TEXANS-SAINTS SHOULD BE A FANTASY EXPLOSION

Week 1 fantasy football rankings

Week 1 fantasy football rankings
Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images

Football season is finally here, so let's take a look at how the fantasy ranks are stacking up for Week 1. Keep in mind, these are PPR rankings, and don't forget to set your lineup for Thursday Night Football. If you have any questions feel free to hit me up on Twitter. Be sure to check out my show MoneyLine with Jerry Bo on ESPN 97.5FM. We're on every Sunday from 10-noon, and we'll talk a lot of fantasy football and NFL gambling getting you ready for kickoff every Sunday.

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QB

Photo via Saints/Facebook

1Carson Wentz PHIvsWAS
2Patrick Mahomes KC@JAX
3Deshaun Watson HOU@NO
4Drew Brees NOvsHOU
5Baker Mayfield CLEvsTEN
6Aaron Rodgers GB@CHI
7Lamar Jackson BAL@MIA
8Jameis Winston TBvsSF
9Ben Roethlisberger PIT@NE
10Tom Brady NEvsPIT
11Russell Wilson SEAvsCIN
12Matt Ryan ATL@MIN
13Jared Goff LAR@CAR
14Dak Prescott DALvsNYG
15Cam Newton CARvsLAR
16Mitch Trubisky CHIvsGB
17Kyler Murray ARIvsDET
18Matthew Stafford DET@ARI
19Kirk Cousins MINvsATL
20Jimmy Garoppolo SF@TB

RB

Photo via: Giants/Facebook

1Saquon Barkley NYG@DAL
2Alvin Kamara NOvsHOU
3Christian McCaffrey CARvsLAR
4Nick Chubb CLEvsTEN
5James Conner PIT@NE
6Dalvin Cook MINvsATL
7Le'Veon Bell NYJvsBUF
8Ezekiel Elliott DALvsNYG
9Chris Carson SEAvsCIN
10David Johnson ARIvsDET
11Todd Gurley LAR@CAR
12Mark Ingram BAL@MIA
13Leonard Fournette JAXvsKC
14Kerryon Johnson DET@ARI
15Joe Mixon CIN@SEA
16Devonta Freeman ATL@MIN
17Tevin Coleman SF@TB
18Austin Ekeler LACvsIND
19David Montgomery CHIvsGB
20Josh Jacobs OAKvsDEN
21Sony Michel NEvsPIT
22Duke Johnson HOU@NO
23Damien Williams KC@JAX
24Aaron Jones GB@CHI
25Marlon Mack IND@LAC
26Derrick Henry TEN@CLE
27James White NEvsPIT
28Phillip Lindsay DEN@OAK
29Tarik Cohen CHIvsGB
30Derrius Guice WAS@PHI
31Matt Breida SF@TB
32Kenyan Drake MIAvsBAL
33Latavius Murray NOvsHOU
34Justin Jackson LACvsIND
35Rashaad Penny SEAvsCIN
36Mile Sanders PHIvsWAS

WR

Photo via New Orleans Saints/Facebook

1Michael Thomas NOvsHOU
2DeAndre Hopkins HOU@NO
3Davante Adams GB@CHI
4Julio Jones ATL@MIN
5Odell Beckham Jr CLEvsTEN
6JuJu Smith-Schuster PIT@NE
7Mike Evans TBvsSF
8Tyreek Hill KC@JAX
9Adam Thielen MINvsATL
10Julian Edelman NEvsPIT
11Keenan Allen LACvsIND
12Tyler Lockett SEAvsCIN
13Antonio Brown *Update: Out, inactive for Week 1.
14Brandin Cooks LAR@CAR
15Stefon Diggs MINvsATL
16Kenny Golladay DET@ARI
17Robert Woods LAR@CAR
18Chris Godwin TBvsSF
19Cooper Kupp LAR@CAR
20Tyler Boyd CIN@SEA
21Dede Westbrook JAXvsKC
22Josh Gordon NEvsPIT
23Amari Cooper DALvsNYG
24D.J. Moore CARvsLAR
25Emmanuel Sanders DEN@OAK
26Will Fuller HOU@NO
27Calvin Ridley ATL@MIN
28T.Y. Hilton IND@LAC
29Sterling Shepard NYG@DAL
30Mike Williams LACvsIND
31Marvin Jones DET@ARI
32Curtis Samuel CARvsLAR
33Allen Robinson CHIvsGB
34Robby Anderson NYJvsBUF
35Alshon Jeffery PHIvsWAS
36Jarvis Landry CLEvsTEN
37DeSean Jackson PHIvsWAS
38Larry Fitzgerald ARIvsDET
39Michael Gallup DALvsNYG
40Marquise Goodwin SF@TB

TE

1Travis Kelce KC@JAX
2George Kittle SF@TB
3Zach Ertz PHIvsWAS
4Evan Engram NYG@DAL
5OJ Howard TBvsSF
6Hunter Henry LACvsIND
7Jared Cook NOvsHOU
8Vance McDonald PIT@NE
9Delanie Walker TEN@CLE
10Austin Hooper ATL@MIN
11Greg Olsen CARvsLAR
12T.J. Hockenson DET@ARI
13David Njoku CLEvsTEN
14Mark Andrews BAL@MIA
15Darren Waller OAKvsDEN

