| Sunday | 08.27.17 | THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT | PAGE 4

fantasyfootball

RANKINGS

QUARTERBACKSPLAYER TEAM BYE

1. Aaron Rodgers GB 8 2. Tom Brady NE 93. Drew Brees NO 54. Matt Ryan ATL 55. Russell Wilson SEA 66. Kirk Cousins WAS 57. Marcus Mariota TEN 88. Derek Carr OAK 109. Jameis Winston TB 1110. Andrew Luck IND 1111. Cam Newton CAR 1112. Dak Prescott DAL 613. Matthew Stafford DET 714. Philip Rivers LAC 915. Carson Wentz PHI 1016. Ben Roethlisberger PIT 917. Eli Manning NYG 818. Andy Dalton CIN 6 19. Carson Palmer ARI 820. Tyrod Taylor BUF 6

RUNNING BACKS(STANDARD LEAGUES)PLAYER TEAM BYE

1. David Johnson ARI 8 2. Le’Veon Bell PIT 93. LeSean McCoy BUF 64. Devonta Freeman ATL 55. Jay Ajayi MIA 116. Melvin Gordon LAC 97. Jordan Howard CHI 98. DeMarco Murray TEN 89. Isaiah Crowell CLE 910. Todd Gurley LAR 811. Lamar Miller HOU 712. Leonard Fournette JAC 813. Dalvin Cook MIN 914. Marshawn Lynch OAK 1015. Ezekiel Elliott DAL 616. Christian McCaffrey CAR 1117. Carlos Hyde SF 1118. Kareem Hunt KC 1019. Rob Kelley WAS 520. Joe Mixon CIN 621. Mark Ingram NO 522. Thomas Rawls SEA 623. C.J. Anderson DEN 524. Tevin Coleman ATL 525. Frank Gore IND 1126. Mike Gillislee NE 927. LeGarrette Blount PHI 1028. Ameer Abdullah DET 729. Paul Perkins NYG 830. Bilal Powell NYJ 1131. Doug Martin TB 1132. Spencer Ware KC 1033. Adrian Peterson NO 534. Ty Montgomery GB 8

35. Jeremy Hill CIN 636. Terrance West BAL 1037. Jamaal Williams GB 838. Jonathan Stewart CAR 1139. Derrick Henry TEN 840. Wendell Smallwood PHI 10

RUNNING BACKS(PPR LEAGUES)PLAYER TEAM BYE

1. David Johnson ARI 8 2. Le’Veon Bell PIT 93. LeSean McCoy BUF 64. Devonta Freeman ATL 55. Melvin Gordon LAC 96. Jay Ajayi MIA 117. Jordan Howard CHI 98. DeMarco Murray TEN 89. Isaiah Crowell CLE 910. Todd Gurley LAR 811. Lamar Miller HOU 712. Christian McCaffrey CAR 1113. Leonard Fournette JAC 814. Dalvin Cook MIN 915. Ezekiel Elliott DAL 616. Kareem Hunt KC 1017. Carlos Hyde SF 1118. Tevin Coleman ATL 519. Bilal Powell NYJ 1120. Marshawn Lynch OAK 1021. Mark Ingram NO 522. Joe Mixon CIN 623. Danny Woodhead BAL 1024. Theo Riddick DET 725. Thomas Rawls SEA 626. Ty Montgomery GB 827. C.J. Anderson DEN 528. Frank Gore IND 1129. Ameer Abdullah DET 730. Mike Gillislee NE 931. Doug Martin TB 1132. LeGarrette Blount PHI 1033. Paul Perkins NYG 834. Duke Johnson CLE 935. Spencer Ware KC 1036. Adrian Peterson NO 537. C.J. Prosise SEA 638. Jamaal Williams GB 839. James White NE 940. Terrance West BAL 10

RANKINGS

WIDE RECEIVERS(STANDARD LEAGUES)PLAYER TEAM BYE

1. Antonio Brown PIT 9 2. Julio Jones ATL 53. Odell Beckham Jr. NYG 84. Jordy Nelson GB 85. Mike Evans TB 116. A.J. Green CIN 67. Michael Thomas NO 58. Terrelle Pryor WAS 59. Doug Baldwin SEA 610. Brandin Cooks NE 911. Dez Bryant DAL 612. Amari Cooper OAK 1013. DeAndre Hopkins HOU 714. T.Y. Hilton IND 1115. Demaryius Thomas DEN 1016. Michael Crabtree OAK 1017. Alshon Jeffery PHI 1018. Larry Fitzgerald ARI 819. Davante Adams GB 820. Stefon Diggs MIN 921. Keenan Allen LAC 922. Tyreek Hill KC 1023. Allen Robinson JAC 824. Kelvin Benjamin CAR 1125. Brandon Marshall NYG 826. Martavis Bryant PIT 927. Pierre Garcon SF 1128. Golden Tate SEA 729. DeVante Parker MIA 1130. Eric Decker TEN 831. Sammy Watkins LAR 532. Jamison Crowder WAS 533. Emmanuel Sanders DEN 534. Donte Moncrief IND 1135. Jarvis Landry MIA 1136. DeSean Jackson TB 537. Cam Meredith CHI 938. Chris Hogan NE 939. Willie Snead NO 540. Tyrell Williams LAC 9

