Fantasy World: The Keeper Rankings

Who to hang onto for next season.

Getty Images

"You can be my wingman anytime!" ... "So you're keeping me?" ... "It's just an expression."

Like life, in keeper leagues there's no such thing as "the offseason." Now, when most citizens of the Fantasy World are enjoying the playoffs from the perspective of a pure sports fan, participants in a keeper league are playing the role of Encyclopedia Brown, looking for clues on who's going to be valuable next year. That, and praying against injury in meaningless real playoff games.

So let's use this opportunity to take a look at the seven best keepers at each important position for next year. (If you have plans to keep a tight end or kicker, don't.) Why seven? Because I always had a soft spot in my heart for the youngest member of the Wanker family. (Whoever gets that reference wins a free golf clap.)

NOTE: In my keeper leagues, our rules stipulate that if you keep someone, you have to give up a draft pick for whatever round they were drafted. As such, the below rankings are determined mostly on the player's average draft position this past year. In other words, who will give you the most bang for the buck.

Getty Images

Keem 'im.

Quarterbacks

1. Aaron Rodgers, 278 points, 125th overall
Hate to rain on Tony Kornheiser's parade, but the only difference Brett Favre would have made on this year's Packers squad was they'd probably have given the Lions their first victory in Week 17. Rodgers was simply great, the second best fantasy quarterback in the league for a low, low round pick. His rushing yards (207 total, 4 TDs) helped as well. There's no reason to expect much of a drop-off.

2. Phillip Rivers, 269 points, 97th overall
The top quarterback rating for an 8th round pick? Yeah, you might want to keep him. It'd be nice if the Chargers rewarded his efforts this year with a solid number-one receiver.

3. Drew Brees, 295 points, 27th overall
As long as his arm doesn't fall off.

4. Peyton Manning, 245 points, 11th overall
Besides Adrian Peterson, there was no more consistent first round pick this year than Manning. Once he got the rust off, he was as good as anyone, as evidenced by that little MVP thingy he got.

5. Jay Cutler, 262 points, 67th overall
No one's going to question Cutler's arm strength anymore, and any quarterback in the league would want the offensive weapons he has at his disposal, but the big problem with Cutler this year was he was forced to do so much without a consistent running game. Insurance companies refused to take on any more Broncos running backs because the risk was too great. This forced Cutler to throw it a career-high 616 times, many of them throws you could tell he was trying to force into double coverage. If they find someone who can consistently run the ball, or the IR Reaper decides to leave the Broncos alone next year, Cutler will be even more dangerous.

6. (tie) Joe Flacco, 170 points, undrafted / Matt Ryan, 186 points, undrafted
Take your pick out of the two rookies. My preference would be Flacco. Either one has the ability to become a top performer. Or the next Cade McNown.

7. (tie) Kurt Warner, 255 points, 131st overall / Matt Cassel, 231 points, undrafted
Two guys with too many considerations to make an accurate prediction here. For Warner, he's old, might not have Boldin, and has that pesky issue about becoming a free agent after this season. For Cassel, he may not even be starting. That said, for the value you're getting for them, it's tough to just give them away.

Getty Images

John Fox's mom didn't raise a fool.

Running Backs

1. DeAngelo Williams, 272 points, 87th overall
Like he wasn't going to nab the top spot. The only thing to worry about would be the Panthers trying to get Jonathan Stewart more carries. But something tells me that John Fox's mama didn't raise no fools.

2. Michael Turner, 265 points, 38th overall
One of the biggest surprises is that Turner had the same rushing average he had last year, even with so many more carries. Expect more of the same.

3. Adrian Peterson, 233 points, 2nd overall
Dude's pretty good. No reason to expect a down year, unless the Vikes force Tavaris Jackson into the starting role again.

4. Chris Johnson, 192 points, 126th overall
While Johnson should still be splitting carries with LenDale White, look for the Titans to get him a few more touches a game. With 251 rushing attempts versus White's 200, Johnson averaged a full yard more.

5. Pierre Thomas, 148 points, undrafted
Thomas averaged a solid 18.8 points a game during the last six he started. He should own the starting spot right out of the gate next year, now that it looks like Deuce will be cut loose.

6. Steve Slaton, 210 points, undrafted
He got 4.8 yards a carry over 268 attempts during his rookie year for the Texans? You might want to keep him.

