Below is a list of players - broken down first by position and then by average weekly finish – that have been worthy of starting consideration in fantasy or that I believe have a chance of contributing in the coming weeks, at least given what we know at the moment. Most of what you will see below is self-explanatory, as each number represents where that player finished in a given week among his peers at his position. Please note I have excluded some players due to injuries or to a simple lack of use, but I chose to keep every player at running back, wide receiver and tight end who has posted at least one double-digit fantasy-point effort this season.

Eli Manning's extremely disappointing 2016 season is perhaps the most surprising development at this position. Except for a three-touchdown day against a Dallas defense that didn't know how good it was in Week 1 and a second-half eruption by Odell Beckham Jr. against a shorthanded Baltimore secondary in Week 6, Manning has struggled to be useful in fantasy, even in two-quarterback leagues. Things should get easier over the second half of the season for the Giants with games against Chicago, Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Detroit, but Manning has disappointed in enough favorable spots already that he is going to be nearly impossible to trust in redraft leagues and especially in DFS. The exact same thing could be said for Joe Flacco, but he admittedly didn't enter the season with the same expectations.

Every year, there seems to be at least one quarterback who is abysmal in reality but more than acceptable in fantasy. This season's top candidate for that dubious distinction is Blake Bortles, who has attempted only 63 passes this season when his team is either ahead or tied. This year's garbage-time king has parlayed his poor play early in games into three top-eight finishes, which is roughly about what owners probably thought they were getting from a player expected to be a low-end QB1 at best this season. The bad part of his line above is he hasn't finished any higher than QB14 in any of his other four games. So the trick with him is figuring out which games have the best chance of getting out of hand early, which comes down to deciding which opponents are built around a solid defense (and thus, will play closer games and not give up garbage-time fantasy points). Unfortunately, Kansas City, Houston (twice), Buffalo, Denver and Minnesota make up the majority of the second-half schedule, so the odds are Bortles will disappoint as much in fantasy going forward as he has in reality over the first half the season.

For all the handwringing over Aaron Rodgers' slow start, he still been the second-most consistent quarterback this year (first if you exclude Brady and his suspension-shortened season thus far). Only once has Rodgers finished outside the top 10 quarterbacks and the "new" offense gives him the volume he has lacked for most of his career.

Given the injuries to key members of his supporting cast, Philip Rivers can be excused for not having the kind of season some expected from him. With that said, he's been a top-10 quarterback in three of the last five weeks, with the lone exceptions being two games against Denver's vaunted defense. With upcoming games against Tennessee, Miami, Tampa Bay, Carolina, Oakland and Cleveland, I would not think twice about hitching my wagon to him the rest of the way. Owners need only worry about a Week 11 bye and Week 12 date at Houston.

Is it a coincidence that Andy Dalton has been a top-10 quarterback in each of the two weeks Tyler Eifert has been active? I don't think so. Does the combination of last year's remarkable play pre-injury plus some solid fantasy numbers this season put him on the verge of being one of the league's better quarterbacks? Not really. Although not to the extent of Bortles, Dalton runs more hot-and-cold than his numbers sometimes suggest - last week's game in London versus Washington being a prime example - but he does just enough as a runner and has two of the best players at their position in A.J. Green and Eifert to help him shine in fantasy, especially in neutral or favorable matchups.

His disappointing Weeks 6 and 7 notwithstanding, Derek Carr probably needs to be considered as a midrange QB1 moving forward. The combination of Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree is enough to overwhelm most defenses, and Carr is working behind arguably the best pass-blocking line in the league. The defense is still leaky enough at the moment that Carr is going to need to throw 40 times per game as well. And at some point, his 17:3 touchdown-to-interception ratio has to start speaking for itself. He's going to be difficult to use in most leagues over the next three weeks (Denver, bye, Houston), but I'm not really all that concerned about the second-half fades that have dogged him over his first two seasons, so long as his supporting cast remains intact.

Based solely off average rank, there are only five true RB1s in fantasy at the moment, although LeSean McCoy's 51st place finish in Week 7 during the Bills' (and McCoy's) ill-advised attempt to push him through a hamstring injury is the only thing keeping that number from being a bit higher. The fact that Theo Riddick is the next-closest player to RB1 status absolutely boggles the mind, but the cold hard truth is OC Jim Bob Cooter is using him like a young Reggie Bush going back to his early days in New Orleans. Riddick has yet to log more than 11 carries in a game (his 3.7 YPC speaks to the fact he still isn't a great runner), but he has received at least 15 touches in every game since Week 1 thanks to an average of 7.2 targets. His 34-267-4 line would be good production for a starting fantasy receiver, so the fact he averages nearly 40 yards per game rushing is a bonus. Riddick may end up as a top-10 fantasy back this season, but his lack of consistency is ultimately what should keep him out of the RB1 discussion.

