Keep an eye on these emerging players as they will start in their first NFL games on Sunday.  Matt Ryan, the 3rd overall pick in the draft, will be the starting quarterback for Atlanta in week 1 against Lions.  Also at quarterback, Joe Flacco from Delaware will get the start for the Baltimore Ravens against the Bengals.

At Running Back, Matt Forte will start for the Chicago Bears against the Colts and Kevin Smith will start for the Detroit Lions against the Falcons.  Virginia Tech's Eddie Royal will be the only rookie to start this weekend at wide receiver.  He takes the field for the Broncos, who are missing Brandon Marshall due to a one game suspension.  Denver will play at Oakland on Monday night.

So which rookie will have the biggest fantasy impact in week 1?  With the chaos and unpredictability of rookie quarterbacks you must look to the running backs for results.  For our fantasy dollar we will take Smith over Forte in week 1.  Detroit has the offensive weapons to move the ball.  QB John Kitna will distribute the ball to Roy Williams and Calvin Johnson.  The Falcons were 13th in the league against the run, allowing an average of 104.2 yards per game.  Not bad, but we think Detroit can run the ball effectively with Kevin Smith when they mix in a good passing game.  The real wild card is the offensive game plan of the Lions now that Mike Martz, who was fired earlier in the year, has moved on to San Francisco.

Overall we like Smith's abilities over Forte's situation in Chicago.  The Bears are still struggling for leadership at quarterback with Kyle Orton getting the start on Sunday and it doesn't get much better from there.  Marty Booker, Brandon Lloyd and Devin Hester are the starting wide receivers.  Three guys, who combined caught 72 passes in 2007.  It's hard to find many good things going on with the offense in Chicago.  Forte could be a solid player, but for this week against the Colts on Sunday Night, it's an uphill battle.