Fantasy & Betting

9/4/24

4 min read

Fantasy Football 2024: Week 1 Rankings For Every Position

By C.H. Herrmann

Fantasy Writer

Share:

• Share to Facebook
• Share to X
• Share via LinkedIn
• Share via Email
• Copy permalink to clipboard https://www.the33rdteam.com/fantasy-football-2024-week-1-rankings-for-every-position/ Copied to clipboard

Save to My Playbook

To borrow a phrase from legendary Canadian country megastar Shania Twain, it looks like we made it.

Week 1 of the NFL season regular season kicks off this weekend, which means it's to start planning your fantasy football lineups.

Most managers will inevitably play the vast majority of the players they drafted to be starters in their lineups in Week 1. That’s perfectly fine, especially since we don’t have any regular season results yet.

But that shouldn’t stop anyone from having a critical eye, combing through some of the matchups, and making informed tweaks accordingly. 

Together, let’s run down some rankings, position-by-position, and handy analysis to help make your Week 1 lineup decisions easier.

Week 1 Fantasy Football Rankings

Week 1 Quarterback Rankings

Quick Takeaways

• The optimal move for Week 1 is to start the quarterback you drafted and intended to start anyway. Even if I’m not as bullish on a player this week, if he’s your QB1, go for it. Don’t feel that anyone outside the top 12 isn’t worth starting consideration.
• Those looking for a “cut-off” point can look to QB18. There’s no way to know what to expect from Aaron Rodgers in his first full season as the New York Jets starter after tearing his Achilles tendon, especially going up against one of the league’s best defenses in the San Francisco 49ers. Picking between the five players who follow the top 12 will be your best bet if you want to tinker.

Potential Breakouts

• Jayden Daniels is the player likeliest to make these rankings look foolish. He’s outside of the top 12 because it’s a risky proposition to trust a rookie in their NFL debut. Fortunately, the Buccaneers’ defense allowed the second-most rushing touchdowns to quarterbacks last season (six). Daniels' scrambling upside could vault him into QB1 status.
• As discussed in a recent preseason takeaways article, Geno Smith is in a tremendous position to lead an extraordinarily pass-happy Seahawks offense. The veteran will face off against a Denver Broncos defense that ranked 25th in pass defense DVOA (17.6 percent) in 2023, according to FTN. That gives him an excellent opportunity to deliver upon the promise of a Ryan Grubb-called offense. His lower ranking this week is more a product of the “wait-and-see” philosophy.
• Losing offensive coordinator Dave Canales this offseason makes projecting the Buccaneers’ offense's success in 2024 difficult. Luckily, Baker Mayfield may not have to press too hard to post solid numbers in Week 1 vs. the Washington Commanders. Albeit under a different coaching regime, the Commanders allowed the most passing yards to quarterbacks (4,627) last season. The franchise didn’t add any significant pieces to their secondary this offseason, so it’s still a matchup ripe for possible exploit.

Week 1 Running Back Rankings

Quick Takeaways

• Like with the quarterbacks, don’t be afraid of starting a running back outside of the top 24 as your RB2. There are plenty of backfields with players we didn’t see play at all this preseason. Plus, we’ll have plenty of touch distributions and snap counts to sift through following opening weekend. 
• There are only two backfields with multiple running backs in the top 24 this week: the Miami Dolphins and Detroit Lions. Fantasy managers saw all of last season how effective the duos of Raheem Mostert/De’Von Achane and David Montgomery/Jahmyr Gibbs can be. Both the Dolphins and Lions are set with at least a 49.5 point over/under (o/u) line, according to Vegas Insider. It’s not a catch-all rule to follow, but games with higher implied scoring outcomes are typically good ones to target for fantasy opportunities.

Potential Breakouts

• The New England Patriots finished tied for ninth in receptions allowed to running backs (86) in 2023. This team didn’t add a ton to their defensive front this offseason. Therefore, it should be an excellent matchup for Cincinnati Bengals running backs and likely pass-catching specialist Chase Brown. Expect to see Zack Moss on early downs, but don’t discount Brown's point-per-reception (PPR) upside on Sunday.
• As suspect as the New Orleans Saints offense might be, there’s reason for optimism due to the addition of offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak. However, what that hire will mean for the offense remains to be seen. But that shouldn’t stop you from trusting Alvin Kamara vs. the Carolina Panthers. Remember, the Panthers finished 32nd in run defense DVOA (5.7 percent) in 2023. They’ll be a better unit with offseason acquisitions like LB Josey Jewell, but not enough to substantially change their standing as a soft matchup for opposing runners.