7 . Matt Forte, 225 points, 67th overall
Even though I'm a Bears fan, color me skeptical about Forte's future. (Actually, maybe it's because I'm a Bears fan that I'm skeptical.) Forte had 379 touches in the Bears offense this year, only six less than season leader Peterson. Towards the end of the year, that kind of wear-and-tear seemed to have taken a toll with Forte putting up only 10.5 points per game over the last four weeks against 15.3 over the first 12. Worst of all, Forte doesn't seem like one of those dynamic players who breaks open their own plays like Peterson. He just follows his blockers and falls forward (which is, trust me, much admired after watching Cedric Benson run into the back of his line for a year), but that means his success is entirely dependent on the quality of the offensive line. And unless they sign some high-class talent, that quality just isn't likely to be on the Bears next year.

Getty Images

"They should call him Andre the Giant!" ... "It's used? Whatever."

Wide Receivers

1. Andre Johnson, 197 points, 25th overall
Leader in receptions, leader in yards, yet only tied for 9th in touchdowns? Like we saw with Thomas Jones this year, the TDs will even out eventually, meaning he could be in for an even bigger season next time out. It'll help if Sage Rosenfels doesn't start.

2. Calvin Johnson, 196 points, 62nd overall
Megatron showed he doesn't necessarily need to be on a good team to put up good numbers. The question is, who will be throwing passes in Detroit next year? The question that makes Johnson the 2nd best WR keeper is: can whoever it is be worse?

3. Greg Jennings, 178 points, 58th overall
It didn't take long for Rodgers to get comfortable with Jennings, who finished the year with the 4th highest yards-per-catch for anyone with over 50 catches. Only 25 years old, look for Jennings to only get better as Rodgers develops.

4. Brandon Marshall, 142 points, 57th overall
Speaking of connections, no receiver was targeted more last year than Marshall, who had a whopping 183 passes thrown his way. (Second place was Andre Johnson with 170.) Look for Cutler to continue this love affair next season, no matter the coach at the helm.

5. Roddy White,172 points, 66th overall
Amazing how a once-bust at wide receiver suddenly becomes a viable receiver when the team gives him an actual quarterback that can get him the ball.

6. Larry Fitzgerald, 210 points, 24th overall
No doubt one of the biggest talents in the league, but there's two things to worry about when considering keeping Mr. Fitzgerald: (1) Will Anquan Boldin be around? (2) Will Warner re-sign with the team, and if not, is Matt Leinart really the man you want throwing to your franchise receiver?

7. Dwayne Bowe, 136 points, 72nd overall
Bowe has some work to do, but the Chiefs seem to know the talent's there for him to do special things; they targeted him for 158 passes, good for 3rd in the league. If the final game of the year was any indication (10 catches for 103 yards) look for Bowe to begin his transformation into a man next season.

---

Player On My Team of the Week: I'm in one of those Playoff Fantasy Leagues where you pick one team (no bench) and simply add up their points throughout the playoffs. The strategy comes in when you have to decide between a star player on a team not expected to go far (ex: Adrian Peterson), or a decent backup on a team who should play a few times (ex: Derrick Ward). Here's what I ended up with: Donovan McNabb, Brian Westbrook, Ronnie Brown, Vincent Jackson, Kevin Curtis, Antonio Gates, David Akers, and the Panthers Defense. If the Eagles get to the Super Bowl, I win. If they don't, I don't. Simple as that. In any case, as you'd imagine, McNabb and Westbrook share co-players of the week honors after the slowest 71-yard screen pass ever.

How to Heckle One Of My Players of the Week: "Hey Vincent Jackson, perhaps you should save your drinking and driving for when your team isn't in the playoffs!"

The Maybe They're Not So Intelligent After All Award: Extraterrestrials, at least, if they have indeed chosen New Jersey as the site of their first appearance on Earth.

Buy High: Honesty, after director David Fincher told fans he'd be less interested in "having cigarettes put out in my eyes" than making a sequel to his fantastic film Seven.

Sell Low: The anonymity of online comments, including those responding to this column, after model Liskula Cohen has decided to sue Google to find out the name of the anonymous commenter who called her a bad name. Be careful down there, folks.

Print Article . Email Article. Subscribe to The Magazine