QB tier list fantasy
Fantasy Football 2021 Quarterback Tiers: Lamar Jackson back on topTier 1 - Elite Quarterbacks1 - Lamar Jackson Show
2- Patrick Mahomes 3 - Josh Allen All three of these players have the best odds to finish as the highest-scoring quarterback in fantasy football. But, Lamar Jackson is my QB1 overall heading into 2021. More He could easily snare his third-straight 1,000-yard rushing season, which is just an absurd advantage. Im also projecting new players like Sammy Watkins and especially first-round pick Rashod Bateman to boost the overall efficiency of this passing game. Combine that with bounce-back years from Marquise Brown and Mark Andrews and we could see Jackson hit the type of passing ceiling he did in 2019. He led the NFL in touchdown rate and finished fourth in adjusted yards per attempt two years ago. Bateman is truly the key here. Everyone is stuck in their ways with projecting the Ravens passing game. However, I believe Bateman is a Justin Jefferson-type player and could have a transformative effect on this offense. Tier 2 - Advantage-giving QB1s4 - Dak Prescott 5 - Kyler Murray 6 - Russell Wilson These three quarterbacks are only the slightest step down from the first three players but no one should be even a bit shocked if one of them finishes as the QB1 overall. Russell Wilson might be the most controversial of the trio. The Seahawks quarterback was the QB6 in fantasy last year but anyone who took that ride knows it was anything but smooth. Hiring Shane Waldron from the Rams coaching tree should help bring more layups to a Wilson passing game that was too high-variance in 2020. Still tethered to a pair of star wide receivers, Wilson should avoid the slump he put himself through late last year. Russell Wilson could be set for an excellent fantasy season in 2021. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)Tier 3 - Steady QB1s7 - Tom Brady 8 - Aaron Rodgers 9 - Justin Herbert 10 - Ryan Tannehill 11 - Jalen Hurts 12 - Matthew Stafford All of these guys have solid outlooks but lack the rushing upside to challenge for the overall QB1 spot. Tom Bradys 2020, where he chucked 40 touchdown passes but didnt even sniff the top-five fantasy QBs, is the perfect example. You should be relatively comfortable starting the back-half QB1s each and every week, though a lower-ranked players matchup might tempt you to stream. Herbert and Tannehill have some semblance of rushing chops. However, they profile as more floor-protecting rushers, not players who have access to a Josh Allen, Kyler Murray, or even a Dak Prescott-level ceiling. Jalen Hurts absolutely needs to at least approach the rushing work that he enjoyed late last year to hit this mark. The rookie owned a greater than 30 percent share of the teams rush attempts during his starts in 2020. If he repeats that, hell almost certainly finish inside the top-12 quarterbacks simply based on scoring. Im just not sure the Eagles have the passing game infrastructure for Hurts to make it on his aerial game alone. I havent been proactively drafting him at ADP. Tier 4 - Could Make the Jump13 - Trevor Lawrence 14 - Joe Burrow 15 - Ryan Fitzpatrick 16 - Kirk Cousins 17 - Matt Ryan 18 - Baker Mayfield You can tell yourself a story where any of the players in this tier make the leap to back-end QB1 status. The path is just a bit cluttered. Im a bit below market on Joe Burrow just because of the chatter surrounding him running less in the wake of his ACL recovery. Conversely, I think Trevor Lawrence has access to a ceiling as a full-season starter with an understated rushing outlook. Both offenses should push to finish top-10 in pass attempts. More Im bullish on Ryan Fitzpatrick, however. Washingtons offense is set up for fantasy success after running the eighth-most plays last year. Now, their cupboards are stacked with young talent. Fitzpatrick is my favorite QB2 when accounting for ADP. He has played steady football over his last two years with Miami, not the volatile style usually associated with his game. The last three guys in this tier just dont have much rushing upside, which is problematic in todays game. However, if they had an uber-efficient passing season, they could finish in the QB11 to 12 range. All three have the surrounding talent to make a run at it. Tier 5 - Risky Starters with Upside19 - Ben Roethlisberger 20 - Carson Wentz 21 - Daniel Jones 22 - Derek Carr The main question with the first three of these quarterbacks: Are they even good? Kind of a big deal to figure that out. Carson Wentz is in a secure ecosystem while Daniel Jones team has loaded his skill-position rooms with talent. They just need to maximize those surroundings. Something doesnt add up with the Steelers. All three of the Pittsburgh receivers are inside the top-31 in consensus rankings, Najee Harris sits at RB13 but no one wants to touch Ben Roethlisberger. That doesnt make sense. Either you think Roethlisberger has one last good run in him while surrounded by all these good players or several of these Pittsburgh talents are going to bust. Im tepidly optimistic. Derek Carr stands out a bit here, as hes coming off his best season in years. Still, that netted just a QB13 overall finish. He just doesnt present a ceiling. Tier 6 - High Upside Rookies23 - Trey Lance 24 - Justin Fields In a one-quarterback league, you really cant draft Fields or Lance if they dont start Week 1. However, when they do get on the field, theyll immediately be in fantasy streaming consideration at worst because of their rushing ability. Im viewing this ranking as a compromise because I think they find their way to the field sooner rather than later. Tier 7 - Low Upside Starters25 - Tua Tagovailoa 26 - Taysom Hill 27 - Sam Darnold 28 - Zach Wilson 29 - Jared Goff Tua Tagovailoa intrigues me a bit because hes going from playing with preseason talent as a rookie to a receiver corps thats suddenly a bit crowded. He has a long way to go, however. With Michael Thomas now out for a long stretch, it feels like New Orleans will opt for the Taysom Hill experience at quarterback. Jameis Winstons volatile style doesnt feel like a good mix with whats now objectively the NFLs weakest wideout room. A ball-control style of offense with Hill and Alvin Kamara running the show looks like the path forward. I dont want to stroll down that trail. Tier 8 - Slated for a QB competition30 - Cam Newton 31 - Tyrod Taylor 32 - Teddy Bridgewater 33 - Mac Jones 34 - Drew Lock 35 - Jimmy Garoppolo 36 - Andy Dalton 37 - Jameis Winston All of these players will be competing for a job heading into and likely throughout the 2021 season. If Cam Newton or Tyrod Taylor held down their gigs for the long-term, theyd have the type of rushing floor where theyd outkick this ADP; especially Newton. However, I have no faith Newton holds that spot for any real stretch. As for Taylor, I still dont think Deshaun Watson plays football this year and believe the veteran will start the most games for Houston. That doesnt equal too much fantasy goodness. Neither Teddy Bridgewater nor Drew Lock is a fantasy option. I am rooting for Bridgewater to earn and hold the job however because hell be a steadier presence for Denver's pass-catchers' outlooks. More |