Fantasy Football Rankings 2017, Top 101 PPR Players: No. 3-2
By Dan Thomas
With our list of fantasy football’s top 101 PPR players of 2017 nearing an end, which players should occupy two of the final three spots?
The final three spots of the top 101 PPR players of 2017 will be players who have tremendous upside and little risk. The two players ranked today either finished in the No. 1 or No. 2 spot at their respective position last season.
Which player should owners target first in their fantasy football drafts?
To be clear, the top 101 PPR players are for re-draft leagues only. Here’s a look at players ranked No. 3-2:
3. Antonio Brown, WR – Pittsburgh Steelers
Last year Antonio Brown had his fewest amount of receptions and receiving yards since 2013. So that means he had a down season last year right? Wrong. Brown finished with 106 receptions, 1,284 yards and 12 touchdowns. For the third-straight year Brown was the No. 1 PPR wide receiver in fantasy football. Oh yeah, did I mention he accomplished all of those accolades last year while sitting out of the team’s final regular season game?
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This biggest difference in the Steelers offense in 2017 will be the return of their No. 2 wide receiver Martavis Bryant. Last year, Bryant was suspended for the entire season after violating the league’s substance abuse policy. If you think Bryant returning to Pittsburgh’s offense is a bad thing for Brown, you’re mistaken.
In 2015 Bryant played in 11 games between Weeks 6-17. During that time Brown was the No .1 PPR wide receiver and averaged 25.4 points per game. In Weeks 1-5 without Bryant, he averaged 20.7 points per game and was the No. 4 PPR wide receiver. Last season with Bryant missing the entire season, Brown averaged 20.5 points per game. With Bryant returning, teams won’t be able to sell out in order to attempt to stop Brown.
With Brown catching passes from Ben Roethlisberger in Todd Haley’s offense once again in 2017, I’d be shocked if he didn’t catch 100+ passes for the fifth straight season. I’d project Brown’s floor for next year to be around 110 receptions, 1,400 yards and eight touchdowns. Let me repeat that: That’s his floor if he plays in all 16 games. I won’t even attempt to give you numbers for Brown’s ceiling, because with him, anything’s possible.
2. Ezekiel Elliott, RB – Dallas Cowboys
A lot of people thought Ezekiel Elliott was going to find immediate success in the NFL running behind Dallas overpowering offensive line. However, I don’t think they thought he would lead the NFL in rushing. As a rookie last year Elliott finished with 1,631 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns. He also chipped in 32 receptions, 363 receiving yards and one touchdown. Just like Antonio Brown, Elliott accomplished those numbers last year while sitting out of the team’s regular season game.
Maybe the only concern with Elliott is the Cowboys lost two starters on their offensive line in Ronald Leary and Doug Free. Even with them gone, Dallas still has three All-Pros on the offensive line and Pro Football Focus has them ranked as the No. 9 offensive line going into 2017. Could there be some drop off from their O-line from a year ago? Maybe, but if there is, I’m not expecting it to be significant. Maybe the most exciting part about Elliott going into 2017 is his role in the passing game should grow.
Last season, Elliott’s 32 receptions tied for 27th among all running backs. According to Jon Machota from the Dallas Morning News, the Cowboys back coach Gary Brown said Elliott will “absolutely” be used more in the team’s passing game. There’s no reason he won’t top his 32 receptions from a season ago.
Next: Fantasy Football Rankings, Top 101 PPR Players: No. 5-4
As mentioned earlier, Elliott missed one game last year due to rest purposes and not an injury. If he plays in all 16 games in 2017 and gets more work in the passing game, he should easily put up better fantasy numbers than last year. A player of Elliott’s caliber who could handle 375+ touches just might be 2017’s No.1 running back.