We are a few weeks away from the start of NFL free agency. Teams can officially sign free agents starting on Wednesday, March 13th at 4 PM ET, when the next league year begins, but they can begin negotiating with agents during the legal tampering window that begins on Monday, March 11th.
Using free-agent rankings from a variety of sources, we have ranked the available free-agent pool using their consensus ranking score.
Here are some notes on how to interpret the table below:
Five sources were used and the "total" column is the sum of those rankings.
The lower the score, the better. For example, Chris Jones was the consensus top-ranked free agent and his score was 5 (five rankings of 1).
Free agents unranked by an individual source get their next ("+1") ranking.
Example: CBS Sports ranked 50 free agents and every free agent not included in their rankings (e.g., Jadeveon Clowney) received a score of 51.
Players that get designated with the franchise tag (deadline: March 5th) will be excluded. Only unrestricted free agents are included; restricted free agents are excluded.
Kirk Cousins: Reunited with his former Washington offensive coordinator, Cousins finished as fantasy's QB7 with Kevin O'Connell in his first year as his head coach. That said, Cousins was 11th on a points-per-game basis (among QBs that played at least half the year) as the veteran quarterback set multi-year lows in completion percentage (65.9%), TD% (4.5), yards per attempt (7.1) and passer rating (92.5) in 2022. With the Vikings using a first-round pick on Jordan Addison to complement Justin Jefferson and T.J. Hockenson, Cousins remains a steady back-end QB1 type heading into 2023.
Alexander Mattison: Mattison is poised for a breakout season (or at least a significant bump in workload) with Dalvin Cook released earlier this offseason. The gap between RB1 (Mattison) and RB2 (Ty Chandler, or even Myles Gaskin) is wide enough that there is no real threat to his lead-back role. The fifth-year back has 90-plus rushing yards in five of the six games in which he has played more than 40 offensive snaps.
Justin Jefferson: What more can Jefferson do? Not only has he improved his production in each successive season, but he brokeRandy Moss's record for receiving yards through a player's first three seasons. During those three seasons, he's racked up a total of 324 receptions for 4,825 yards and 25 touchdowns.
Jordan Addison: With Justin Jefferson commanding so much defensive attention, Addison's landing spot is ideal for his ability to make an early impact. While he ran a slower-than-expected 40-yard dash (4.49) at the NFL Combine, the former Biletnikoff Award winner is a polished route-runner with some inside/outside versatility and the ability to win at all three levels.
T.J. Hockenson: Hockenson was traded midseason within the division, and he averaged 8.6 targets and six receptions per game after the trade to the Vikings. Despite the midseason trade, he finished as fantasy's TE2, but part of that was aided by two monster games — 8/179/2 for the Lions in Week 4 and 13/109/2 for the Vikings in Week 16. Other than those two huge games, he had double-digit (half-PPR) fantasy points in only two other games. An ear infection and back stiffness has led to lots of missed time in August, but this type of treatment may be what was necessary to allow him to return to full health.
Kirk Cousins: Reunited with his former Washington offensive coordinator, Cousins finished as fantasy's QB7 with Kevin O'Connell in his first year as his head coach. That said, Cousins was 11th on a points-per-game basis (among QBs that played at least half the year) as the veteran quarterback set multi-year lows in completion percentage (65.9%), TD% (4.5), yards per attempt (7.1) and passer rating (92.5) in 2022. With the Vikings using a first-round pick on Jordan Addison to complement Justin Jefferson and T.J. Hockenson, Cousins remains a steady back-end QB1 type heading into 2023.
Alexander Mattison: Mattison is poised for a breakout season (or at least a significant increase in workload) with Dalvin Cook released earlier this offseason. The fifth-year back has 90-plus rushing yards in five of the six games in which he has played more than 40 offensive snaps.
Justin Jefferson: What more can Jefferson do? Not only has he improved his production in each successive season, but he brokeRandy Moss's record for receiving yards through a player's first three seasons. During those three seasons, he's racked up a total of 324 receptions for 4,825 yards and 25 touchdowns.
Jordan Addison: With Justin Jefferson commanding so much defensive attention, Addison's landing spot is ideal for his ability to make an early impact. While he ran a slower-than-expected 40-yard dash (4.49) at the NFL Combine, the former Biletnikoff Award winner is a polished route-runner with some inside/outside versatility and the ability to win at all three levels.
