Will Mark Sanchez ever be anything more than a fantasy backup? Since going over 300 yards against New England in Week 10 (and who hasn't this year), he has averaged 199 passing yards. The one thing that redeemed him in those games is that he threw 4 touchdowns against Buffalo. For the season, Sanchez has averaged 223.2 passing yards/game and 1.6 passing touchdowns/game. Presently he sits at 11th in standard scoring leagues with 169 points, between Ben Roethlisberger and Ryan Fitzpatrick. We know that the New York Jets like to run the football but they have not been able to establish a consistent running game. That makes me wonder why Sanchez has not taken on a bigger role and the passing game has not improved. Last year with the strong running game, he averaged 205.7 passing yards/game and 1.1 passing TD/game. So, his numbers have barely increased. His matchup this week is against KC, which is a plus for the fantasy playoffs but following that he gets Philadelphia and the Giants.
All 32 quarterbacks are ranked following the jump.
Chicago is going to be sticking with Caleb Hanie and not bringing in Donovan McNabb or Brett Favre. Hanie has thrown for 193.5 yards/game, 2 touchdowns and 6 interceptions. I thought he would struggle but I didn't think it was going to be that bad. With upcoming games against Denver and Seattle, he will probably continue to have problems. Although he may be used more with Matt Forte going down with a knee injury, the result will probably be more interceptions.
Looking towards next season and the prospect of Indianapolis drafting Andrew Luck, Archie Manning was asked by Fox Sports Radio, his opinion of Peyton Manning and Andrew Luck being on the same team: "I don't think it'd necessarily be great for either one. I think Andrew's the type of mature player...he can walk right in. I mean, these other three or four (rookie passers) that are playing this year, (if) they can walk in and contribute, Andrew can, too." We are roughly five months away from the draft and alot can happen between now and that weekend. Andrew Luck will probably not be the only highly touted quarterback in this draft. Peyton's neck injury needs to be fully healed. Indianapolis has to decide whether they want to stay the course or dismantle the team and rebuild. It should be a very interesting few months and this is just the start.
Quarterbacks to start: Philip Rivers (San Diego) - Rivers had a great game on Monday night against Jacksonville. This week he faces Buffalo and I would not be afraid to start him in my fantasy playoff game. Buffalo has given up the third most passing touchdowns this year and it looks like Rivers will have his full complement of receivers available. The team is also fighting to stay alive in the playoff race, so they'll be pulling out all the stops.
Matt Ryan (Atlanta) - Atlanta is in the same boat playoff wise, they need to start winning to clinch a spot. Ryan has a good matchup this week against Carolina. The Carolina defense is allowing 63% of passes to be completed. Ryan had a terrible day last week, so I expect a big bounce back. I think he'll pass for 300 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Matt Hasselbeck (Tennessee) - Another team that is pushing hard for the playoffs is Tennessee. They will be playing New Orleans and we've seen what they can do. I think Tennessee gets down at some point and Hasselbeck will have to pass more. I see him throwing for 270 yards and 3 touchdowns.
Quarterbacks to avoid: Tyler Palko (Kansas City) - Well, he didn't have as bad a game as I thought he would but it was still pretty bad. Kyle Orton had come in but was injured, so they brought Palko back. He threw his first touchdown but it was a tipped Hail Mary and a total fluke. Palko will most likely start against the Jets and their strong pass defense. I don't see him escaping this one without at least three interceptions.
A.J. Feeley (St. Louis) - Feeley played against San Francisco last week and had a terrible game. He injured his hand and is questionable to play this week against Seattle. The Seattle defense has really been playing well, so it would be best to avoid the St. Louis quarterback situation.
Player | Team | Opp. |
1. Aaron Rodgers | GB | OAK |
2. Tom Brady | NE | WAS |
3. Matthew Stafford | DET | MIN |
4. Drew Brees | NO | TEN |
5. Cam Newton | CAR | ATL |
6. Tony Romo | DAL | NYG |
7. Eli Manning | NYG | DAL |
8. Philip Rivers | SD | BUF |
9. Matt Ryan | ATL | CAR |
10. Carson Palmer | OAK | GB |
11. Michael Vick | PHI | MIA |
12. Matt Hasselbeck | TEN | NO |
13. Tim Tebow | DEN | CHI |
14. Joe Flacco | BAL | IND |
15. Matt Moore | MIA | PHI |
16. Christian Ponder | MIN | DET |
17. Ryan Fitzpatrick | BUF | SD |
18. Ben Roethlisberger | PIT | CLE |
19. Alex Smith | SF | ARZ |
20. Rex Grossman | WAS | NE |
21. Mark Sanchez | NYJ | KC |
22. Dan Orlovsky | IND | BAL |
23. Josh Freeman | TB | JAX |
24. Caleb Hanie | CHI | DEN |
25. Tarvaris Jackson | SEA | STL |
26. Kevin Kolb | ARZ | SF |
27. Vince Young | PHI | MIA |
28. Andy Dalton | CIN | HOU |
29. Colt McCoy | CLE | PIT |
30. T.J. Yates | HOU | CIN |
31. Blaine Gabbert | JAX | TB |
32. A.J. Feeley | STL | SEA |
33. Sam Bradford | STL | SEA |
34. Tyler Palko | KC | NYJ |
35. Tom Brandstater | STL | SEA |
36. Josh Johnson | TB | JAX |
37. Seneca Wallace | CLE | PIT |