We are into the second week of Survivor 2018, and while we haven’t gotten to know all of the castaways yet, we’ve got a good enough feel to compile our first Player Rankings of the season.
The criteria for this is how well players have performed in challenges, alliances they’ve formed and strategy we’ve seen. Any powers they’ve obtained also come into play, even though those always depend on how they use the powers. I don’t really consider who may or may not be a target (this isn’t who is most likely to not go home next, so keep that in mind). Let’s get to it.
Survivor 2018 Ghost Island Player Rankings
1. Donathan Hurley. After Donathan pulled off that amazing feat during that immunity challenge, how could I not rank him No. 1? That on top of how he managed to escape elimination in first half of the premiere by helping get the target on Gonzalez. And he’s just a sweet guy. If his demeanor doesn’t make him a threat, it could save him.
2. Wendell Holland. Wendell found himself on the winning tribes last time around, while not being called out as a huge threat like Chris. He also contributed to his tribe’s wins and seems like he could beast even more competitions along the way.
3. Stephanie Johnson. We haven’t seen much from the girls yet, but Stephanie has stood out. The way she played Jacob and contributed to his ego and blindside was one of the highlights last week. And the fact that she has the knowledge of Morgan’s legacy idol, makes her more powerful that Morgan.
4. Chris Noble. Do I expect Chris to last? No. Did he do well last week? Yes. He didn’t do anything to keep himself from appearing as a threat, but he did plenty to keep himself safe. We’ll see how long he can pull that off.
5. Domenick Abbate. This guy is a little messy. He found the idol, which definitely makes him a power player on paper, but he didn’t handle it perfectly when he told Chris about it. But I give him extra points for playing to save himself when he knew he was being looked at as a target for Chris.
6. Morgan Ricke. Morgan has Jacob to thank for her ranking this week. He willed her the Legacy Idol, and depending on how she uses it to her advantage, it could be a blessing or a curse. I think a lot of that will depend on how Stephanie holds onto the information.
7. Brendan Shapiro. Brendan is clearly a strong guy. He fits the whole alpha male leader archetype. So he’s automatically powerful. But the fact that he was chosen to lead his tribe and they lost everything but the first reward challenge, keeps him from ranking higher.
8. Sebastian Noel. Sebastian hasn’t really stood out yet, but he’s teamed up with Chris and contributed to his tribe’s wins, so he’s definitely earned a spot around the middle of the list.
9. Angela Perkins. As an Army veteran, this is her element. We haven’t heard much from her, but you can expect to. We will see her raise in the ranks. Trust me on that.
10-17. (Any order) Bradley Kleihege, Desiree Afuye, Michael Yerger, Libby Vincek, Chelsea Townsend, Laurel Johnson, Jenna Bowman, Kelly Bechtold. Still waiting on these players to make a move that will set them apart from each other.
18. James Lim. I feel bad for ranking someone dead last, but James let his tribe lose that second immunity challenge. He just couldn’t pull it off, which opened to door for Donathan to step up and be the hero. Even though they still didn’t win. James’ performance could actually help him in the game, however, as he will not seem like much of a physical threat. But based on last week’s performance and the fact that I can’t see into the future, this is where he lands.
How would you rank the Survivor 2018 players? These are just my opinions, so we’d love to hear yours.
