The Highlights
- Sean Koerner has been the No. 1 in-season FantasyPros ranker for three straight seasons, and Matthew Freedman was No. 6 last year.
- Below the rankings are blurbs for every player in the top 25 (visit the positional links below for blurbs on every player in the top 200).
- Koerner is high on Christian McCaffrey, Freedman likes Julio Jones, and Chris Raybon is bullish on Josh Gordon.
See our full fantasy football rankings
Blurbs for every position: QB | RB | WR | TE | DST | K | Rookies
Top 200 Overall (Updated 7/11)
Note that these rankings are for point-per-reception (PPR) leagues with conventional starting lineup requirements (1 QB/2 RB/3 WR/1 TE/1 FLEX/1 DST/1 K).
MF = Matthew Freedman; SK = Sean Koerner; CR = Chris Raybon
In case you’re wondering where we rank defenses and kickers relative to these position players, here’s our perspective:
- If you’re in a traditional head-to-head league with 8-14 teams, simply wait till the last two rounds of the draft and then select a defense and kicker.
- If you’re in a conventional best-ball league with 18-26 roster spots, wait as long as you can while still being able to select at least two of each and preferably three.
Defenses and kickers are important in the NFL, but in fantasy they should be deprioritized, and our rankings reflect that.
Top 25
1. Todd Gurley, Rams
Likely to regress from last season in total touchdowns (19) and yards per reception (12.3) but has margin for error after outscoring all other running backs by 2.8 PPR points per game. – Raybon
Led the NFL with 2,093 yards and 19 touchdowns from scrimmage last year and still just 24 years old. – Freedman
2. Le’Veon Bell, Steelers
Leads the position handily with 312 receptions since entering the league in 2013. – Freedman
Top-four running back in PPR points per game for four seasons and counting. – Raybon
3. David Johnson, Cardinals
Shakiest offensive line and quarterback situation of any back with a top-five ADP, but quest for 1,000 rushing/1,000 receiving yards is realizable (barring a holdout) and gives him No. 1 overall upside. – Raybon
Most dynamic back in the league, evidenced by his 33 all-purpose touchdowns in 33 career games. – Freedman
4. Antonio Brown, Steelers
Top-three PPR wideout every year since 2013. – Raybon
5. Ezekiel Elliott, Cowboys
Only back to average at least 100 yards rushing per game over the past two seasons. – Freedman
NFL leader in rushing yards per game in each of his first two seasons; may set a career high in receptions given the Cowboys’ barren receiving corps. – Raybon
6. Saquon Barkley, Giants
No. 1 overall upside in his rookie year on a team with a familiar inside-zone scheme and revamped offensive line that suit him. – Raybon
Best running back prospect of the last decade. – Freedman
- Schwartz: Can Saquon Barkley Get 1,100 Yards in Pat Shurmur’s Scheme?
- Saquon Barkley: Pre-Draft Player Profile
7. Alvin Kamara, Saints
No. 4 in PPR points per game in a rookie season that put him in Hall of Fame company; a decrease in efficiency and no increase in usage would still give him the floor of 2017 Christian McCaffrey. – Raybon
One phenomenally efficient rookie campaign does not a lead back make (although it might). – Freedman
8. DeAndre Hopkins, Texans
Trails only Randy Moss, A.J. Green and Larry Fitzgerald with his career-opening five-year stretch of 413 receptions, 5,865 yards and 36 touchdowns. – Freedman
Ranking in targets the past three seasons: No. 1, No. 7, No. 3. – Raybon
9. Melvin Gordon, Chargers
Averages 103.3 scrimmage yards and 0.83 total touchdowns over the past two seasons; has upside for a monster year if he can improve on the 3.9 yards per carry he’s posted in back-to-back years. – Raybon
Inefficient producer blessed with copious carries, targets, and goal-line opportunities. – Freedman
10. Odell Beckham Jr., Giants
Ninety-plus catches, 1,300-plus yards and double-digit touchdowns in each of first three seasons, and 2017 full-season pace was 101-1,208-12. – Raybon
11 (tie). Kareem Hunt, Chiefs
Had a high-usage first-year campaign with 272-carry and 53-reception totals surpassed only by LaDainian Tomlinson, Matt Forte and Edgerrin James as rookies. – Freedman
