Week seven has officially passed us by in the NFL, and that means the eighth week of college football has also. It’s fantasy football time, and today we are going to be talking about weekly strategies, player insights, rankings, and projections. The main premise here is that you should be considering all of your player analysis and combining it with insights, rankings, and projections. You never want to leave out information in favor of another, just take it all in and make the best educated decisions you can make on each roster choice. Let’s get right into it by starting with something that many fantasy managers use these days, rankings, and not just generic rankings, but rankings for the season opener.
Weekly Rankings
Weekly rankings are awfully important to figure out the correct rosters to play each week in fantasy football, especially a Campus to Canton league.
College And NFL Rankings
College:
- Ashton Jeanty – Running Back
- Nick Nash– Wide Receiver
- Bryson Daily – Quarterback
- Harold Fannin – Tight End
NFL:
- Lamar Jackson – Quarterback
- Derrick Henry – Running Back
- Justin Jefferson – Wide Receiver
- George Kittle – Tight End
Ashton Jeanty had a down week to his standards, and he still wound up being one of the best running backs in college football. He had 33 rush attempts for 128 yards and a touchdown, dropping 20 fantasy points in the process. It was his second-lowest fantasy game of the season but had three consecutive games over 35 before this. This is still a guy who averages nine yards per rush, it’s hard to top that with his volume.
We have Derrick Henry up again. I don’t think Henry is going to drop down the rankings anytime soon, and here’s why. He is just a force to be reckoned with and is beyond consistent from a production standpoint. In a down game over the weekend, he still managed 11 rushes for 73 yards and a touchdown. That would be over six yards per carry. That’s what we’ve seen from him all season long. He averages 6.5 yards per carry and has the most carries in the league, resulting in the best yardage total up to this point in the year. The guy is on pace for 2,000 rushing yards, he’s just unquestioned at the top of the list.
Next, Nick Nash should be at the top once more. Nash, similar to Jeanty, can produce season-low numbers and still be the best at his position. He’s yet to have a game under 15 fantasy points this season and has received at least 12 targets in every single game that he’s played in. He’s also scored a touchdown in every game that he’s appeared in and has racked up at least 75 receiving yards in each contest. Across the board, Nash is consistent and reliable for the San Jose Spartans.
Justin Jefferson will remain here for the same reasons he was here last week, he’s just consistently great. I know I sound like a broken record here at this point, but it is the truth. Jefferson has received at least six targets in every game this season, and he’s had at least four receptions in each one. He’s scored five touchdowns in seven games and has 656 yards, averaging just under 100 yards per contest. In a blowout win, he had six receptions for 81 yards and a touchdown, in a close loss, he had eight receptions for 115 yards. It doesn’t matter the score of the game, Jefferson will get involved.
At quarterback, we are going to stick with Bryson Daily. Daily has averaged the highest number of fantasy points per game at the quarterback position in college football thanks to his legs. He’s rushed for 909 yards and 19 touchdowns through five games. We’ve only seen him throw for 629 yards and seven touchdowns without an interception, but it doesn’t matter. The Army signal-caller is running all across the field on opposing defenses.
As for tight ends, I’ll stick with Harold Fannin. Fannin has consistently been targeted in this Bowling Green offense. He’s received at least nine targets in every single game this season and has scored four touchdowns in five games. This weekend had had six receptions on nine targets for 74 yards and another score. He’s as consistent as they come, with a very high ceiling.
For the NFL, George Kittle is running away with the top tight end spot. The San Francisco 49ers tight end has been so good this year, and it has kind of flown under the radar. He’s had at least four receptions in each game this year and hasn’t had a game under 40 receiving yards. There aren’t many (if any) other tight ends that can say the same. Kittle is tied for the second most receiving touchdowns across the league right now, he’s 15th in receiving yards and tied for 15th in receptions.
This was a disappointing week for Lamar Jackson, though nobody performed well enough to alter the rankings. Lamar, in a loss to the Cleveland Browns, had thrown for 289 yards and two touchdowns while adding 46 rushing yards. It was a mediocre day to his standards. However, I will gladly take two touchdowns and 50 extra rushing yards any day from an NFL quarterback. The only way that Lamar gets bumped down is if someone else outperforms him. That hasn’t happened.
Jersey And Bench (Start/Sit)
You all know the drill here, each week there will be players that you want to start, and players that you want to sit. Below are a couple of options and some background information on why you should do either of the following.
Jersey/Bench Picks
Jersey:
- Eli Holstein
- Matthew Stafford
- Chase Brown
- Ladd McConkey
- Quali Conley
Bench:
- Kole Wilson
- Javonte Williams
- Diontae Johnson
- Henry Parrish Jr.
- Isaiah Likely
Let’s start with the jersey picks and begin with Eli Holstein. Holstein started the year off hotter than any other quarterback in college football, but an injury derailed that start to the season. Since October 5th, Holstein has scored a total of 19 fantasy points but has missed time. Now, with him expected to start in full against SMU, he should absolutely be placed back into lineups. There’s a chance for a huge performance.
Next is Matthew Stafford. The future Hall of Fame quarterback has his weapons back, and that changes everything for the Los Angeles Rams. Stafford has both Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua to throw the football too, and he had 279 yards last week with them back in the lineup. It was the second-highest yard passing total that he has put up all season long, and he threw more touchdowns last weekend than he did in the previous six games. Now, he gets a Seattle Seahawks defense that has really struggled to limit opposing offenses.
