Week 1 Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em: Projecting Top 10 Studs at Each Position for Openers

Thursday saw the start of the 2016 NFL regular season with a Super Bowl rematch between the Carolina Panthers and Denver Broncos. That means it’s time to start worrying about your fantasy football roster.

Heading into the opening weekend, it would be ill-advised to make too many significant alterations to your roster. You drafted the players on your team for a reason, and give it some time before you begin tinkering too much.

Of course, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t attempt to exploit certain matchups and gamble on some players who could potentially exceed expectations Sunday.

Below are top-10 rankings for each fantasy positions, followed by fringe starters you should either insert into your lineup or consider benching.

Since the two teams have already played, members of the Panthers and Broncos are excluded from the rankings below, with Cam Newton, Greg Olsen and the teams’ defenses the biggest fantasy assets missing.

     

Quarterback

Start ‘Em: Blake Bortles, JAX (vs. Green Bay Packers)

It feels like Blake Bortles isn’t getting the respect he deserves. He finished fourth among quarterbacks in fantasy scoring on ESPN.com and NFL.com last season, and he’s surrounded by a number of talented young skill position players who are continuing to improve.

The Green Bay Packers don’t exactly present a favorable opponent for Bortles and the Jacksonville Jaguars. They finished sixth in passing DVOA (defense-adjusted value over average) a year ago, per Football Outsiders.

Because of the strength in the Packers secondary, don’t count on Bortles to post massive numbers. But the Jaguars have one of fantasy’s elite wideouts, Allen Robinson, in addition to another 1,000-yard receiver in Allen Hurns.

At the very least, Bortles will deliver numbers befitting a low-end QB1.

       

Sit ‘Em: Dak Prescott, DAL (vs. New York Giants)

Some might be tempted to start Dak Prescott this week based on his strong preseason. Don’t do it.

Prescott played well in his three preseason games, throwing for 454 yards and five touchdowns. He’s playing behind a strong offensive line and has Dez Bryant, Jason Witten and Terrance Williams available in the passing game.

In time, Prescott may prove himself to be a viable fantasy commodity. Until that happens, don’t bank too much on the rookie QB. First-year passers don’t tend to be strong fantasy assets, at least outside of keeper leagues.

The New York Giants also made significant moves to strengthen their defense. They’ll have Olivier Vernon rushing off the edge alongside Jason Pierre-Paul and added Eli Apple and Janoris Jenkins to the secondary. While New York’s defense hasn’t become one of the league’s best overnight, it made a definite improvement in the offseason.

            

Running Back

Start ‘Em: Melvin Gordon, SD (at Kansas City Chiefs)

Fantasy owners who got burned by Melvin Gordon last year may be reticent about hitching their wagons to the San Diego Chargers running back, which is fair. Gordon was second in the league in fumbles (five), averaged 3.5 yards per carry and failed to score a touchdown.

His struggles weren’t all his fault, though. Football Outsiders ranked the Chargers 31st in run blocking last year. The unit isn’t demonstrably stronger, but …

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