Travdogg's positional rankings from week 9 onward (1 Viewer)

[travdogg]

QB
Tier 1:
1. Josh Allen (1)
2. Jalen Hurts (2)
3. Patrick Mahomes (3)
Tier 2:
4. Justin Herbert (4)
5. Lamar Jackson (5)
6. Tua Tagovailoa (6)
Tier 3:
7. Joe Burrow (7)
8. Jared Goff (10), was unlucky Monday Night. Current QB13, as part of a great offense. TD luck could easily pop in his favor.
9. Trevor Lawrence (9)
Tier 4:
10. Justin Fields (8), expecting him back for Carolina in week 10. We'll see how much the thumb bothers him, but upside is still as high as anyone.
11. CJ Stroud (13)
12. Brock Purdy (12)
Tier 5:
13. Geno Smith (14)
14. Kyler Murray (15)
15. Sam Howell (NR), extremely boom/bust, but is currently QB10, and Washington has been trending pass heavy despite historic sack pace.

Dropped off: Kirk Cousins (11), really unfortunate for both Cousins and the Vikings. Have to wonder how a 36-year-old coming off a torn Achilles will be valued this offseason.

 

[travdogg]

RB
Tier 1:
1. Christian McCaffrey (1)
2. Travis Etienne (2)
3. Austin Ekeler (3)
4. Tony Pollard (4)
5. Bijan Robinson (5)
Tier 2:
6. Kenneth Walker (6)
7. Breece Hall (10)
8. De'Von Achane (7)
9. Alvin Kamara (9)
10. D'Andre Swift (15)
11. Jonathan Taylor (8)
Tier 3:
12. Jahmyr Gibbs (16)
13. Raheem Mostert (12)
14. David Montgomery (17)
15. Saquon Barkley (13)
16. Isiah Pacheco (14)
17. Josh Jacobs (11), he and Tony Pollard have been pretty similar, the difference in ranking for me, is that Dallas is a quality offense, and the Raiders aren't.
18. Joe Mixon (21)
Tier 4:
19. Kyren Williams (22)
20. Derrick Henry (20)
21. Javonte Williams (29), has been ramping up lately. Might be poor man's Breece Hall, if he can fully distance himself from McLaughlin/Perine as he did last week.
Tier 5:
22. James Cook (23)
23. Aaron Jones (18)
24. James Conner (30), should be back in a week, and should have Kyler Murray helping move the offense.
25. Chuba Hubbard (NR), has clearly passed Miles Sanders, and that has coincided with a switch of play callers, so it's likely not a fluke.
26. Rhamondre Stevenson (19), probably should have been moved lower sooner. He's been pretty much the same as Rachaad White.
Tier 6:
27. Brian Robinson (24)
28. Rachaad White (NR), 17 catches in 3 games since the bye week, as Mayfield has turned back into a pumpkin.
29. Alexander Mattison (28)
30. Jerome Ford (27)

Dropped off: Kareem Hunt (25), suddenly in a 3-man RBBC. I'll admit I wasn't expecting Pierre Strong to be a thing. Darrell Henderson (26), Royce Freeman was more involved last week, and we are another week closer to Kyren being back. Stafford may also be out for a game.

 

[travdogg]

