A Very Early 2013 Fantasy Football Top 200

Author:
Mark Ross
Publish date:
Feb 7, 2013

The 2012 NFL season may have just ended, but that doesn't mean it's too early to starting thinking about next season. Even though teams have just started adjusting their rosters, free agency has yet to begin and the draft is still more than two months away, here's Athlon Sports' early fantasy football rankings for 2013.

As it stands now, Arian Foster and not NFL MVP Adrian Peterson tops our rankings, while Super Bowl XLVII MVP Joe Flacco comes in at No. 89. Fifteen quarterbacks are ranked higher than Flacco, including Robert Griffin III, who falls in at No. 37 (eighth at his position). Griffin, who was the AP's Offensive Rookie of the Year, is without a doubt the biggest question mark at this point, since his return timetable from his January knee surgery is still unknown. Griffin is the prime example as to why this list will go through many changes between now and the fall.

As for how things currently look, a few early observations. Quarterback appears to be rather deep and the same could be said to a degree for wide receiver. Once you get past the 15 or so running backs it is anyone's guess and tight end is another intriguing position to watch as the offseason plays out.

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Rk	Player	Position	Team	Comment
1	Arian Foster	RB	HOU	Edges out A.D. b/c of less tread on the tires.
2	Adrian Peterson	RB	MIN	Be wary of 2,000-yard "curse."
3	Marshawn Lynch	RB	SEA
4	Doug Martin	RB	TB	Can he avoid sophomore slump?
5	Calvin Johnson	WR	DET	Top fantasy WR had just 5 TDs.
6	Jamaal Charles	RB	KC	Is he Reid's McCoy in KC?
7	Aaron Rodgers	QB	GB	Still had 39 TDs despite WR injuries.
8	Drew Brees	QB	NO	Led NFL in INTs and fantasy points.
9	Tom Brady	QB	NE	Could be in market for new No. 1 WR.
10	Ray Rice	RB	BAL	Pierce's touches went up at season's end.
11	LeSean McCoy	RB	PHI	Interesting to see how Kelly uses him.
12	C.J. Spiller	RB	BUF	Should get lion's share of carries over FJax.
13	A.J. Green	WR	CIN
14	Brandon Marshall	WR	CHI	If Bears fix OL, watch out.
15	Trent Richardson	RB	CLE	Needs more support from passing game.
16	Julio Jones	WR	ATL
17	Demaryius Thomas	WR	DEN	Big target should continue to improve.
18	Dez Bryant	WR	DAL	Really came on late in the season.
19	Alfred Morris	RB	WAS	Will Griffin's injury/absence impact him?
20	Cam Newton	QB	CAR
21	Maurice Jones-Drew	RB	JAC	If healthy, he should get lots of touches.
22	Stevan Ridley	RB	NE
23	Peyton Manning	QB	DEN
24	Rob Gronkowski	TE	NE	Health starting to become an issue.
25	Percy Harvin	WR	MIN	Is he long for Minny?
26	Vincent Jackson	WR	TB	Delivered in his first year as Buc.
27	Andre Johnson	WR	HOU	A reliable No. 2 WR would help him and team.
28	Chris Johnson	RB	TEN
29	Matt Forte	RB	CHI
30	Roddy White	WR	ATL
31	Jimmy Graham	TE	NO
32	Frank Gore	RB	SF	Finished with strong postseason.
33	Demarco Murray	RB	DAL	Foot injury plagued him last season.
34	Matt Ryan	QB	ATL
35	Larry Fitzgerald	WR	ARI	All hinges on who his QB is.
36	Matthew Stafford	QB	DET	Don’t forget he posted 5,000-40 in 2011.
37	Robert Griffin III	QB	WAS	The No. 1 question mark in fantasy.
38	Victor Cruz	WR	NYG	Will the Giants pay him?
39	Eric Decker	WR	DEN
40	Randall Cobb	WR	GB	His role should only increase in '13.
41	Wes Welker	WR	NE	If not Patriots, where will he end up?
42	Marques Colston	WR	NO	When healthy, he produces.
