Week 4 Player Rankings (Edited for Injuries)

There have been a lot of surprising injuries and returns (here's looking at you Matt Stafford) over the last week. In order to get a nice, finalized list I'm going to move some players around. Naturally, I will not move players from Thursday Night Football. That would be cheating. The original rankings can be found here.

You can click on the position headings to see reasoning behind the selections, but those have NOT been updated with injuries for integrity purposes. 


Quarterbacks:

Over 18 Fantasy Points (Players 1-6):

1. Matt Ryan vs CAR
2. Aaron Rodgers vs NO
3. Tom Brady @ BUF
4. Drew Brees @ GB
5. Peyton Manning vs OAK
6. Robert Griffin III @ TB

Between 15 and 18 Fantasy Points (7-17):

1. Cam Newton @ ATL
2. Matthew Stafford vs MIN (Stafford is probable for the game today and has a decent matchup against the Vikings)
3. Joe Flacco vs CLE
4. Andy Dalton @ JAX
5. Ryan Fitzpatrick vs NE
6. Josh Freeman vs WAS
7. Tony Romo vs CHI
8. Christian Ponder @ DET - Probable, play if you need to.
9. Michael Vick vs NYG - The Giants are still banged up in the secondary, so Vick could be better than this placement. He could also get injured.
10. Blaine Gabbert vs CIN
11. Eli Manning @ PHI
12. Philip Rivers @ KC

Below 15 Fantasy Points (Players 18-21):

1. Carson Palmer @ DEN
2. Alex Smith @ NYJ
3. Shaun Hill vs MIN - Shaun Hill is unlikely to see playing time with Stafford healthy.
4. Jay Cutler @ DAL

Running Backs:

Over 16 Fantasy Points (Players 1-6):

1. Arian Foster vs TEN - Probable, play him.
2. Maurice Jones-Drew vs CIN - Rashad Jennings is probable for the game, but I doubt that will have much impact on MJD's carries. The Jags could prove me wrong though.
3. Ryan Mathews @ KC
4. Ray Rice vs CLE
5. Marshawn Lynch @ STL
6. Darren McFadden @ DEN - Probable, play him.
7. Jamaal Charles vs SD - Peyton Hillis is doubtful, making Charles a great play this week.

Between 12 and 16 Fantasy Points (Players 7-23):

1. LeSean McCoy vs NYG
2. Adrian Peterson @ DET
3. Doug Martin vs WAS
4. Cedric Benson vs NO
5. Ben Tate vsTEN
6. Mikel LeShoure vs MIN- Mikel LeShoure is currently questionable with a groin issue in. The current belief is that he is just sore from his first real NFL action.
7. Alfred Morris @ TB
8. DeMarco Murray vs CHI
9. Trent Richardson @ BAL
10. Willis McGahee vs OAK- McGahee is probable and playing against a terrible Oakland run defense.
11. BenJarvus Green-Ellis @ JAX - Bernard Scott is questionable, probably doesn't change much.
12. Frank Gore vs NYJ
13. Michael Turner vs CAR
14. Pierre Thomas @ GB
15. Reggie Bush @ ARI - Reggie Bush is still questionable with a knee issue. Given that his game is at 4pm, play someone to replace him if you can. He is a game-time decision.
16. Andre Brown @ PHI

Between 8 and 12 Fantasy Points (Players 24-33):

1. DeAngelo Williams @ ATL
2. Michael Bush @ DAL - Forte is questionable to return. If he plays, Bush loses even more value.
3. Chris Johnson @ HOU
4. Jonathan Stewart @ ATL - Probable. Play him if you must.
5. Steven Jackson vs SEA - Jackson is questionable with a groin injury still. He will probably be ineffective against the Seahawks even if he plays. Try to avoid him.
6. Tashard Choice vs NE (Unless Fred Jackson is given an open workload)
7. Ahmad Bradshaw @ PHI - Probable to be the starter, we still don't know how the RBBC will work out.
8. Ryan Williams vs MIA - Williams becomes a better play with Wells on IR and Stephens-Howling doubtful for the Miami game.
9. Darren Sproles @ GB
10. Justin Forsett vs TEN

Wide Receivers:

Over 16 Fantasy Points (Players 1-9):

1. Calvin Johnson vs MIN - Matthew Stafford is back, which may bode poorly for Megatron. On the other hand, the Vikings don't have very strong corners to corral him.
2. Vincent Jackson vs WAS
3. Percy Harvin @ DET
4. Andre Johnson vs TEN - Probable, play him.
5. Julio Jones vs CAR - Probable, play him.
6. Brandon Marshall @ DAL
7. Wes Welker @ BUF - Edelman is officially out. Wes Welker should be the guy in the slot this week.

