Home > Weekly Lineup > Projections and Ratings

Fantasy Football Projections and Ratings: 2012 Week 1

The Freaks showcase their fantasy football projections and ratings (good, bad, and ugly) for the week. Players that have been ruled out for the week are listed at the bottom.

Position:

DEF

Week:

	Sure Fire Freak
Rank	Player / Projection	Points	Matchup	Comment
1	Aaron Rodgers 315 yds 2.5 TDs	25.2	vs	Looked lackluster in the preseason but should be just fine once the games start to count. He's got plenty of weapons to throw to.
2	Cam Newton 244 yds 1.6 TDs	24.7	@	Has to love rolling into Tampa week 1, the Bucs surrendered 8 TDs to him last season (4 passing, 4 rushing).
3	Tom Brady 314 yds 2.8 TDs	24.2	@	Staples like Welker, Gronk, and Hernandez are his bread and butter. Excited to see what he can do with a deep threat of Lloyd's caliber.
4	Drew Brees 321 yds 2.6 TDs	23.5	vs	Had a single bum game all of 2011, that's almost unheard of for any player. Could be even better this year with a soft passing schedule.
5	Michael Vick 240 yds 1.5 TDs	22.7	@	The Browns were 3rd best against QBs in 2011, but as always, Vick's style of play allows him to post numbers on anyone.
6	Matthew Stafford 289 yds 2.6 TDs	22.5	vs	With the RB corps hurting, Stafford should be airing it out plenty. Don't worry about the Rams top 10 ranking against QBs from a year ago.
7	Eli Manning 289 yds 2.2 TDs	20.5	vs	His lowest output was 23 fantasy points (standard scoring) against the Cowboys over the last 2 years.
8	Matt Ryan 298 yds 2.0 TDs	20.3	@	I expect a big year from him, but I'm tempering expectations in the opener against KC. Expect an average game from him week 1.
9	Robert Griffin III 266 yds 1.4 TDs	20.2	@	Perfect test for him week 1 against the Saints. He's going to get the chance to air it out a ton to keep pace with Brees and company.
	Solid Freakin Start
Rank	Player / Projection	Points	Matchup	Comment
10	Philip Rivers 263 yds 1.9 TDs	18.3	@	His receiving options have been hurting (literally), but still love him against the Raiders. 584 yards and 5 TDs against 'em last year.
11	Tony Romo 274 yds 1.6 TDs	17.8	@	Averaged over 300 yards against the Giants last year and piled on 6 TDs. Some concerns for some of his weapons, still expecting a big day.
12	Joe Flacco 251 yds 1.4 TDs	17.3	vs	The Bengals have had Flacco's number holding him to 10 points or less (standard scoring) in 3 of their last 4 meetings.
13	Jake Locker 236 yds 1.2 TDs	17.2	vs	He'll be asked to keep up with Tom Brady this week. Unless he has a meltdown, the matchup is a boon to his fantasy value.
14	Peyton Manning 279 yds 1.5 TDs	17.2	vs	If it wasn't bad enough he's coming back from the neck injury with plenty of concerns, his first draw is 2011's top ranked pass defense.
15	Andrew Luck 246 yds 1.2 TDs	17.1	@	Had a busy preseason leading the AFC in passing yds and posting a 62.1% completion rate. We all want to know if he can do it when it counts.
16	Josh Freeman 234 yds 1.2 TDs	17.1	vs	He has some new weapons to help turn it around this year. The Panthers offer up a low end pass defense to help him start off right.
	Freaky Potential
Rank	Player / Projection	Points	Matchup	Comment
17	Russell Wilson 217 yds 0.8 TDs	16.8	@	Looked great in preseason and you have to love the run ability. Excited to see how he starts out in Arizona.
18	Alex Smith 263 yds 1.2 TDs	16.4	@	Nice matchup against a soft and banged up Packers defense. Added a few new weapons to the offensive arsenal in the off season too.
19	Ben Roethlisberger 267 yds 1.1 TDs	16.0	@	Protection is a concern, the Broncos got to him 5 times in the last meeting. He did reciprocate with close to 300 yards passing.
20	Matt Schaub 231 yds 1.6 TDs	15.8	vs	230 yards and 2 TDs was the tally the last time he faced Miami. Those numbers seem about right to target in his return from injury.
21	Jay Cutler 234 yds 1.2 TDs	15.3	vs	I like the reunion with Marshall, but the O line still scares me and I think they run the ball more this week.
22	Sam Bradford 272 yds 1.0 TDs	15.2	@	Played 10 games last year, but only had 6 passing TDs. Ouch! Need to see a lot more production before putting him in a lineup.
23	Matt Cassel 242 yds 0.9 TDs	14.5	vs	Luckily, Bowe signed his franchise tag making sure Cassel still has a big weapon. He'll need the help to hang with the Falcons.
24	Christian Ponder 196 yds 1.2 TDs	14.3	vs
25	Carson Palmer 226 yds 1.2 TDs	14.1	vs	Averaged over 350 passing yards and 2 TDs against the Chargers last year.
	Freakin Longshot
Rank	Player / Projection	Points	Matchup	Comment
26	John Skelton 225 yds 1.0 TDs	13.9	vs	He won the job over Kolb (for now), but hasn't impressed us to earn a starting job in any normal format.
27	Ryan Fitzpatrick 216 yds 1.0 TDs	13.9	@	Averaged around 225 yards and 2 TD's against the Jets last year. Could be worth a play if he can start 2012 like he started 2011.
28	Blaine Gabbert 200 yds 0.9 TDs	13.5	@	He looked solid in preseason, but I need to see it on game day. He's not ready to be a fantasy starter yet.
29	Mark Sanchez 198 yds 1.0 TDs	13.4	vs	This is a week where you can give him a start if you don't have a better option. He did pass for 4 TDs last time out vs the Bills.
30	Andy Dalton 223 yds 0.8 TDs	12.8	@	Racked up over 600 yards against the Ravens in 2011, but had only 1 TD to 3 INTs to show for it.
31	Brandon Weeden 226 yds 0.8 TDs	12.8	vs
32	Ryan Tannehill 208 yds 0.8 TDs	12.5	@	Not much interest in starting a rookie QB against 2011's 4th ranked pass defense.
	No Fr$#kin Way
Rank	Player / Projection	Points	Matchup	Comment
33	Tim Tebow 20 yds 0.0 TDs	6.7	vs	The last time he saw Buffalo, he coughed up 4 interceptions. He won't have a chance to do that here, but what are we going to get from him?
	Ruled Out This Week
Rank	Player / Projection	Points	Matchup	Comment