Week 1 Fantasy Rankings (PPR)

Quarterbacks

1. Josh Allen, Bills (vs Cardinals)

2. Jalen Hurts, Eagles (vs Packers)

3. Anthony Richardson, Colts (vs Texans)

4. Lamar Jackson, Ravens (@ Chiefs)

5. Jordan Love, Packers (@ Eagles)

6. CJ Stroud, Texans (@ Colts)

7. Kyler Murray, Cardinals (@ Bills)

8. Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs (vs Ravens)

9. Joe Burrow, Patriots (vs Bengals)

10. Dak Prescott, Cowboys (@ Browns)

11. Jayden Daniels, Commanders (@ Buccaneers)

12. Justin Herbert. Chargers (vs Raiders)

13. Caleb Williams, Bears (vs Titans)

14. Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars (@ Dolphins)

15. Matthew Stafford, Rams (@ Lions)

Although Anthony Richardson only played in 4 games last year, he does have experience against this Texans team. Richardson posted a strong 17.7 fantasy points against this defense last year and that was basically all in a single quarter of play as Richardson got knocked out of that game with a concussion. Richardson is a nightmare matchup for a Texans defense that allowed the most rushing TDs to QBs in 2023. Kyler Murray is not being given his due respect following a 2023 season where he averaged nearly 19 fantasy points following his return from injury. Murray's matchup has the 2nd highest O/U of Week 1 with the line set at 48.5 so this is expected to be a shootout where Murray will deliver for fantasy owners. Justin Herbert is being slept on. Sure Jim Harbaugh loves to run the ball, but this RB room features two veterans who will be returning from major injury and the rest are completely green backs who have no real NFL experience. Herbert will be relied on in Week 1 as the RB room finds their legs. He's also torched the Raiders over his entire career scoring at least 17 fantasy points in every game and 20+ in 6 of his 7 career games.

Running Backs

1. Christian McCaffrey, 49ers (vs Jets)

2. Breece Hall, Jets (@ 49ers)

3. Jonathan Taylor, Colts (vs Texans)

4. Jahmyr Gibbs, Lions (vs Rams)

5. Bijan Robinson, Falcons (vs Steelers)

6. Kyren Williams, Rams (@ Lions)

7. Saquon Barkley, Eagles (vs Packers)

8. Rachaad White, Buccaneers (vs Commanders)

9. Josh Jacobs, Packers (@ Eagles)

10. Alvin Kamara, Saints (vs Panthers)

11. James Conner, Cardinals (@ Bills)

12. Zamir White, Raiders (@ Chargers)

13. Kenneth Walker, Seahawks (vs Broncos)

14. Isiah Pacheco, Chiefs (vs Ravens)

15. James Cook, Bills (vs Cardinals)

16. Travis Etienne Jr., Jaguars (@ Dolphins)

17. De'Von Achane, Dolphins (vs Jaguars)

18. Javonte Williams, Broncos (@ Seahawks)

19. Aaron Jones, Vikings (@ Giants)

20. Derrick Henry, Ravens (@ Chiefs)

21. Joe Mixon, Texans (@ Colts)

22. Austin Ekeler, Commanders (@ Buccaneers)

23. Rhamondre Stevenson, Patriots (@ Bengals)

24. Najee Harris, Steelers (@ Falcons)

25. D'Andre Swift, Bears (vs Titans)

Gibbs is not getting enough love compared to the other elite RBs. His 2023 stats are weighed down a bit by a slow start to the season but following a brief absence due to injury, Gibbs was fully integrated into the offense and was an absolute stud. Over his last 11 regular season games, Gibbs racked up 1,012 total yards and 11 TDs averaging 18.7 fantasy points per game. Gibbs is as close as you are going to get to CMC. Josh Jacobs is the volume king and there were some doubts he would be able to retain his title following a move to Green Bay, but an injury to AJ Dillon quieted those doubters, Jacobs is on track to be among the league leaders in usage once again. Jacobs averaged a robust 22 touches per game over the past two seasons so if he is slated to receive anything close to that workload in an offense that looks primed to make a huge leap in 2024, Jacobs will remain a fantasy stud. James Cook has a great matchup to open the season. The Cardinals allowed the 2nd most yardage and TDs to the position in 2023. The only question is whether Cook will be able to find the endzone as he averaged more than 92 yards per game so if he can find the endzone, Cook will easily pass the 20 point mark, but Jash Allen and Ray Davis will act as huge obstacles. Javonte Williams was not the explosive back we saw early in his career, but that is to be expected following a major knee injury. Williams is now fully healed so he has no excuses, but even though Williams was not quite 100% last year, he was still a workhorse back averaging nearly 17 touches per game. If Williams has gained his burst back, he will quickly shoot up these rankings in the coming weeks. Joe Mixon is in a new offense and fantasy owners should be a bit scared. The Texans were in the bottom half of the league in run percentage and feature an offensive line that are far better pass blockers than run blockers. Mixon is not the most efficient runner, averaging more than 4.1 yards per carry just once in his career, but his fantasy production has been buoyed by great TD production and decent involvement in the passing game. Well the Texans scored just 10 rushing TDs last year and 3 of those were CJ Stroud, add in that CJ Stroud does not really pass to his RBs with the position averaging just 3 catches per game last year and Mixon no longer has the floor that makes him a must start week in and week out.

