Top 10 week 1 fantasy football quarterbacks, including Cam Newton

Until someone proves that they can stop Patrick Mahomes, he will be at the top spot on the list this season. Mahomes averaged a whopping 25.3 fantasy points per game last season, nearly four more than Matt Ryan, who finished second. He doesn’t draw a great matchup on the road against a tough Jaguars defense, but Mahomes more than proved that he was matchup-proof last year.

At home, Drew Brees is a different animal. He averaged 24.4 points per game last season when he played in the Superdome, making him the second-best fantasy quarterback when he plays at home. Away from New Orleans? He’s just ordinary and averaged just 15.5 fantasy points last year. Thankfully, Brees gets to play his first game at home against the Houston Texans in a game that should be a shootout.

In a road game against the Saints, the Texans are not going to be able to run the ball and control the clock. Watson is going to be forced to throw and move the ball downfield. Watson’s rushing ability and elite receiving options (DeAndre Hopkins and Will Fuller) make him a top five quarterback, even if the Texans are big underdogs in New Orleans for week 1.

Despite his team falling apart around him, Wilson still finished the year as the 9th best fantasy quarterback in the league. His rushing ability makes him an attractive play in most weeks, and he draws a favorable matchup in week 1 against a Bengals defense that both struggles to defend the pass and to contain mobile quarterbacks. Against a weaker opponent in the Bengals, expect Wilson to open the season with a strong performance.

In 2018, Roethlisberger surprised everybody by staying healthy and finishing with the 3rd highest number of fantasy points among all quarterbacks. In week 1, to keep pace with the Patriots, Big Ben is likely going to need to move the ball through the air. If the Patriots start the game with a lead, Roethlisberger will have plenty of opportunities to throw the ball and accumulate fantasy points.

Brady just turned 42 this year, but he is still one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL. He draws a favorable fantasy matchup in week 1 against a Steelers defense that struggled to stop most opponents this season. The only problem with this matchup is that the Patriots might go up big early and just run the ball. As long as that doesn’t happen, expect a big day for Brady.

Baker had plenty of ups and downs in his rookie year, but he flashed the potential that made him a top draft pick in 2018. He finished his 2018 season with a 24-point fantasy performance against the Bengals and a 21-point fantasy performance against the Ravens. In week 1, Baker will have his first chance to throw passes toward Odell Beckham, one of the best deep ball threats in the NFL. Odell should help Baker be a top ten fantasy quarterback for most of the season.

The Rams high powered offense put up huge numbers last season as they made their way to the Super Bowl. Unfortunately, Bill Belichick figured out how to dismantle LA’s offense as they crumbled in the final game. Sean McVay will be back with new tricks up his sleeve in week 1, and that should result in decent numbers for Goff.

Another quarterback facing a tough pass rush in week 1 is Cam Newton, but he does get to face that pass rush in Carolina. That pass rush can also be mitigated by Cam’s rushing ability, which forces defenses to account for his ability to scramble. Newton didn’t have a great year in 2018, but he still managed to score more than 20 fantasy points 8 times in fourteen games. Cam is a safe play in what should be a high scoring affair against the Rams in week 1.

If Luck was definitely going to play in week 1, he'd likely take this spot. Instead, it goes to Philip Rivers, who nearly led his team to a division title over the Chiefs last season. Rivers averaged about 17.5 fantasy points last season, and was a pretty good fantasy quarterback against any defense that was not elite (Ravens and Broncos). The Colts defense certainly doesn't qualify as an elite defense, so Rivers gets the nod as the 10th best fantasy quarterback to start in week 1.