Top Fantasy Football Players from Weeks 1-17: Josh Allen, Christian McCaffrey, CeeDee Lamb, Tyreek Hill and More

With most fantasy football leagues wrapped up, it’s a perfect time to look at the top performers.

We will take a look at the quarterback, running back, wide receiver and tight end positions.

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Josh Allen, Jalen Hurts Power Quarterbacks

It should come as no surprise that the top fantasy quarterbacks this season were dual-threat guys. It was really a down season for the position, but because of a boatload of rushing scores, Josh Allen and Jalen Hurts separated themselves from the rest of the pack.

Allen is the No. 1 fantasy QB after 17 weeks. He’s thrown for 3,947 yards and 27 touchdowns, but has been picked off 16 times. He completed 65.6% of his passes, which was the second highest completion percentage of his six-year career. Allen has added 457 yards and 15 scores as a runner. 

Going into week 18, Allen has topped 200 passing yards in all but four contests. He went over 300 yards four times. He threw multiple touchdowns in eight contests, but only had three games without a pick. Allen has only topped 50 rushing yards once, but has scored at least once in all but four games.

Hurts has pretty underwhelming most of the season despite the big fantasy point output. He’s thrown for 3,803 yards and 23 touchdowns, while throwing 14 interceptions. Hurts has 601 yards and 15 touchdowns on the ground.

Hurts has failed to reach 200 passing yards in six contests, while going over 300 yards four times. He threw multiple touchdowns six times. There were only five games in which Hurts didn’t rush for a score, while scoring twice on the ground in four games.

Lamar Jackson looks like he’s going to be the league’s MVP, and currently sits third among quarterbacks in fantasy points. Dak Prescott was part of the MVP conversation for a while before a couple of average games took him out of the running. Brock Purdy was another MVP option before a terrible week 16 showing.

A surprise name inside the top five is Jordan Love. He topped 20 fantasy points eight times this season.

Of course, a big name QB that hasn’t been mentioned yet is Patrick Mahomes. He turned in his fair share of big games, but was an average fantasy quarterback more often than not. It will be interesting to see how that affects his draft stock going into next season.

This season was a brutal one for injuries at the QB position. It allowed guys like Jared Goff and Baker Mayfield to finish inside the top 10 spots. Hopefully next season will be more kind to the position. I wonder how many fantasy owners will adjust their draft strategy because of what happened this season.

Christian McCaffrey Dominates RB Position

In PPR leagues, Christian McCaffrey has more than 100 more fantasy points than any other running back. 

McCaffrey turned 272 rushing attempts into 1,459 yards and 14 touchdowns. He also caught 67 of his 83 targets for 564 yards and seven additional scores. 

He was about as dominant as could be, but got injured during week 17, which may have cost some fantasy owners a chance at a title. Fantasy football can be cruel sometimes.

Travis Etienne hasn’t been super productive over the past month, but still sits as RB2 in PPR formats. He’s rushed for 951 yards and 11 scores, while adding 446 receiving yards and a touchdown on 53 catches.

Raheem Mostert is RB3, despite missing week 17. He’s rushed for 1,012 yards and 18 touchdowns, while adding 175 receiving yards and three touchdowns on 25 grabs and 32 targets.

Breece Hall is RB4 after huge outings in weeks 16 and 17. Hall has 816 rushing yards and four touchdowns, along with 579 receiving yards and four touchdowns on 74 catches and 93 targets. It’s really amazing he was as effective as he was on a putrid Jets’ offense.

Kyren Williams is RB5, which is wild considering he missed four full games - he could have at least threatened McCaffrey if he’d been healthy all season. Williams has rushed for 1,144 yards and five scores, while going for 206 yards and three touchdowns on 32 grabs and 48 targets.

Rachaad White just missed a spot in the top five. Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery are both top 20 running backs, which isn’t all that common for teammates. Bijan Robinson is another rookie that excelled this season, even though his coach didn’t utilize him as a workhorse.

Austin Ekeler and Tony Pollard were among the biggest draft busts, partly due to injuries, but mostly because they just couldn’t get going offensively. 

CeeDee Lamb, Tyreek Hill Lead Strong WR Position

The wide receiver position had a number of great fantasy assets this season, led by CeeDee Lamb and Tyreek Hill.

Lamb edged Hill for the top spot with a monster week 17 showing. Lamb has 1,651 yards and 10 touchdowns on 122 catches and 168 targets. Hill, who missed a game, has 1,717 yards and 12 scores on 112 receptions and 158 targets.

Amon-Ra St. Brown is WR3 in PPR leagues. He’s been about as consistent as can be this season, and has 1,371 yards and nine touchdowns on 112 receptions and 155 targets.

A.J. Brown is WR4. He’s got 1,447 receiving yards, but only seven scores. He’s caught 105 of his 157 targets.

Puka Nacua got off to a hot start this season and is sitting as WR5 right now. Nacua has caught 101-of-153 targets for 1,445 yards and five touchdowns. He should be one of the first WRs drafted before next season, even if Cooper Kupp is at full health going into the season.

Keenan Allen is WR6, which is pretty remarkable after missing the past three weeks. Ja’Marr Chase is WR10 after missing a decent amount of action this season. Justin Jefferson and Kupp both had their seasons bombarded by injuries. 

Rashee Rice, Zay Flowers, Jordan Addison and Jayden Reed are other rookies who are inside the top 30 at the position right now. The position looks stacked for years to come, and there’s more ultra-talented wideouts in the next NFL Draft.

Sam LaPorta Tops TE Position

Yes, you read that headline right. Sam LaPorta is TE1 in PPR formats after week 17.

LaPorta has 860 yards and nine touchdowns on 81 catches and 113 targets. He might be TE1 in drafts for many fantasy owners next season.

Travis Kelce is TE2, but has been pretty underwhelming this season, at least when you consider the lofty expectations that follow him around. Kelce has 984 receiving yards and five scores on 93 grabs and 121 targets.

T.J. Hockenson is TE3, but unfortunately he went down with a season-ending injury in week 16. He still leads the Vikings with 960 receiving yards, while also tallying 95 grabs and five touchdowns on 127 targets. Let’s hope the injury doesn’t affect Hockenson at all going into next season.

Evan Engram, George Kittle and David Njoku all have over 200 fantasy points in PPR leagues. They haven’t been super consistent, but have been quality starting options most weeks. 

Injuries derailed the season for Mark Andrews, Dallas Goedert, Pat Freiermuth and Darren Waller. Kyle Pitts has been pretty unimpressive inside that Falcons’ offense. Trey McBride and Jake Ferguson were both surprises at the position.