Week 17 Rankings (2016): Top 25 Quarterbacks

by Eric Stashin (aka The Rotoprofessor)

Injuries and the potential for playoff bound teams to rest their starters makes Week 17 one of the toughest to predict.  For now we are ranking the quarterbacks as if they are going to be utilized as usual, but keep a close eye on the news as that easily may not be the case.  With that in mind, let’s take a look at the rankings for the coming week:

1. Matt Ryan – Atlanta Falcons – vs. New Orleans
2. Tom Brady – New England Patriots – at Miami
3. Russell Wilson – Seattle Seahawks – at San Francisco
4. Ben Roethlisberger – Pittsburgh Steelers – vs. Cleveland
5. Drew Brees – New Orleans Saints – at Atlanta
6. Andrew Luck – Indianapolis Colts – vs. Jacksonville
7. Aaron Rodgers – Green Bay Packers – at Detroit
8. Cam Newton – Carolina Panthers – at Tampa Bay
9. Tyrod Taylor – Buffalo Bills – at New York Jets
10. Carson Palmer – Arizona Cardinals – at Los Angeles
11. Phillip Rivers – San Diego Chargers – vs. Kansas City
12. Joe Flacco – Baltimore Ravens – at Cincinnati
13. Jameis Winston – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – vs. Carolina
14. Kirk Cousins – Washington Redskins – vs. New York Giants
15. Andy Dalton – Cincinnati Bengals – vs. Baltimore
16. Matthew Stafford – Detroit Lions – vs. Green Bay
17. Eli Manning – New York Giants – at Washington
18. Carson Wentz – Philadelphia Eagles – vs. Dallas
19. Sam Bradford – Minnesota Vikings – vs. Chicago
20. Dak Prescott – Dallas Cowboys – at Philadelphia
21. Tom Savage – Houston Texans – at Tennessee
22. Matt Barkley – Chicago Bears – at Minnesota
23. Alex Smith – Kansas City Chiefs – at San Diego
24. Matt Moore – Miami Dolphins – vs. New England
25. Blake Bortles – Jacksonville Jaguars – at Indianapolis

Thoughts:

• After a disastrous performance against the Packers, Russell Wilson has thrown 7 TD vs. 1 INT over his past two games while completing 67.6% of his passes.  With a favorable matchup against the 49ers on the horizon, he has the makings of one of the best options for the coming week.
• Aaron Rodgers has been among the best quarterbacks in the league the last few weeks, including 2+ TD in nine of his past ten games.  He also did throw 4 TD against the Lions earlier in the season, albeit with just 205 yards.  Detroit has allowed just 3 passing TD over their past four games, which does hurt his potential as well.  It’s impossible not to trust him, but he does fall down a few spots given the risk.
• Tyrod Taylor is coming off a monster performance against the Dolphins, albeit in overtime, as he went 26-39 for 329 yards, 3 TD and 0 INT.  Taking on a Jets team that’s been repeatedly embarrassed over the past few weeks, and who he already torched for 297 yards and 3 TD in Week 2, he’s as good of a bet as there is after the top names.
• Even if there wasn’t a risk of him getting rested, would anyone truly trust Eli Manning?  Even with a favorable matchup, the consistent disappointments have led to him being nothing more than a QB2 in all formats.
• Sure Blake Bortles is coming off what may be his best game of the season, but is anyone truly ready to trust him?  Don’t get caught in the “trap”.

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