WR
Tier 1:
1. Tyreek Hill (1)
2. AJ Brown (3)
3. Stefon Diggs (2)
4. Ja'Marr Chase (4)
Tier 2:
5. Keenan Allen (5)
6. CeeDee Lamb (12)
7. Amon-Ra St. Brown (8)
8. Cooper Kupp (6)
9. Davante Adams (9)
Tier 3:
10. Puka Nacua (7)
11. Brandon Aiyuk (11)
12. Jaylen Waddle (13)
Tier 4:
13. Justin Jefferson (10)
14. DK Metcalf (14)
15. DeVonta Smith (16)
16. Chris Olave (15)
Tier 5:
17. DJ Moore (22)
18. Michael Pittman (23)
19. Garrett Wilson (31), one of the highest targeted players in the NFL, has had 12+ in 3 of his last 4 games. Zach Wilson obviously limites upside, but even despite him, floor is pretty high for anyone seeing that much work, in what is basically a 2-player offense.
20. Tee Higgins (33), Bengals passing game is warming up, and Higgins looked healthy to me. I still don't think he's as close to Chase as he once was, but WR2 status is still reasonable with a healthy Burrow.
21. Hollywood Brown (NR), Dobbs trade means Kyler is back soon, and Trey McBride also gives the offense another weapon they have to account for. Not sure Brown's early season pace from last year is sustainable in less pass heavy offense, but there is upside. This tier took me a ton of time to decide on an order and I'm not confident about it at all.
22. Nico Collins (17)
23. Calvin Ridley (21)
Tier 6:
24. Diontae Johnson (26)
25. Terry McLaurin (NR), 81 yards or a TD in 4 of last 5. Washington is skewing very pass heavy of late, if only they played Philly every week.
26. Adam Thielen (29)
27. Zay Flowers (25)
Tier 7:
28. Mike Evans (24)
29. George Pickens (18), perhaps an overreaction, but it sure feels to me like after a week getting back in the flow of things, Diontae has taken back the #1 job.
30. DeAndre Hopkins (NR), well Will Levis certainly exceeded expectations. Still only 6 targets, but the deep ball wasn't a part of the offense until last week.
31. Drake London (39)
32. Deebo Samuel (27)
33. Christian Kirk (30)
34. Amari Cooper (28)
Tier 8:
35. Jordan Addison (19), biggest loser from the Cousins injury in my opinion. Jefferson will always be the target monster, and Dobbs frequently used the TE in Arizona. Team likely runs more to protect QB as well.
36. Tank Dell (NR), didn't have a big week, but quietly lead team in snaps and had 3 rushing attempts. It's clear they want him highly involved.
37. Chris Godwin (35)
38. Christian Watson (32)
39. Jakobi Meyers (20), very solid player, but offense is awful, and while Adams can usually overcome it, not sure Meyers can. Possible overreaction to 1 awful game, but it's easy to see more awful games in the future.
40. Tyler Lockett (34)

Dropped off: Courtland Sutton (36), most TD dependent player in fantasy. Has scored in all but 2 games but has also topped 7 targets only once all year, and Denver is skewing more run heavy. Romeo Doubs (37), basically Sutton with more targets and a worse QB. Josh Downs (38), was the last omission, I like his floor, but ceiling hasn't been there, beyond a complete blown coverage against Browns. Josh Palmer (40), knee is a little banged up, Ekeler was rightfully more involved in the passing game, and Johnston looms.

 

[travdogg]

TE
Tier 1:
1. Travis Kelce (1)
2. Mark Andrews (2)
3. TJ Hockenson (4)
Tier 2:
4. Sam LaPorta (3)
5. George Kittle (5)
6. Dallas Goedert (6)
7. Dalton Kincaid (11), since Knox went down, he's been AFC LaPorta. Bills D ensures the offense stays pass heavy going forward, and its likely he's just running away with the job. He almost had 3 TDs against TB.
8. Darren Waller (7)
9. Evan Engram (8)
Tier 3:
10. Kyle Pitts (10)
11. Jake Ferguson (15), coming off his best game of the year, and his most playing time of the year. Dak clearly loves him.
12. Taysom Hill (9)
13. Trey McBride (NR), made some nice plays against the Ravens and Ertz is on IR, meaning the #2 job in the passing game is his for the time being. Oh, and Kyler is coming back.
14. Logan Thomas (14)
15. Cole Kmet (12)

Dropped off: Michael Mayer (13), falls victim to just a general offense downgrade in Las Vegas.

 

[FarFromHome]

Love the read and appreciate the time u put in. Mahalo.

 

[Pigskin Fanatic]

ditto to above, thanks travdogg.

RB
Tier 1:

4. Tony Pollard (4)

it's getting harder and harder to believe he'll be in the top 10 at the end of the season. watching his tape it doesn't look like he is playing any worse than he did last year, but the opportunities don't seem to be there like last year. after the philly matchup he'll face a few easier defenses until they see philly again (or maybe until the seattle game anyway), so hopefully he gets back on track.

WR

Tier 8:
40. Tyler Lockett (34)

quite a big drop for Lockett, is this because of JSN? looking at the split for the last two weeks it looks like JSN took Metcalf's vacated shares and then this past week back to third fiddle with DK back in the lineup, DK led the team in targets (77.6% and 14 targets) and Lockett led the team in snaps (84.5% and 9 targets) with JSN going 65.5% and 4. I haven't had a chance to watch any of JSN's catches though, so I may be missing something there.

 

[sho nuff]

No drop of Waller with the Hamstring taking him out of last game?

 

[FarFromHome]

No drop of Waller with the Hamstring taking him out of last game?

Good catch. Hamstrings are tricky. Hard to predict health though I guess. I think if I were drafting redraft today I'd move him down 4 or 5. Imo

 

[sho nuff]

No drop of Waller with the Hamstring taking him out of last game?