DEF

Photo via: Cowboys/Facebook

1 Ravens @MIA
2 Eagles WAS
3 Seahawks CIN
4 Cowboys NYG
5 Browns TEN
6 Broncos @OAK
7 Bills @NYJ
8 Bears GB
9 Chargers IND
10 Rams @CAR
11 Jets BUF
12 Vikings ATL
13 Saints HOU
14 Chiefs @JAX
15 Lions @ARI

KICKER

Bob Levey/Getty Images

1Justin Tucker BAL@MIA
2Greg Zuerlein LAR@CAR
3Wil Lutz NOvsHOU
4Stephen Gostkowski NEvsPIT
5Michael Badgley LACvsIND
6Ka'imi Fairbairn HOU@NO
7Jake Elliott PHIvsWAS
8Brett Maher DALvsNYG
9Jason Myers SEAvsCIN
10Matt Prater DET@ARI
11Dan Bailey MINvsATL
12Harrison Butker KC@JAX
13Mason Crosby GB@CHI
14Robbie Gould SF@TB
15Matt Bryant ATL@MIN

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The NFL Draft, NBA playoffs, and NHL playoffs all dwarf baseball in the sports pecking order this week, but that doesn’t detract from the Astros playing their best stretch of baseball in the still young season. Following up taking two of three from the previously sizzling hot Padres by sweeping the Blue Jays three straight has the Astros’ record at a just fine 13-11 as they open a three-game weekend series in Kansas City. 13-11 may not sound special, because it isn’t, but having come home from St. Louis last week with the record at 8-10 makes 13-11 a quality leap. Plus, a 13-11 pace over 162 games extrapolates to 87 wins, which last season were enough to win the American League West and for an AL Wild Card spot.

Batter up!

While no one will be confusing the potency of this Astros’ lineup with those of the 2017 or 2019 juggernauts, some welcome perking up may have kicked in, despite Yordan Alvarez still not getting rolling. After Joe Espada gave Christian Walker a “mental rest” game off Monday, Walker produced a three-hit game Tuesday and a two-hit follow-up Wednesday, including a home run. Walker’s .202 batting average and .640 OPS are still lousy, but a much lesser grade of lousy than the statistical abyss he was in starting the Toronto series. Yainer Diaz has been much worse than Walker to this point. Diaz managed at least one hit in all three games of the Jays series. Baby steps. He is still sitting on an unacceptable three walks in 78 plate appearances.

Speaking of hits and walks, Jeremy Pena carries a 14-game hitting streak into the weekend. One-quarter of the way to Joe DiMaggio’s big league record! Willy Taveras set the Astros’ record with a 30-gamer back in 2006. Pena hasn’t been crushing it during the streak, during which he has just two multi-hit games. He’s had stretches where he has hit better and slugged harder (2022 postseason anyone?), but while too small a stretch to declare a leap has been made, it is noteworthy that over the 14 games Pena has drawn six walks. That gives him eight free passes in 24 games this season. More math fun! That’s one walk drawn per three games, which over 162 games would make for 54. Last season in 157 games played Pena drew a paltry 25 walks. Add in that his defense has been superb so far this season with a number of fabulous plays made and just one error committed, and Pena could be making modest offensive improvement that makes him a meaningfully better player.

Furthermore speaking of hits and walks, it’s been a struggle on both fronts the last couple of weeks for Jose Altuve. A two-week funk does not represent a crisis, but there are troubling trends that bear watching as Altuve sets to turn 35 years old May 6. Over his last 14 games, Altuve’s OPS is a sub-Maldonadian .547. In this stretch he has two doubles as his lone extra base hits and drawn just two walks. Altuve has struck out 22 times in 24 games. Setting aside the short 2020 COVID season when Altuve never got it going, last year he had the worst strikeout percentage of his career, while his walk rate was his worst since 2015. So far this season, Altuve’s strikeout rate is more than 20 percent worse than last year’s, with his walk rate down 30 percent from 2024. He is hitting line drives at a much lower rate than ever before, and struggling to get the ball in the air. The season still isn’t 20 percent old, but since Altuve last season finished with his lowest OPS (.790, again, exempting 2020) since 2013, and his current .728 OPS is 62 points lower than that, the antennae of at least mild concern are up. This is the first season of Altuve’s five-year 125 million dollar contract extension. Remember, the Astros would not offer Kyle Tucker a contract that took him to age 35.

Bringing the heat!

Hunter Brown makes his next start Sunday in Kansas City. Good luck Royals! Until getting a doubleheader against the pathetic Rockies Thursday, K.C. was averaging under three runs per game. Brown's earned run average through five starts is 1.16! It's waaaaay early to focus on this, but the best season ERA for an Astro pitcher who qualified for the statistical lead (one inning pitched per team game played) belongs to Nolan Ryan who posted a 1.69 in the strike-shortened 1981 season. Over a full-schedule season, Justin Verlander's 1.75 in 2022 is the standard. Brown has fired 24 consecutive shutout innings. Ryan Pressly holds the Astros’ record with 38 consecutive scoreless innings pitched. Orel Hershiser set the Major League record by finishing the 1988 regular season with a ridiculous 59 straight shutout innings. Yes he won the National League Cy Young Award. The Cy Young is strictly a regular season award. Hershiser in 1988 also won the League Championship Series Most Valuable Player Award, and World Series MVP.

For Astro-centric conversation, join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday.

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