Week 1 Wide Receiver Rankings

Quick Takeaways

• Given what we’ve seen from Kellen Moore offenses in the past, especially throughout his tenure with the Cowboys, it’s reasonable to presume the Philadelphia Eagles will throw the ball more. Exactly how much more? That’s up in the air. Hurts’ penchant for scrambling and the major free agent signing of RB Saquon Barkley leaves room for caution as it relates to projecting the Eagles’ balance in Week 1. WR A.J. Brown (WR6) and TE Dallas Goedert (TE10) find themselves still reasonably high in the rankings, but wideout DeVonta Smith is lower (WR25) if only out of caution, not lack of belief in his abilities.
• The Houston Texans' wide receiver corps is still a mystery. This run of rankings still figures Nico Collins' previous role to be intact, though it’s challenging to know what to do with Tank Dell and Stefon Diggs. Diggs forced Dell off the field in two receiver sets in the preseason at times, so that’s the tiebreaker between them specifically. The larger scope of how target distribution will shake out is why neither is ranked as a top-24 option. It will be hard to trust either of them with our limited information.

Potential Breakouts

• According to Razzball, the Eagles defense allowed the second-most fantasy points per game to slot receivers (15.7) in 2023. Granted, their secondary underwent a facelift in the offseason through the NFL Draft. Still, there is no guarantee that the Eagles' defense will click in Week 1. That potential boon to Green Bay Packers WR Jayden Reed’s outlook could easily vault him much higher than his WR34 ranking.

Week 1 Tight End Rankings

Quick Takeaways

• Now is an excellent time to set the tone for approaching the tight ends in fantasy this year. Yes, the position has seen a recent influx of young talent, like Sam LaPorta and Dalton Kincaid, but that doesn’t make tight end “deep” necessarily. Outside of five or six players, you’re praying one can catch four passes and stumble into the end zone weekly. When in doubt, follow the target counts.
• It might be jarring to see Arizona Cardinals TE Trey McBride so high, but you should get used to it. As shared in my top 100 draft rankings, the Cardinals’ offense recorded the second-highest target share to tight ends (32 percent) last season, per NFELO. That type of usage is even higher than the Minnesota Vikings (29 percent) and Kansas City Chiefs (28 percent) recorded with T.J. Hockenson and Travis Kelce. That should be telling for what kind of season-long results we should expect from McBride in 2024— he’s the next “it” tight end.

Potential Breakouts

• As formidable as the Bengals’ defense can be, it needs to do better in halting production to opposing tight ends. Cincinnati allowed the most receptions to the position (107) in 2023 and will be squaring off against a New England Patriots offense without many experienced wide receivers. This could be a prime opportunity for Hunter Henry to see elevated responsibility.
• For whatever it’s worth, musical icon Taylor Swift is not on tour for the entire month of September, per her official website. This leaves the songstress free to attend the football game of her romantic partner, Travis Kelce, in Kansas City this Thursday night against the Baltimore Ravens. Across the 13 Chiefs games (including playoffs) that Swift attended last year, Kelce averaged 6.8 receptions and 80.5 receiving yards per game. In PPR terms, that would amount to a baseline of 14.8 points per game without including possible touchdowns. This information shouldn’t sway you about starting the All-Pro pass-catcher, considering you’re going to anyway, but talk about a neat, fun fact.

---

C.H. Herrmann

Fantasy Writer

• Share to Facebook
• Share to X
• Share via LinkedIn
• Share via Instagram

C.H. 'Herms' Herrmann is a fantasy writer for The 33rd Team, leveraging his extensive experience from previous roles as a fantasy analyst and NFL writer at Draft Sharks, FantasyPros, ClutchPoints, and SB Nation. A respected voice in the fantasy football community, Herms' insights and accuracy have earned them the distinction of being the No. 1 most accurate DST ranker in FantasyPros’ ECR Draft Rankings in the 2023 season. Herms has worked in media since 2020.