Good catch. Hamstrings are tricky. Hard to predict health though I guess. I think if I were drafting redraft today I'd move him down 4 or 5. Imo

Yeah Ive held him and was happy he started getting more involved. But getting pulled the last game and Trey McBride and Logan Thomas out there…I may have to bail as Im not equipped to carry two TEs

 

[Truebluey]

LaPorta shows out and has a big game and gets dropped a spot?
You thinking that Dobbs relies on TJ a lot more and that bumps TJ up?

 

[FarFromHome]

LaPorta shows out and has a big game and gets dropped a spot?
You thinking that Dobbs relies on TJ a lot more and that bumps TJ up?

Hock has more yards, more receptions and only one less TD. Definitely debatable on who is better moving forward this year. If I was drafting in a million dollar league I'd personally take Hock over Laporta straight up. It's close though for me. I know fantasypros combine ros rankings has Laporta 3 and Hock 4.

 

[finfansteve]

Are we still that high on Pollard? I don’t see it anymore and am not sure he’s a guy that can carry the heavy load but more of a complimentary guy. I ask because he’s the main piece offered to me for Herbert and I’m not sure about taking him on

 

[Pip's Invitation]

Are we still that high on Pollard? I don’t see it anymore and am not sure he’s a guy that can carry the heavy load but more of a complimentary guy. I ask because he’s the main piece offered to me for Herbert and I’m not sure about taking him on

I said Pollard was too high last week and I still see it that way. "Regression to the mean" isn't a thing in football as much as it is in baseball. Sample sizes are small, injuries are frequent and coaching elements are more volatile. Team and player performance can vary greatly from week to week and year to year. It is well past time to give up assuming 2023 Pollard is going to look like 2022 Pollard. The offense is different (Moore is gone and McCarthy is calling the plays) and it runs through Lamb. And the designs/calls for the run game are much less creative.

Ranking him with Mixon, Pacheco and Jacobs in tier 3 makes sense to me. The numbers and my eyes say that's who he is this year.

 

[TheWinz]

Are we still that high on Pollard? I don’t see it anymore and am not sure he’s a guy that can carry the heavy load but more of a complimentary guy. I ask because he’s the main piece offered to me for Herbert and I’m not sure about taking him on

Pollard's first 4 years in the league he averaged 5.13 yards per carry and 8.33 yards per reception. This year those numbers have dropped to 3.92 and 6.85. He is RB16 both in actual and PPG. Yes, he has some work to do to justify a top-4 ranking.

 

[FantasyGuru24]

WR
Tier 1:
1. Tyreek Hill (1)
2. AJ Brown (3)
3. Stefon Diggs (2)
4. Ja'Marr Chase (4)
Tier 2:
5. Keenan Allen (5)
6. CeeDee Lamb (12)
7. Amon-Ra St. Brown (8)
8. Cooper Kupp (6)
9. Davante Adams (9)
Tier 3:
10. Puka Nacua (7)
11. Brandon Aiyuk (11)
12. Jaylen Waddle (13)
Tier 4:
13. Justin Jefferson (10)
14. DK Metcalf (14)
15. DeVonta Smith (16)
16. Chris Olave (15)
Tier 5:
17. DJ Moore (22)
18. Michael Pittman (23)
19. Garrett Wilson (31), one of the highest targeted players in the NFL, has had 12+ in 3 of his last 4 games. Zach Wilson obviously limites upside, but even despite him, floor is pretty high for anyone seeing that much work, in what is basically a 2-player offense.
20. Tee Higgins (33), Bengals passing game is warming up, and Higgins looked healthy to me. I still don't think he's as close to Chase as he once was, but WR2 status is still reasonable with a healthy Burrow.
21. Hollywood Brown (NR), Dobbs trade means Kyler is back soon, and Trey McBride also gives the offense another weapon they have to account for. Not sure Brown's early season pace from last year is sustainable in less pass heavy offense, but there is upside. This tier took me a ton of time to decide on an order and I'm not confident about it at all.
22. Nico Collins (17)
23. Calvin Ridley (21)
Tier 6:
24. Diontae Johnson (26)
25. Terry McLaurin (NR), 81 yards or a TD in 4 of last 5. Washington is skewing very pass heavy of late, if only they played Philly every week.
26. Adam Thielen (29)
27. Zay Flowers (25)
Tier 7:
28. Mike Evans (24)
29. George Pickens (18), perhaps an overreaction, but it sure feels to me like after a week getting back in the flow of things, Diontae has taken back the #1 job.
30. DeAndre Hopkins (NR), well Will Levis certainly exceeded expectations. Still only 6 targets, but the deep ball wasn't a part of the offense until last week.
31. Drake London (39)
32. Deebo Samuel (27)
33. Christian Kirk (30)
34. Amari Cooper (28)
Tier 8:
35. Jordan Addison (19), biggest loser from the Cousins injury in my opinion. Jefferson will always be the target monster, and Dobbs frequently used the TE in Arizona. Team likely runs more to protect QB as well.
36. Tank Dell (NR), didn't have a big week, but quietly lead team in snaps and had 3 rushing attempts. It's clear they want him highly involved.
37. Chris Godwin (35)
38. Christian Watson (32)
39. Jakobi Meyers (20), very solid player, but offense is awful, and while Adams can usually overcome it, not sure Meyers can. Possible overreaction to 1 awful game, but it's easy to see more awful games in the future.
40. Tyler Lockett (34)

