Fantasy Football: Top Five Quarterbacks

Fantasy Football drafts are only a short month away. Players are probably currently doing research on who they will choose as their fantasy football quarterback. Now that Tom Brady’s suspension if official, the fantasy football quarterback rankings may slightly change. If someone chooses to take a chance on Brady, their backup quarterback needs to have the capability to carry a team four games into the fantasy season. Here are the top five quarterbacks in fantasy football.

Cam Newton

It’s hard to believe that anyone will dethrone Cam Newton as the best fantasy football quarterback. Newton racked up a whopping 35 touchdown passes and rushed for an additional 10 touchdowns. This season, Newton is getting his former number one receiver back, Kelvin Benjamin, back in the lineup.

Now that he has a solid option at receiver besides tight end Greg Olsen, Newton’s value is unbeatable. Newton is going to spread the ball around much more in 2016. Technically speaking, if all of his touchdowns were combined, Newton scored nine more touchdowns than any other quarterback in the league.

Aaron Rodgers

The Green Bay Packers are going to be one of the most fearsome teams in the NFC this year. The Packers’ offense just gets more dynamic every offseason. The addition of Jared Cook at tight end helped close the one gap in the Packers’ passing offense. Now that Jordy Nelson is back at full health and Randall Cobb isn’t bearing all the pressure, the Packers’ offense may be taken too new heights. This is only if Nelson can manage to stay healthy all season long.

Another key to Rodgers’ fantasy football production is the resurgence of Eddie Lacy. After a productive first two years with the Packers, Eddie Lacy couldn’t crack 1,000 yards in his third year as a NFL running back. He was also lacking in the touchdown department. He only scored three touchdowns all season. If Lacy gets back on track, it will free Rodgers up to do more damage.

Russell Wilson

Wilson has received tons of criticism despite being one of the most productive quarterbacks in the NFL. He may have the best accuracy among quarterbacks in the league with a completion percentage of 68.1 percent. Wilson also rushed for 553 yards which is very high, even for a mobile quarterback.

Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks will be going through a transitional period without Marshawn Lynch. The Seahawks are going to change their offensive scheme, which was formerly centered around Lynch. It should be interesting to see how he adjusts if backup running back Thomas Rawls can’t carry the load the way Lynch did. This may affect Wilson negatively because he may have to pick up for Rawls’ slack.

Tom Brady

Yes, the suspension will change nothing. In fact, it may even increase Brady’s value. Even though Brady will miss the first four games of the season, he will still produce more than most fantasy football quarterbacks. The time away from football will motivate him to get back at commissioner Roger Goodell by winning. Brady knows that by accepting the suspension, Deflategate will be a blemish on his career for the rest of his life.

This season, Brady has a dynamic duo of tight ends to work with. Martellus Bennett and Rob Gronkowski are two of the most talented tight ends in the league. Julian Edelman is returning from injury and should really help Brady’s numbers. He is showing no signs of slowing down in his old age and doesn’t appear to be playing any different. Brady is worth a flier despite having to miss the first four games of the season. Brady will return to the Patriots facing the Cleveland Browns, which may end with a few fantasy football records getting broken.

Ben Roethlisberger

Roethlisberger has consistently put up great numbers in fantasy football for years. The only worry surrounding Big Ben is his durability. If Roethlisberger gets injured mid-season, like he did last year, it could mean also ruination of fantasy football seasons across the country.

When healthy, Roethlisberger is one of the most consistent fantasy football options. He has a plethora of receivers to spread the ball around to like Antonio Brown, Ladarius Green, Markus Wheaton, and second year player Sammie Coates. Coates may solidify himself as the Steelers’ number two receiving option and become a fantasy football star. There is a lot of buzz around him this offseason.

[Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images]