WIDE RECEIVERS(PPR LEAGUES)PLAYER TEAM BYE

1. Antonio Brown PIT 9 2. Julio Jones ATL 53. Odell Beckham Jr. NYG 84. Jordy Nelson GB 85. Mike Evans TB 116. Michael Thomas NO 57. A.J. Green CIN 68. Doug Baldwin SEA 69. Terrelle Pryor WAS 510. Brandin Cooks NE 911. Dez Bryant DAL 612. Amari Cooper OAK 1013. DeAndre Hopkins HOU 714. T.Y. Hilton IND 1115. Michael Crabtree OAK 1016. Alshon Jeffery PHI 1017. Larry Fitzgerald ARI 818. Demaryius Thomas DEN 1019. Stefon Diggs MIN 920. Keenan Allen LAC 921. Davante Adams GB 822. Jarvis Landry MIA 1123. Tyreek Hill KC 1024. Emmanuel Sanders DEN 525. Golden Tate SEA 726. Pierre Garcon SF 1127. Brandon Marshall NYG 828. Jamison Crowder WAS 529. Kelvin Benjamin CAR 1130. DeVante Parker MIA 1131. Eric Decker TEN 832. Allen Robinson JAC 833. Martavis Bryant PIT 934. Cameron Meredith CHI 935. Sammy Watkins BUF 536. Donte Moncrief IND 1137. Chris Hogan NE 938. DeSean Jackson TB 539. Robby Anderson NYJ 1140. Willie Snead NO 5

TIGHT ENDSPLAYER TEAM BYE

1. Rob Gronkowski NE 9 2. Greg Olsen CAR 113. Travis Kelce KC 104. Jordan Reed WAS 55. Jimmy Graham SEA 66. Kyle Rudolph MIN 97. Tyler Eifert CIN 68. Delanie Walker TEN 89. Zach Ertz PHI 1010. Jack Doyle IND 1111. Hunter Henry LAC 912. Eric Ebron DET 713. Austin Hooper ATL 514. Cameron Brate TB 1115. Martellus Bennett GB 816. Coby Fleener NO 517. Julius Thomas MIA 1118. Antonio Gates LAC 919. Jason Witten DAL 620. Jared Cook OAK 10

BREAKOUT PLAYERS

QUARTERBACK

Marcus Mariota, Tennessee: From Week 5 to Week 12 last season, no player scored more fantasy points than Mariota. He’s been phenomenal in the red zone with 33 TD passes and no interceptions. He has two new receivers in veteran Eric Decker and rookie Corey Davis. He also has a top-�ve offensive line. He’s being drafted as early as the sixth round and as late as the 11th in 10-team leagues. Also: Derek Carr, Oakland; Jameis Winston, Tampa Bay

RUNNING BACK Kareem Hunt, Kansas City: The rising rookie was pushing Spencer Ware for a lead role anyway, but now he’ll be the starter with Ware injuring his knee and possibly out a month or more. My guess is Hunt won’t relinquish the featured role even when Ware comes back. He’s looked good in the preseason and Andy Reid’s scheme caters to the running back. You’ll have to draft him earlier than expected, though – like the third or fourth round. Also: Isaiah Crowell, Cleveland; Christian McCaffrey, Carolina

WIDE RECEIVER Terrelle Pryor, Washington: He goes from a team that �nished 28th in passing yards (Cleveland) to one that �nished second. He drew rave reviews in training camp. Apparently, working with Randy Moss and Antonio Brown in the offseason has helped. Remember, he’s still new at this wide receiver thing – yet he had 1,007 yards in his �rst full season at the position. He should be Kirk Cousins’ top target and has the potential to be a top-10 fantasy receiver. Also: Stefon Diggs, Minnesota; Pierre Garcon, San Francisco

TIGHT END Jack Doyle, Indianapolis: He’s still not getting much respect even though he came out of nowhere to be the No. 13 fantasy tight end last season. Dwayne Allen is gone, so he should get more targets as the lead TE. He led all starting TEs with a 79% catch rate. Best of all, he’s being drafted between the 11th and 14th rounds in 10-team leagues. Also: Austin Hooper, Atlanta; Hunter Henry, L.A. Chargers

BARGAINS

QUARTERBACK

Matthew Stafford, Detroit: He’s been a top-10 QB the past two seasons, and his receiving corps could be better if 6-4 rookie Kenny Golladay pans out. Yet he’s being drafted as a No. 13-15 QB. Andrew Luck, Indianapolis: Offseason shoulder surgery has sidelined him throughout the preseason, and it’s looking more likely that he’ll miss some regular-season time. His draft stock is starting to tumble. But if he is available in the ninth round or later, he could be a steal.