I have long been one of Matt Forte's biggest fans and (probably) biggest supporters, but if I still owned him in any league in which I could trade him, I would be dealing him now. Despite getting what seemed like a month's worth of vacation during the season, the former Chicago Bear standout is on pace for 314 carries and 354 touches overall. It's OK if you don't want to buy into the fact he's a 30-year-old back that will turn 31 next month and has 2,699 career touches on his resume; his current workload is just tempting fate when it comes to keeping him healthy for a full season. The fact of the matter is that he isn't producing in reality nearly as much is he's producing in fantasy. Forte has averaged 3.3 YPC or less in five games this season, including last week in what should have been a soft matchup in Cleveland. He has one 20-plus yard run on 157 carries this season, while backup Bilal Powell is averaging 7.1 YPC in limited duty. In no way am I suggesting this job should be a timeshare, but there is a lot working against Forte moving forward, most of which I've already discussed. Upcoming matchups against Miami (twice), New England (twice) and Los Angeles only increase my pessimism with him, but his ability to hold up to the current workload would be my biggest concern. I would not be surprised at all if Powell is a fantasy playoff stud for the second straight season.

There's been a lot made about what James White has done in Dion Lewis' absence, but one top-12 week and one other top-24 week makes him the essence of a flex option at best. By comparison, Lewis posted five top-15 weeks (three top-six efforts) in seven games before tearing his ACL last season. A legitimate case could be made that Lewis will produce less this season given the strength of the Patriots' supporting cast, but I'd argue there is a better chance (a healthy) Lewis carries over most of his value from last year and makes LeGarrette Blount a flex option who works primarily in goal-line and short-yardage situations.

Despite Cam Newton attempting seven runs in his second game back from a concussion in Week 8, it has been the Jonathan Stewart show at the goal line since his return. Stewart converted from 1 and 2 yards out versus Arizona, just as he did in Week 6 against New Orleans, suggesting there may have been a fundamental change in philosophy in regards to reducing the number of high-impact collisions Newton has to absorb. While Stewart hasn't exactly been overly efficient - his 4.1 YPC over the last two games is typically the league average - the Panthers still possess an offense more than capable of averaging multiple red zone trips per game. If Stewart is going to get those looks going forward in addition to the volume (44 carries over the last two games), then the top-10 finishes he's posted each of the last two weeks are probably going to continue. With that said, it's impossible to know how long Carolina will hold back Newton at the goal line, which makes Stewart a risky investment, especially when one figures in his injury history.

It says a lot about the current state of the running back position when owners are looking forward to the return of James Starks. In four games prior to tearing his meniscus, the 30-year-old ran for 42 yards on 24 carries. By all indications, Starks is not dealing with knee pain prior to the injury, so one has to assume he was near full health through Week 5. If we can assume that to be true, it means Eddie Lacy (5.4 YPC) was three times the runner Starks (1.8) was over the first four games. (In case you don't remember, Lacy was having a hard time living up to be an RB2.) As a result, I'd be stunned if Green Bay doesn't go into December with Ty Montgomery operating as the lead back, while Randall Cobb, Don Jackson and fullback Aaron Ripkowski share the remaining 8-10 touches out of the backfield.

Texans HC Bill O'Brien has praised Lamar Miller on a few occasions this season, so owners can feel good about his job security going forward. However, Miller is a prime example of how a running back is used can often be as important as how often he is used. The University of Miami (Fla.) product is heading into a bye week on track for 306 carries and 350 touches overall, but his three total touchdowns on 175 touches this year are highly disappointing for a back who averaged a score once every 33.2 touches during his final three seasons in Miami. The difference (in my opinion): the Dolphins actually got him out in space. While every feature back needs to have a healthy mix of inside and outside runs in order to keep the defense honest, only 52 of Miler's 153 runs have been charted as "wide left" or "wide right", while 45 have been considered "middle" runs. Miller may sport a 220-pound frame, but he's not a pounder nor is Houston strong enough up the middle to allow him to make it work consistently. And while his 22 catches through eight games is about right in line with last year's reception total with the Dolphins, I have been mystified by the lack of screen plays in the Texans' game plan. Not only would screens help a struggling Brock Osweiler and take some pressure off an average offensive line, but it would allow Miller to get into the open field on a regular basis. For a player who has broken a TD run of at least 85 yards in each of the last two seasons (and scored on a 54-yard reception in 2015), it would seem like an obvious move to get him out in space. Let's hope O'Brien turns a critical eye on himself as he and his coaching staff self-scout during the team's open week.