T.J. Hockenson: Hockenson was traded midseason within the division, and he averaged 8.6 targets and six receptions per game after the trade to the Vikings. Despite the midseason trade, he finished as fantasy's TE2 in half-PPR scoring, but part of that was aided by two monster games — 8/179/2 for the Lions in Week 4 and 13/109/2 for the Vikings in Week 16. Other than those two huge games, he had double-digit (half-PPR) fantasy points in only two other games.
Kirk Cousins: Reunited with his former Washington offensive coordinator, Cousins finished as fantasy's QB7 with Kevin O'Connell in his first year as his head coach. Among quarterbacks that played at least half the season, however, Cousins was 11th on a points-per-game basis as the veteran quarterback set multi-year lows in completion percentage (65.9%), TD% (4.5), yards per attempt (7.1) and passer rating (92.5) in 2022. With the Vikings bolstering its group of pass catchers by drafting Jordan Addison in the first round, Cousins remains a steady back-end QB1 type heading into 2023.
Alexander Mattison: The Vikings released Dalvin Cook this offseason, and Mattison is poised for a breakout season. The fifth-year back has 90-plus rushing yards in five of the six games in which has has played more than 40 offensive snaps.
Ty Chandler: As a direct result of Cook's release, Chandler moves into the backup role to Mattison. Even if the Vikings utilize a committee approach, Chandler and Dewayne McBride are intriguing sleepers late in drafts.
Justin Jefferson: What more can Jefferson do? Not only has he improved his production in each successive season, but he brokeRandy Moss's record for receiving yards through a player's first three seasons. During those three seasons, he's racked up a total of 324 receptions for 4,825 yards and 25 touchdowns.
Jordan Addison: With Justin Jefferson commanding so much defensive attention, Addison's landing spot is ideal for his ability to make an early impact. While he ran a slower-than-expected 40-yard dash (4.49) at the NFL Combine, the former Biletnikoff Award winner is a polished route-runner with some inside/outside versatility and the ability to win at all three levels.
T.J. Hockenson: Hockenson was traded midseason within the division, and he averaged 8.6 targets and six receptions per game after the trade to the Vikings. Despite the midseason trade, he finished as fantasy's TE2, but part of that was aided by two monster games — 8/179/2 for the Lions in Week 4 and 13/109/2 for the Vikings in Week 16. Other than those two huge games, he had double-digit (half-PPR) fantasy points in only two other games.
Kirk Cousins: Cousins has been a fringe QB1 in his four seasons as a Viking with yearly finishes of QB13, QB15, QB11 and QB11, respectively. During that stretch, Cousins has averaged 4,097 passing yards, 31 passing touchdowns and nine interceptions per season. In the season that new head coach Kevin O'Connell and Cousins had previously spent together (2017), Cousins finished as fantasy's QB6.
Dalvin Cook: Cook has missed multiple games every season including four games in 2021, but he's one of the league's most productive workhorses when he's on the field. Over the past three seasons, the versatile back has averaged 23.0 touches and 120.9 scrimmage yards per game while scoring 36 touchdowns in 41 games.
Alexander Mattison: While he has minimal stand-alone fantasy value when Cook is active, Cook has missed multiple games in all five of his NFL seasons, as noted above. Mattison had a minimum of 21 carries, 90 rushing yards, three receptions and 34 receiving yards in the four games that Cook missed in 2021 and scored a total of four touchdowns in those games.
Justin Jefferson: Since Jefferson was drafted in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft, there have been nine 1,400-yard receiving seasons. The only player with back-to-back 1,400-yard seasons the past two seasons is Jefferson, who has racked up 196 catches for 3,016 yards and 17 touchdowns combined. A case can be made that he should be ranked as fantasy's WR1 heading into his age-23 season.
Adam Thielen: Since posting back-to-back 1,200-yard campaigns in 2017 and 2018, Thielen has failed to reach the 1,000-yard mark in three straight seasons while missing 11 games during that span. On a positive note, he has scored 24 touchdowns in 28 games over the past two seasons. Thielen enters his age-32 season as a WR3 in fantasy with some upside if he can stay healthy.
Irv Smith: Before suffering a knee injury that sidelined him for all of 2021, Smith was a breakout candidate. Atop the team's depth chart, there is some breakout potential for the 24-year-old (in August) tight end heading into 2022. Undergoing thumb surgery at the beginning of August, Smith "is on track to play" in Week 1 against the Packers.
Kirk Cousins: Cousins has been a fringe QB1 in his four seasons as a Viking with yearly finishes of QB13, QB15, QB11 and QB11, respectively. During that stretch, Cousins has averaged 4,097 passing yards, 31 passing touchdowns and nine interceptions per season. In the season that new head coach Kevin O'Connell and Cousins had previously spent together (2017), Cousins finished as fantasy's QB6.
