2011 Top Ten Fantasy Football Quarterbacks

The NFL Lockout is all but over and the time to dust off your fantasy football notes.  The Lockout has hobbled us a bit as players have not been able to sign or be traded while the players and owners discuss a new CBA.

With only a handful of weeks left until preseason we will get a quick scramble of players signing and traded while camps start up.  Then we hit preseason and if there was ever a year I would recommend your fantasy team drafting as close to opening day than this is the year.

With that in mind it’s time to consider the most important stud on your fantasy team, the quarterback.  This is the guy who will represent your team while you’re bragging in the bar to your friends and anyone that listens that you’re leading your league.  Here’s a breakdown of the Top Ten Fantasy Football Quarterbacks.

10. Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers

I’ve admittedly have never been a huge Ben Roethlisberger fan but I like his consistency. Well, that’s when he’s not doing something stupid to be on IR or suspended.

But like Michael Vick over in Philly there are signs of maturity here in Pennsylvania. Big Ben needs to get his head out of his ass and be a better person/teammate and no one in the league needs to shape up more than him.

But despite his immaturity, Ben has led the team to a crazy 3 Super Bowls. That’s solid. Some might argue the defense had a slight hand in that and I will agree. The Steelers are a winning machine and Ben is just a part of that, although a key part.

So the good thing is that if Big Ben is healthy and in the lineup you can expect decent numbers and Ben will benefit from being on one of the best teams in the league. Numbers wise, not so much. Ben wins but doesn’t toss huge numbers like Drew Brees or Peyton Manning but don’t underestimate the big guy. He can still get the ball downfield.

A healthy (and unsuspended) Ben should get you 3,200 yards passing with 20 TD’s and 12 INT’s.

9. Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons

The Falcons are piecing together a great, great team and with the draft day trade for Alabama receiver Julio Jones the Falcons believe that their Super Bowl fate is sooner rather than later and will involve the passing game.

That’s good news for the fantasy managers that end up with Ryan. He’s kind of a darkhorse at this moment but he’s solid and efficient.

The downside is he’s young and still learning but with the addition of Jones to a squad with the talented Roddy White and Tony Gonzalez you can expect the passing game to kick it up a level this year.  Michael Turner and the running game help keep Ryan on the field and if all these players stay healthy than the Falcons are going to be putting up some mad numbers this season.

A healthy Ryan should get you 4,000 yards passing, 28 TD’s and 10 INT’s.

8. Matt Schaub, Houston Texans

The biggest knock on Schuab is not his skills.

The guy can toss balls like no ones business and his 1.6 passing TD’s per game last year illustrate that. His 8.0+ yards-per-attempt are crazy good and you could do a lot worse than pick Schaub.

The issue belongs to the offensive strategy of the team. Despite being coached by John Elway’s former backup, the Texans and head coach Gary Kubiak struggle a bit and unless the team can step up to the next level, the best years or Schaub may be right now.

A healthy Schaub should get you 4,300 yards passing, 25 TD’s and 14 INT’s.

7. Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys

Romo missed most of the 2010 season with a broken collarbone and could be a good sleeper QB for you in any league. The Cowboys are heading into 2011 with their new-ish coach, Jason Garrett, who was Romo’s offensive coordinator.

The two have yet to really work as a combo on the field as coach/QB and I expect great things from them.

Romo has great talent to work with in Dez Bryant, Jason Witten and Miles Austin and if the team can cobble a decent running game together the Cowboys are going to be good offensively.

For me the trick is that Romo has to step up to that next level and become more efficient. He still panics and is prompt to throw too many INT’s but puts up strong numbers yearly. His yards-per-attempt are one of the best in the league.

A healthy Romo should get you 4,000 yards passing, 28 TD’s and 15 INT’s.

6. Tom Brady, New England Patriots

The Pats are efficient, I’ll give them that. Last year Brady went nuts with a 36-4 TD/INT ratio that still is boggling to look at. Brady last year found his stride that went off track due to a horrific knee injury in 2008-09.

The year before that Brady put up similar numbers as he did in 2010, which were career highs at the time.

