Oct
Clinton Portis backed up his recent promotion to Imaginary Gridiron’s No. 1 player in fantasy in a big way this week, rushing for 175 yards and a score in a win over Cleveland. He symbolized a shakeup last week, as we attempted to get a better grasp on the current state of fantasy football affairs. Less has changed in this week’s edition of The Fantasy NFL 101, but the Top 10 did get a small facelift in light of Week 7 happenings.
No player had a bigger week than St. Louis’ Steven Jackson, who finally “arrived” with 160 yards and three scores in a stunning win over the Dallas Cowboys. Even with a bruised thigh, Jackson moves up to No. 6 in the rankings because he has such a bright outlook in the season’s second half. Reggie Bush quickly plummeted after suffering a meniscus injury in his left knee, one that required surgery and at least three weeks of recovery time.
Eagles running back Brian Westbrook is getting healthier (ribs) and looking ready to make amends for tormenting fantasy owners in the first six weeks of play. As long as he’s in the lineup - or close to it - he should be regarded as one of fantasy’s best.
Two more injured stars have fallen back in the rankings, but are expected back in the spotlight within the next two weeks. Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo and Colts running back Joseph Addai both lurk at Nos. 33 and 34, respectively, but immediately surge towards the top 10 as soon as they near returns. Meanwhile, two colossal disappointments - Green Bay’s Ryan Grant and Baltimore’s Willis McGahee - showed signs of life and are poised to finally produce like second-round picks in fantasy drafts.
Some newcomers to the list include Houston TE Owen Daniels, who has consistently ranked among fantasy’s best at his position; Saints RB Deuce McAllister, who returns to a starting role; and Chargers WR Vincent Jackson, who has had two big weeks in the absence of teammate Chris Chambers.
And now, our complete Week 8 rankings. In the notes section, you’ll find a player’s previous rank in [brackets], just to get a gauge for which direction he is headed. Rankings are based on standard, 10-team leagues where passing touchdowns are worth six points.
| Rk | Player, Team | Pos | Notes [Previous Rank] |
| 1. | Clinton Portis, WAS | RB | NFL rushing leader has 4 straight 120+ yard games [1] |
| 2. | Adrian Peterson, MIN | RB | Re-established dominance with 120 yards, 2 TDs [4] |
| 3. | Marion Barber, DAL | RB | Going gets tougher vs. TB, still good bet for TDs [3] |
| 4. | Frank Gore, SF | RB | 11 rush yards exception to rule; will bounce back [2] |
| 5. | LaDainian Tomlinson, SD | RB | Sprained toe likely to be factor all season [2] |
| 6. | Steven Jackson, STL | RB | Breakout day vs. DAL; suffered bruised thigh in win [12] |
| 7. | Matt Forte, CHI | RB | Best receiving RB this side of Bush and Westbrook [8] |
| 8. | Drew Brees, NO | QB | Looks to change Week 7 fortunes vs. SD in London [6] |
| 9. | Brandon Marshall, DEN | WR | Most relied upon WR in NFL; 79 targets in 6 games [15] |
| 10. | Larry Fitzgerald, ARI | WR | Good combo; 100+ yards and/or TD in all 6 games [10] |
| 11. | Brian Westbrook, PHI | RB | Listed as questionable, but expects to return vs. ATL [11] |
| 12. | Philip Rivers, SD | QB | Leads NFL with 108.5 QB rating, 16 passing TDs [14] |
| 13. | Andre Johnson, HOU | WR | Back to elite status with 450 yards, 2 TDs in last 3 [19] |
| 14. | Marshawn Lynch, BUF | RB | Yardage totals suffering, but on pace for 13 TDs [13] |
| 15. | Greg Jennings, GB | WR | Laid first egg of year with 32 yards in rout of IND [15] |
| 16. | Randy Moss, NE | WR | Growing with QB Cassel; 2 huge efforts in last 3 [22] |
| 17. | Reggie Wayne, IND | WR | Wrong place, wrong time with 24 yards at GB [17] |
