ChiCitySports Fantasy Review: Week 4 Fantasy Football Rankings

So who saw the Jets beating the Dolphins, Buffalo taking down Denver and the absolute beatdown Jacksonville just put on Baltimore across the pond? Sure wasn’t me.

Just as unpredictable as the game itself, week 3 provided quite the list of major performances across the league: Stefon Diggs and Case Keenum dazzled against Tampa Bay, Chris Thompson made the most of his game against Oakland and in his first game of the season, Marcedes Lewis found the endzone three times. If you managed to start all of these players last week, please show me your ways. In the meantime, let’s take a look at what Week 4 has in store for your fantasy matchups.

Quarterback

Fool me once, fool me twice with Cam Newton this season. After botching a prime matchup with the Saints, it’s safe to say the former NFL MVP is not quarterback he once was. He’s outside of my top 20 this week thanks to his early season performances. Meanwhile on the top half, the top four reign supreme again as they all enter the week with favorable matchups. Rodgers draws the Bears on Thursday night, and while Chicago got the best of the Green and Gold last time they played on a Thursday night, the Packers’ QB has thrown for 3+ touchdowns in four of their last six meetings.

Past the top tier, the resurrection of Andy Dalton should continue this week against a bad Browns defense that just made Jacoby Brissett look like a pro bowler. Jay Cutler has his shot against the Saints. We’ll see if Newton was the outlier in regards to facing New Orleans.

Rank	Name	Team	Opp
1	Tom Brady	NE	vs. CAR
2	Aaron Rodgers	GB	vs. CHI
3	Drew Brees	NO	at MIA
4	Matt Ryan	ATL	vs. BUF
5	Russell Wilson	SEA	vs. IND
6	Marcus Mariota	TEN	at HOU
7	Kirk Cousins	WAS	at KC
8	Philip Rivers	LAC	vs. PHI
9	Matthew Stafford	DET	at MIN
10	Dak Prescott	DAL	vs. LAR
11	Jameis Winston	TB	vs. NYG
12	Andy Dalton	CIN	at CLE
13	Ben Roethlisberger	PIT	at BAL
14	Carson Palmer	ARI	vs. SF
15	Derek Carr	OAK	at DEN
16	Trevor Siemian	DEN	vs. OAK
17	Alex Smith	KC	vs. WAS
18	Jay Cutler	MIA	vs. NO
19	Carson Wentz	PHI	at LAC
20	Tyrod Taylor	BUF	at ATL
21	Cam Newton	CAR	at NE
22	Deshaun Watson	HOU	vs. TEN
23	Jared Goff	LAR	at DAL
24	Eli Manning	NYG	at TB
25	Blake Bortles	JAC	at NYJ

 

Running Back

 

I said it last week, I’ll say it again: all aboard the Kareem Hunt bandwagon!

Hunt is well on his way to rookie of the year honors with no end in sight. The two right behind him in Elliott and Gurley are just as worthy of that #1 slot so you can’t go wrong among the top three here.

Jordan Howard is the questionable play in the RB2 tier depending on how well his shoulder will do on short rest. Playing through the pain against Pittsburgh helped Chicago notch the victory, but at what price did it come? Yes, Mark Ingram looks to be the guy in New Orleans but I’m not sold just yet. It wouldn’t surprise me if Alvin Kamara works his way into the gameplan putting Ingram’s chances at fully breaking away from the pack on hold.

