Ahhh... the fantasy playoffs. If you’ve made it this far, congratulations. In a league riddled with injuries, time-shares, miscommunications, conundrums, controversy, and weekly surprises, surviving to the fantasy playoffs is the summation of a long battle of attrition with one’s self, the waiver wire, weekly roster decisions, and sly fellow owners.
But, the end is in sight. With one final push, glory is on the horizon. If you’ve positioned yourself well enough to still be fighting for your league prize(s), it’s highly possible that one or two final savvy moves will clinch that coveted title.
And so, to the rankings. Thursday’s game has been omitted and I rank here with the latest information available as of Friday evening.
Best of luck!
MY MISSION STATEMENT
What frustrates me above all else are so-called fantasy advice columns that fit into one of two categories:
1) They refuse to stray from conventional wisdom, often until it’s weeks too late to save or help your season or
2) They only offer rankings commentary on the “big-name” guys that everyone knows to play anyway. Gee, Adrian Peterson will have a bounce back week and I shouldn’t bench him for Danny Woodhead? Thanks!
Each week I will examine what I consider to be the most pressing issues facing fantasy owners. I will try to focus only on issues that you may actually be concerned with, namely: marginal flex players, tough matchup decisions, and above all else, how to assimilate new information from the previous week. This is a column of the people, by the people, for the people. And as long as I’m offering oaths, I promise to always tackle the difficult questions as I see them, not be chained by conventional wisdom, and not allow traditional or draft-position bias to affect my weekly rankings.
Week 14 Top 75
1. Arian Foster
2. Adrian Peterson
3. Trent Richardson
4. Doug Martin
5. Ray Rice
6. Calvin Johnson
7. AJ Green
8. Alfred Morris
9. Jamaal Charles
10. Marshawn Lynch
11. Andre Johnson
12. Brandon Marshall
13. CJ Spiller
14. Frank Gore
15. Bryce Brown
The Big Boys
I still have a hard time moving Peterson over Foster, despite all the arguments. The Vikes are one-dimensional, and Chicago is very good against one-dimensional offensive attacks. Just saying: you’ve been warned. I still think Megatron and AJ are 1 and 1A, but after last week and against a banged up Green Bay team, how can you not expect shootout, part deux? If only we could get Charlie Sheen to use a chicken as an arrow against some guerrillas at half-time. This just in: Jay Cutler likes Brandon Marshall. I wasn’t sold on the tandem last week, given the Seattle cornerbacks were still active pending appeal, and man was I mistaken. Hey, you know who’s awesome? Trent Richardson, that’s who. He has quietly been one of the best backs in fantasy. Outside of Week 1 and the two “broken-ribs incident” weeks, Richardson has scored in double digits every week. We need a nickname for this guy. Seriously.
16. Ahmad Bradshaw
17. Chris Johnson
18. Wes Welker
19. Stevan Ridley
20. Dez Bryant
21. Jimmy Graham
22. DeMarco Murray
23. Victor Cruz
24. Roddy White
25. Matt Forte
26. Tony Gonzalez
27. BenJarvus Green-Ellis
28. Reggie Wayne
29. Marques Colston
30. Vick Ballard
Some Rathers
I’d rather not see a questionable tag next to Hakeem Nicks’ name, but since it’s there Victor Cruz moves up accordingly. I’d rather play Wes Welker than any other Patriot, and the Houston secondary isn’t what it used to be. I’d rather use Roddy White than Julio Jones this week, given that the last time he faced Carolina he had eight catches for 169 yards and two touchdowns. Yeah. I’d rather use Vick Ballard (without Donald Brown) against Tennessee than DeAngelo Williams without Jonathan Stewart. I’d rather use Dez Bryant than any other Cowboy. Wow.
31. Pierre Garcon
32. Mikel Leshoure
33. Jonathan Dwyer
34. Greg Jennings
35. Danario Alexander
36. Randall Cobb
37. Aaron Hernandez
38. Ryan Matthews
39. Fred Jackson
40. Jason Witten
41. Hakeem Nicks
42. Vincent Jackson
43. Torrey Smith
44. Jacquizz Rodgers
45. Michael Turner
Statement Time
I was really low on V-Jax last week and uh, hey, I was right! Yeah, I think I actually may like Jennings more than Cobb this week, if I had to pick only one. I know it’s irrational. Perhaps even stupid. Call it a hunch. Danario Alexander is a number one receiver. And Ike Taylor is out. Just saying. Nicks’ injury really worries me. He didn’t look himself last week against a bad Redskins secondary, so I’m not all-in on him against a bad New Orleans secondary. Sorry, I just can’t be. I’m probably a bit high on Aaron Hernandez, but he’s playing a ton of snaps and, well, see above about the Houston D just not quite looking the same these past few weeks. Oh yeah, and VIVE LA QUIZZ.
46. T.Y. Hilton
47. Shonne Greene
48. Steve Johnson
49. Alex Green
50. Reggie Bush
51. Kyle Rudolph
52. Steve Smith
53. Darren Sproles
54. Miles Austin
55. Sidney Rice
56. Mike Wallace
57. Beanie Wells
58. James Jones
59. Justin Blackmon
60. Jermaine Gresham
61. DeAngelo Williams
62. Greg Olsen
63. Josh Gordon
64. Kenny Britt
65. Kendall Wright
66. Owen Daniels
67. Montell Owens
68. Larry Fitzgerald
69. Mike Williams
70. Donnie Avery
71. Dwayne Bowe
72. Heath Miller
73. Golden Tate
74. Chris Givens
75. Michael Crabtree
Some Omissions
Vernon Davis. You can’t trust him. I don’t care what the 49ers say, I don’t care how bad Miami is against the pass. I’m done with him. I’m debating which waiver-wire tight-end to use this week over him, and at the moment it’s Jermichael Finley. Yeah, it was fun ranking Larry Fitzgerald one spot below Montell Owens, but honestly, how can I not? The Cardinals have been terrible. Even if they are down big against Seattle (which they probably will be), I’m still not sure they have anyone who can get the ball to him. A quick disclaimer: you will only find Steelers receivers (Wallce/Miller) on this list because I’m predicting Ben Roethlisberger plays. If we learn otherwise, remove them all from your lineups with haste.
Best of luck in Week 14. As always you can tweet me @petethegreekff for lineup questions, rants, or other random nonsense.
_PDK
