Once the season begins, the most difficult parts of any fantasy manager’s week are start or sit decisions. These lineup choices can make or break a week, but unfortunately, not everyone has time to sit down and read lengthy fantasy advice articles. That’s where Quick Grades comes in. Each week of the football season, I’ll be providing a condensed and easily digestible chart of grades for over 250 fantasy-relevant players based on the following four criteria:
Fantasy Ability
Dalvin Cook is a week-winner due to his big-play ability and proficiency as a receiver out of the backfield
Expected Volume
Travis Kelce is always heavily targeted as one of Kansas City’s top pass-catching options
Matchup
David Montgomery finished 2020 as an RB1 thanks to a highly-favorable end-of-season schedule
Surrounding Talent
Sam Darnold has a strong group of skill-position players around him now that he’s in Carolina
Each of those criteria will be graded on a scale of 1-25, with the cumulative total resulting in a final grade (A+ to F) and a recommendation based on that grade. The criteria are weighted differently based on position, so it’s not a direct 1-for-1 conversion. Surrounding talent refers to offensive line for RB, quarterback play for WR and TE, and skill-position talent for QB.
The players are sorted by grade in descending order with the highest grades at the top and the lowest at the bottom. The highest-graded players receive A+ (Must start), and the lowest receive F. However, there are varying degrees of the F grade, and some players with this grade are flex plays, desperation plays, Hail Mary plays, or should remain on your bench, depending on the grade and position.
I’ll also include DST grades, and just like the skill-position players, there will be four criteria used for grading on a scale from 1-25, and final grades will be from 1-100. The four criteria for a DST grade are: Matchup, Turnovers, Sacks, and Points Allowed.
The link to the original Quick Grades Google Document can still be found below. In addition to the player grades, I’ll provide:
- Start of the Week: A player outside of the elite, weekly must-starts who could have a big week
- Stream of the Week: The best player who will likely be available on your waiver wire
- Fade of the Week: A notable player who could be in for a let-down performance
Link to Full Quick Grades Document
It’s easy to see that an ‘A+’ or ‘A’ grade makes a player a must-start, but it might not make sense at first glance why some players are rated ‘C’ or worse and still have ‘Start,’ ‘Strong Start,’ or ‘Flex’ attached to their names. Because of all the different variables that go into a player’s performance in any given week, only those players with the absolute highest potential, best matchup, and strongest talent get ‘A+’ or ‘A’ grades. Therefore, even solid plays will earn grades that may appear sub-optimal on the surface, but it’s all relative from position-to-position. The hard cutoff is 50 for every position, as grades lower than this will earn a ‘Desperation’ or ‘Hail Mary’ tag in every situation.
Now that I’ve covered the basics, let’s get to the grades. Best of luck in all your matchups this week, and if you have any questions, please hit me up on Twitter @ZaktheMonster.
Note: As always, remember to check back on FantasyPros ahead of kickoff to get the latest injury news. These grades assume full health at the time the article is published on Friday morning.
