[2] In a review for AllMusic, Brian Olewnick wrote: "One of seven albums commissioned by the Jazz Composers Orchestra, violinist Leroy Jenkins' For Players Only is one of the more loosely organized and, for all its charms, most scattershot of these works...

The first half of the composition is arranged in suite-like fashion, with briefly stated themes fleshed out by various small groups within the orchestra... in the second half of this composition... each orchestra member play[s] consecutive, individual solos... Over the course of his career, Jenkins composed a number of knotty pieces, and For Players Only ranks right up there.

"[4] Gary Giddins referred to the album as Jenkins's "daring Jazz Composers Orchestra spectacle".

[5] John Corbett called the album "one of several very important JCOA documents," and noted that it featured "an incredible eighteen-piece lineup".

[6] Barry McRae of Jazz Journal stated: "For Players Only manages to sound like the work of a small group, while retaining all the textural richness of a larger aggregation.