Early QB Rankings 2024: Patrick Mahomes Tops the List
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00So let's go to the early quarterback rankings and at the top, there are no surprises, but
00:07Joe, I'll let you take it from here.
00:08We go inside the writer's room of the fantasy black book.
00:12Let's go.
00:13Well, I do all the quarterback profiles every year because my whole thing is if you understand
00:16the quarterback play, then you understand the offense.
00:18If you understand the offense, then you know how to invest in fantasy football.
00:21So to me, it's the most important of all the profiles that you're going to read because
00:25if the quarterback can't execute, then guess what?
00:27Everything around him crumbles.
00:29Let's take a look at some of the things that have happened in the NFL in the last few years
00:32when it comes to those players we had expectations for, but unfortunately, bad quarterback play
00:36put those expectations to bed.
00:37Now there is a surprise at the top because I have Patrick Mahomes as my QB one going
00:42into this year.
00:43People say, well, what about Josh Allen and Jalen Hurts?
00:44All those rushing touchdowns.
00:45Do we really expect them to set a record two years in a row in rushing touchdowns?
00:49I don't.
00:50Jason Kelsey's gone under center, right?
00:52He is the guy that made that brotherly shove work.
00:54How many of those rushing touchdowns came on that play?
00:56Now maybe, maybe they'll be able to make it work with somebody else, but Jason Kelsey
01:00was the guy who really made that play work at the end of the day.
01:03If you know anything about football, then Josh Allen, again, great season for Josh Allen
01:08and other fantastic fancy performance.
01:09So two guys who get a lot of fantasy points with their legs, they might outscore Patrick
01:13Mahomes.
01:14However, you're taking away Stefan Diggs, who Stefan Diggs was not the same guy.
01:18What do you have the season?
01:19And there was one guy who was fading.
01:20Stefan Diggs going into last year.
01:21It was this guy, but having him in the offense is still important, even theoretically.
01:25And now you have Keon Coleman, interesting player, Khalil Shakir, interesting player,
01:29Dalton Kincaid, James Cook, but there's no question surrounding that.
01:33And it's funny because Patrick Mahomes, let's see here, let's go back in the wayback machine
01:37all the way to 2022, where he threw for 5,200 yards and 41 touchdowns.
01:44And let's, you know what, let's go back a year further.
01:46Let's go back to 2021, where he threw a 4,800 yards and 4,700 yards.
01:50And you're seeing some of these projections right now for Patrick Mahomes at 4,200.
01:54If you go look and wager on him right now, it's around the 4,200 range.
01:57Are we kidding ourselves?
01:59Last year, he had zero wide receiver play, zero, and I know Tyreek Hill isn't there anymore.
02:04Travis Kelsey was hurt last year.
02:07Hopefully you get Rushie Rice at some point, we'll see how many games he gets suspended,
02:10but you brought in Hollywood Brown.
02:11You drafted Xavier Worthy.
02:13You have some better pieces now around him, plus hopefully a healthy Travis Kelsey.
02:18So Patrick Mahomes, it's ridiculous to think that he can't be the QB one or isn't the safest
02:22of all these investments, considering what's around him right now.
02:25So we can split hairs about who's going to be the guy at the top.
02:29But if you're asking me in Super Flex Leagues especially, who's the best investment this
02:32year, I still think it's Patrick Mahomes.
02:34I understand last year was a down year and they still won the Super Bowl.
02:38Now that doesn't mean too much for you when you're talking about your fantasy league,
02:41but it does mean that Patrick Mahomes isn't done.
02:43Patrick Mahomes is still in his prime and this team is running for the opportunity to
02:49win three in a row, something nobody's done.
02:51After that, you got Lamar Jackson at four.
02:53You've got Anthony Richardson at five.
02:54That's a very aggressive ranking for Anthony Richardson.
02:58But when you consider that the two games he actually played in full or two of the three,
03:01he finishes QB two and QB four those weeks.
03:05I think we got to be aggressive on Anthony Richardson.
03:07And in single quarterback leagues, I think it's better to be aggressive on him because
03:11you can back it up easily later with a Kirk Cousins or Jared Goff, a Baker Mayfield in
03:16a 14 team league, whatever it might be.
03:20in case he isn't great, you'll figure it out.
03:23But the upside for Richardson is the guy who's going to be top five on this board.
03:26And unfortunately you have to pay that price.
03:28You're going to see Joe Burrow ranked ahead of Anthony Richardson, CJ Stroud, even Dak
03:32Prescott.
03:33Some guys like that might be ranked ahead of him.
03:35I have it.
03:36Richardson, Burrow, Prescott, CJ Stroud at eight, Jordan Love at nine, who was tremendous
03:40last year, especially that second half of the season, Kyler Murray at 10, who again
03:44has a lot of rushing equity, great late investment.
03:47If you want to wait on quarterbacks this year, it's perfectly fine.
03:50Brock Purdy at 11, Kirk Cousins at 12, but that's my top 12 and you're missing a few
03:54big names from it, Matt.
03:56But I do believe that that is the best 12 that I could throw out there in fantasy in
04:02terms of the weapons they have around them, in terms of the performances we've seen from
04:06them and the investability factor at the position.