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Running Backs
- Start of the Week: Antonio Gibson
- Stream of the Week: Jordan Howard
- Fade of the Week: Michael Carter, Ty Johnson
Wide Receivers
- Start & Stream of the Week: Tyler Johnson
- Fade of the Week: Elijah Moore
Quarterbacks
- Start & Stream of the Week: Colt McCoy
- Fade of the Week: Teddy Bridgewater
Tight Ends
- Start of the Week: Dawson Knox
- Stream of the Week: Logan Thomas
- Fade of the Week: Dan Arnold
D/STs
- Start & Stream of the Week: Green Bay Packers
- Fade of the Week: Tennessee Titans
Player Search, Find
Running Back
- Jonathan Taylor A Must Start
- Najee Harris A Must Start
- Ezekiel Elliott A Must Start
- Austin Ekeler A Must Start
- Aaron Jones A Must Start
- Dalvin Cook B+ Strong Start
- Darrell Henderson Jr. B Strong Start
- Christian McCaffrey B Strong Start
- Darrel Williams B Strong Start
- Leonard Fournette C+ Strong Start
- James Conner C+ Strong Start
- D'Andre Swift C+ Strong Start
- Cordarrelle Patterson C+ Strong Start
- Antonio Gibson C+ Strong Start
- Damien Harris C Start
- Devin Singletary C Start
- D'Ernest Johnson C Start
- James Robinson C Start
- Javonte Williams C Start
- Melvin Gordon III C Start
- Elijah Mitchell C Start
- Josh Jacobs C Start
- Jordan Howard C Start
- AJ Dillon D+ Flex
- Michael Carter D Flex
- Mark Ingram II D Flex
- Alex Collins D Flex
- J.D. McKissic D Flex
- Tony Pollard D Flex
- Kenyan Drake D Flex
- Jamaal Williams F Desperation
- Boston Scott F Desperation
- Mike Davis F Desperation
- Jeremy McNichols F Desperation
- Kenneth Gainwell F Desperation
- Nyheim Hines F Desperation
- Adrian Peterson F Desperation
- Rhamondre Stevenson F Desperation
- Eno Benjamin F Desperation
- Sony Michel F Hail Mary
- Ronald Jones II F Hail Mary
- Giovani Bernard F Hail Mary
- Carlos Hyde F Hail Mary
- Alexander Mattison F Hail Mary
- Brandon Bolden F Hail Mary
- Ty Johnson F Hail Mary
- Chuba Hubbard F Hail Mary
- Derrick Gore F Hail Mary
- Jerick McKinnon F Hail Mary
Wide Receiver
- Cooper Kupp A Must Start
- Davante Adams A Must Start
- A.J. Brown A Must Start
- Tyreek Hill A Must Start
- Mike Evans A Must Start
- Keenan Allen A Must Start
- Deebo Samuel B+ Must Start
- Mike Williams B+ Must Start
- CeeDee Lamb B Strong Start
- Amari Cooper B Strong Start
- Stefon Diggs B Strong Start
- Diontae Johnson B Strong Start
- D.J. Moore B Strong Start
- Michael Pittman Jr. B Strong Start
- D.K. Metcalf B Strong Start
- Terry McLaurin B Strong Start
- Justin Jefferson C+ Strong Start
- Cordarrelle Patterson C+ Strong Start
- Adam Thielen C+ Strong Start
- Tyler Lockett C+ Strong Start
- Marvin Jones Jr. C Start
- DeVonta Smith C Start
- Tyler Johnson D+ Start
- Cole Beasley D+ Start
- Emmanuel Sanders D+ Start
- Courtland Sutton D+ Start
- Jakobi Meyers D+ Start
- Jerry Jeudy D+ Start
- A.J. Green D+ Start
- Russell Gage D Flex
- Corey Davis D Flex
- Christian Kirk D Flex
- Marquez Callaway D Flex
- Deonte Harris D Flex
- Jarvis Landry D Flex
- Donovan Peoples-Jones D Flex
- Tim Patrick D Flex
- Hunter Renfrow D Flex
- Van Jefferson D Flex
- Brandon Aiyuk D Flex
- Bryan Edwards D Flex
- Rondale Moore D Flex
- T.Y. Hilton D Flex
- Mecole Hardman F Desperation
- Jamal Agnew F Desperation
- Laviska Shenault Jr. F Desperation
- Nelson Agholor F Desperation
