Although on-field success has been inconsistent, the Falcons have featured several Fantasy stars in recent years. The Week 1 Fantasy football rankings are littered with Falcons once again, including quarterback Matt Ryan and wide receivers Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley. Former Rams running back Todd Gurley joined the team in the offseason to provide another weapon on the ground. Combine those talents with a matchup against a Seattle Seahawks team that was 27th against the pass last season, and winning Week 1 Fantasy football picks could include Atlanta skill position players.
Are Ryan, Jones, Ridley and Gurley smart choices to make against Seattle's defense in Week 1, or are there better matchups to exploit? A reliable set of Week 1 Fantasy football rankings can help answer those questions and assist in your Week 1 Fantasy football start-sit decisions, trade evaluations or help you find a free agent the rest of your league missed. Before setting your Week 1 Fantasy football lineups, be sure to see the Week 1 Fantasy football rankings from the proven computer model at SportsLine.
When it comes to ranking players, their model beat human experts in Fantasy football last season when there were big differences in ranking. Over the course of a season, that could literally be the difference between winning your league or going home empty-handed.
Last season, the model correctly said Browns QB Baker Mayfield would be a bust despite the fact that he was being drafted in the sixth round on average. It also nailed Buccaneers WR Chris Godwin as a breakout when he was being drafted well outside the top 15 wide receivers, and correctly predicted that QB Jameis Winston, who finished the season with 5,109 passing yards and 33 touchdowns, would be among the top sleepers. Anyone who followed their model's advice was well on their way to a league title.
Now, the model, which simulates every NFL game 10,000 times, has revealed its Fantasy football rankings for Week 1 of the 2020 NFL season. Head to SportsLine now to see them.
Top Fantasy football picks for Week 1
One player the model is high on this week: Patriots quarterback Cam Newton. The former Panthers star led his old team to Super Bowl in 2015 and was named the NFL MVP that season. However, Newton played only two games in 2019 due to a broken foot and was released by Carolina.
The Patriots, who saw Tom Brady walk out the door after 20 years and six Super Bowl victories, snapped up Newton on a one-year deal. Newton won the starting spot over Jarrett Stidham and will begin 2020 against the Dolphins, a team that was 26th in the NFL last season in passing defense, allowing 262.4 yards per game.
SportsLine's Fantasy football rankings list Newton as a top-10 quarterback in Week 1, ahead of his predecessor Tom Brady as well as Saints quarterback Drew Brees.
And a massive shocker: Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray, who finished as the 10th-best Fantasy quarterback a year ago, stumbles big-time and doesn't even crack the top 20 QBs in Week 1. Murray had a steady rookie season, passing for 3,722 yards and 20 touchdowns while completing 64.4 percent of his throws.
However, he will open the 2020 NFL season with a tough matchup against a stout 49ers defense that is coming off an NFC Championship. Murray passed for just 150 yards in his last meeting against the 49ers and also struggled with turnovers down the stretch. He threw six interceptions in his last four games overall and also fumbled three times, losing two.
How to set your Week 1 Fantasy football lineups
The model is also calling for a surprising quarterback you aren't even thinking about to finish in the top 10 of its Fantasy football rankings. This pick could be the difference between winning big and going home with nothing. You absolutely need to see who it is before locking in your lineups.
So who should you start and sit this week? And which surprising quarterback could lead you to victory? Visit SportsLine now to get Week 1 Fantasy football rankings for every position, plus see which QB is going to come out of nowhere to crack the top 10, all from the model that out-performed experts big time last season, and find out.
