15 | Matt Ryan | ATL | 228.1 | Calvin Ridley will help Ryan in his attempt to return to his 2016, MVP form. |
| 16 | Jameis Winston | TB | 201.7 | It’s getting very close to make or break time for Winston. Explosive 2nd-rd pick Ronald Jones will help smooth out the peaks and valleys. |
| 17 | Marcus Mariota | TEN | 210.5 | No help was provided through the draft for Mariota, so former Patriot Dion Lewis will need to breathe a little life into exotic smashmouth football. |
| 18 | Eli Manning | NYG | 187.3 | The draft’s most dynamic play-maker, Saquon Barkley, will significantly help Eli in 2018. |
| 19 | Blake Bortles | JAX | 249.7 | Bortles already had a very deep set of WRs to throw to, and now you can add DJ Chark to the mix. |
| 20 | Derek Carr | OAK | 206.4 | The trio of Amari Cooper, Jordy Nelson, and Martavis Bryant (acquired during the draft) at least looks great on paper. |
| Rank | Name | Team | 2017 Fantasy Pts | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | Alex Smith | WAS | 295.2 | A new team with less offensive firepower does not bode well for Smith’s 2018 fantasy outlook. Derrius Guice could change that, though. |
| 22 | Dak Prescott | DAL | 260.7 | Out with Dez Bryant, in with Tavon Austin? Yikes. 3rd-rd WR Michael Gallup needs to develop fast! |
| 23 | Case Keenum | DEN | 237.9 | The Broncos addressed offense early and often in the draft. But I don’t see it being enough to keep Keenum serviceable. |
| 24 | Andy Dalton | CIN | 210.7 | The Bengals’ focus on building their offensive line will help Dalton make a quick return to relevance. |
| 25 | Mitchell Trubisky | CHI | 134.5 | Chicago has now provided Trubisky with some solid support, but he still has to prove he can do something with it. |
| 26 | Patrick Mahomes | KC | 10.4 | The Chiefs made Alex Smith look like Tom Brady for a large portion of 2017. Add in Sammy Watkins and Mahomes isn’t going to have any excuses. |
| 27 | Ryan Tannehill | MIA | INJ | Mike Giesicki is not enough to make up for the loss of Jarvis Landry. |
| 28 | Joe Flacco | BAL | 185 | Baltimore’s biggest addition in the draft was finding Flacco’s eventual replacement. Expect him to hold onto his starting job in 2018, though. |
| 29 | Sam Bradford | ARI | 27 | With Larry Fitzgerald and Christian Kirk, Bradford will be a great fantasy option until he gets hurt. |
| 30 | Sam Darnold | NYJ | R | Darnold will benefit from learning behind Josh McCown until his time comes. |
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7TRrfWO3uU
| Rank | Name | Team | 2017 Fantasy Pts | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | Baker Mayfield | CLE | R | A Johnny Manziel type of QB preparing to be coached by Hugh Jackson on a team that went 0-16. |
| 32 | AJ McCarron | BUF | 2.6 | With one of the league’s worst receiving groups, don’t expect McCarron to hold off Josh Allen long. |
| 33 | Tyrod Taylor | CLE | 222.7 | After taking the Bills to the playoffs for the first time in nearly two decades, Taylor is rewarded with a seat-warming job for an 0-16 team. |
| 34 | Josh McCown | NYJ | 205.4 | McCown balled out in 2017, and could keep the starting job well into the season if he can stay healthy. That’s just a big “if”. |
| 35 | Nick Foles | PHI | 33.8 | We’ve seen what the Super Bowl 52 MVP can do with this offense if Wentz were to start 2018 on the PUP list. |
| 36 | Jacoby Brissett | IND | 205.9 | Same story as Foles, but without the whole Super Bowl MVP and success thing. He did perform well in 2017 given the circumstances, though. |
| 37 | Lamar Jackson | BAL | R | It may take Jackson a year or two to become acclimated to the NFL, but when he does, look out! |
| 38 | Josh Rosen | ARI | R | The future looks bright for Rosen. But I’m more referring to the 2019 future. |
| 39 | Josh Allen | BUF | R | Has potential to be the next Brett Favre or the next Jamarcus Russell. From what I’ve seen, I’m going with Russell. Sorry, Buffalo. |
| 40 | Ryan Fitzpatrick | TB | 73.9 | Fitzy showed last year he’s still got a little magic left with a 7:3 TD to INT ratio. He’s only seeing the field if Winston gets hurt, though. |
I think I speak for us all when I say, the 2018 NFL Preseason cannot come fast enough!
Disagree with any of the rankings? Let us know in the comment section below.
Nick Ferris is a seasoned fantasy football vet of over 20 years. He's an expert in everything from best ball to daily fantasy sports. Although arm chair quarterback is as close he ever got to the field - or are we counting 7v7 touch? - he has been fortunate enough to coach some youth football.
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