| 18. | Ronnie Brown, MIA | RB | No arguing that, when healthy, is one of NFL’s best [18] |
| 19. | Peyton Manning, IND | QB | Big step backwards with 0 TDs, 2 pick-6s at GB [16] |
| 20. | Jay Cutler, DEN | QB | Has bye to nurse physical, emotional wounds [20] |
| 21. | Michael Turner, ATL | RB | Every-other-week trend continues; 54 yards vs. CHI [23] |
| 22. | Terrell Owens, DAL | WR | Reeling last 3 weeks, now has Brad Johnson at QB [21] |
| 23. | Maurice Jones-Drew, JAC | RB | Rushed for 125 yds, 2 TDs in Taylor’s absence at DEN [25] |
| 24. | Braylon Edwards, CLE | WR | Four drops haunted pedestrian 58-yard effort vs. WAS [26] |
| 25. | Brandon Jacobs, NYG | RB | Manchild on scoring binge; has 6 TDs in last 4 games [25] |
| 26. | Plaxico Burress, NYG | WR | Likely to play through torn pinkie tendon at PIT [28] |
| 27. | Aaron Rodgers, GB | QB | Managed game with 186 yards, TD vs. IND [29] |
| 28. | Roddy White, ATL | WR | Slow start behind him; 453 yards, 3 TDs in last 4 [30] |
| 29. | Steve Smith, CAR | WR | In dominant form since return; 90+ yards in 4 straight [32] |
| 30. | T.J. Houshmandzadeh, CIN | WR | T2nd in NFL with 46 catches, but big plays lacking [31] |
| 31. | Chris Johnson, TEN | RB | Ranks 4th on NFL rushing list after 168-yd day vs. KC [38] |
| 32. | Jason Witten, DAL | TE | WR in a TE’s body; T3rd in NFL with 45 catches [32] |
| 33. | Tony Romo, DAL | QB | Expected back after DAL’s Week 10 bye [24] |
| 34. | Joseph Addai, IND | RB | Considered week-to-week with hamstring injury [35] |
| 35. | Calvin Johnson, DET | WR | Even as DET struggles, is threat to break big play [41] |
| 36. | Donovan McNabb, PHI | QB | Next 2 opponents, ATL, SEA rank 26th, 29th vs. pass [36] |
| 37. | Ryan Grant, GB | RB | Went for 105 yards, scored 1st TD vs. IND [43] |
| 38. | Willis McGahee, BAL | RB | Knee limiting practice time; still playing through it [49] |
| 39. | Thomas Jones, NYJ | RB | Will 3rd straight big week vs. NFL-worst Chiefs run D [46] |
| 40. | Reggie Bush, NO | RB | Underwent knee surgery; timetable for return unclear [7] |
| 41. | Jamal Lewis, CLE | RB | Caution: faces 3 top-6 run defenses in last 4 weeks [37] |
| 42. | Willie Parker, PIT | RB | Prognosis better for Week 8; monitor how he practices [44] |
| 43. | Brett Favre, NYJ | QB | Rough last 2 with 386 yards, 1 TD, 4 INTs, 4 fumbles [34] |
| 44. | Anquan Boldin, ARI | WR | Questionable at CAR; could miss 3rd straight game [40] |
| 45. | Wes Welker, NE | WR | 6+ catches in all 6 games; first TD came Week 7 [51] |
| 46. | Earnest Graham, TB | RB | If Dunn is healthy, returns to hybrid HB/FB role [42] |
| 47. | Ben Roethlisberger, PIT | QB | More himself with 525 yards, 5 TDs in last 2 games [47] |
| 48. | Kurt Warner, ARI | QB | Overlooked in fantasy; has 2+ TDs in 5 straight [48] |
| 49. | LenDale White, TEN | RB | With healthy shoulder, had 149 and 3 TDs vs. KC [71] |
| 50. | Larry Johnson, KC | RB | Apologetic about troubles, still out for Week 8 [39] |
| 51. | Darren McFadden, OAK | RB | Fargas looks like new coach Cable’s preferred RB [45] |
| 52. | Jonathan Stewart, CAR | RB | With goal-line carries, makes most of 15 carries/game [42] |
| 53. | Santana Moss, WAS | WR | Enigma re-emerged with 75 yards, TD vs. CLE [52] |
| 54. | Eli Manning, NYG | QB | Tough stretch ahead; 2 straight sub-200 yard games [53] |
| 55. | Antonio Gates, SD | TE | Low yardage totals, but leads all TEs with 4 TDs [54] |
| 56. | Lee Evans, BUF | WR | Had 8 catches, extended TD streak to 3 games [63] |
| 57. | Dwayne Bowe, KC | WR | Amazingly consistent in NFL’s worst passing offense [58] |
| 58. | Hines Ward, PIT | WR | Again Big Ben’s top target; leads team with 5 TDs [56] |
| 59. | Santonio Holmes, PIT | WR | Hurt by Steelers injuries; has just 1 TD in 6 games [55] |
