Fantasy football is an inexact science, a fickle beast untamed by even the most knowledgeable of NFL experts. Perhaps the most consistent aspect of the game is its sheer inconsistency. Raise your hand if you thought Devonta Freeman and Chris Ivory would be top five running backs this season. Now raise your hand if you're a bold-faced liar.
Even more shocking than the unexpected upstarts at running back is the seismic shift that appears to be taking place at quarterback. Sure, everyone saw Peyton Manning's play take a turn for the worst over the last month of the 2014 season (including playoffs), but even Manning at 75 percent was considered to be one of the top fantasy options this season. Instead, he's been outplayed by none other than Blake Bortles, the highly criticized second-year QB for the Jacksonville Jaguars who had, err, a less than stellar rookie season.
"Jacksonville Jaguars sophomore Blake Bortles still makes silly mistakes and can't buy a victory, but I ranked him ahead of Peyton Manning for a reason: He's better for fantasy," ESPN Fantasy Football Insider Eric Karabell wrote. "Borltes is averaging 272 passing yards per game, a pace for more than 4,300 yards this season. You'd take that, right?...As for Manning, he managed to throw a 75-yard touchdown to Emmanuel Sanders, but it hardly offset the three interceptions. This is surely not a top-10 fantasy quarterback, as evidenced by three consecutive single-digit outings."
Manning's downturn wasn't completely out of left field, but those who spent a mid-round pick on him were surely expecting more than this. Bortles, meanwhile, despite his rocky rookie season was expected to be a bit better in Year 2. With Allen Hurns, Allen Robinson, Marqise Lee, T.J. Yeldon and the newly healthy Julius Thomas, Bortles had ample weapons at his disposal to make a leap. But I'll be the first to admit that his rock solid 60.9 QBR is a bit of a surprise as is his weekly average of 18.6 standard fantasy points. Who woulda thunk?
There you have it, fantasy owners. The old stalwart Manning is trending down and the young upstart Bortles is trending up. Act accordingly.