Between 14 and 16 Points (Players 10-23):

1. Eric Decker vs OAK
2. Dwayne Bowe vs SD - Bowe is questionable this week, but history says he plays well against the Chargers. I'm going to bump him down a few but assume he'll play. 
3. Larry Fitzgerald vs MIA
4. Victor Cruz @ PHI - Hakeem Nicks is officially out. Cruz tends to play a little worse when he is the primary receiver in the offense.
5. A.J. Green @ JAX - D.J. Cox (the Jags stating corner) is off the injury report, otherwise Green would be higher.
6. Demaryius Thomas vs OAK
7. Jeremy Maclin vs NYG - He is probable and should play this week. Last time he came back from this injury he played well...until he got hurt again.
8. Hakeem Nicks @ PHI - Hakeem Nicks is officially out. Ramses Barden is a possible alternative, but this Eagles offense is much better than the Panthers offense from last week.
9. Roddy White vs CAR
10. Dez Bryant vs CHI
11. Greg Jennings vs NO - He was limited in practice, but he is probable for the game. I still like him here.
12. Malcom Floyd @ KC
13. Danny Amendola vs SEA
14. Steve Smith @ ATL
15. Marques Colston @ GB - Colston is not on the injury report this week. Hopefully that means he is back to full strength for fantasy owners.
16. Stevie Johnson vs NE

Between 12 and 14 Points (Players 24-35):

1. Jordy Nelson vs NO
2. Andre Roberts vs MIA
3. Pierre Garcon @ TB - Garcon is likely to play this week, but everyone is unsure about how he will play. Unless you have no other starting options, I'd hold him to the bench.
4. Sydney Rice @ STL
5. Torrey Smith vs CLE
6. Denarius Moore @ DEN - DHB is out for sure and Rod Streater is dealing with an eye injury. This could be a great combination for Moore.
7. Donald Jones vs NE - Despite all of the Bills running backs being questionable this week, I still think Jones is a good play. The Patriots have been solid against the run.
8. Santonio Holmes vs SF
9. Mike Williams vs WAS
10. DeSean Jackson vs NYG
11. Miles Austin vs CHI - Probable with a hamstring issue. We'll see how that affects his play.
12. Anquan Boldin vs CLE

Under 12 Points (Players 36-43):

1. Kevin Walter vs TEN - Rookie Lestar Jean is out, making Walter a slightly better play.
2. Cecil Shorts vs CIN - Laurent Robinson went from unlikely to likely for this week. It might be time to throw Justin Blackmon back into the fray. I think he finds himself this week.
3. Kenny Britt @ HOU - Kenny Britt is very questionable officially out this week. Play Nate Washington if you need a fill-in.
4. Brandon LaFell @ ATL
5. Jerome Simpson @ DET
6. Justin Blackmon vs CIN
7. Brandon Lloyd @ BUF
8. Andrew Hawkins @ JAX

Tight Ends:

Just one short grouping:

1. Rob Gronkowski @ BUF - Questionable this week, but he seems like the kind of guy who will play no matter what.
2. Jimmy Graham @ GB
3. Tony Gonzalez vs CAR
4. Martellus Bennett @ PHI
5. Vernon Davis @ NYJ - Probable, play him.
6. Kyle Rudolph @ DET - Probable, play him.
7. Jermichael Finley vs NO
8. Brandon Pettigrew vs MIN
9. Jermaine Gresham @ JAX
10. Fred Davis @ TB
11. Brent Celek vs NYG
12. Antonio Gates vs KC
13. Jared Cook @ HOU - Jared Cook is questionable this week. There is no real replacement for him if he goes down that you should play.
14. Dennis Pitta vs CLE
15. Owen Daniels vs TEN