The inconsistency of the Patriots leaves Brady’s numbers up and down like the stock market and always make Brady a gamble if there are any of the top 5 on this list available.

But if the Pats can keep their offense in the same range as the last two seasons you can expect a healthy Brady to get you 4,000 yards passing, 30 TD’s and 10 INTs.

5. Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers

Efficient and pass happy, Rivers is one of those guys whose numbers just get better each year even though his team doesn’t.

The Chargers sometimes have great receivers and we’ll have to see what they cobble together this year.

Last year the squad had their top 3 players miss a combined 22 out of 28 games yet Rivers tossed career high numbers.

The numbers might take a hit this year as the receiver squad is reliable but may lose some key parts and the Chargers try to establish more of a run game as the Chargers continue to try and replace the lost LaDainian Tomlinson.

A healthy Rivers should get you 4,400 yards, 30 TD’s and 12 INTs.

4. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints

Two seasons ago Drew Brees was the hottest QB in the league as he led his Saints to their first ever Super Bowl with a win.

His numbers went down slightly last year as the Saints struggled with a late season surge to get into the playoffs but met a Seahawks team determined to reach .500.

I don’t think last year should bother you about Brees. Sure he threw an ugly 22 INT’s but think about the running game the Saints had last year. It really wasn’t there. And a knee sprain didn’t help but the Saints have added some talent in the back field and I expect Brees to bounce back nicely.

A healthy Brees should get you 4,300 yards passing, 30 TD’s and 18 INTs.

3. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts

The master of efficiency is getting up there in years but even a hobbled Manning is better than most QBs out there. First take note that Peyton is coming off surgery in the offseason that seems to be taking a long time to heal.

After having neck surgery earlier this summer, Manning is still healing and may miss some training camps but is expected to be ready by season opening.

That might mean a rusty start for the 35-year old veteran but it won’t take long for him to get back in sync.

Peyton threw for a crazy career-high 679 times last year, 108 more times than his next highest level. But that only accounted for 200 more passing yards and the same number of TD’s at 33.

Most of that had to do with the Colts not being able to keep a healthy WR squad on the field and Peyton being out of sync with his new kids. Hopefully, they will fix that and Peyton can go back to throwing more efficiently and be more productive in the red zone. If nothing else, Manning is the most reliable QB out there for my money. If you want a solid QB to feed TDs and get yards

A healthy Peyton Manning should get you 4,500 yards passing, 30 TD’s and 15 INT’s.

2. Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles

For me, Vick has always been a gamble as his accuracy has always been an issue. But as Vick continues to mature in Philly it will be hard to find a more complete package. He can run or pass for a TD and being on the pass-happy Eagles teams doesn’t hurt.

But be weary and have a good backup handy as Vick is getting older and still running around. That means injuries here and there. But as long as Vick continues to work on his QB skills that might not be an issue. The accuracy thing I mentioned earlier is a huge knock on Michael but he seems to be understanding how important that is to his play.

Last year Vick notched his first 100+ QB rating (100.2, he never got above 82 in ATL) and pass completion percentage at 62.6. He never got into the 60′s in his previous seasons. Two years ago I would say avoid Vick like the plague but he’s come a long way to being a legit fantasy QB.

A healthy Vick should get you around 3,200 passing yards, 25 TD’s and around 10 INT’s. But he will also add around 600+ yards rushing with another 5 or so TD’s.

1. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers

Rogers may be the top quarterback in the league in both fantasy and real-life purposes.

Although he threw less passes last year than Peyton Manning or Drew Brees, he was extremely efficient. In fact, last year he put up slightly smaller numbers than the previous two seasons but marched his team all the way to the Super Bowl.

Do keep an eye out as Rodgers has suffered a few concussions over the years. He’s a tough guy who doesn’t mind running but as the Packers continue to get better he’ll likely spend more time in the pocket and less scrambling around.

I expect Rodgers to continue his streak of greatness and as a manager that has had him for the past 2 seasons, I’ve not been disappointed with his performance at all.

A healthy Rodgers should get you about 4,000 yards passing, almost 30 TD’s and around 10 INT’s.