Dropped off: Courtland Sutton (36), most TD dependent player in fantasy. Has scored in all but 2 games but has also topped 7 targets only once all year, and Denver is skewing more run heavy. Romeo Doubs (37), basically Sutton with more targets and a worse QB. Josh Downs (38), was the last omission, I like his floor, but ceiling hasn't been there, beyond a complete blown coverage against Browns. Josh Palmer (40), knee is a little banged up, Ekeler was rightfully more involved in the passing game, and Johnston looms.

No Rashid Shaheed?

 

[travdogg]

ditto to above, thanks travdogg.

RB
Tier 1:

4. Tony Pollard (4)

it's getting harder and harder to believe he'll be in the top 10 at the end of the season. watching his tape it doesn't look like he is playing any worse than he did last year, but the opportunities don't seem to be there like last year. after the philly matchup he'll face a few easier defenses until they see philly again (or maybe until the seattle game anyway), so hopefully he gets back on track.

WR

Tier 8:
40. Tyler Lockett (34)

quite a big drop for Lockett, is this because of JSN? looking at the split for the last two weeks it looks like JSN took Metcalf's vacated shares and then this past week back to third fiddle with DK back in the lineup, DK led the team in targets (77.6% and 14 targets) and Lockett led the team in snaps (84.5% and 9 targets) with JSN going 65.5% and 4. I haven't had a chance to watch any of JSN's catches though, so I may be missing something there.

Pollard is a tough one. I actually kind of have the opposite opinion you do, where I think his role is perfect, its his play that hasn't been up to snuff. He's RB5 in expected PPG, behind only Kamara, CMC, Jacobs, and Barkley. Jacobs and Barkley are in awful offenses so they have excuses (especially Barkley with his team playing Tony Danza at QB) but Pollard is in a goos offense, so I'm inclined to think he'll get it together, as I think he's a very good RB. He's had really bad TD luck (Dallas in general has both with D scores, and FGs) that could also even out. I'm being stubborn, but I think he's a good buy-low.

Lockett's drop is a little due to JSN (and my expectation that his role gets bigger as the season goes on) and the fact that they are really working to get DK going. Truth be told, I think Lockett is the best NFL WR on the team still, but that doesn't seem to be how Seattle views it.

 

[travdogg]

No drop of Waller with the Hamstring taking him out of last game?

I did drop him a spot. Its tough to go further because we don't know how bad he's hurt, and none of the guys below him are #1 guys in the passing game like he is.

LaPorta shows out and has a big game and gets dropped a spot?
You thinking that Dobbs relies on TJ a lot more and that bumps TJ up?

I don't really rank with a so and so had a good game so he goes up, and so and so had a bad game and he goes down type of logic. I think LaPorta looks no different than he did a week ago but has an added concern of how good Gibbs looked. I think he's gonna get schemed a lot of passing game stuff once Monty comes back, to try and take advantage of both RBs. I'm not worried about DPJ or Jameson for that matter, and maybe those looks come off Reynolds (very possible) but its a minor worry. In a non-PPR league I'd probably prefer LaPorta.

I think Dobbs is good news for Hockenson and probably bad news for Addison. Jefferson is somewhat neutral (as true top guys are) but his ceiling certainly takes a hit. Dobbs has shown an affinity for TEs regardless of who it is. McBride and Ertz this year, and even Okonkwo last year. I think Dobbs is a little scattershot when it comes to deeper stuff and is best in the short range, which makes me think Hockenson should not lose anything without Cousins. I don't subscribe to the idea that the Vikings are going to change the offense a ton without Cousins, they couldn't run with him, its not gonna get easier without him, so while pass volume could come down just due to less effectiveness (fewer 1st downs etc.) I think this is still a pass first team.