Rank	Name	Team	Opp
1	Kareem Hunt	KC	vs. WAS
2	Ezekiel Elliott	DAL	vs. LAR
3	Todd Gurley	LAR	at DAL
4	Le’Veon Bell	PIT	at BAL
5	Jay Ajayi	MIA	vs. NO
6	LeSean McCoy	BUF	at ATL
7	Devonta Freeman	ATL	vs. BUF
8	Dalvin Cook	MIN	vs. DET
9	Leonard Fournette	JAC	at NYJ
10	Ty Montgomery	GB	vs. CHI
11	Carlos Hyde	SF	at ARI
12	Melvin Gordon	LAC	vs. PHI
13	Jordan Howard	CHI	at GB
14	C.J. Anderson	DEN	vs. OAK
15	Christian McCaffrey	CAR	at NE
16	Mike Gillislee	NE	vs. CAR
17	Marshawn Lynch	OAK	at DEN
18	Chris Carson	SEA	vs. IND
19	Tarik Cohen	CHI	at GB
20	DeMarco Murray	TEN	at HOU
21	Lamar Miller	HOU	vs. TEN
22	Joe Mixon	CIN	at CLE
23	Isaiah Crowell	CLE	vs. CIN
24	Jonathan Stewart	CAR	at NE
25	Chris Thompson	WAS	at KC
26	Mark Ingram	NO	at MIA
27	Javorius Allen	BAL	vs. PIT
28	Ameer Abdullah	DET	at MIN
29	LeGarrette Blount	PHI	at LAC
30	Duke Johnson	CLE	vs. CIN
31	Frank Gore	IND	at SEA
32	Derrick Henry	TEN	at HOU
33	Tevin Coleman	ATL	vs. BUF
34	Jacquizz Rodgers	TB	vs. NYG
35	Wendell Smallwood	PHI	at LAC
36	Robert Kelley	WAS	at KC
37	James White	NE	vs. CAR
38	Theo Riddick	DET	at MIN
39	Jamaal Charles	DEN	vs. OAK
40	Bilal Powell	NYJ	vs. JAC
41	Alvin Kamara	NO	at MIA
42	Terrance West	BAL	vs. PIT
43	Matt Forte	NYJ	vs. JAC
44	Chris Johnson	ARI	vs. SF
45	Giovani Bernard	CIN	at CLE
46	Alex Collins	BAL	vs. PIT
47	Samaje Perine	WAS	at KC
48	Shane Vereen	NYG	at TB
49	D’Onta Foreman	HOU	vs. TEN
50	Orleans Darkwa	NYG	at TB

 

Wide Receiver

The top three for this week got back to their dominant ways in Week 3 and should continue to do so this week. Considering what we mentioned above with the Browns making Jacoby Brissett look like a pro bowler, T.Y. Hilton reaped the benefits as should A.J. Green from Andy Dalton this week.

DeVante Parker may be in for a huge week against the Saints. As the Jay we’ve all come to know and love, Parker’s QB has locked on to the young receiver early on this season providing plenty of opportunities. The 20s in this week’s rankings are chock full of opportunity between Tate, Cooper, Bryant and Hogan among others. It’s safe to say wide receiver is once again pulling away from the pack as the deepest position in the game yet again.

Rank	Name	Team	Opp
1	Antonio Brown	PIT	at BAL
2	Odell Beckham Jr.	NYG	at TB
3	A.J. Green	CIN	at CLE
4	Julio Jones	ATL	vs. BUF
5	Jordy Nelson	GB	vs. CHI
6	Michael Thomas	NO	at MIA
7	Mike Evans	TB	vs. NYG
8	Brandin Cooks	NE	vs. CAR
9	DeAndre Hopkins	HOU	vs. TEN
10	Tyreek Hill	KC	vs. WAS
11	Keenan Allen	LAC	vs. PHI
12	Dez Bryant	DAL	vs. LAR
13	Stefon Diggs	MIN	vs. DET
14	Doug Baldwin	SEA	vs. IND
15	Demaryius Thomas	DEN	vs. OAK
16	DeVante Parker	MIA	vs. NO
17	Davante Adams	GB	vs. CHI
18	Larry Fitzgerald	ARI	vs. SF
19	Emmanuel Sanders	DEN	vs. OAK
20	Alshon Jeffery	PHI	at LAC
21	Golden Tate	DET	at MIN
22	Amari Cooper	OAK	at DEN
23	Jarvis Landry	MIA	vs. NO
24	Michael Crabtree	OAK	at DEN
25	T.Y. Hilton	IND	at SEA
26	Sammy Watkins	LAR	at DAL
27	Chris Hogan	NE	vs. CAR
28	Martavis Bryant	PIT	at BAL
29	Adam Thielen	MIN	vs. DET
30	DeSean Jackson	TB	vs. NYG
31	Pierre Garcon	SF	at ARI
32	Terrelle Pryor	WAS	at KC
33	Kelvin Benjamin	CAR	at NE
34	Jeremy Maclin	BAL	vs. PIT
35	Tyrell Williams	LAC	vs. PHI
36	J.J. Nelson	ARI	vs. SF
37	Rishard Matthews	TEN	at HOU
38	Sterling Shepard	NYG	at TB
39	Jamison Crowder	WAS	at KC
40	Cooper Kupp	LAR	at DAL
41	Allen Hurns	JAC	at NYJ
42	Marqise Lee	JAC	at NYJ
43	Kenny Stills	MIA	vs. NO
44	Willie Snead	NO	at MIA
45	Marvin Jones	DET	at MIN
46	Jermaine Kearse	NYJ	vs. JAC
47	Devin Funchess	CAR	at NE
48	Jordan Matthews	BUF	at ATL
49	Randall Cobb	GB	vs. CHI
50	Eric Decker	TEN	at HOU

