All the talk about Fantasy Football being fun is thrown out the door now, as we are officially into the middle season. The Week 3 QB Rankings take into account the pass defenses for 2014, and looking back at 2013 a little farther back in our rearview mirrors.
Over the past few weeks, we’ve lost a few quarterbacks to injuries, like Carson Palmer (shoulder) and Robert Griffin III (dislocated ankle).
But we’ve also been introduced to a player that could turn out to be this year’s version of Nick Foles, a young backup finally getting a starting opportunity in a new offensive system that is built for his skill set.
Kirk Cousins was drafted just a few rounds behind RGIII in the 2012 NFL Draft, and now he’s going to be handed the keys to Jay Gruden’s offense in Washington for an extended period. Unfortunately, it looks like he might be without WR DeSean Jackson (A/C Joint in his shoulder) and TE Jordan Reed (hamstring) for a bit.
In my column on FantasySports.About.com, I’ve already suggested Cousins as one of the top players to jump on for Week 3.
Redskins QB Kirk Cousins takes over under center for Washington, which instantly makes him a starting candidate in many Fantasy leagues. Photo Credit: Keith Allison
Top 2013 Pass Defenses Compared to After Week 2
I thought an interesting exercise would be to look at last year’s pass defenses to see how they’re doing this season. Obviously, it depends on the matchups they were facing, but still, improvements from one year to another should be expected – especially by younger teams.
- Seattle (17th in 2014)
- New Orleans (32nd)
- Houston (24th)
- Buffalo (28th)
- Cincinnati (27th)
The Seahawks defense went up against Aaron Rodgers and Philip Rivers in the first two weeks, which is tough. But the Saints supposedly upgraded their secondary, bringing in Jairus Byrd from Buffalo, but they’ve been brutally bad this year … The Texans should be much better, considering they’ve only faced the Redskins and Raiders this season, although, No. 1 pick Jadeveon Clowney (knee) is injured … The Bills and Bengals were bound to take a step back or two, as they are both dealing with new defensive coordinators after their 2013 DC’s left for NFL head coaching jobs (Mike Pettine and Mike Zimmer).
These Week 3 QB rankings should also help you in Daily Fantasy play. Especially for the Fan vs. Machine instant snake drafts on SKYLLZONE.com.
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Week 3 QB Rankings
These rankings are based on standard Fantasy leagues with four points per touchdown and minus-one points for interceptions.
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Let us know which sleepers you like in the Week 2 QB Rankings that we might have gotten wrong! Did we rank your starter too low?
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