 

[travdogg]

Are we still that high on Pollard? I don’t see it anymore and am not sure he’s a guy that can carry the heavy load but more of a complimentary guy. I ask because he’s the main piece offered to me for Herbert and I’m not sure about taking him on

I said Pollard was too high last week and I still see it that way. "Regression to the mean" isn't a thing in football as much as it is in baseball. Sample sizes are small, injuries are frequent and coaching elements are more volatile. Team and player performance can vary greatly from week to week and year to year. It is well past time to give up assuming 2023 Pollard is going to look like 2022 Pollard. The offense is different (Moore is gone and McCarthy is calling the plays) and it runs through Lamb. And the designs/calls for the run game are much less creative.

Ranking him with Mixon, Pacheco and Jacobs in tier 3 makes sense to me. The numbers and my eyes say that's who he is this year.

I can see the argument for Pollard with that group, I just have a stronger faith in him. He's performed on par with them so far though. I will disagree that I think regression to the mean is a thing in football a lot, especially for RBs, who are the most situational based performers in all of football (short of Kickers) I will agree that I don't think Pollard is suddenly going to be as effective on a per touch basis as he was in 2022, but I think it'll get better than this, and the touches will be higher.

WR
Tier 1:
1. Tyreek Hill (1)
2. AJ Brown (3)
3. Stefon Diggs (2)
4. Ja'Marr Chase (4)
Tier 2:
5. Keenan Allen (5)
6. CeeDee Lamb (12)
7. Amon-Ra St. Brown (8)
8. Cooper Kupp (6)
9. Davante Adams (9)
Tier 3:
10. Puka Nacua (7)
11. Brandon Aiyuk (11)
12. Jaylen Waddle (13)
Tier 4:
13. Justin Jefferson (10)
14. DK Metcalf (14)
15. DeVonta Smith (16)
16. Chris Olave (15)
Tier 5:
17. DJ Moore (22)
18. Michael Pittman (23)
19. Garrett Wilson (31), one of the highest targeted players in the NFL, has had 12+ in 3 of his last 4 games. Zach Wilson obviously limites upside, but even despite him, floor is pretty high for anyone seeing that much work, in what is basically a 2-player offense.
20. Tee Higgins (33), Bengals passing game is warming up, and Higgins looked healthy to me. I still don't think he's as close to Chase as he once was, but WR2 status is still reasonable with a healthy Burrow.
21. Hollywood Brown (NR), Dobbs trade means Kyler is back soon, and Trey McBride also gives the offense another weapon they have to account for. Not sure Brown's early season pace from last year is sustainable in less pass heavy offense, but there is upside. This tier took me a ton of time to decide on an order and I'm not confident about it at all.
22. Nico Collins (17)
23. Calvin Ridley (21)
Tier 6:
24. Diontae Johnson (26)
25. Terry McLaurin (NR), 81 yards or a TD in 4 of last 5. Washington is skewing very pass heavy of late, if only they played Philly every week.
26. Adam Thielen (29)
27. Zay Flowers (25)
Tier 7:
28. Mike Evans (24)
29. George Pickens (18), perhaps an overreaction, but it sure feels to me like after a week getting back in the flow of things, Diontae has taken back the #1 job.
30. DeAndre Hopkins (NR), well Will Levis certainly exceeded expectations. Still only 6 targets, but the deep ball wasn't a part of the offense until last week.
31. Drake London (39)
32. Deebo Samuel (27)
33. Christian Kirk (30)
34. Amari Cooper (28)
Tier 8:
35. Jordan Addison (19), biggest loser from the Cousins injury in my opinion. Jefferson will always be the target monster, and Dobbs frequently used the TE in Arizona. Team likely runs more to protect QB as well.
36. Tank Dell (NR), didn't have a big week, but quietly lead team in snaps and had 3 rushing attempts. It's clear they want him highly involved.
37. Chris Godwin (35)
38. Christian Watson (32)
39. Jakobi Meyers (20), very solid player, but offense is awful, and while Adams can usually overcome it, not sure Meyers can. Possible overreaction to 1 awful game, but it's easy to see more awful games in the future.
40. Tyler Lockett (34)

Dropped off: Courtland Sutton (36), most TD dependent player in fantasy. Has scored in all but 2 games but has also topped 7 targets only once all year, and Denver is skewing more run heavy. Romeo Doubs (37), basically Sutton with more targets and a worse QB. Josh Downs (38), was the last omission, I like his floor, but ceiling hasn't been there, beyond a complete blown coverage against Browns. Josh Palmer (40), knee is a little banged up, Ekeler was rightfully more involved in the passing game, and Johnston looms.

No Rashid Shaheed?

Never even considered him to be honest. If I'd have gone to 50 I don't think he'd have made the cut. He's still the #3 WR on a mediocre passing team that funnels a bunch of targets to their RB.