Dalvin Cook: Cook has missed multiple games every season including four games in 2021, but he's one of the league's most productive workhorses when he's on the field. Over the past three seasons, the versatile back has averaged 23.0 touches and 120.9 scrimmage yards per game while scoring 36 touchdowns in 41 games.
Alexander Mattison: While he has minimal stand-alone fantasy value when Cook is active, Cook has missed multiple games in all five of his NFL seasons, as noted earlier. Mattison had a minimum of 21 carries, 90 rushing yards, three receptions and 34 receiving yards in the four games that Cook missed in 2021 and scored a total of four touchdowns in those games.
Justin Jefferson: Since Jefferson was drafted in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft, there have been nine 1,400-yard receiving seasons. The only player with back-to-back 1,400-yard seasons the past two seasons is Jefferson, who has racked up 196 catches for 3,016 yards and 17 touchdowns combined. He's a top-three option heading into his age-23 season.
Adam Thielen: Since posting back-to-back 1,200-yard campaigns in 2017 and 2018, Thielen has failed to reach the 1,000-yard mark in three straight seasons while missing 11 games during that span. On a positive note, he has scored 24 touchdowns in 28 games over the past two seasons. Thielen enters his age-32 season as a WR3 in fantasy with some upside if he can stay healthy.
Irv Smith: Before suffering a knee injury that sidelined him for all of 2021, Smith was a breakout candidate. Atop the team's depth chart, there is some breakout potential for the 24-year-old (in August) tight end heading into 2022.
The decision on which player to start, or sit, largely comes down to the options on your roster (and/or possibly the players available on your league's waiver wire).
As an example, Jalen Hurts is listed below as a "start" for Week 5. And I'd certainly be comfortable going into Week 5 with him as my starting quarterback.
Then again, Hurts may be a "sit" for your team.
In other words, if you own both Patrick Mahomes and Hurts, you should start Mahomes and, in turn, bench Hurts.
For a more direct answer on whether we would start Player X over Player Y, check our Week 5 Fantasy Football Rankings. Instead of making those direct comparisons, the goal here is to highlight players that we like, or dislike, for the week.
Beginning the season with three consecutive games of 22-plus fantasy points, it was a disappointment for managers that streamed Cousins in Week 4. While Cousins had a dud (203 yards, one TD) against the Cleveland Browns, a matchup against the Detroit Lions should propel him back to the low-end QB1 range for those looking for a streamer.
The Lions have been middle of the pack in terms of fantasy points allowed to opposing quarterbacks (14th-most), but much of that can be attributed to how successful opposing running backs have been against them (most fantasy points allowed). After all, the Lions allow a league-worst 10.6 passing yards per attempt and have the third-worst QB rating allowed (116.4).
Two quarterbacks this season have finisheid as a top-12 fantasy quarterback in each of the first four weeks -- Patrick Mahomes and Hurts. The second-year quarterback's worst fantasy performance came in Week 2 when he threw for 190 yards and no touchdowns and scored a season-low 21.8 (QB10) fantasy points. On the season, Hurts has scored the third-most fantasy points behind Mahomes and Kyler Murray.
Because of his elite rushing ability for a quarterback, however, he has an incredibly high floor even when he doesn't have a big passing day. Hurts has a minimum of seven rush attempts and 35 rushing yards in all four games this season. Only Lamar Jackson (42/279) has more rush attempts and rushing yards than Hurts (34/226) among quarterbacks.
Despite having one of the week's lowest implied totals and facing a tough defense (ninth-lowest fantasy points allowed), Hurts remains a weekly start.
It was far from a perfect performance, but Lance was forced into action with Jimmy Garoppolo sustaining a calf injury and he still managed to score more than 20 fantasy points in a half of action. This year's No. 3 overall pick completed nine-of-18 for 157 yards and two scores while adding seven rush attempts for 41 yards and a two-point conversion.
With Jimmy G. sidelined this week at practice, it has allowed Lance to take all of the first-team reps heading into Week 5 and he's been officially declared the starter. The 49ers will need to keep up with Arizona's elite offense as the 49ers are 5.5-point underdogs.
While the play could be inconsistent in his first start, his dual-threat abilities raise his floor and there is enormous upside as well. I currently have Lance ranked as my QB12 for the week, but there's a good chance that he moves up a couple of spots as I finalize my Week 5 rankings.
