Our analysts are here to share a few of the quarterbacks they are targeting this fantasy football draft season. And be sure to check out their full list of players to avoid as part of our 2022 Fantasy Football Draft Kit.
- Matthew Freedman’s Players to Target
- Derek Brown’s Players to Target
- Andrew Erickson’s Players to Target
- Pat Fitzmaurice’s Players to Target
- Joe Pisapia’s Players to Target
Rankings noted using FantasyPros half-PPR Expert Consensus Rankings (ECR) and Consensus ADP.
5 Fantasy Football Quarterbacks to Target
Jalen Hurts (PHI)
ECR QB6 | ADP QB8
Jalen Hurts has league-winning upside again this year. Last season before dealing with an injury, he was the QB6 in fantasy points per game. Before getting dinged up, he averaged 57.9 rushing yards per game, pacing toward a 1,000-yard rushing season (985). After the injury, he dipped to 29.7 rushing yards per game. The final part of the equation to push him over the top will come through the air with a full season of Hurts getting freaky in the open field.
With the arrival of A.J. Brown, the ascension of DeVonta Smith and the Eagles leaning more pass-heavy in 2022, Hurts could reach the hollow ground of top three quarterback status in fantasy. In Weeks 1-7, he averaged 245.1 passing yards per game (4,166 pace) before the team swerved and became run-centric. Along with the passing yardage boost, he could see touchdown regression. Last year among 33 quarterbacks with 200 or more pass attempts, Hurts was 23rd with a 3.7% passing touchdown rate. The runway is clear. The wheels are up. It’s time for Hurts to fly.
– Derek Brown
Russell Wilson (DEN)
ECR QB10 | ADP QB10
Russell Wilson‘s supporting cast isn’t dramatically different going from Seattle to Denver aside from more depth, but new head coach Nathaniel Hackett calling the offensive shots is an upgrade over Pete Carroll.
Hackett’s had success with Aaron Rodgers that has translated into fantasy, so a top-five fantasy quarterback outcome is firmly in play with Wilson in 2022. After all, Wilson’s long track record of efficient fantasy play is undeniable; he has finished among the top-six fantasy QBs five times since 2014.
I envision Hackett dialing up the Broncos’ passing game in a similar fashion to the Packers’ offense from 2019 to 2021. During that span, the Packers ranked seventh in neutral game script pass-play rate on early downs. Seattle ranked 13th.
I love Wilson’s chances of making it seven in 2022. Because the former Seahawk is still among the league’s elite passers when healthy. Before the finger injury that derailed his 2021 campaign (Week 5), Russ led the NFL in yards per attempt (10.4), passer rating (133.6), and passer rating from a clean pocket (130.9). Wilson also finished the season on a high note, averaging over 24 fantasy points per game in his last three contests.
All in all, 2021 was a typical season for Wilson: peaks and valleys. He averaged 23 fantasy points per game from Weeks 1-4 and Weeks 16-18. In his six games post-injury, Wilson averaged an abysmal 13 fantasy points per game. Buy the inevitable 2022 dip on the future Hall-of-Fame quarterback in a new situation.
That combined with a plethora of weapons in Denver, makes it very plausible he finds immediate success that other quarterbacks like Tom Brady and Matthew Stafford have had since changing teams later in their careers.
– Andrew Erickson
Joe Burrow (CIN)
ECR QB7 | ADP QB6
Yards per attempt (YPA) isn’t a perfect passing statistic, but it’s a good one. With starting QBs throwing so many passes throughout a season, YPA isn’t as volatile a stat as, say, TD passes. Burrow led the NFL with 8.9 yards per attempt last season. That’s a freakishly good number. Only two other quarterbacks (Jimmy Garoppolo and Matthew Stafford) finished the 2021 season with YPAs above 7.9. Aaron Rodgers‘ career YPA is 7.8. Tom Brady‘s is 7.5
I contend that Burrow’s obscene 2021 YPA is not a fluke but rather a symptom of greatness.
It doesn’t hurt that Burrow has arguably the league’s best WR tandem in Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. Rostering Burrow is a great way to leverage the extraordinary talents of those two receivers. There will be games where Chase goes off, and Higgins is relatively quiet. There will be games where Chase takes a backseat to Higgins. We’ll probably get one or two big games out of Tyler Boyd as well. Those are all going to be Joe Burrow games.
Oh, by the way, it’s possible we’ll see Burrow run more now that he’s more than a year removed from the ACL tear he sustained in November 2020. Burrow had more rushing yards and TD runs in 10 games in 2020 than in 16 games last year. He ran for 12 touchdowns in his final two college seasons at LSU. So a little more rushing goodness would just be gravy on the chicken-fried steak.
– Pat Fitzmaurice
Matthew Stafford (LAR)
ECR QB11 | ADP QB11
When the previous season’s QB6 is being drafted at QB11, you need to take advantage of that value. In Stafford’s first year in Sean McVay’s offense, he threw for 41 TDs and 4,886 yards. There’s a chance Stafford could be even better in 2022. In single QB leagues, Stafford isn’t a consolation prize. He’s a draft target.
– Joe Pisapia
Trey Lance (SF)
ECR QB13 | ADP QB14
The ability some people have to misinterpret tweets or incorrectly extrapolate from them is extraordinary.
Each day Jimmy Garoppolo remains with the 49ers, the likelier it is he starts for them in Week 1.
— Matthew Freedman (@MattFtheOracle) May 10, 2022
The closer we get to the season with Garoppolo still on the roster, the likelier he will be to enter the season as the starter because of his familiarity with the offense and his polish relative to Lance, who was unquestionably raw last year. But the likeliest outcome is that Lance will start in Week 1 – and if that happens, he could dominate. In 10 quarters of action as a rookie, he was 598-4-2 passing and 31-161-0 rushing.
– Matthew Freedman
FantasyPros Staff Consensus 2022 Redraft Fantasy Football Rankings
If you want to dive deeper into fantasy football, check out our award-winning slate of Fantasy Football Tools as you navigate your season. From our Start/Sit Assistant – which provides your optimal lineup based on accurate consensus projections – to our Waiver Wire Assistant, which allows you to quickly see which available players will improve your team and how much – we’ve got you covered this fantasy football season.
