Week 4 Rankings (2017): Top 25 Quarterbacks: Top 10 Surprises & More

by Eric Stashin (aka The Rotoprofessor)

It feels like the season just started, but we are already three weeks into the season and (hopefully) are starting to get a read on who are the trustworthy options and who are not.  Some of the early season breakouts are starting to fade, though we are also starting to see some slow starters figure things out.  Of course what we think we now know will likely change come Sunday night, but let’s take a look and see how things stack up heading into Week 4:

1. Aaron Rodgers – Green Bay Packers – vs. Chicago
2. Tom Brady – New England Patriots – vs. Carolina
3. Drew Brees – New Orleans Saints – at Miami
4. Matt Ryan – Atlanta Falcons – vs. Buffalo
5. Matthew Stafford – Detroit Lions – at Minnesota
6. Russell Wilson – Seattle Seahawks – vs. Indianapolis
7. Trevor Siemian – Denver Broncos – vs. Oakland
8. Jay Cutler – Miami Dolphins – vs. New Orleans
9. Carson Wentz – Philadelphia Eagles – at Los Angeles Chargers
10. Derek Carr – Oakland Raiders – at Denver
11. Marcus Mariota – Tennessee Titans – at Houston
12. Jameis Winston – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – vs. New York Giants
13. Eli Manning – New York Giants – at Tampa Bay
14. Carson Palmer – Arizona Cardinals – vs. San Francisco
15. Philip Rivers – Los Angeles Chargers – vs. Philadelphia
16. Kirk Cousins – Washington Redskins – at Kansas City
17. Andy Dalton – Cincinnati Bengals – at Cleveland
18. Jared Goff – Los Angeles Rams – at Dallas
19. Alex Smith – Kansas City Chiefs – vs. Washington
20. Dak Prescott – Dallas Cowboys – vs. Los Angeles Rams
21. Ben Roethlisberger – Pittsburgh Steelers – at Baltimore
22. Deshaun Watson – Houston Texans – vs. Tennessee
23. Cam Newton – Carolina Panthers – at New England
24. Blake Bortles – Jacksonville Jaguars – at New York Jets
25. Tyrod Taylor – Buffalo Bills – at Atlanta

Thoughts:

• Trevor Semian had a poor showing in Week 3, with 259 yards, 0 TD and 2 INT, after thriving in his first two starts at home (Week 3 came on the road).  This week he returns home to take on an Oakland team that is allowing the fourth most points to opposing quarterbacks per week thanks to 5 TD vs. 0 INT.  Look for Semian to get back on track and be worth using in even single-quarterback formats.
• The Houston Texans were supposed to be a good defense, though they’ve allowed the seventh most points per week to opposing quarterbacks (727 yards, 6 TD, 0 INT).  Coming off a strong showing against the Seattle Seahawks (225 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT) it’s easy to envision Marcus Mariota posting another good stat line.  The key for him is going to be throwing for a few TD, something that’s unfortunately not a given considering the running game behind him (he has 3 TD in the first three weeks).  That risk keeps his value down slightly, but he’s still a viable option.
• Alex Smith has made a splash this season, though it’s important to note that the yardage has been trending down (368 to 251 to 155) and he’s thrown 3 TD over the past two weeks (he had 4 TD in Week 1).  Is he moving more towards the “safe” option as opposed to the big play threat we wanted to believe he was?  He’s still a borderline QB1, but after Washington silenced the Raiders’ passing game he’s going to be a tough sell.
• In two games the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have allowed 670 passing yards, 4 TD and 2 INT.  After watching Eli Manning and the Giants’ passing attack finally find its footing late in Week 3 there’s a good chance he continues producing in a big way.
• Deshaun Watson tossed for 300 yards, 2 TD and 2 INT against the Patriots, though they obviously needed to throw a lot to try and keep up.  While they may not be in the same position this week, he has a favorable offense and the coaching staff is clearly growing comfortable with him.  As a QB2, don’t shy away.