43	Darren McFadden	RB	OAK	Will he ever stay healthy?
44	Hakeem Nicks	WR	NYG	Another one who's been held back by injuries.
45	Andrew Luck	QB	IND	Reunited with Stanford OC.
46	Mike Wallace	WR	PIT	His 2013 team will dictate potential value.
47	Michael Crabtree	WR	SF	Kaepernick's clear-cut No. 1 target.
48	Tony Romo	QB	DAL
49	Russell Wilson	QB	SEA	What can he do for an encore?
50	Colin Kaepernick	QB	SF
51	Darren Sproles	RB	NO	Different player in '11 when Payton was HC.
52	Jordy Nelson	WR	GB
53	Steve Smith	WR	CAR
54	BenJarvus Green-Ellis	RB	CIN
55	Pierre Garcon	WR	WAS	Foot injury sidetracked first season in WAS.
56	Greg Jennings	WR	GB	Where will he end up?
57	Reggie Wayne	WR	IND
58	Jason Witten	TE	DAL
59	Ryan Mathews	RB	SD	His collarbone was not his friend last season.
60	David Wilson	RB	NYG	Came on strong late in the season, no more Bradshaw.
61	Aaron Hernandez	TE	NE
62	Steven Jackson	RB	STL	Won't turn 30 until July.
63	Danario Alexander	WR	SD
64	Reggie Bush	RB	MIA	Will he be his (new) team's No. 1 back in '13?
65	Willis McGahee	RB	DEN
66	Mikel Leshoure	RB	DET
67	Cecil Shorts	WR	JAC
68	Eli Manning	QB	NYG
69	Tony Gonzalez	TE	ATL	Will he back for another year?
70	Ben Roethlisberger	QB	PIT
71	Stevie Johnson	WR	BUF
72	T.Y. Hilton	WR	IND
73	Andy Dalton	QB	CIN
74	Torrey Smith	WR	BAL
75	Antonio Brown	WR	PIT	Becomes No. 1 if Wallace doesn't stay.
76	Dwayne Bowe	WR	KC	Potential tied to 2013 team.
77	Brandon Lloyd	WR	NE	His role only increases should Welker leave.
78	Miles Austin	WR	DAL
79	James Jones	WR	GB
80	Lance Moore	WR	NO
81	Mike Williams	WR	TB
82	Danny Amendola	WR	STL	Another free agent who could be in new uni.
83	Josh Freeman	QB	TB
84	Owen Daniels	TE	HOU
85	Kyle Rudolph	TE	MIN	Established himself after Harvin's injury.
86	Greg Olsen	TE	CAR
87	Jermaine Gresham	TE	CIN
88	Matt Schaub	QB	HOU
89	Joe Flacco	QB	BAL	Don't overrate SB MVP's fantasy value.
90	Justin Blackmon	WR	JAC
91	Sidney Rice	WR	SEA
92	Shonn Greene	RB	NYJ	His time is running out to prove he's a No. 1 back.
93	Jacquizz Rodgers	RB	ATL	Should see even more touches in '13.
94	Jeremy Maclin	WR	PHI	Which Eagle WR benefits most from Kelly's system?
95	DeSean Jackson	WR	PHI
96	Vick Ballard	RB	IND
97	Knowshon Moreno	RB	DEN	Effective after McGahee went down until he got hurt too.
98	Kenny Britt	WR	TEN	Could be running out of time/chances w/ Titans.
99	Denarius Moore	WR	OAK
100	Josh Gordon	WR	CLE
101	Philip Rivers	QB	SD	Can McCoy/Whisenhunt turn him around?
102	Ahmad Bradshaw	RB	NYG	Will be looking for new team after Giants released him.
103	Jay Cutler	QB	CHI	Can Trestman make him better?
104	Dennis Pitta	TE	BAL
105	Vernon Davis	TE	SF	He and Kaepernick started clicking late.
106	Antionio Gates	TE	SD	Days as elite option are well pas him.
107	Michael Vick	QB	PHI	Won't know for sure until '13 team is determined.
108	Jonathan Dwyer	RB	PIT	Steelers have to figure backfield out.
109	Jonathan Stewart	RB	CAR	If he or Williams is traded, their ranks change.
110	DeAngelo Williams	RB	CAR
111	Rashard Mendenhall	RB	PIT
112	Michael Turner	RB	ATL	Veteran no longer a viable every-week starter.
113	Vincent Brown	WR	SD	Broken ankle wiped out last season.
114	Bilal Powell	RB	NYJ	Could get No. 1 job if Greene doesn't return.
115	Mark Ingram	RB	NO
116	Carson Palmer	QB	OAK	His weapons couldn't stay healthy last season.
117	Martellus Bennett	TE	NYG	Free agent, keep eye on where he lands.
118	Seattle	DST	SEA
119	Denver	DST	DEN
