This week we return to a full slate of games and that means all 32 teams will be playing. Looking back over the last 9 weeks, we are able to see that some quarterbacks have performed better than expected. Matthew Stafford was ranked at #11 in our pre-season draft rankings. We all knew though, that if he stayed healthy, his point totals would be great. In standard scoring, he is averaging just over 19 points a game. That puts him into the top 5 at the quarterback position. If he is able to finish the season without getting injured, he should be able to maintain that pace. Looking to the fantasy playoffs, Stafford has a very favorable trio of games (MIN, @OAK, SD).
Another quarterback that we didn't expect to have such a huge impact on the fantasy football world is Cam Newton. In our pre-season rankings, he was near the bottom at #29. The low position was probably as a result of the strong tandem of DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart and Newton being an unproven rookie on a weaker Carolina team. He has had some unbelievable games and showed fantasy owners that he can get it done passing and running. Newton has a great fantasy schedule during the fantasy playoffs (ATL, @HOU, TB).
We did rank Aaron Rodgers as our number one quarterback and he has not disappointed. Rodgers has almost run away from the field with his performance. Rodgers has thrown for 24 touchdowns and only 3 interceptions, adding to that 2 rushing touchdowns. It will be interesting to see how many fantasy champions have Rodgers on their roster at the end of the season. The way that his season is going, it probably doesn't matter who he faces in the fantasy playoffs (OAK, @KC, CHI).
All 32 starting quarterbacks ranked following the jump.
Quarterbacks to start: Ben Roethlisberger (Pittsburgh) - I know that he'll be facing the strong defense of Cincinnati this week but the way that Antonio Brown has come on makes me believe in Big Ben. In his last three games, he has averaged over 330 yards and 2 touchdowns per game. Pittsburgh needs this game because the AFC North is a real dog fight.
Mark Sanchez (New York Jets) - Sanchez has played pretty good over the last few weeks. His stats have not been huge but have been pretty good. In Week 10, he faces a New England defense that has been giving up over 300 yards a game through the air. Sanchez is playing at home and I believe that he will have a good game.
Tim Tebow (Denver) - His performance has been up and down as a quarterback but he might have turned the corner in Week 9. Kansas City gave up a 21 fantasy point game to Matt Moore last week and I have a hard time believing that Tebow will not be able to at least match that in Week 10.
Quarterbacks to avoid: John Skelton (Arizona) - His performance against St. Louis was pretty good but their secondary has been decimated. This week's opponent is Philadelphia and they will be looking to bounce back from a big loss on Monday night. I see Skelton finishing with 90 yards, no touchdowns and 2 turnovers.
Tarvaris Jackson (Seattle) - Jackson may be the best quarterback on his team but that's about all we can say. He will face Baltimore on Sunday and will probably finish with a worse performance than last week. I think Jackson will finish with 160 yards, no touchdowns and 2 interceptions.
Player | Team | Opp. |
1. Aaron Rodgers | GB | MIN |
2. Michael Vick | PHI | ARZ |
3. Cam Newton | CAR | TEN |
4. Drew Brees | NO | ATL |
5. Eli Manning | NYG | SF |
6. Philip Rivers | SD | OAK |
7. Matthew Stafford | DET | CHI |
8. Ben Roethlisberger | PIT | CIN |
9. Tim Tebow | DEN | KC |
10. Tom Brady | NE | NYJ |
11. Tony Romo | DAL | BUF |
12. Matt Ryan | ATL | NO |
13. Mark Sanchez | NYJ | NE |
14. Joe Flacco | BAL | SEA |
15. Matt Schaub | HOU | TB |
16. Ryan Fitzpatrick | BUF | DAL |
17. Carson Palmer | OAK | SD |
18. Matt Cassel | KC | DEN |
19. Jay Cutler | CHI | DET |
20. Josh Freeman | TB | HOU |
21. Matt Hasselbeck | TEN | CAR |
22. Andy Dalton | CIN | PIT |
23. Christian Ponder | MIN | GB |
24. Sam Bradford | STL | CLE |
25. John Beck | WAS | MIA |
26. Matt Moore | MIA | WAS |
27. Alex Smith | SF | NYG |
28. Blaine Gabbert | JAX | IND |
29. Colt McCoy | CLE | STL |
30. Kevin Kolb | ARZ | PHI |
31. Tarvaris Jackson | SEA | BAL |
32. Curtis Painter | IND | JAX |
33. John Skelton | ARZ | PHI |