Only Todd Gurley and Le’Veon Bell had more scrimmage yards than Hunt’s 1,742 in a rookie campaign that saw him lead the NFL in rushing (1,327) and finish with the eighth-most receiving yards among running backs (455). – Raybon
11 (tie). Julio Jones, Falcons
All-time NFL leader with 95.3 receiving yards per game. – Freedman
Has 1,400+ receiving yards for four years and counting; 3-of-27 touchdown conversion rate in the red zone over the past two seasons is a cause for concern but also leaves room for massive upside. – Raybon
13. Leonard Fournette, Jaguars
Include his three playoff games and he has 16-game totals of 338-1,282-13 rushing and 43-346-1 receiving, which would’ve equated to an RB5 finish last season. – Raybon
East-coast MG3 with more size and less receiving ability. – Freedman
The Jags landed the top free-agent offensive lineman in left guard Andrew Norwell to bolster their line and pave the way for what should be another massive workload for Fournette this season. – Koerner
14. Michael Thomas, Saints
Leads all receivers in NFL history with 196 receptions in his first two seasons. – Freedman
Double-digit PPR points in 29 of 34 career games (including playoffs). – Raybon
15. Keenan Allen, Chargers
His 7.0 receptions per game since 2015 trail only Antonio Brown. – Raybon
Was overrated last year with a 31% air-yard market share that ranked outside of the top 20. – Freedman
16. A.J. Green, Bengals
Top-five talent coming off a 1,000-yard, eight-touchdown ‘bad season’ in which he led the NFL with a 46% air-yard market share. – Freedman
Averaged 67.4 receiving yards per game in 2017, his first year under 80 since 2011; will rebound if free-agent tackle Cordy Glenn and rookie first-round center Billy Price give pressure-adverse Andy Dalton more time to throw. – Raybon
17. Jerick McKinnon, 49ers
Elite athlete with receiving skills now in an offense that distributed 166 targets to running backs and fullbacks last year. – Freedman
Finished as the RB17 on 202 touches in 2017 and was handpicked by Kyle Shanahan, whose lead back has finished as high as RB1 and no lower than RB8 in each of the past three seasons. – Raybon
18. Devonta Freeman, Falcons
Remove Week 10 last season where he left after two carries and his touches per game actually increased slightly from 2016 (17.6) to 2017 (17.7) despite worries about offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian and backfield mate Tevin Coleman. – Raybon
Leads NFL with 35 touchdowns over the past three years. – Freedman
19. Davante Adams, Packers
Managed to put up WR1 numbers in the eight games Brett Hundley started last season; the sky is the limit to what he can do in a full season as Aaron Rodgers‘ No. 1 weapon. – Koerner
His 5.3-61.9-0.67 line with Brett Hundley would have still landed him among the top 12 wideouts in PPR points per game. – Raybon
20. Christian McCaffrey, Panthers
Comped to Reggie Bush as a prospect and now is second all-time to Bush with his 113 first-year targets as a running back. – Freedman
Hybrid role (7.3 targets, 7.1 carries per game) resulted in double-digit PPR points in 12 of 16 games last year; any increase in carries would be gravy. – Raybon
21. Mike Evans, Buccaneers
One of three players in NFL history (along with Randy Moss and A.J. Green) to open his career with four straight 1,000-yard receiving campaigns. – Freedman
His 4.6-65.5-0.35 line over his past 20 games makes him more WR2 than WR1, but 6-foot-5, 230-pound size has led to two 12-touchdown campaigns in four years and leaves his WR1 upside intact. – Raybon
22. Rob Gronkowski, Patriots
Top-two tight end in PPR points per game in a ridiculous six of the past seven seasons. – Raybon
23. LeSean McCoy, Bills
Elite talent with age (30) and supporting-cast concerns; floor is lowered due to domestic violence accusations. – Raybon
Borderline Hall-of-Famer with 50-reception ability in an offense with no other options. – Freedman
24. Doug Baldwin, Seahawks
Seattle nostalgically wants to commit more to the run, but Baldwin finished between WR8 and WR14 in each of the past three seasons and could eclipse career-high 125 targets after the team substituted replacement-level talent for Jimmy Graham and Paul Richardson. – Raybon
25. Travis Kelce
Hard to knock him based on quarterback play when he’s finished as the PPR TE1 in back-to-back seasons with Alex Smith. – Raybon
