The 2022 NFL season is approaching, which means it’s time to prepare for your fantasy football draft. Of course, there’s no better way to do that than to practice drafting with our free mock draft simulator! Beyond our tools, we will have you covered throughout the draft prep season with our content.

• Erickson’s Top Early-Round Targets
• Erickson’s Top Middle-Round Targets

The goal of every fantasy football manager is to complete the perfect draft. Impossible, you say? Let’s call it a stretch goal and strive for fantasy football glory. Here’s Andrew Erickson’s perfect 2022 fantasy football draft.

And for those looking for even more in-depth analysis, check out Erickson’s full round-by-round draft strategy along with his preferred draft slot breakdown. 

Andrew Erickson’s Top Late-Round Draft Picks

Round 11 Target

• Alexander Mattison (RB – MIN): Mattison smashes every time Dalvin Cook misses games, which happens every year. The Vikings RB2 has had five games with at least 23 touches the past two seasons, including two games with 32 touches when Cook has been sidelined. He averaged 23.7 PPR points and 90 rushing yards per game.
• Rachaad White (RB – TB): White looks just like Leonard Fournette’s backup at the moment. But there’s an outcome where he delivers massive upside should Lenny go down with an injury or maintain his overweight status from the offseason. White has shades of David Johnson and Le’Veon Bell in his style of play, which didn’t go unnoticed by the new senior football consultant for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Bruce Arians. The Arizona State product ranked first in his class in receiving yards, No. 1 in yards per route run (2.24), and second in receptions (43). His 16% target share is bonkers for a running back at the college level, and it did wonders to generate his Day 2 draft capital. That draft capital combined with White’s 30 receiving yards per game in college puts him into a group of RBs that includes: Saquon Barkley, David Johnson, Joe Mixon, Antonio Gibson, Najee Harris and Travis Etienne Jr. With a strong college profile and athleticism to boot — White has league-winning potential if given the opportunity in the Buccaneers’ offense.

Beyond our fantasy football content, be sure to check out our award-winning slate of Fantasy Football Tools as you prepare for your draft this season. From our free mock Draft Simulator – which allows you to mock draft against realistic opponents – to our Draft Assistant – that optimizes your picks with expert advice – we’ve got you covered this fantasy football draft season.

Round 12 Target

• Cole Kmet (TE – CHI): No tight end should make a more significant leap in 2022 than Kmet, whose upside has been capped by a lack of touchdown equity with veteran Jimmy Graham rearing his ugly head the past few seasons. But Graham’s currently a free agent, opening the door for Kmet to smash in 2022.
• Skyy Moore (WR – KC): Moore’s impressive yards after catch (YAC) ability — tied for first with 26 forced missed tackles in 2021 college football — and versatility to play both inside/outside will help him stand out from the other Kansas City Chiefs WRs.

Round 13 Target

• David Njoku (TE – CLE): Newly-paid tight end David Njoku — Four-year extension worth $56.75m — has a golden opportunity to break out in 2022 after an encouraging 2021. He set career highs in PFF grade (70.9, 10th), yards per route run (1.56, eighth), and yards after the catch per reception (7.0, first) among tight ends who commanded at least 50 targets in 2021. In addition, the Browns cut Austin Hooper, which should open up the opportunity for the athletic Njoku to take a major leap. Don’t be too quick to forget that Njoku already has a top-10 TE finish on his career resume.
• Sony Michel (RB – MIA): Michel has twice as many starts (35) as anybody else in the Miami backfield. And over the final 6 weeks of the 2021 season, he ranked second in snaps, first in carries, third in rushing yards, third in broken tackles forced, and first in RZ carries.

Final Round Targets

• Joshua Palmer (WR – LAC): As a rookie, Palmer averaged over seven targets per game and scored a touchdown in his three games with a 60% snap share. He was also extremely efficient in the end zone, catching three of his five total end-zone targets for TDs.
• Darrel Williams (RB – ARI): In the six games that Williams was the clear-cut starter in the Chiefs’ backfield, he averaged 19 fantasy points per game (PPR) on 18.3 touches per game. He also averaged nearly 100 yards from scrimmage (96.3). Williams is the James Conner backup to target across all formats, as he’d likely inherit the RB1 role should the injury-prone starter go down. His body of work as a receiver and goal-line back presents him with immediate fantasy RB1 upside.
• Gerald Everett (TE – LAC): Everett was solid during stretches of the 2021 season, particularly after Russell Wilson returned from injury. The ex-Rams tight end ranked as the TE9 in fantasy points per game (PPR) from Weeks 10-16 while running a route on 74% of dropbacks. Everett has proven he can be a featured No. 1 tight end for the Chargers coming off a career year.
• Khalil Herbert (RB – CHI): David Montgomery is in the final year of his rookie contract, and the new coaching regime will have no loyalty toward him. Already been demoted to special teams, LOL. Herbert was PFF’s fourth-highest-graded rusher (84.6) from Weeks 5-8 with Montgomery sidelined. The rookie rushed for at least 72 yards in all four games. Montgomery rushed for 72 yards four times all season.

Andrew Erickson’s 2022 Redraft Fantasy Football Rankings