By Craig Rondinone SportsTicker Contributing Writer
BRISTOL, Connecticut (Ticker) -- Quarterback might be the most important position in the NFL, but it only ranks second behind running back in fantasy football.
That being said, you cannot win a fantasy title with a Tony Banks-Jesse Palmer combo at QB. You need to have one stud quarterback and one other solid signal-caller. While the 2005 crop of fantasy quarterbacks is very top-heavy, there is plenty of depth at the position. There are former All-Pros and MVPs in the 18-to-27 range on the rankings who still could have a fantasy impact even though their best seasons are behind them.
Here are the top 40 fantasy quarterbacks heading into the 2005 season:
1. Peyton Manning, Colts: Thank goodness he threw an NFL-record 49 touchdown passes in 2004, because his frantic audibles before every snap might cause some fantasy owners to shy away from him.
2. Daunte Culpepper, Vikings: Armed with a new contract and a new lease on a Randy Moss-less life, Culpepper very well could throw for 40 touchdowns and run for five more.
3.
Marc Bulger, Rams: A cannon for an arm plus the fastest receivers in football plus the best-schemed offense in the NFL should equal 4,000 yards and 30 touchdowns for Bulger.
4. Donovan McNabb, Eagles: His career numbers with Terrell Owens are far better than his numbers without Owens, so he better do everything in his power to keep T.O. on the field.
5. Tom Brady, Patriots: The perennial Super Bowl MVP sometimes flies under the fantasy radar, even though he dished out 28 TD passes last year.
6. Trent Green, Chiefs: Green is durable, accurate, strong, knows how to dump the ball off to Priest Holmes and Tony Gonzalez, and always seems to be around 3,800 yards and 25 TDs.
7. Michael Vick, Falcons: His 800-1,000 rushing yards will more than offset his 2,500 passing yards.
8. Carson Palmer, Bengals: Watch him quickly go from an 18 TD-18 INT quarterback to a 25 TD-15 INT quarterback in the span of one season.
9. Jake Plummer, Broncos: The Snake slithers best when he plays at Denver's Invesco Field (2,192 yards and 17 TDs in eight home games last year).
10. Kerry Collins, Raiders: Is the arrival of Randy Moss supposed to lower Collins' interceptions? No, but his yards and TDs surely will increase.
11. Brett Favre, Packers: Fantasy football fans hope this iron man will never retire.
12. Matt Hasselbeck, Seahawks: Without a drunken Koren Robinson around to drop his passes, Hasselbeck's completion percentage might go up 10 percent.
13. Drew Brees, Chargers: There is a better chance he will duplicate his 27-TD 2004 performance now that Antonio Gates finally has been signed.
14. Jake Delhomme, Panthers: Proved Carolina does not need to grind it out to score when he threw for 3,886 yards and 29 scores last season.
15. Aaron Brooks, Saints: Brooks' passes are like a box of chocolates - you never know what kind you are going to get.
16. Chad Pennington, Jets: The Jets plan on more of a vertical passing game. Let's hope Pennington's surgically repaired shoulder will cooperate.
17. Byron Leftwich, Jaguars: Lefty has thrown for 29 touchdowns in two seasons. He has the ability to throw for 20-25 this season.
18. Steve McNair, Titans: I love that Norm Chow is his offensive coordinator, but hate that Derrick Mason is gone and that McNair's body has no unbroken bones left.
19. Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers: Big Ben needs Pittsburgh to open up the offense a little more before he gets ranked higher than this.
20. David Carr, Texans: He needs to keep the steady stats improvement incline going.
21. Joey Harrington, Lions: No other quarterback has the potential to be a top-10 fantasy QB or be the biggest bust of the season like this guy does.
22. Eli Manning, Giants: His sprained elbow is going to make fantasy owners second-guess choosing him on Draft Day.
23. Brian Griese, Buccaneers: He has a great chemistry with lead receiver Michael Clayton, but he is borderline mediocre.
24. Kyle Boller, Ravens: Everything has been set up for Boller to succeed, so if he fails he will get a one-way ticket to the CFL.
25. Drew Bledsoe, Cowboys: This Bledsoe-Bill Parcells reunion has me all teary-eyed.
26. Patrick Ramsey, Redskins: He has to cut down his sacks, fumbles and interceptions to be effective. And it does not help that all his receivers seem to be midgets.
27. Kurt Warner, Cardinals: I do not buy the theory that the Rams-like spread offense Arizona is using will bring Warner back to the glory days when he was a fantasy demigod.
28. Tim Rattay, *****: Just keeping the seat warm for Alex Smith.
29. J.P. Losman, Bills: I hear he has all these amazing physical tools, but he is a mystery until he begins starting full-time.
30. Trent Dilfer, Browns: Pencil him for 3,000 yards and 15 TDs - for the rest of his career.
31. A.J. Feeley, Dolphins: His fantasy value is close to zero, but his girlfriend Heather Mitts still makes him my hero.
32. Chad Hutchinson, Bears: The Rex Grossman injury gives him a chance to play catch with Muhsin Muhammad and opposing defensive backs.
33. Billy Volek, Titans: The best backup quarterback in the NFL right now, Volek showed he is starter material when he tossed 18 touchdown passes last season.
34. Jeff Garcia, Lions: Three bad Harrington outings and the hook comes out and Garcia goes in.
35. Alex Smith, *****: The No. 1 overall pick will start by mid-season, but to whom is he going to throw?
36. Jay Fiedler, Jets: This veteran quarterback might have a good career win-loss record, but it had more to do with the team that he was on than his throwing.
37. Gus Frerotte, Dolphins: In Gus We Trust? Nope.
38. Philip Rivers, Chargers: If Brees turns out to be a Flock of Seagulls-like fluke, Rivers steps right in.
39. Brad Johnson, Vikings: A very solid quarterback. Too bad he will never get a chance to play.
40. Jon Kitna, Bengals: He gets to sit back and watch Palmer become a superstar.
Next week: Rating the running backs.
For more information on Craig and his columns, please visit
www.publishedauthors.net/craigrondinone.
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