Week 1 Fantasy Football Rankings for Standard Scoring

I’d like us all to take a moment. A moment to grab hands (spiritually, of course) and celebrate the return of the sport we love. Football is back, and with its 2020 debut comes fantasy questions. I’m here to, hmm, how can I say this? I’m here to help you open up a can of you-know-what on your league-mates. I, as well as my other Fantrax cohorts, will be here all season long to help you achieve sweet, sweet fantasy supremacy. Now, without further adieu, I present to you my Week 1 Fantasy Football Rankings for leagues that use a standard scoring format.

Say what?! Your fantasy football league isn’t using Fantrax this season? Unthinkable! Check out all the features Fantrax has to offer, and we think you’ll be singing a different tune for the coming season.

About My Week 1 Rankings

Quarterbacks

From the jump, you’ll find most of the usual suspects sitting atop my rankings. I could eat up your time discussing Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson, but you didn’t spend a second-round pick to wait for me to tell you to start them. No, instead, this goes out to all my streamers out there.

Two guys that really stand out to me in Week 1 are Ben Roethlisberger and Philip Rivers. While Roethlisberger offers far more upside, you’d be hard-pressed to find a quarterback with a better matchup than Rivers has against the Jaguars. The Jags are not what they used to be on defense. In a Post-A.J. Bouye world, Jacksonville’s best option at corner could very well be their rookie C.J. Henderson. Jacksonville rolls into Week 1 against a solid, veteran quarterback in Rivers, who isn’t accustomed to playing with an offensive-line such as the unit the Colts have assembled. Contrasting Los Angeles’ O-Line to Indianapolis’, the Colts finished nearly 16 points higher in pass-blocking metrics per Pro Football Focus. Expect Rivers to have a nice cushion in the pocket to operate with.

Ben, on the other hand, lines up opposite of a secondary riddled with newly converted starters that offer less appeal than the freshly cut DeAndre Baker. Sure, James Bradberry, an experienced veteran, is new in town, but years of seeing him get ripped apart by the passing offenses in the NFC South offer little hope. Ben, James Conner, and JuJu Smith-Schuster are all easy starts.

Running Backs

Ready for an unpopular take? Jonathan Taylor should be nothing more than a flex spot in your lineup.

It’s not that I haven’t fallen in love with the rookie’s talent, because truly, it pains me to declare such a thing. Recent reports out of practice have uniformly stated that Marlon Mack is being utilized as their starter. Come Week 3, this very well may be a different discussion. Although Head Coach Frank Reich has said that Mack has “earned the right” to be the starter, he subsequently stated that the team would ride the hot hand throughout the season. Mack will eventually cede the position to the rookie, but it may take a few weeks for that to come to fruition. Needless to say, if you have Mack on your team, it’s all systems go in Week 1.

If you haven’t broken your computer in a blind rage after reading my comments on the Colts backfield, then strap in, because the same is about to be said for the Rams. Head Coach Sean McVay revealed that Malcolm Brown, Cam Akers, and Darrell Henderson (if healthy) will all receive touches against Dallas. Like the Colts’ situation, talent will eventually prevail. In the meantime, exercise patience when starting your rookie running backs in fantasy.

Wide Receiver

Keenan Allen backhanded me and demanded that I pay him some respect when ranking him for Week 1. That’s what happened and I’m sticking to it.

In reality, the loss of Mike Williams has forced my hand. That and he looked pretty damn good in Hard Knocks…

The Chargers are squaring up against the Bengals in Week 1, and Cincinnati inspires anything but fear in their secondary. William Jackson III is coming off a disastrous season, and Trae Waynes was recently placed on IR. Is it any surprise that Tyrod Taylor’s clear-cut No. 1 (both in talent and role) weapon finds himself in my top 10 on the week?

Moving away from that game, I’ve got Amari Cooper farther down my rankings than he’d normally find himself. With Cooper, I’m not endorsing that fantasy owners play the “Will he? Won’t he?'” game right out of the gate. Considering that he’s been nursing an injury and that he’s playing in an offense with a litany of weapons facing a solid Rams secondary, I’d safely consider him a Week 1 fade.

Tight End

Remind me. Did I talk about that Chargers game yet?

Similar to Keenan Allen, Hunter Henry’s production this week will be equal parts talent, equal parts necessity. Allen is clearly the alpha in their passing attack, but peripheral pieces like Henry and Austin Ekeler will have to step up as well. Henry is a dominant red-zone force that will find himself with plenty of red-zone opportunities to work with against a mediocre Bengals defense.

Ah hell, let’s talk streamers one more time.

Going back to the well, Jack Doyle is a fantastic streaming candidate against the Jaguars in Week 1. His quarterback is notoriously known for feeding his tight ends, and until Parris Campbell or Michael Pittman Jr. proves themselves, Jack Doyle is a steady, reliable commodity in the Colts passing attack.