 

Tight End

 

Kudos to every fantasy owner out there that avoided the Week 3 minefield at tight end. Gronk produced like we expected and Ertz put up yet another impressive stat line earning them 1-2 in this week’s rankings, but past that was a hot mess. Kelce, Walker, Rudolph, Witten and Bennett did not show as expected, add in the annual injuries to Jordan Reed and Tyler Eifert and you have yourself a crapshoot.

Charles Clay is quietly emerging as a top option at the tight end position and should get his fair share of opportunities if Buffalo falls behind in Atlanta. Once again it’s looking like we’ll be playing the mystery game between Antonio Gates and Hunter Henry in Los Angeles. Avoid this situation as much as possible.

Rank	Name	Team	Opp
1	Rob Gronkowski	NE	vs. CAR
2	Zach Ertz	PHI	at LAC
3	Travis Kelce	KC	vs. WAS
4	Jimmy Graham	SEA	vs. IND
5	Delanie Walker	TEN	at HOU
6	Kyle Rudolph	MIN	vs. DET
7	Charles Clay	BUF	at ATL
8	Jordan Reed	WAS	at KC
9	Jason Witten	DAL	vs. LAR
10	Martellus Bennett	GB	vs. CHI
11	Eric Ebron	DET	at MIN
12	Evan Engram	NYG	at TB
13	Coby Fleener	NO	at MIA
14	Jared Cook	OAK	at DEN
15	Jack Doyle	IND	at SEA
16	Benjamin Watson	BAL	vs. PIT
17	Cameron Brate	TB	vs. NYG
18	Hunter Henry	LAC	vs. PHI
19	Austin Hooper	ATL	vs. BUF
20	Antonio Gates	LAC	vs. PHI
21	Marcedes Lewis	JAC	at NYJ
22	Ryan Griffin	HOU	vs. TEN
23	Julius Thomas	MIA	vs. NO
24	Vernon Davis	WAS	at KC
25	David Njoku	CLE	vs. CIN

 

Defense/Special Teams

Seattle returns home to a much needed matchup with the lowly Colts, they should produce accordingly, same goes for Jacksonville getting a matchup with New York fresh off their demolishing of Baltimore (although a jet lag concern does remain).

Cincinnati has been lights out against the Browns in previous seasons and 2017 looks to be no different now that the offense has regained their stature. Looking at options past the top 12 this week, there aren’t too many enticing options. If you’re digging for a streaming D/ST, the Chargers will have the chance to take advantage of the Eagles’ vertical passing game that has been prone to mistakes early on, not to mention they just lost Darren Sproles for the season.

Rank	Name	Opp
1	Seattle Seahawks	vs. IND
2	Jacksonville Jaguars	at NYJ
3	Arizona Cardinals	vs. SF
4	Denver Broncos	vs. OAK
5	Kansas City Chiefs	vs. WAS
6	Green Bay Packers	vs. CHI
7	Pittsburgh Steelers	at BAL
8	Minnesota Vikings	vs. DET
9	Atlanta Falcons	vs. BUF
10	Cincinnati Bengals	at CLE
11	New England Patriots	vs. CAR
12	New York Giants	at TB
13	Philadelphia Eagles	at LAC
14	Houston Texans	vs. TEN
15	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	vs. NYG
16	Los Angeles Rams	at DAL
17	Tennessee Titans	at HOU
18	Oakland Raiders	at DEN
19	Detroit Lions	at MIN
20	Los Angeles Chargers	vs. PHI
21	Dallas Cowboys	vs. LAR
22	Washington Redskins	at KC
23	Baltimore Ravens	vs. PIT
24	New York Jets	vs. JAC
25	Chicago Bears	at GB

(Rankings based off .5 PPR projections)

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