How's that "Big Three" looking? Antonio Brown has been a top-10 receiver four times this season, a WR2 (as in ranked between 13 and 24) once and not even worthy of a flex play (outside the top 48) twice. Odell Beckham has been the overall WR1 once, a WR2 three times and borderline bench-worthy three times. Julio Jones been a top-10 receiver four times, a WR2 once and borderline bench-worthy twice. Volatility is to be expected among all players - even the elite ones - but this kind of unpredictability has to be a bit unnerving for owners who placed their faith into these players. A.J. Green is the overall WR1 halfway through the season, but his story is similar to the aforementioned three players. Amari Cooper is the overall WR3 and he has arguably been the most volatile of the bunch. T.Y. Hilton? How about a WR55, WR52 and WR68 mixed in with three top-six finishes? So who has been the epitome of consistency? You guessed it … Mike Evans.

Since opening the season with two top 10 finishes, Kelvin Benjamin has been a liability in fantasy lineups just as often as he has been a WR3-callber option. The targets haven't really dried up - he's averaged nearly nine over the last four games - but he's only scored once over that span after doing so three times in the first two games. Matchups are somewhat to blame - Atlanta's Desmond Trufant and Arizona's Patrick Peterson are among the game's best cover corners - but owners probably expected more production against Tampa Bay and New Orleans in Weeks 5 and 6 (albeit one came with Derek Anderson as a starter).

Back in August, I'm pretty sure I was one of the few who didn't have a lot of conviction about Allen Robinson or DeAndre Hopkins, but I must admit I didn't see either player struggling to be an every-week WR2, much less WR3. Garbage-time volume is about the only thing that is keeping Robinson in WR3 territory, while Hopkins has as many top-20 as sub-40 finishes (four apiece).

After some early offseason hype, there weren't a ton of people left on the Michael Thomas bandwagon by the time the regular season rolled around and probably fewer following Week 2. Although he has finished inside the top 12 only once so far, he has been money ever since he got his feet wet, usually settling in around WR2 territory. That's pretty impressive for a rookie, much less one in an offense led by a quarterback who typically likes to spread it around. Brandin Cooks actually hasn't really come close to matching Thomas' level of consistency, while Willie Snead has hovered around WR3 territory following a surprising start.

There are plenty of shocking ranks on the chart above, and one of the many that stands out the most may be two receivers I like going forward: Kenny Britt and Brandon Marshall. While Britt's "arrival" as a consistent WR3 has come as something of a pleasant surprise, Marshall's fade to the same territory is a bit of a bummer. The fact Britt has actually been the more consistent option with Case Keenum as his quarterback speaks to just how much of a drag Ryan Fitzpatrick (not to mention the loss of Eric Decker) has been on Marshall's fantasy stock. Britt should benefit from a bit of a perfect storm going forward, as many of the Rams' upcoming opponents have good or great run defenses and very little in the way of cornerback talent capable of shutting down a freakish athlete like Britt. Marshall has things slightly more difficult, but he's already seen the best of the best when it comes to individual matchups, more than holding his own against the likes of Richard Sherman and Patrick Peterson. Positive touchdown regression is also likely to find him sooner than later as well. Much like Britt, Marshall will see his fair share of opponents with solid run defenses and suspect pass defenses the rest of the way. Targets haven't been the problem for him either (77), but being able to do something with them has (34 catches). After eight games, Marshall is on pace for a 68-1,080-4 line … yeah, I'll take the over on that bet.

C.J. Fiedorowicz is probably flying under the radar of most owners due to the struggles of Brock Osweiler, but it's a bad idea to let him sit around on waivers much longer. While DeAndre Hopkins and Will Fuller have seen their fortunes sink over the last month, Fiedorowicz has been a rock-solid TE1 in four of his last five games. Over that time, his average rank is 8.6 - a mark bettered by only Jordan Reed. At a position where there is Rob Gronkowski, Greg Olsen, Reed, Jimmy Graham and Tyler Eifert (when the last two are healthy) and a bunch of low-upside, low-floor plays, Fiedorowicz provides a high floor with a fairly decent ceiling. With at least seven targets in four straight games, he's not going away anytime soon.

Don't look now, but Vernon Davis is making his strongest bid for fantasy relevancy in a few years. The return of Reed in Week 8 was supposed to stop Davis' recent mini-surge, but a third straight top-10 finish is definitely noteworthy as Washington heads into its bye week. Perhaps Davis is nothing more than an older Jack Doyle and loses his value once Reed settles back in for a few games. But like the starter in Indianapolis (Dwayne Allen), Reed is never too far away from his next injury, which makes Davis worth owning in most leagues.

If only Baltimore would give Dennis Pitta more opportunities near the goal line. While Pitta's four red-zone targets match what Jarvis Landry has done inside the 20 so far, Pitta only has one target inside the 10 and has yet to score a touchdown this season. Now look at his line above. That's remarkable consistency from a player not getting a six-point boost every so often. The problem isn't really the Ravens ignoring Pitta, however, but rather a lack of end-zone chances in general. Baltimore has scored a disappointing 10 total touchdowns in seven games (for comparison's sake, K Justin Tucker has made 18 field goals), meaning the Ravens just don't have enough firepower to give players like Pitta more touchdown opportunities.