Ranking the NFL’s 25 best fantasy football players of 2016
Only in the world of fantasy is Tom Brady not as valuable as Tyrod Taylor or Blake Bortles, but you may be surprised to see which players ended up as the top scorers of the year after 17 weeks.
Aaron Rodgers -- who made a strong case for the league MVP award -- blew away the rest of the field, and only four players scored more than 300 points over the course of the season.
If you spent a first-round pick on a wide receiver this year, you probably struggled. Not a single wideout made the top 25 in points scored, and the highest-scoring WR (Jordy Nelson) came in 32nd.
All scoring data uses the ESPN fantasy formula, and you can see the full list of players here.
Here are the top 25 players of 2016:
DeMarco Murray - 229 points
Key stats: 1,287 rushing yards, 377 receiving yards, 12 total touchdowns
Le’Veon Bell - 231 points
Key stats: 1,268 rushing yards, 616 receiving yards, 9 total TDs
Joe Flacco - 231 points
Key stats: 4,317 passing yards, 20 TDs, 15 INTs, 2 rushing TDs
Carson Palmer - 234 points
Key stats: 4,233 passing yards, 26 TDs, 14 INTs
LeSean McCoy - 238 points
Key stats: 1,267 rushing yards, 356 receiving yards, 14 total TDs
Cam Newton - 241 points
Key stats: 3,509 passing yards, 19 TDs, 14 INTs, 359 rushing yards, 5 rushing TDs
Jameis Winston - 243 points
Key stats: 4,090 passing yards, 28 TDs, 18 INTs, 165 rushing yards, 1 rushing TD
Ben Roethlisberger - 246 points
Key stats: 3,819 passing yards, 29 TDs, 13 INTs, 1 rushing TD
Marcus Mariota - 247 points
Key stats: 3,426 passing yards, 26 TDs, 9 INTs, 349 rushing yards, 2 rushing TDs
Andy Dalton - 250 points
Key stats: 4,206 passing yards, 18 TDs, 8 INTs, 184 rushing yards, 4 rushing TDs
Philip Rivers - 250 points
Key stats: 4,386 passing yards, 33 TDs, 21 INTs
Tom Brady - 251 points
Key stats: 3,554 passing yards, 28 TDs, 2 INTs
Tyrod Taylor - 254 points
Key stats: 3,023 passing yards, 17 TDs, 6 INTs, 580 rushing yards, 6 rushing TDs
Russell Wilson - 256 points
Key stats: 4,219 passing yards, 21 TDs, 11 INTs, 259 rushing yards, 1 rushing TD
Derek Carr - 257 points
Key stats: 3,937 passing yards, 28 TDs, 6 INTs,
Blake Bortles - 259 points
Key stats: 3,905 passing yards, 23 TDs, 16 INTs, 359 rushing yards, 3 rushing TDs
Matthew Stafford - 267 points
Key stats: 4,327 passing yards, 24 TDs, 10 INTs, 207 rushing yards, 2 rushing TDs
Dak Prescott - 271 points
Key stats: 3,667 passing yards, 23 TDs, 4 INTs, 282 rushing yards, 6 rushing TDs
Ezekiel Elliott - 280 points
Key stats: 1,631 rushing yards, 363 receiving yards, 16 total TDs
Kirk Cousins - 290 points
Key stats: 4,917 passing yards, 25 TDs, 12 INTs, 4 rushing TDs
Andrew Luck - 297 points
Key stats: 4,240 passing yards, 31 TDs, 13 INTs, 341 rushing yards, 2 rushing TDs
David Johnson - 313 points
Key stats: 1,239 rushing yards, 879 receiving yards, 20 total TDs
Drew Brees - 323 points
Key stats: 5,208 passing yards, 37 TDs, 15 INTs, 2 rushing TDs
Matt Ryan - 334 points
Key stats: 4,944 passing yards, 37 TDs, 15 INTs, 2 rushing TDs
Aaron Rodgers - 365 points
Key stats: 4,428 passing yards, 40 TDs, 7 INTs, 4 rushing TDs