RUNNING BACK Rob Kelley, Washington: He �nished as the No. 26 running back in standard leagues last season despite playing only nine games as the featured back and appears to have the starting job secured, yet you can get him in the eighth to 11th round in 10-team leagues.

WIDE RECEIVER Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona: He’s 33, but still reliable as ever and a clear No. 1 target on his team. His health record is impeccable. He’s missed six total games in his 13 seasons, including two in the past nine years. He is being drafted between 46th and 71st overall. Cameron Meredith, Chicago: He’s projected to be the Bears’ top wideout after emerging last season (888 yards and four TDs) and Alshon Jeffery departing, yet he’s being drafted between 92nd and 123rd overall. DeVante Parker, Miami: He’s a popular breakout candidate, but he’s going anywhere from 67th to 116th overall in drafts. Maybe people are hesitant because Jay Cutler is now his QB, which is a legitimate concern. But Cutler does have a bigger arm than injured Ryan Tannehill.

Terrelle Pryor surpassed 1,000 yards in his �rst full season as a wideout. Now that he’s with a Redskins offense that ranked second in passing last season, he could have top-10 potential.

ROOKIES TO WATCH

QUARTERBACKS

Mitchell Trubisky, Chicago DeShone Kizer, Cleveland Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Deshaun Watson, Houston

RUNNING BACKS Leonard Fournette, Jacksonville Kareem Hunt, Kansas City Dalvin Cook, Minnesota Christian McCaffrey, Carolina Joe Mixon, Cincinnati Jamaal Williams, Green Bay Chris Carson, Seattle Marlon Mack, Indianapolis Joe Williams, San Francisco Alvin Kamara, New Orleans D’Onta Foreman, Houston Samaje Perine, Washington James Conner, Pittsburgh

WIDE RECEIVERS Zay Jones, Buffalo Corey Davis, Tennessee Kenny Golladay, Detroit Cooper Kupp, L.A. Rams John Ross, Cincinnati Curtis Samuel, Carolina Chris Godwin, Tampa Bay Mike Williams, L.A. Chargers

onlineFor the latest fantasy sports news, analysis, statistics and projections all season long, go to Joe Kacik’s blog at pilotonline.com/sports/fantasy-sports. Also, follow him on Twitter (@JKacik).

new way to playIf you want to try something different or don’t have time to keep up with a season-long fantasy league, consider entering or creating a best-ball league. It’s a draft-only league where you don’t have to worry about submitting weekly lineups or making waiver-wire moves … because you can’t.

The players you draft are the ones you have all season. There’s no weekly match-ups because the champion is determined by total points at the end of the season. Best of all, the system automatically selects the highest scorers from your roster each week. So there’s no regrets as far as benching a player who has a big game.

MyFantasyLeague.com and rtsports.com are just two of the fantasy sites that offer best-ball leagues.

it starts up frontKeep a team’s offensive line in mind when deciding who to draft. Here’s an average ranking of several fantasy sites which rate offensive lines:

Top 101. Tennessee 2. Dallas3. Philadelphia4. Oakland5. Pittsburgh6. Cleveland7. Atlanta8. Washington9. Chicago10. Green BayBottom 1023. Indianapolis24. Los Angeles Chargers25. New York Jets26. Miami27. New York Giants28. Tampa Bay29. Houston30. Cincinnati31. San Francisco32. Seattle

scores to targetTo be successful in 10-team leagues, ESPN estimates that weekly point totals to target are 93-94 in standard leagues and 119-120 in PPR leagues.

full backfieldsThere are �ve back�elds that have at least three viable players who �gure to see action this season. I would look at other options before drafting a back on these teams: New England: Mike Gillislee, Dion Lewis, James White, Rex Burkhead Cincinnati: Joe Mixon, Jeremy Hill, Gio Bernard Philadelphia: LeGarrette Blount, Wendell Smallwood, Darren Sproles New Orleans: Mark Ingram, Adrian Peterson, Alvin Kamara Seattle: Thomas Rawls, Eddie Lacy, C.J. Prosise

ONLY TWO RUNNING BACKS in NFL history have surpassed 1,000 yards in both rushing and receiving in the same season: Marshall Faulk (1999) and Roger Craig (1985). Arizona’s David Johnson (pictured) has set a goal this season to become the third member of that exclusive club. He nearly pulled it off last season with 1,239 rushing and 879 receiving, which is why he’s going No. 1 in most fantasy drafts.

KING DAVID

Content by JOE KACIKThe Virginian-Pilot

Photos by The Associated Press