In his first season and a half, Tannehill was extremely efficient as a starter in Tennessee's low-volume passing offense. With Arthur Smith in Atlanta, Tannehill has thrown it more often but has been much less efficient. His 63.6% completion rate, 3.3 TD% and 7.0 Y/A are all multi-year lows. Even though he ranks top 10 in pass attempts (151), he entered Week 5 as the QB19 in fantasy points scored.
On a positive note, Tannehill will get A.J. Brown back this week although Julio Jones (hamstring) won't play. In addition, he has been virtually flawless against the Jaguars in his three starts as a Titan with passer ratings of 155.8, 145.7 and 131.2, respectively, and a cumulative eight-to-zero TD-to-INT ratio, 77.3% completion ratio and 10.76 Y/A over that span.
Even so, I consider Tannehill to be more of an upside QB2 in a plus matchup this week. At the same time, this could easily turn into a 200/2 game for Derrick Henry. In fact, Henry had 215 rushing yards and two touchdowns against them in Week 14 last season.
While Matthew Stafford has more passing yards than Carr, it's only because Stafford and the Rams played on Thursday night. On a per-game basis, Carr leads the NFL in passing yards (349.8/G). And although he has multiple passing touchdowns in all four games this season, Carr is coming off his worst performance of the season (196 passing yards against the Chargers). Meanwhile, the Chicago Bears have allowed the 10th-fewest fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks this season.
With four passing touchdowns to running backs -- Cordarrelle Patterson (three) and Mike Davis -- last week, Ryan is coming off his best performance of the season. Perhaps he will duplicate a four-TD performance to his running backs (of course, he won't), but Calvin Ridley and Russell Gage will both be out this week.
For a quarterback that has generally struggled this season even with a stud receiver like Ridley in the lineup, there is limited upside as the team takes on the Jets on the other side of the Atlantic. One of the few bright spots for the Jets has been their pass defense, as they have surrendered the third-fewest fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks and a league-low two pass touchdowns this season.
Kirk Cousins has been lights out for the Vikings in the best three-game start to his career -- eight passing touchdowns to zero interceptions and a 73.9% completion percentage. His fifth straight game with multiple passing touchdowns led Minnesota to its first win of the season versus Seattle, and he did it by capitalizing on his strengths. Cousins was 24-of-28 for 273 yards and three touchdowns when not pressured. (He has averaged 8.27 yards/attempt with no pressure in his career, fifth best in the NFL since he entered the league.) He dominated against the blitz. (Over the past three seasons, he has 26 TDs to two interceptions when being the blitzed.) And he continues to find success with Justin Jefferson, connecting on 20 of 30 passes for 254 yards and two TDs. -- Courtney Cronin
Vikings coach Mike Zimmer called it the best offensive game of his Vikings tenure. Kirk Cousins led Minnesota on three touchdown drives in the first half, then engineered a trio of second-half field-goal marches that chewed up more than 20 minutes of game time in a 30-17 win over the Seahawks at raucous U.S. Bank Stadium. Cousins has been, to be blunt, one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL through three weeks. "It's been a different Kirk," wide receiver Adam Thielen said. "He's just locked in and on time, he's trusting it." Credit is due, both to the forever-scrutinized Cousins and Klint Kubiak, a first-year offensive coordinator who has found an instant groove.
They saved their season with an impressive home victory over the Seahawks. The offense is really clicking the past two weeks, but it was the improvement by the defense that will be key going forward.
Beating Seattle for the first time since 2009 ... without RB Dalvin Cook ... while starting a key three-game homestand might just have put the Vikes' teetering season back on track.
Surprise! While the Vikings were an early disappointment with their 0-2 start, Kirk Cousins was sneakily putting together some impressive stats: eight touchdowns and no interceptions, a 73.9 completion percentage (nearly 7 points above his career average) and more than 9 yards per attempt. He was particularly sharp against Seattle (three touchdowns and over 10 yards per attempt) on Sunday, when the Vikings were playing without running back Dalvin Cook. Best of all? He's been sacked just one time in each of the past two games.
Kirk Cousins: Throwing 35 touchdowns and 13 interceptions (both career highs) in 2020, Cousins was especially good down the stretch. Cousins scored a minimum of 20 fantasy points in seven of his final nine games last season. Even though Stefon Diggs led the NFL in receiving, rookie Justin Jefferson (88/1,400/7) more than compensated for the 2019 version of Diggs (63/1,130/6). Given the team's run-first nature, however, Cousins remains a streaming option for those in single-QB 12-team leagues.
