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Each week, Footballguys staff members will share the big movers in their respective Dynasty Rankings. Since the contributors will rotate, please check in weekly. The focus of this article will be on the “why” more than the movement itself. Dynasty Rankings are fluid and we hope that sharing the rationale will help you in your quest to create dynasties with all of your teams. The diversity of rankings will result in a variety of opinions weekly.
Quarterback
Grant
Matt Ryan – Julio Jones is done for the year and the rest of the Atlanta passing offense looks old. Roddy White has been banged up and their running game looks like an intensive care unit. After this season, who knows what their offense will look like? Right now, Atlanta is struggling to make the playoffs and it looks like the bottom is about to drop out of this team.
Eli Manning – Manning is an interception machine this year. Without a running game, he’s pulling the offense on him and trying to do too much. The Giants are on their way to a three or four win season and Manning could post some pretty miserable stats before it’s all said and done.
Geno Smith – Did anyone give this team a chance this year? They were easily on their way to the last place in the division and maybe three or four wins total. Instead, Smith continues to drive his team forward, culminating in a big division win against the Patriots this week. Smith may not become Aaron Rodgers, but he's definitely better than several starting QBS this season and he has nowhere to go but up. Imagine if he had any other starts on offense with him.
Mike Glennon – Josh Freeman is now the third quarterback in Minnesota that can't move the offense, leaving Glennon as the signal caller in Tampa. Unfortunately Glennon hasn't been able to lead the Bucs to victory yet. Losing Doug Martin for the season won't help, but Glennon will finish the season as the starter, and he's going to get a shot at being the starting QB of the future for Tampa Bay.
Harstad
Sam Bradford - Bradford was quietly having a pretty strong season, although St. Louis' ratio of passing touchdowns to rushing touchdowns was unsustainable. His injury is a setback, although Bradford is young enough and secure enough in his starting job that it's not a value-killer.
Philip Rivers - Philip Rivers continues his Renaissance in San Diego, looking more like the 2010 version of himself than the 2011 to 2012 version. If that holds up, Rivers could be a very nice fantasy starter for several more years.
Case Keenum - It's looking as if Keenum's audition in Houston might be an extended one. It's worth giving him a couple week audition in dynasty to see what he has.
Tefertiller
Geno Smith has played well as a rookie, especially for a player without viable receivers. He has led the Jets to a winning record with a rotating group of average NFL pass catchers. Smith has more passing yards than Tom Brady and several others on the season so he is making the jump in my rankings. Why not invest in the rookie who will improve?
Terrelle Pryor takes another jump in the rankings as he plays for a job in 2014. Pryor has developed a great rapport with wide receiver Denarius Moore (also moving up the rankings) as the Raiders passing game has been respectable.
Running Back
Harstad
Marshawn Lynch and Matt Forte - Both of these guys are moving up for the same reason- everyone ahead of them is sucking. Baltimore's run game is a train wreck, Spiller is getting handily outplayed by Fred Jackson and seems to be constantly hobbling back to the sidelines after every carry, Murray is hurt and the subject of trade rumors. Marshawn Lynch and Matt Forte might be slightly older than some of the other guys in the top 10, but they're currently productive and showing no signs of slowing yet.
David Wilson - David Wilson is looking more and more like a train wreck, but in a truly brutal dynasty RB crop, his young age really stands out from the crowd and helps keep his dynasty value afloat.
Eddie Lacy - Since Lacy has come back healthy, there's been no question who the top back is in Green Bay.
Tefertiller
Le'Veon Bell looks to be the long-term answer for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He is showing nimble feet and the ability to make defenders miss. Bell is a building block player for Pittsburgh. He will see his workload increase as the Steelers maintain competitiveness in games.
Knowshon Moreno is in the last year of his contract but is expected back in Denver after the season. He has been the best of the Broncos tailbacks, both carrying the ball and protecting Peyton Manning. Moreno is a fantasy RB1 this season and could see his time as a top fantasy option extended with Manning valuing protection (think Joseph Addai).
