*In honor of NFL Network's "Top 100 Players of 2017" series (airing Mondays at 9 p.m. ET), the NFL Fantasy team is releasing their preliminary top 100 or 200 fantasy players of 2017 lists as well. Below are Marcas Grant's rankings, and you can view other analysts' via the tabs above. *
The first thing you're going to notice in my overall rankings is that I'm probably heavier with quarterbacks and tight ends than the rest of my compadres. It's not that I think waiting on a quarterback doesn't work -- I've certainly seen it succeed -- it's just that I feel much more comfortable with a signal-caller I can count on regardless of matchups. That's why Aaron Rodgers, Andrew Luck, Drew Brees and Matt Ryan all land in my top 25. If quarterback is the most important position in real football, I'm going to give it some love here.
Oh ... and the guys at the top. No shock that I went with David Johnson as my No. 1 overall, but I feel like the first three are pretty interchangeable. In fact, the first 10-12 picks will probably look fairly similar in plenty of rankings and mocks. It's after that when things start to get weird. Let's get weird.
Did I mention that I have a lot of quarterbacks in my rankings? Because, yeah.
This was also the portion of my rankings where I project some bounce backs for a few wide receivers. DeAndre Hopkins? Keenan Allen? Dez Bryant? Allen Robinson? Come on down! This is where you get to shake off the bad memory of lackluster 2016 fantasy seasons.
I also hit a patch where I wasn't really sure about too many of the running backs left on the board. For the record, the fantasy running back position is dead. Or at least in its death throes. Spencer Ware at RB10? Sure. Isaiah Crowell at RB14? Eh. Carlos Hyde at RB15? Why not? Running back is going to be a headache all season long. The running back revival was a sham and we will all pay for it by over-drafting this year.
But I did put Christian McCaffrey as my first rookie running back off the board at RB16. shrug emoji
Leonard Fournette is part of a run of running backs near the top of this group. For the record, I don't necessarily think Fournette is the second-best back in this class. But I do believe he's set up to see plenty of opportunities right away in Jacksonville. I don't need to tell you how much that helps.
Speaking of Jacksonville ... yes, that is Blake Bortles sitting there at 60. Say what you want about Bortles (and plenty have) but he's been a top-10 fantasy quarterback in back-to-back seasons. He throws plenty of interceptions which is just his way of rope-a-doping opposing defenses into backing off so he can go on a second-half touchdown bonanza.
This section was also pretty crowded with wide receiver teammates that could have a wide range of fantasy outcomes this year. Terrelle Pryor vs. Jamison Crowder? Brandin Cooks vs. Julian Edelman? Corey Coleman vs. Kenny Britt? Have fun figuring those out.
We've reached the Hopes and Dreams portion of the proceedings. I'm hoping Mark Ingram can maintain enough of a role to still be relevant. I'm hoping Davante Adams can reprise his 2016 season. I dream a world in which Jeremy Hill and Joe Mixon can co-exist peaceably and productively (sorry 'bout your luck Gio Bernard). I also dream of the day when we fete the greatness of Antonio Gates by giving him some time off and funneling more targets to Hunter Henry. Wouldn't that be great?
*Marcas Grant is a fantasy editor for NFL.com and a man who has no time for anyone peddling 2018 draft takes. Can't we just enjoy today while it's here? Why are we always chasing what is to come? Some of us really want to sit down with a beer and catch up on the latest season of "The Americans." Is that too much to ask? If you read all of that, good for you. Follow him on Twitter and Snapchat at marcasg9. *
