Empty the Bench

Randy Moss and Laurence Maroney Photo Credit: Tom Croke/Icon SMI

Fantasy football during the NFL playoffs is nowhere near as popular as the regular season variety, but the game is slowly catching on as a sure-fire way to put a little more interest into Wild Card weekend and beyond. It’s also more instantly gratifying that most fantasy leagues, and adds in the additional skill of projecting team success in order to be competitive. It’s a pretty simple and entertaining game you can play with as few as four people, provided you don’t mind doing a little paper-and-pencil math.

The following rankings are based on a 1 QB, 2 WRs, 2 RBs, 1 TE league with standard scoring and a small number of teams. They are also for leagues which count total points, and are not formatted for elimination leagues. Keep in mind the need for depth at each position when drafting, as most NFL playoffs fantasy leagues do not allow transactions.

Overall Rankings 1-50:

1) Tom Brady, New England Patriots
2) Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys
3) Randy Moss, New England Patriots
4) Brett Favre, Green Bay Packers
5) Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts
6) Terrell Owens, Dallas Cowboys
7) Marion Barber, Dallas Cowboys
8 ) Joseph Addai, Indianapolis Colts
9) Ryan Grant, Green Bay Packers
10) Reggie Wayne, Indianapolis Colts
11) LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego Chargers

12) Jason Witten, Dallas Cowboys
13) Laurence Maroney, New England Patriots
14) Wes Welker, New England Patriots
15) Fred Taylor, Jacksonville Jaguars
16) Greg Jennings, Green Bay Packers
17) Maurice Jones-Drew, Jacksonville Jaguars
18) David Garrard, Jacksonville Jaguars
19) Earnest Graham, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
20) Antonio Gates, San Diego Chargers
21) Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers
22) Matt Hasselbeck, Seattle Seahawks
23) Clinton Portis, Washington Redskins
24) Brandon Jacobs, New York Giants
25) Patrick Crayton, Dallas Cowboys
26) Plaxico Burress, New York Giants
27) LenDale White, Tennessee Titans
28) Dallas Clark, Indianapolis Colts
29) Ben Watson, New England Patriots
30) Donald Lee, Green Bay Packers
31) Bobby Engram, Seattle Seahawks
32) Najeh Davenport, Pittsburgh Steelers
33) Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers
34) Eli Manning, New York Giants
35) Shaun Alexander, Seattle Seahawks
36) Anthony Gonzalez, Indianapolis Colts
37) Joey Galloway, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
38) Marvin Harrison, Indianapolis Colts
39) Chris Cooley, Washington Redskins
40) Heath Miller, Pittsburgh Steelers
41) Deion Branch, Seattle Seahawks
42) D.J. Hackett, Seattle Seahawks
43) Julius Jones, Dallas Cowboys
44) Chris Chambers, San Diego Chargers
45) Santonio Holmes, Pittsburgh Steelers
46) Hines Ward, Pittsburgh Steelers
47) Marcedes Lewis, Jacksonville Jaguars
48) Maurice Morris, Seattle Seahawks
49) Santana Moss, Washington Redskins
50) Jabar Gaffney, New England Patriots

Position Rankings:

Quarterback Ranks:

1) Tom Brady, New England Patriots
2) Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys
3) Brett Favre, Green Bay Packers
4) Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts
5) David Garrard, Jacksonville Jaguars
6) Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers
7) Matt Hasselbeck, Seattle Seahawks
8 ) Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers
9) Eli Manning, New York Giants
10) Vince Young, Tennessee Titans
11) Jeff Garcia, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
12) Todd Collins, Washington Redskins

Photo Credit: Allen Fredrickson/Icon SMI

Running Back Ranks:

1) Marion Barber, Dallas Cowboys
2) Joseph Addai, Indianapolis Colts
3) Ryan Grant, Green Bay Packers
4) LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego Chargers
5) Laurence Maroney, New England Patriots
6) Fred Taylor, Jacksonville Jaguars
7) Maurice Jones-Drew, Jacksonville Jaguars
8 ) Earnest Graham, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
9) Clinton Portis, Washington Redskins
10) Brandon Jacobs, New York Giants
11) LenDale White, Tennessee Titans
12) Najeh Davenport, Pittsburgh Steelers
13) Shaun Alexander, Seattle Seahawks
14) Julius Jones, Dallas Cowboys
15) Maurice Morris, Seattle Seahawks
16) Kevin Faulk, New England Patriots
17) Kenton Keith, Indianapolis Colts
18) Ladell Betts, Washington Redskins
19) Chris Brown, Tennessee Titans
20) Michael Turner, San Diego Chargers

Wide Receiver Ranks:

1) Randy Moss, New England Patriots
2) Terrell Owens, Dallas Cowboys
3) Reggie Wayne, Indianapolis Colts
4) Greg Jennings, Green Bay Packers
5) Wes Welker, New England Patriots
6) Donald Driver, Green Bay Packers
7) Patrick Crayton, Dallas Cowboys
8 ) Plaxico Burress, New York Giants
9) Bobby Engram, Seattle Seahawks
10) Anthony Gonzalez, Indianapolis Colts
11) Marvin Harrison, Indianapolis Colts
12) Joey Galloway, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
13) Deion Branch, Seattle Seahawks
14) D.J. Hackett, Seattle Seahawks
15) Chris Chambers, San Diego Chargers
16) Santonio Holmes, Pittsburgh Steelers
17) Hines Ward, Pittsburgh Steelers
18) Santana Moss, Washington Redskins
19) Jabar Gaffney, New England Patriots
20) Reggie Williams, Jacksonville Jaguars

Tight Ends:

1) Jason Witten, Dallas Cowboys
2) Antonio Gates, San Diego Chargers
3) Dallas Clark, Indianapolis Colts
4) Ben Watson, New England Patriots
5) Donald Lee, Green Bay Packers
6) Chris Cooley, Washington Redskins
7) Heath Miller, Pittsburgh Steelers
8 ) Marcedes Lewis, Jacksonville Jaguars
9) Kevin Boss, New York Giants
10) Ben Utecht, Indianapolis Colts
11) Alex Smith, Tampa Bay Buccaneers