2014 Fantasy Football: Week 1 TE Rankings
Football season is finally back! The drafts are done, and now it's time to make sure you've got the best possible lineup in place. The TE position is one that will require careful consideration each week as there isn't much that separates a great deal of them. To help ensure that you're putting out the best team possible, let's take a look at how the TE position stacks up in Week 1.
15. Marcedes Lewis: Jacksonville Jaguars
15. Marcedes Lewis: Jacksonville Jaguars
Lewis played quite well toward the end of last season as he found the end zone four times in the Jags' final five games. His opponent on Sunday, the Philadelphia Eagles, only allowed three TD passes to TEs last year, but since Jacksonville is likely to be down big in this one, Lewis may be able to pile up some decent yardage.
14. Scott Chandler: Buffalo Bills
14. Scott Chandler: Buffalo Bills
Despite scoring just two touchdowns in 2013, this giant TE did post career bests in both receptions and receiving yards. Expect him to find the end zone more frequently this year, and he could get off to a nice start in Week 1. The Bills will face a Chicago Bears defense that struggled against TEs last season as they allowed 8.1 fantasy points per game, which tied for the eighth-highest mark in the league.
13. Heath Miller: Pittsburgh Steelers
13. Heath Miller: Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers receiving corps isn't all that impressive as we enter the 2014 campaign, so Miller could be in for a nice statistical season if he can stay on the field. He'll face the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, and though the Browns' D kept TEs pretty well in check last year, they did allow eight TDs to the position.
12. Dennis Pitta: Baltimore Ravens
12. Dennis Pitta: Baltimore Ravens
The Ravens will face a stout defense in the Cincinnati Bengals this week. Don't expect a huge game from Pitta, but he should still see his fair share of targets as one of the team's top receiving threats.
11. Jared Cook: St. Louis Rams
11. Jared Cook: St. Louis Rams
Cook got off to a big start in Week 1 last year, and may put up some nice numbers to kick off this season. He'll face a Minnesota Vikings defense that ranked 31st in the league in 2013 by allowing 9.1 fantasy points per game to TEs, and the 13 TDs they allowed to the position was the second-highest number in the league.
10. Zach Ertz: Philadelphia Eagles
10. Zach Ertz: Philadelphia Eagles
Brent Celek is still in the picture and will get his fair share of looks, but Ertz is the far more talented TE with much higher upside each week. The Eagles should have a field day against a terrible Jacksonville Jaguars defense this week, and the Jags allowed the third-most fantasy points per game to TEs last season.
9. Antonio Gates: San Diego Chargers
9. Antonio Gates: San Diego Chargers
Gates is a shell of his former self, but he's the clear No. 1 TE in San Diego as we enter the 2014 season. He makes for a sneaky play this week against an Arizona Cardinals defense that was far and away the worst at defending TEs last year. The Cards allowed 13.1 fantasy points per game to the position and gave up a whopping 17 TDs, four higher than the next worst team.
8. Rob Gronkowski: New England Patriots
8. Rob Gronkowski: New England Patriots
If Gronk wasn't looking at a limited snap count in Week 1, he would rank much higher on this list. As it stands, though, there is no way of knowing how much he'll be out there, and that limits his upside quite a bit. Start him if you've got him, but temper those expectations.
7. Jason Witten: Dallas Cowboys
7. Jason Witten: Dallas Cowboys
The 49ers defense allowed TEs to score double-digit fantasy points in each of their final four games last season, including four TDs. Their defense is also pretty banged up as we enter Week 1, and a TE as talented as Witten should be able to find some holes to exploit.
6. Kyle Rudolph: Minnesota Vikings
6. Kyle Rudolph: Minnesota Vikings
Rudolph had a great preseason for Minnesota and is sure to be heavily involved in the passing game this year as the Vikings boast very few receiving threats. It's a tough matchup for him in Week 1 against a St. Louis Rams defense that allowed the fewest fantasy points per game to TEs last year, but Matt Cassel is likely to look in Rudolph's direction quite often on Sunday.
5. Greg Olsen: Carolina Panthers
5. Greg Olsen: Carolina Panthers
Olsen was Cam Newton's most consistent target last season, and with Steve Smith jumping ship in the offseason, he may be Cam's top receiving option in 2014. That should equate to a strong week 1 for Olsen, as the Panthers will face a Tampa Bay Bucs defense that allowed the seventh-most receiving yards to TEs last season.
4. Vernon Davis: San Francisco 49ers
4. Vernon Davis: San Francisco 49ers
Only Jimmy Graham scored more TDs than Davis last year among TEs, but Davis may find the targets harder to come by in 2014 as part of a strong San Francisco receiving corps. He still makes for a strong option most weeks and will face a Dallas Cowboys defense in Week 1 that allowed the third-most fantasy points per game to TEs last season.
3. Jordan Cameron: Cleveland Browns
3. Jordan Cameron: Cleveland Browns
Cameron emerged as an elite TE last season, and with Josh Gordon out of the picture this year, he will be Cleveland's clear-cut top receiving option as we kick off the 2014 campaign. The Pittsburgh Steelers loom as a tough matchup in Week 1, but Cameron is simply too talented and too involved in the offense to keep down.
2. Julius Thomas: Denver Broncos
2. Julius Thomas: Denver Broncos
Thomas is already a no-brainer start each week, but with Wes Welker being out of the picture for the team's first four games, he could be in for an even heftier load of work right off the bat. The Denver-Indianapolis game could be a shootout, and Thomas makes for a very strong option in Week 1.
1. Jimmy Graham: New Orleans Saints
1. Jimmy Graham: New Orleans Saints
If you drafted this statistical beast and need someone to tell you to start him this week, you have failed as a fantasy football player. Graham should be in for another monstrous season, and unless Gronk can stay healthy and return to his past form, you can essentially laminate Graham's name to the top of this list each week.
Brian Davis is a fantasy writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @SportsGuyBrian, ”Like” him on Facebook, or add him to your network on Google.