| 60. | Jerricho Cotchery, NYJ | WR | Shut down vs. OAK; iffy this week with sore shoulder [57] |
| 61. | Marques Colston, NO | WR | Back on field at CAR, but invisible with zero catches [59] |
| 62. | Chad Johnson, CIN | WR | Finally hitting stride, even without injured QB Palmer [66] |
| 63. | Steve Slaton, HOU | RB | Looking over shoulder with Green getting healthy [64] |
| 64. | Chris Cooley, WAS | TE | Lack of red zone looks disappointing; has just 1 TD [65] |
| 65. | Tony Gonzalez, KC | TE | No matter the QB, remains one fantasy’s best TEs [67] |
| 66. | Bernard Berrian, MIN | WR | Much different, better player with Frerotte at QB [70] |
| 67. | Dallas Clark, IND | TE | Lone bright spot in Colts’ blowout loss to GB [77] |
| 68. | Laveranues Coles, NYJ | WR | Thigh injury again an issue; monitor status this week [62] |
| 69. | Julius Jones, SEA | RB | Losing value by the day; will split carries with Morris [61] |
| 70. | Kyle Orton, CHI | QB | Making more plays; has 10 TDs, 4 INTs last 5 weeks [84] |
| 71. | Kellen Winslow, CLE | TE | Appealing team suspension; not likely to play at JAC [60] |
| 72. | Jason Campbell, WAS | QB | Only starting QB in NFL yet to throw an INT [74] |
| 73. | Derek Anderson, CLE | QB | Followed breakout with 14-of-37 passing vs. WAS [68] |
| 74. | Edgerrin James, ARI | RB | Better than expected, getting share of goal-line work [69] |
| 75. | Titans D/ST | D/ST | Clear No. 1 unit leads NFL in scoring D, takeaways [78] |
| 76. | Donald Driver, GB | WR | Has already matched ‘07 TD output with just 2 [72] |
| 77. | Torry Holt, STL | WR | Must see more from Bulger, Rams passing game [73] |
| 78. | Roy Williams, DAL | WR | ‘Boys are high on his skills; can thrive opposite T.O. [75] |
| 79. | DeSean Jackson, PHI | WR | Return of Kevin Curtis likely sends him to bench [79] |
| 80. | Chris Chambers, SD | WR | Questionable again (ankle) after missing last 2 games [80] |
| 81. | Matt Schaub, HOU | QB | Back on track; averaging 318 ypg, has 6 TDs in last 3 [88] |
| 82. | DeAngelo Williams, CAR | RB | Again saved stat line with TD catch vs. NO [86] |
| 83. | David Garrard, JAC | QB | Has found ‘07 form with 3 straight 200-yard games [81] |
| 84. | Deuce McAllister, NO | RB | Thrust into feature role with Bush out 3-to-4 weeks [NR] |
| 85. | Michael Pittman, DEN | RB | Nicked up (ribs), carries threatened by Ryan Torain [85] |
| 86. | Trent Edwards, BUF | QB | Efficient, but yet to throw 2 TD passes in a game [87] |
| 87. | Marvin Harrison, IND | WR | Like Indy’s offense, is hit or miss on weekly basis [82] |
| 88. | Eddie Royal, DEN | WR | Big return from ankle injury with 9 catches at NE [83] |
| 89. | Sammy Morris, NE | RB | May be on shelf (knee) for friendly matchup vs. STL [97] |
| 90. | Owen Daniels, HOU | TE | Gaining elite TE status; a consistent producer [NR] |
| 91. | Kevin Smith, DET | RB | On better end of time-share with TDs in 2 of last 3 [91] |
| 92. | Anthony Gonzalez, IND | WR | Odd man out with Clark, Wayne, Harrison in mix [90] |
| 93. | Tim Hightower, ARI | RB | Inherently risky as value derived from goal-line TDs [93] |
| 94. | Warrick Dunn, TB | RB | Iffy this week after leaving Week 7 with back injury [96] |
| 95. | Carson Palmer, CIN | QB | Will sit for 4th time in 5 weeks with sore elbow [76] |
| 96. | Vincent Jackson, SD | WR | Big WR getting even more work with Chambers out [NR] |
| 97. | Isaac Bruce, SF | WR | Timeless treasure is T6th in NFL with 4 TD catches [95] |
| 98. | Justin Fargas, OAK | RB | OAK committed to run and keep him in featured role [NR] |
| 99. | Matt Hasselbeck, SEA | QB | Has hazy future with back, knee injuries [99] |
| 100. | Muhsin Muhammad, CAR | WR | Low upside, but is steady opposite Steve Smith [NR] |
| 101. | Dominic Rhodes, IND | RB | Stint as starter may not be last behind fragile Addai [NR] |