When you ask, we listen.
Most of us play in leagues that treat QBs as individuals, so we focus on projecting and ranking the individuals. But we also know that fantasy football leagues come in all different styles.
This week we heard from some subscribers who play with team QBs, so we combined our individual projections to produce these team-QB rankings.
Unsurprisingly, you won’t find a ton of change from our regular QB rankings. But a few teams with harder-to-predict starters rise up the board when you remove the risk of having to guess who gets the nod.
Take a look, and let us know in the comments if you disagree ...
1. Carolina Panthers: 388 (total projected fantasy points based on our default scoring)
2. Indianapolis Colts: 380
3. Green Bay Packers: 378
4. Seattle Seahawks: 374
5. New Orleans Saints: 368
6. Pittsburgh Steelers: 350
7. Jacksonville Jaguars: 349
8. Arizona Cardinals: 345
9. New York Giants: 342
10. San Diego Chargers: 341
There’s no difference in the top 10, with all 10 QBs projected to play a full 16 games.
11. New England Patriots: 338
The Patriots sit 11 here just like Tom Brady does in our individual QB rankings, with his 12 games trumping the 4 in which you’ll have to settle for Jimmy Garoppolo.
12. Tennessee Titans: 330
We only have Marcus Mariota missing 1 game, so you’re basically drafting him and not worrying about potentially minimal exposure to Matt Cassel.
13. Miami Dolphins: 330
14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 328
15. Buffalo Bills: 323
No change for Miami and Tampa. Buffalo takes a slight hit with Tyrod Taylor projected to miss a game, but the Bills don’t fall down the rankings at all.
16. Oakland Raiders: 323
17. Cincinnati Bengals: 322
18. Washington: 319
19. Detroit Lions: 318
20. San Francisco 49ers: 318
Here’s the biggest mover … and basically the only team that becomes significantly more attractive in a team-QB setup. We have no idea yet whether Colin Kaepernick can win the 2016 starting job. He never got cleared for spring workouts, and reports had Blaine Gabbert impressing HC Chip Kelly. But Kaep’s the higher-upside fantasy prospect, and we’ve seen Kelly turn Michael Vick, Nick Foles and Mark Sanchez into week-to-week fantasy assets. There’s team-QB sleeper appeal in San Fran.
21. Atlanta Falcons: 314
22. Baltimore Ravens: 311
23. New York Jets: 306
If 12 games of Geno Smith doesn’t excite you, then the 4 games we give Christian Hackenberg in the projections sure won’t help. Get over the Geno bias, though, and you just might find Tyrod Taylor-type production when he plays. Of course, if the Jets finally bring back Ryan Fitzpatrick at some point, then we’re all rewriting the outlook. A team-QB setup also makes it easier to take a shot on Fitz returning, knowing that you’ll at least get Smith as the fallback rather than an empty roster spot.
24. Kansas City Chiefs: 307
25. Chicago Bears: 303
26. Dallas Cowboys: 300
27. Cleveland Browns: 301
Money and words indicate that the Browns hope Robert Griffin III will control the job. Josh McCown showed last year that he remains a decent insurance policy. Any Cody Kessler starts turn an uninspiring fantasy situation to 1 you’d need to avoid.
28. Houston Texans: 284
29. Minnesota Vikings: 275
30. Philadelphia Eagles: 253
31. Denver Broncos: 252
32. Los Angeles Rams: 212
The Eagles and Broncos pass Jared Goff when you combine all the down-the-list QB numbers. That doesn’t make any individual Philly or Denver passer particularly attractive, though we could see some spot-start appeal for the Broncos.
Strategy
Your approach shouldn’t alter much in a team-QB format vs. leagues with individuals. In nearly all cases, you’re still basically drafting that team’s clear starter. The primary benefits of Team QB are:
Don’t reach too early. Take value if someone such as the Saints fall in your draft. Shoot for upside just outside the top 12. And don’t be afraid to platoon a pair of teams at the position.