Ladd Biro’s Fantasy Football Rankings: Top 35 Quarterbacks
Tips, advice and insight from our fantasy football expert.
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RNK | NAME | TM | YD | TD | INT | Comment |
1 | Peyton Manning | IND | 4557 | 49 | 10 | Will probably slack off and toss "just" 40 TDs this season. The only QB worth a first-round draft pick. |
2 | Daunte Culpepper | MIN | 4717 | 39 | 11 | Life after Randy won't be as sweet, but rushing TDs will compensate. |
3 | Donovan McNabb | PHI | 3875 | 31 | 8 | With T.O. back in the fold, McNabb returns to elite status. If they actually start talking to each other, this could be a career year for both. |
4 | Trent Green | KC | 4589 | 27 | 17 | Perennially underrated, Green is an iron man and reliable fantasy general. Best of the second-tier passers. |
5 | Marc Bulger | STL | 3964 | 21 | 14 | Pass-happy offense will be more balanced with a stronger running game. Should lead to more scoring overall. |
6 | Kerry Collins | OAK | 3495 | 21 | 20 | Collins is no Culpepper, but Randy Moss could make Ryan Leaf a fantasy star. |
7 | Carson Palmer | CIN | 2897 | 18 | 18 | Last year's indoctrination will pay off with a breakout season leading a surprisingly high-octane offense. |
8 | Brett Favre | GB | 4088 | 30 | 17 | Can the old man keep slinging TDs? I wouldn't bet against him. |
9 | Matt Hasselbeck | SEA | 3382 | 22 | 15 | Eager to put '04 behind him, he'll bounce back with the help of surer-handed receivers. Best of the 3rd-tier QBs. |
10 | Drew Brees | SD | 3159 | 27 | 7 | Ready to show 2004 was no fluke. Rivers could be an old man before he takes over. |
11 | Aaron Brooks | NO | 3810 | 21 | 16 | Simplified offense should allow Brooks to relax and cut down on the destructive turnovers. |
12 | Jake Plummer | DEN | 4089 | 27 | 20 | Too inconsistent to rely on as your leader, he'll have his weeks when you wish you didn't bench him. |
13 | Tom Brady | NE | 3690 | 28 | 14 | If he could just play Indy, or the Super Bowl, every week. He's steady but won't win games for fantasy owners by himself. |
14 | Michael Vick | ATL | 2313 | 14 | 12 | If your league rewards points for excitement, draft him in Round 3. If passing stats matter, let someone else take him. |
15 | Byron Leftwich | JAX | 2941 | 15 | 10 | Has a chance to show off his cannon of an arm this season, but can his WRs make plays? |
16 | Jake Delhomme | CAR | 3886 | 29 | 15 | Always seems to get in a groove in the second half of the season. WR Smith's return will offset Muhammad's departure. |
17 | Chad Pennington | NYJ | 2673 | 16 | 9 | Durability concerns make him too risky to rely upon, but he could be special with Coles back on the outside. |
18 | Joey Harrington | DET | 3047 | 19 | 12 | As long as he's the starter, he can't help but succeed with his WR trio. But Garcia looms. |
19 | Brian Griese | TB | 2632 | 20 | 12 | If Jon Gruden would simply commit to him for the season, Griese could be a major sleeper. |
20 | Ben Roethlisberger | PIT | 2621 | 17 | 11 | We've seen him hand off, but it's time for Big Ben to showcase that arm. When he does, he'll surprise some people. |
RNK | NAME | TM | YD | TD | INT | Comment |
21 | David Carr | HOU | 3539 | 16 | 14 | If his line would give him some time, he just might find the end zone more often. |
22 | Kurt Warner | ARI | 2054 | 6 | 4 | He appears entrenched as the starter, for now. If he develops a rapport with his young WRs, he could be a good spot starter. |
23 | Steve McNair | TEN | 1343 | 8 | 9 | Until the '04 season, he was the most underrated QB in the league. Now he's just the riskiest. |
24 | Gus Frerotte | MIA | 0 | 0 | 0 | Call me crazy, but with the WRs at his disposal and an improved running game, Frerotte could post decent fantasy numbers on occasion. |
25 | Kyle Boller | BAL | 2559 | 13 | 11 | Derrick Mason will help, but not enough to make him a fantasy performer. |
26 | Eli Manning | NYG | 1043 | 6 | 9 | He may be the future, but Tiki is still the present. Maybe next year, Eli. |
27 | Drew Bledsoe | DAL | 2932 | 20 | 16 | Few starting QBs appear as safe in their roles as Parcells' boy, strangely enough. The Bledsoe-Glenn connection should be interesting to watch. |
28 | J.P. Losman | BUF | 32 | 0 | 1 | Undraftable, but keep an eye on him to see how he gels with Moulds and Evans. |
29 | Patrick Ramsey | WAS | 1665 | 10 | 11 | No telling how long he'll be the starter this season. |
30 | Trent Dilfer | CLE | 333 | 1 | 3 | Hard to believe he'll be at the controls for long. Could be on his back quite a bit this season. |
31 | Billy Volek | TEN | 2485 | 18 | 10 | The best backup in the league, Volek tore it up when McNair got hurt. You can bet he'll get another chance to shine in '05. |
32 | Jeff Garcia | DET | 1731 | 10 | 9 | If Harrington falters, it won't take long for Mariucci to turn to his old QB. |
33 | Alex Smith | SF | * | * | * | Not this year. Probably not next year, either. |
34 | A.J. Feeley | MIA | 1893 | 11 | 15 | Still in the running for the starting job. If he wins it, he'll move up; but not as far as Frerotte's current slot. |
35 | Kyle Orton | CHI | * | * | * | Newly-named starter is a rookie on a sorry offense. Go ahead, bet your fantasy season on him |
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