Chris Johnson tumbles down the rankings after a string of disappointing efforts. There is little reason to get excited and it is better to sell him now than wait until the offseason when Johnson's value takes a severe nosedive.
Grant
Arian Foster – The Houston offense looks to be in total free-fall. And Foster is falling with them. He's banged up and hasn’t been nearly as effective as he has been in previous seasons. If you have him and can trade him, now is the time.
Eddie Lacy – The Green Bay offense is evolving. Last season they has zero running game and a WR corps that was second to none. This season, their pass catchers are dropping like flys, and their offense is in need of a running game. Lacy has silenced the critics from the pre-season (myself included) and he’s definitely worth drafting for your dynasty team.
Wide Receiver
Tefertiller
Vincent Jackson has produced big fantasy points no matter who has been at quarterback. His big game against the Atlanta Falcons solidified it for me as Jackson is superstar who gets so little recognition.
Justin Blackmon is now in the conversation with the other good, young receivers. He has a bright future if able to stay out of trouble with the league office. With an expected quarterback upgrade next season, Blackmon is a player to acquire now.
Denarius Moore has come on to be a legitimate fantasy starter almost every week. He has played very well while in the last year of his rookie contract. Playing in Oakland, few dynasty owners give Moore the due he deserves.
Grant
Roddy White – Can't stay healthy. After never missing a game for his first eight seasons, White has been banged up this season. Most expected him to take a back seat to Julio Jones this season, but after Jones went down, White has a great chance to be the team's top pass catcher. Yet he missed this week as well due to injury. White's long term potential looks pretty scary and he is a risky guy to be adding at this time unless it's for depth down the stretch.
Marques Colston – Three catches for 26 yards in the last two games. Colston has a way of coming on strong at the end of the season but right now he's putting up some pretty pedestrian numbers.
Dwayne Bowe – The Chiefs are 7-0, and Bowe hasn't put up more than 12 fantasy points in any of the seven games. In fact, he has scored less than five fantasy points in four of them. Like it or not, Bowe isn't a big part of the Andy Reid offense and not a guy that you want on your roster now.
Harstad
Tavon Austin - You can't hold a player's rookie performance too much against him, but Austin has been absolutely brutal so far this season, and you can't just blame it on his offensive coordinator. A bad rookie year doesn't doom a career, but it's certainly not a good place to start.
Marques Colston - A lot has been made of Dwayne Bowe's disappearing act, but Marques Colston's has been just as baffling. Colston has five targets in his last two games combined, and he's too old for signs like that to not be at least a little bit concerning.
Reggie Wayne - Injuries are a part of life in the NFL, but that doesn't make them any easier. At Wayne's age, there's a very real chance that his ACL tear spells the end of a long and productive career.
Tight End
Harstad
Jordan Reed - Jeff Tefertiller and I have been driving the Jordan Reed bus from the beginning, but neither of us expected this big of an impact this soon. Washington believes so much in Reed that Fred Davis was a healthy inactive last Sunday. Reed's current production would stand as the most receptions and receiving yards per game by a rookie TE since 1980.
Ladarius Green - Green has looked very good in limited action. Antonio Gates looks like a much younger version of himself, but has to be nearing the end of the road. If Rivers' revitalization is legitimate, Green could be in a fantastic situation as early as next season.
Tefertiller
Jordan Reed moves all the way up to TE5 in my rankings. While that may seem extreme to many, he is outproducing the veterans and is still a rookie. I like what I see from Reed and see him as a tight end you trade a Witten-type for given that the two tight ends are producing similar fantasy points.
Grant
Coby Fleener – The Colts have been hit hard with injuries this season, and losing Reggie Wayne is a huge blow. Fleener has managed to avoid the injury bug and his stats are starting to improve. If he can stay healthy the rest of the way, he’ll post solid fantasy numbers.
Jordan Reed - He's missed a couple games this season, but Reed looks to be back and fully integrated into the Washington passing game. He lit up the Bears this week and has posted five or more receptions in three of the five games that he has played in. He gets a big upgrade this week.
