The quarterback position has been one of the deepest in the league in recent seasons, but one has to wonder ... are we starting to see some erosion at the top? Peyton Manning was plain dreadful over the final four weeks of the season, and he'll be 39 when the 2015 campaign starts. Tom Brady won another Super Bowl for New England, but he's no spring chicken either. In fact, he'll be 38 in August. Drew Brees, 36, finished sixth in fantasy points among field generals and was unreliable at times.
Fantasy fans also endured disappointing numbers from younger veterans like Jay Cutler, Matthew Stafford, Colin Kaepernick, Cam Newton, Robert Griffin III and Nick Foles. While there is at least some promise in the potential of youngsters such as Ryan Tannehill, Derek Carr, Teddy Bridgewater and Zach Mettenberger, none of them are what the fantasy world would define as No. 1 quarterbacks. With that said, here's a look at my current top 10 fantasy football quarterbacks heading into next season.
You'll find that it's not as attractive as in recent seasons.
1. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers: In the fantasy football dictionary under the word "consistent," there's a photo of Rodgers. Since 2009, he has finished no worse than second in fantasy points among quarterbacks five different times. The one season he failed to rank first or second was 2013, when he missed seven games due to a broken collarbone. Rodgers will be a first-round selection in 2015.
2. Andrew Luck, Indianapolis Colts: Luck has increased his fantasy point production and rank among quarterbacks in each of his three NFL seasons. He broke out in 2014, putting up 4,761 passing yards, 43 total touchdowns and 351.74 fantasy points. At 25 and still not even in the prime of his career, the Stanford product is close in value to Rodgers and could join him as a first-round pick next season.
3. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints: Maybe I'm giving Brees the benefit of the doubt here, but he had a "bad" fantasy season in 2014 and still ranked sixth in fantasy points among quarterbacks. I also assume the Saints will look to improve their questionable offensive line in the offseason. Brees will have potential second-year breakout wideout Brandin Cooks back in his arsenal of offensive weapons, too.
4. Peyton Manning, Denver Broncos: I will assume Manning's return to the gridiron, and it's hard not to keep him ranked among the five best players at his position. However, his drastic decline in the stat sheets in the final weeks of 2014 is cause for concern. He'll also be 39 at the start of next season, so it's hard to expect Manning to return to the sort of numbers he's had in past campaigns.
5. Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks: Wilson threw for a mere 20 touchdowns, but his 849 rushing yards and six rushing touchdowns catapulted him into the top three overall fantasy players last season. I'm projecting a rise in scoring passes and a decline in rushing yards for 2015, but Wilson will remain a valuable dual threat option at a position that has lost of bit of its luster among the top tiers.
6. Tom Brady, New England Patriots: Brady was so bad in the first four weeks of last season that he was dropped in some leagues. Of course, we all know how things ended up ... Brady went on to post 19-plus fantasy points in eight of his final 12 games and led the Patriots to a Super Bowl title. If there's one concern, however, it's that Tom Terrific will be 38 years old when the 2015 campaign opens.
7. Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers: Newton is coming off his worst statistical season at the pro level, but he had offseason ankle surgery and suffered multiple injuries during the regular season. He will be back at 100 percent in 2015, though, so I like his chances of moving back into the top 10 among fantasy quarterbacks. He has a chance to be one of the best fantasy draft bargains in the league.
8. Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons: Ryan has failed to rank among the top-10 fantasy quarterbacks just once over the last five years, so he's been consistent even if his numbers haven't ranked him among the elite players at his position. The Boston College product is a solid target for those fantasy owners who decide to wait to select a field general until the middle rounds or later in their 2015 drafts.
9. Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys: Did you know ... Romo was the highest-scoring fantasy quarterback in the final four weeks of 2014? He's almost always finished in the top 10 in points at his position, but he still doesn't see the respect he deserves in fantasy circles. Owners should use that to their advantage in drafts, as Romo should fall into the middle to late rounds despite having starter's value.
10. Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions: Stafford's numbers regressed in 2014, as he finished behind the likes of Joe Flacco and Jay Cutler despite having some of the best weapons he's had at the NFL level. Furthermore, he's fallen out of the top two tiers among quarterbacks and will now enter 2015 as a risk-reward selection. Stafford is still a fantasy starter, but he's not a must-start right now.
Michael Fabiano is an award-winning fantasy football analyst on NFL.com and NFL Network and a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association (FSWA) Hall of Fame. Have a burning question on anything fantasy related? Tweet it to _**@MichaelFabiano**_ or send a question via **Facebook**!