120	Bernard Pierce	RB	BAL	Got his number called often late in the season.
121	Daryl Richardson	RB	STL	He and Pead will fight for carries if SJax leaves.
122	Brian Hartline	WR	MIA
123	Kendall Wright	WR	TEN	Can he build off of respectable rookie season?
124	Chris Givens	WR	STL
125	Sam Bradford	QB	STL
126	Heath Miller	TE	PIT	How quickly can be bounce back from ACL injury?
127	Brandon Myers	TE	OAK
128	San Francisco	DST	SF
129	Jermichael Finley	TE	GB
130	Brent Celek	TE	PHI
131	Ryan Fitzpatrick	QB	BUF	May not even be the Bills' starter in Week 1.
132	Cincinnati	DST	CIN	Young Bengals should only get better.
133	Houston	DST	HOU
134	Anquan Boldin	WR	BAL	Veteran may have played his last game for Ravens.
135	Santonio Holmes	WR	NYJ
136	Brandon LaFell	WR	CAR
137	Golden Tate	WR	SEA
138	Andre Roberts	WR	ARI
139	Chicago	DST	CHI	Don't count on repeat of last year's fantasy output.
140	Michael Floyd	WR	ARI
141	Alshon Jeffery	WR	CHI
142	Jarius Wright	WR	MIN	He and Harvin could be dangerous combo.
143	DuJuan Harris	RB	GB	Took advantage of injuries to be a factor late.
144	Brandon Pettigrew	TE	DET
145	Dwayne Allen	TE	IND
146	Beanie Wells	RB	ARI	Never has proven he can stay healthy.
147	Ryan Williams	RB	ARI	Still not sure what he's capable of.
148	San Diego	DST	SD
149	Christian Ponder	QB	MIN
150	Pittsburgh	DST	PIT	Veteran unit starting to show its age.
151	New England	DST	NE
152	Nick Foles	QB	PHI	Will be he Kelly's guy?
153	Jake Locker	QB	TEN	Can he take that next step in '13?
154	Ryan Tannehill	QB	MIA
155	Jared Cook	TE	TEN	Where will he play in '13?
156	Jacob Tamme	TE	DEN
157	Mohamed Sanu	WR	CIN	Opportunity knocks for someone to pair w/ Green.
158	Malcom Floyd	WR	SD
159	Emmanuel Sanders	WR	PIT
160	Darrius Heyward-Bey	WR	OAK
161	Jon Baldwin	WR	KC	If Bowe leaves, Baldwin becomes No. 1?
162	Donnie Avery	WR	IND
163	Andrew Hawkins	WR	CIN
164	Lamar Miller	RB	MIA
165	Ben Tate	RB	HOU
166	Bryce Brown	RB	PHI	Kelly used two backs at Oregon.
167	Dexter McCluster	WR	KC
168	Cleveland Browns	DST	CLE
169	LaMichael James	RB	SF	Has he replaced Hunter as 49ers' No. 2?
170	Ronnie Hillman	RB	DEN
171	Isaiah Pead	RB	STL
172	Nate Washington	WR	TEN
173	Scott Chandler	TE	BUF
174	Coby Fleener	TE	IND	Somewhat of a disappointment in his rookie season.
175	Atlanta Falcons	DST	ATL
176	Joique Bell	RB	DET
177	Andre Brown	RB	NYG	Probably been passed by Wilson on depth chart.
178	Lance Kendricks	TE	STL
179	Blair Walsh	K	MIN	Rookie's big leg made big first impression.
180	Stephen Gostkowski	K	NE
181	Michael Bush	RB	CHI
182	Baltimore Ravens	DST	BAL	This unit will look different in '13.
183	Daniel Thomas	RB	MIA
184	Shane Vereen	RB	NE	Had big game against Texans in playoffs.
185	Jason Avant	WR	PHI
186	Marcel Reece	RB	OAK
187	Fred Davis	TE	WAS	His tenure w/ Redskins may be over.
188	Kendall Hunter	RB	SF
189	New York Jets	DST	NYJ
190	Matt Bryant	K	ATL
191	Shayne Graham	K	HOU
192	Mark Sanchez	QB	NYJ	No Tebow, no more excuses in '13.
193	St. Louis Rams	DST	STL
194	Robert Turbin	RB	SEA
195	Donald Brown	RB	IND
196	Jason Hanson	K	DET
197	Mike Tolbert	RB	CAR
198	Matt Flynn	QB	SEA	Will he be with a new team in '13?
199	Arizona Cardinals	DST	ARI
200	Matt Cassel	QB	KC	Will Reid even give him a chance?

Rankings are based upon Athlon Sports' standard scoring system:

OFFENSIVE SCORING
All touchdowns are 6 points
1 point for 25 yards passing
1 point for 10 yards rushing/receiving
Receptions are .5 points
Interceptions/fumbles are minus-2 points