Fantasy football rankings vs. expert consensus

As we head into Week 12 of the fantasy football season, lineups need to be set, and with that comes some tough decisions. We’re coming down the home stretch of the NFL regular season, which means the stakes are even higher with the playoffs around the corner. As a result, this week’s start/sit decisions are that much more critical.

One of the most popular tools here at FTN is our fantasy football rankings. Each week, we bring you non-PPR, PPR and half-PPR rankings to help you win your league.

Throughout the season, I will break down what players our FTN rankers prefer more (or less) than the expert consensus rankings at FantasyPros. For this article, I will be looking at the half-PPR format.

Quarterback

QBs the FTN rankers like more than ECR

Player	Team	ECR Rk.	FTN Rk.	Difference
Justin Fields	CHI	12	10	2
Kyler Murray	ARI	17	15	2
Ryan Tannehill	TEN	25	23	2
Joe Burrow	CIN	6	5	1
Marcus Mariota	ATL	19	18	1
Matt Ryan	IND	23	22	1

QBs the FTN rankers like less than ECR

Player	Team	ECR Rk.	FTN Rk.	Difference
Lamar Jackson	BAL	5	6	-1
Tom Brady	TB	10	11	-1
Jimmy Garoppolo	SF	11	12	-1
Aaron Rodgers	GB	18	19	-1

This week the ECR and FTN have quite a few differences, but they are only minor ones.
The most significant differences are with Justin Fields, Kyler Murray and Ryan Tannehill, all of whom our FTN rankers have two spots higher than the ECR.
Additionally, our FTN rankers have Joe Burrow and Lamar Jackson flipped compared to the ECR, as our rankers prefer Burrow.
Our rankers prefer Marcus Mariota and Matt Ryan a bit more than the ECR.
On the flip side, our rankers like Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers and Jimmy Garoppolo a bit less this week compared to the ECR.

Running Back

RBs the FTN rankers like more than ECR

Player	Team	ECR Rk.	FTN Rk.	Difference
Josh Jacobs	LV	5	3	2
James Conner	ARI	15	13	2
Alvin Kamara	NO	16	14	2
Leonard Fournette	TB	34	32	2
Cordarrelle Patterson	ATL	29	28	1

RBs the FTN rankers like less than ECR

Player	Team	ECR Rk.	FTN Rk.	Difference
Miles Sanders	PHI	19	22	-3
Antonio Gibson	WSH	21	24	-3
Isiah Pacheco	KC	26	29	-3
Jeff Wilson	MIA	14	16	-2
Rachaad White	TB	23	25	-2
Jonathan Taylor	IND	3	4	-1
Christian McCaffrey	SF	4	5	-1
Kenneth Walker	SEA	6	7	-1

This week the difference between the ECR and the FTN rankers at the running back is large, but just like the quarterbacks the differences are minor.
The most significant difference between the ECR and our FTN rankers is with Miles Sanders, Antonio Gibson and Isiah Pacheco, who our rankers have three spots lower than the ECR.
Our FTN rankers are less in on Jeff Wilson even in a prime matchup against the league’s worst run defense but still have him as a top-20 option.
Rachaad White is a player our FTN rankers have outside the top 24 this week while the ECR has him just sneaking into the top 24.
Our FTN rankers have Jonathan Taylor, Christian McCaffrey and Kenneth Walker all slightly lower than the ECR, but all inside the top 10 this week.
Alvin Kamara is a player that our FTN rankers have inside the top 15 this week who the ECR does not.
James Conner is also a player the ECR has barely inside the top 15, as opposed to our rankers, who have him at 13.
Cordarrelle Patterson is a player our FTN rankers are less in on than the ECR, as they have him one spot lower this week.

Wide Receiver

WRs the FTN rankers like more than ECR

Player	Team	ECR Rk.	FTN Rk.	Difference
Ja’Marr Chase	CIN	57	24	33
Amari Cooper	CLV	15	10	5
Chris Olave	NO	18	15	3
Keenan Allen	LAC	22	20	2

WRs the FTN rankers like less than ECR

Player	Team	ECR Rk.	FTN Rk.	Difference
Joshua Palmer	LAC	27	34	-7
DK Metcalf	SEA	13	16	-3
Christian Watson	GB	30	33	-3
Tyreek Hill	MIA	1	2	-1
DeAndre Hopkins	ARI	5	6	-1
Tee Higgins	CIN	10	11	-1
Mike Evans	TB	11	12	-1
Terry McLaurin	WSH	12	13	-1
Chris Godwin	TB	20	21	-1
Michael Pittman	IND	21	22	-1

When it comes to wide receiver, the ECR and FTN rankers are fairly aligned inside the top 12 outside Tyreek Hill and DeAndre Hopkins, who our rankers have one spot lower than the ECR.
The most significant difference between the ECR and our FTN rankers is with Ja’Marr Chase, who we have 27 spots higher than the ECR – this is only if he is active though.
After this, the next largest difference is Joshua Palmer, who our FTN rankers have outside the top 30 while the ECR has him inside it.
Amari Cooper is a player our FTN rankers have five spots higher than the ECR and inside the top 10.
Due to this, our FTN rankers have Tee Higgins, Mike Evans and Terry McLaurin all one spot lower.
Chris Olave is also a player who our FTN rankers believe is a top-15 option this week while the ECR does not.
DK Metcalf and Christian Watson are two players who our FTN rankers have three spots lower than the ECR this week.

Tight End

TEs the FTN rankers like more than ECR

Player	Team	ECR Rk.	FTN Rk.	Difference
Juwan Johnson	NO	14	12	2
Tyler Higbee	LAR	9	8	1

TEs the FTN rankers like less than ECR

Player	Team	ECR Rk.	FTN Rk.	Difference
Hayden Hurst	CIN	12	15	-3
Greg Dulcich	DEN	8	9	-1

For yet another week the ECR and our FTN rankers are fairly aligned inside the top 12.
The FTN rankers prefer Tyler Higbee to Greg Dulcich, who they have flipped with compared to the ECR.
Additionally, Juwan Johnson is a player our FTN rankers have inside the top 12 while the ECR does not.
On the flip side, Hayden Hurst is a player that our FTN rankers are less in on as we have him just inside the top 15, while the ECR has him as a top-12 option.