- Robby Anderson F Desperation
- Olamide Zaccheaus F Desperation
- Elijah Moore F Desperation
- K.J. Osborn F Desperation
- Michael Gallup F Desperation
- Randall Cobb F Desperation
- Zach Pascal F Desperation
- Jalen Reagor F Desperation
- Jamison Crowder F Desperation
- Tre'Quan Smith F Hail Mary
- Kendrick Bourne F Hail Mary
- Quez Watkins F Hail Mary
- Kalif Raymond F Hail Mary
- Tajae Sharpe F Hail Mary
- Marquez Valdes-Scantling F Hail Mary
- Amon-Ra St. Brown F Hail Mary
- Terrace Marshall Jr. F Hail Mary
- Gabriel Davis F Hail Mary
- Allen Lazard F Hail Mary
- James Washington F Hail Mary
- Cedrick Wilson Jr. F Hail Mary
Quarterback
- Tom Brady A+ Must Start
- Dak Prescott A+ Must Start
- Matthew Stafford A+ Must Start
- Patrick Mahomes II A Must Start
- Josh Allen B+ Strong Start
- Russell Wilson B Strong Start
- Carson Wentz B Strong Start
- Justin Herbert B Strong Start
- Aaron Rodgers B Strong Start
- Derek Carr C+ Start
- Trevor Lawrence C+ Start
- Jalen Hurts C Start
- Mac Jones C Start
- Matt Ryan C Start
- Taylor Heinicke C Start
- Trevor Siemian D+ 2QB/Superflex
- Kirk Cousins D+ 2QB/Superflex
- Ryan Tannehill D+ 2QB/Superflex
- Colt McCoy D 2QB/Superflex
- Ben Roethlisberger OUT
- P.J. Walker D 2QB/Superflex
- Baker Mayfield F Hail Mary
- Jimmy Garoppolo F Hail Mary
- Teddy Bridgewater F Hail Mary
- Mike White F Hail Mary
- Taysom Hill F Hail Mary
- Jared Goff F Hail Mary
Tight End
- Travis Kelce A+ Must Start
- Darren Waller A+ Must Start
- Kyle Pitts A Must Start
- Dawson Knox B+ Must Start
- George Kittle B Strong Start
- Noah Fant B Strong Start
- Dalton Schultz B Strong Start
- Dallas Goedert C+ Strong Start
- T.J. Hockenson C+ Strong Start
- Pat Freiermuth C+ Strong Start
- Logan Thomas C+ Start
- Zach Ertz C+ Start
- Tyler Higbee C Start
- Tyler Conklin C Start
- Dan Arnold C Start
- Hunter Henry C Start
- Gerald Everett D Desperation
- Mo Alie-Cox D Desperation
- Jared Cook F Desperation
- Jonnu Smith F Desperation
- Hayden Hurst F Desperation
- O.J. Howard F Desperation
- Albert Okwuegbunam F Desperation
- Jack Doyle F Hail Mary
- David Njoku F Hail Mary
- Tommy Sweeney F Hail Mary
- Donald Parham Jr. F Hail Mary
- Austin Hooper F Hail Mary
- Anthony Firkser F Hail Mary
D/ST
- Buffalo Bills A+ Must Start
- Arizona Cardinals A Must Start
- Pittsburgh Steelers B+ Must Start
- Indianapolis Colts B+ Must Start
- Dallas Cowboys B+ Must Start
- Cleveland Browns B Strong Start
- Los Angeles Rams C+ Strong Start
- Green Bay Packers C Strong Start
- New Orleans Saints C Strong Start
- New England Patriots C Start
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers C Start
- Las Vegas Raiders C Start
- Denver Broncos C Start
- Carolina Panthers C Start
- Minnesota Vikings D+ Desperation
- Los Angeles Chargers D+ Desperation
- Philadelphia Eagles F Desperation
- Kansas City Chiefs F Desperation
- Seattle Seahawks F Desperation
- Washington Football Team F Desperation
- Jacksonville Jaguars F Hail Mary
- Tennessee Titans F Hail Mary
- San Francisco 49ers F Hail Mary
- Detroit Lions F Hail Mary
- New York Jets F Hail Mary
- Atlanta Falcons F Hail Mary
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Zachary Hanshew is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Zachary, check out his archive and follow him @zakthemonster.