I like what I have seen from Chase Brown this season. The Cincinnati Bengals running back is still on a committee at the moment with Zack Moss, but it appears clear that he’s leapfrogged him in the depth chart. Brown has received double-digit carries in the last five games and has passed 12 in four of those. He’s also been targeted three times per game in the passing game, and the more involved he’s been, the more touches he’s gotten inside the red zone. Against a Las Vegas Raiders defense that hasn’t defended running backs well this year, Brown poses a genuine threat.
Ladd McConkey just ate up the New Orleans Saints last weekend, racking up 111 yards and two touchdowns in the process. This could be the big breakout game that everybody was waiting for, as it is clear that Justin Herbert trusts him the most in the passing game. He gets to face off with a Cleveland Browns defense this week that has allowed the sixth-most fantasy points to receivers.
And the last of the jersey picks is Quali Conley. Conley provides more than just rushing yards when you start him, he gives you the potential for big receiving numbers as well. The Arizona running back has taken at least 14 carries in each of the last five games, and he’s seen at least two targets in all of them as well. On the season, he has 572 rushing yards and seven touchdowns, adding on 27 receptions for 177 yards through the air. This is a pleasant combination, and he’s going up against UCF, a team that hasn’t been the greatest against running backs.
Flipping over to the bench picks now, we have Kole Wilson. Wilson started the season off hot and found the end zone in consecutive contests early on. However, he’s fallen off since then. In the last five games, he’s scored over 13 fantasy points one time. And in three of those games, he received a touchdown, which goes to show how little volume he’s received. Two weeks ago, he had one reception for zero yards, last weekend he had six for 57 scoreless yards. He’s inconsistent, and touchdown reliant given his volume, I don’t like him this weekend.
Next, is Javonte Williams. Williams has been hard to trust in general this season, but I think it’s best to avoid him this weekend. He plays the Baltimore Ravens, a defense that has allowed the second-fewest rushing yards this season. Combine that with Williams’ inconsistency across the season and you have yourself a matchup that is not worth the risk. He could prove me wrong if he gets involved in the passing game, but he hasn’t done that much.
We’re actually going to keep Diontae Johnson on the bench picks for a completely different reason from last week. Johnson was just traded to the Baltimore Ravens in the middle of the week, and his upside significantly improved when that happened. Unfortunately, he will need some time to get acclimated to the new offense, and as a result, might not see consistent snaps. Not to mention that they play the Denver Broncos, a stingy pass defense that could limit Baltimore as an offense.
Henry Parish Jr. has just not gotten the production that his volume would suggest. The Ole Miss running back is being started in 61 percent of fantasy leagues right now, yet he’s failed to rush for over 100 yards in five straight games. In that span, he’s received at least 13 rush attempts in all of them. It’s disappointing, and you’d have to imagine that at some point, that trend will change. However, I don’t believe it’s going to happen this week. He’s touchdown-dependent against Oklahoma, though that is something he’s accomplished often. This is a true toss-up. Finally, we get to Isaiah Likely. People were super excited that Likely would steal Mark Andrew’s job early on in the season, but that hasn’t happened. Lately, Andrews has just taken over the top spot again, scoring touchdowns in consecutive games and getting more comfortable with Lamar Jackson, like we’re used to seeing. This has pushed Likely to the side, and with Diontae Johnson getting added, Likely will be even further mixed around in the passing game. I don’t trust his potential usage against the Broncos and would stay away given Andrew’s hot streak.
Projections
Projections are numbers that estimate how many fantasy points a specific player might get in a given week. They can vary depending on the situation or matchup and need to be monitored weekly to get a good understanding of what experts think of them.
Weekly Projections
College:
- QB – Bryson Daily – 39.34 points
- RB – Tylan Hines – 43.41 points
- WR – Tre Harris – 16.47 points
- TE – Elijah Arroyo – 8.85 points
NFL:
- QB – Josh Allen – 26.36 points
- RB – Derrick Henry – 15.65 points
- WR – Justin Jefferson – 12.41 points
- TE – Travis Kelce – 8.25 points
These are the players who are projected to garner the most fantasy points at their position in both college and the NFL. These numbers are calculated by basically estimating the stats that a player might have given their track record and upcoming matchup. If they have an easier matchup and are historically good against that specific team, the projections will be a little higher. If it might be a blowout, the projection might be even higher than that. The reason why it is important to understand these projections is that if you’re ever stuck wondering what to do, they could give you an idea of how a player might perform. Let’s say you can’t decide who to start between two wide receivers, but one is estimated to be 10 points more than the other. That number alone can indicate that the higher projected receiver could be in line for a significantly better day, and you can feel comfortable starting them over your other option. They aren’t guaranteed to be accurate every week, and they do change quite often, because, at the end of the day, they are simply projections, but it’s a good place to start making lineup decisions.
With all of that being said, it is critical to stay on top of your weekly strategies and pay close attention to rankings, and player insights. You never know when you might be caught up between two players and need to figure out how to break the tie in your mind. That is exactly where rankings and projected points play a factor, in helping lay all of the information out for you in an easy-to-read format. Each week is going to be an exciting time for everybody, so before we get ahead of ourselves, just remember to double-check your starting lineups and make sure that you’re happy with the players you have locked in at the moment. I heavily recommend you take some of our listed rankings into consideration, and also for you to check out other projections and rankings as well to get a clear vision of how each week might play out in both college and the NFL.