Wide Receivers

1. Tyreek Hill, Dolphins (vs Jaguars)

2. CeeDee Lamb, Cowboys (@ Browns)

3. Justin Jefferson, Vikings (@ Giants)

4. Ja'Marr Chase, Bengals (vs Patriots)

5. Amon-Ra St. Brown, Lions (vs Rams)

6. Garrett Wilson, Jets (@ 49ers)

7. AJ Brown, Eagles (vs Packers)

8. Cooper Kupp, Rams (@ Lions)

9. Davante Adams, Raiders (@ Chargers)

10. Mike Evans, Buccaneers (vs Commanders)

11. Marvin Harrison, Cardinals (@ Bills)

12. Michael Pittman Jr., Colts (vs Texans)

13. DK Metcalf, Seahawks (vs Broncos)

14. Deebo Samuel, 49ers (vs Jets)

15. Drake London, Falcons (vs Steelers)

16. Malik Nabers, Giants (vs Vikings)

17. Chris Olave, Saints (vs Panthers)

18. Nico Collins, Texans (@ Colts)

19. Puka Nacua, Rams (@ Lions)

20. Zay Flowers, Ravens (@ Chiefs)

21. Calvin Ridley, Titans (@ Bears)

22. George Pickens, Steelers (@ Falcons)

23. DeVonta Smith, Eagles (vs Packers)

24. DJ Moore, Bears (vs Titans)

25. Rashee Rice, Chiefs (vs Ravens)

I have absolutely no reason to expect any real drop in production from Justin Jefferson. He was able to make Kirk Cousins look good so he will be able to work his magic with Sam Darnold too. Jefferson was able to produce 22.1 fantasy points per game with Nick Mullens as his QB so there is no world where you should be worried about Jefferson. Cooper Kupp is healthy and will be ready to reclaim that ultra valuable Rams WR1 role. In games where Kupp was fully integrated into the offensive gameplan and saw over 90% of the snaps, Kupp averaged 16.7 fantasy points so as long as Kupp is healthy, he is an extremely safe play. I am ready to jump right in on the Marvin Harrison Jr. train. In the games following Kyler Murray's return from injury, a Cardinal pass catcher totaled at least 70 yards in every game except one and they hit 67 in that game. The only issue is there was no alpha in that passing game so there were no Cardinal WRs they could turn to in order to effectively soak up that production. Harrison has the talent to immediately step in and produce as an alpha receiver so if his floor is 70 yards, he is going to have a killer year. Malik Nabers has way too much talent to not succeed. The Giants offense was anemic last year especially in the passing game but it is a very consolidated offensive scheme with the team's leading pass catcher finishing with at least 79 yards in 9 of their games despite averaging just 170 passing yards per game. Nabers is destined to step right into a huge role in this offense so even if Daniel Jones only passes for 180 yards, Nabers will have 90 of them. I wanted to put DJ Moore much higher, but I am not sure that the Bears will be willing to fully unleash Caleb Williams in his first NFL game. Caleb loves throwing it deep leading him to rank 16th in the entire nation in yards per completion last year so once he gets fully released, Moore's downfield work will lead to a lot of big days.

Tight Ends

1. Trey McBride, Cardinals (@ Bills)

2. Dalton Kincaid, Bills (vs Cardinals)

3. Sam LaPorta, Lions (vs Lions)

4. Travis Kelce, Chiefs (vs Ravens)

5. Mark Andrews, Ravens (@ Cheifs)

6. Kyle Pitts, Falcons (vs Steelers)

7. Dallas Goedert, Eagles (vs Packers)

8. Evan Engram, Jaguars (@ Dolphins)

9. David Njoku, Browns (vs Cowboys)

10. Jake Ferguson, Cowboys (@ Browns)

11. George Kittle, 49ers (vs Jets)

12. Dalton Schultz, Texans (@ Colts)

13. Juwan Johnson, Saints (vs Panthers)

14. Brock Bowers, Raiders (@ Chargers)

15. Pat Freiermuth, Steelers (@ Falcons)

Who is left for this Bills passing game....Dalton Kincaid. Producing as a rookie tight end is one of the hardest tasks in the NFL since it is such a difficult position to learn, but Dalton was still fairly productive. Kincaid has to end the season as the Bills team leader in targets given the surrounding talent and with Josh Allen on the other end of those targets, Kincaid is primed to make a huge leap. A lot of people have lost their faith in Kyle Pitts, but do not forget that this is a guy who recorded more than 1,000 yards with his only truly effective QB and that was a washed Matt Ryan. Now with Kirk Cousins in the fold, Pitts is in line for a huge bump in his numbers and he will go down as one of the top values at the tight end position this year. George Kittle is no more than a boom or bust player at this point of his career with 7 games outside the top 20 TEs across the 2023 season, but the upside is just as valuable with another 7 games finishing the week inside the top 5 TEs. With a great Jets defense on tap, I see this being a bust week for Kittle as he will likely open the season with a bit of a dud.

Defenses

1. Bengals (vs Patriots)

2. Saints (vs Panthers)

3. Cowboys (@ Browns)

4. Falcons (vs Steelers)

5. Buccaneers (vs Commanders)

6. 49ers (vs Jets)

7. Vikings (@ Giants)

8. Browns, (vs Cowboys)

9. Seahawks (vs Broncos)

10. Bears (vs Titans)

11. Chargers (vs Raiders)

12. Giants (vs Vikings)

13. Texans (@ Colts)

14. Jets (@ 49ers)

15. Bills (vs Cardinals)

The Falcons do not have the most talented defense, but they face Russell Wilson who was top 10 in both sacks and fumbles last year so the Falcons should have a great day. This Vikings D is going to surprise some people. With a revamped pass rush and the addition of Stephon Gilmore, the Vikings will make a huge jump and join the league's elite with Brian Flores maximizing these players abilities. Jim Harbaugh knows how to put a defense together. In every one of his seasons in San Francisco, Harbaugh fostered a top 5 defense and while this Chargers team does not feature the same amount of talent as those teams; Harbaugh will have the Chargers playing mistake free football so Gardner Minshew will struggle to produce against a disciplined defense.