Dalvin Cook: Once again, Cook has missed multiple games, but he set career highs in touches (356), yards from scrimmage (1,918) and touchdowns (17) and scored the third-most fantasy points (half-PPR) among running backs. The clear lead back in one of the league's most run-heavy offenses, Cook averaged a career-high 5.0 YPC in 2020 and has a minimum of 40 catches in each of the past three seasons.
Alexander Mattison: Dalvin Cook has never played a full season and has actually missed multiple games in all four seasons. Given Cook's durabilty history and the team's run-first offensive philosophy, Mattison is a high-end handcuff.
Justin Jefferson: Jefferson exceeded all expectations in his inaugural season with 88 catches for a rookie-record 1,400 yards and seven touchdowns. Not only did the former LSU Tiger have seven 100-yard games, but he had double-digit targets in five of his final six games after doing so in only two of his first 10 games. Going forward, Jefferson is clearly the 1(a) to Adam Thielen's 1(b) in Minnesota's passing offense.
Adam Thielen: Thielen averaged only 61.7 YPG, but he scored 14 touchdowns in 2020. Only three receivers were targeted more often in the red zone than Thielen (19). While Justin Jefferson has moved ahead of him in the wide receiver pecking order, Thielen remains a strong WR2 in both real life and fantasy.
Irv Smith: Smith missed three games last season, but the second-year tight end set career highs in YPG (28.1), Y/R (12.2) and touchdowns (five). The arrow was pointing up for the third-year tight end with Kyle Rudolph in New York, but he will have meniscus surgery that is expected to "sideline him for at least the start of the regular season."
Tyler Conklin: Earlier this offseason, Mike Zimmer talked up Conklin when he said: "It's a bigger role for Tyler Conklin [this season]. He's kind of emerged as a guy that's moving upward, and with those two guys (Conklin and Smith), we have a lot of weapons there." With Smith set to have meniscus surgery, Conklin has the potential to flirt with TE1 (top-12) numbers if Smith misses most or all of the season.
Chris Herndon: Missing most of the 2019 season, Herndon played a full 16-game slate in 2020, but he was mostly a non-factor with an average receiving line of 1.9/17.9 and a total of three touchdowns. With the Vikings sending a fourth-round pick to acquire Herndon from the Jets, it's possible the Vikings expect Smith to miss a significant portion of the 2021 season.
Kirk Cousins: Throwing 35 touchdowns and 13 interceptions (both career highs) in 2020, Cousins was especially good down the stretch. Cousins scored a minimum of 20 fantasy points in seven of his final nine games last season. Even though Stefon Diggs led the NFL in receiving, rookie Justin Jefferson (88/1,400/7) more than compensated for the 2019 version of Diggs (63/1,130/6). Given the team's run-first nature, however, Cousins remains a streaming option for those in single-QB 12-team leagues.
Dalvin Cook: Once again, Cook has missed multiple games, but he set career highs in touches (356), yards from scrimmage (1,918) and touchdowns (17) and scored the third-most fantasy points (half-PPR) among running backs. The clear lead back in one of the league's most run-heavy offenses, Cook averaged a career-high 5.0 YPC and has a minimum of 40 catches in each of the past three seasons.
Alexander Mattison: Dalvin Cook has never played a full season and has actually missed multiple games in all four seasons. Given Cook's durabilty history and the team's offensive philosophy, Mattison is a high-end handcuff.
Justin Jefferson: Jefferson exceeded all expectations in his inaugural season with 88 catches for a rookie-record 1,400 yards and seven touchdowns. Not only did the former LSU Tiger have seven 100-yard games, but he had double-digit targets in five of his final six games after doing so in only two of his first 10 games. Going forward, Jefferson should be the 1(a) to Adam Thielen's 1(b) in Minnesota's passing offense.
Adam Thielen: Thielen averaged only 61.7 YPG, but he scored 14 touchdowns in 2020. Only three receivers were targeted more often in the red zone than Thielen (19). While Justin Jefferson has moved ahead of him in the wide receiver pecking order, Thielen remains a strong WR2 in both real life and fantasy.
Irv Smith: Smith missed three games last season, but the second-year tight end set career highs in YPG (28.1), Y/R (12.2) and touchdowns (five). With Kyle Rudolph no longer on the roster, the arrow is pointing up for the third-year tight end.
Tyler Conklin: Earlier this offseason, Mike Zimmer talked up Conklin when he said: "It's a bigger role for Tyler Conklin [this season]. He's kind of emerged as a guy that's moving upward, and with those two guys (Conklin and Smith), we have a lot of weapons there."
