It’s never too early to prepare for your 2022 fantasy football draft. What better way to do so than to mock draft against the top experts in the fantasy football industry! You can use our FREE mock draft simulator to do just that. Let’s take a look at our latest mock draft and player notes.
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Mock Draft Picks: 12-Team, PPR Superflex, No. 2 Pick
Round 1, Pick 2: Christian McCaffrey (RB – CAR)
We all know the deal with CMC. When healthy, he’s easily the best player in all of fantasy football. He played in four games in 2021 with at least a 50% snap share and his PPR fantasy finishes were RB1, RB3, RB4 and RB3. McCaffrey averaged 26 fantasy points per game. Considering the extent of CMC’s injuries has not resulted in major surgeries or completely torn ligaments, I like him bouncing back to form in 2022. I like that the Panthers are already putting him in preseason bubble wrap to make sure he’s full-go for Week 1. Four of the Panthers’ 5 wins last season came when CMC was active and playing.
Round 2, Pick 11: Davante Adams (WR – LV)
Adams’ high level of play won’t stop in Las Vegas, but his fantasy stock does get slightly dented going from Rodgers to Derek Carr. It’s unlikely that Carr hyper-targets Adams to the length of a 28% target share as Rodgers has done for so many seasons. Incumbent Raiders pass-catchers Darren Waller and Hunter Renfrow represent more target competition than Adams has ever played with since becoming the alpha in Green Bay.
Round 3, Pick 2: CeeDee Lamb (WR – DAL)
No more Amari Cooper and Cedrick Wilson can only spell great things for CeeDee Lamb in 2022. The biggest issue with Lamb was that he never was seeing the requisite target volume in an offense that had a surplus of playmakers.
Lamb boasted just an 18% target share last season – which ranked outside the top 30 among all pass-catchers. But with the 8th-most vacated targets left to be distributed between Lamb, tight end Dalton Schultz, ACL-injury returning Michael Gallup, veteran James Washington and third-round rookie pick Jalen Tolbert, I’d bet Lamb crests at least a 20% target share in 2022. His 21% target rate per route run bested anybody in Dallas last season.
And that means more fantasy production will be on its way. Only once did Lamb fail to score double-digit fantasy points in a game where he commanded fewer than six targets in 2021.
Round 4, Pick 11: Trey Lance (QB – SF)
Every day that Jimmy Garoppolo remains on the 49ers’ roster, it threatens Trey Lance’s starting spot, but currently, I’m still projecting him to start this season. In the brief two-game sample of Lance starting last year, we got a glimpse at the biggest factor for his fantasy ceiling: the rushing upside. In those two games, Lance averaged 12 carries and 60 yards on the ground as the QB20 and QB10 in weekly scoring. Even with Garoppolo at the helm, the 49ers were sixth in EPA per play and second in yards per play. Lance’s legs give him a top 12-15 fantasy quarterback floor with top-five upside should he light it up through the air.
Round 5, Pick 2: Breece Hall (RB – NYJ)
My highest-ranked rookie running back is Breece Hall. The Jets selected the Iowa State product at the top of Round 2, signifying his status as the team’s locked-in RB1 for the foreseeable future. Hall’s three-down skill set suggests he never has to come off the field, and the sheer volume he garners will vault him into redraft top-20 running back territory.
The Iowa State product totaled over 4,500 yards from scrimmage, 50 touchdowns and 80 catches over three seasons in the college ranks.
A workload of approximately 240 touches – based on ESPN fantasy analyst Mike Clay’s projections and how many touches the cumulative Jets RB1 earned last season – would place Hall inside the top-15 considering every running back last season that hit that threshold finished inside that ranking.
2021 fourth-rounder Michael Carter had his moments as a rookie, but the Jets know he’s just a No. 2 running back. Anticipate Hall to shoulder 15-20 touches per game based on the workload that Carter received last season when Tevin Coleman missed time.
From Weeks 7-9 with Coleman sidelined, Carter averaged 19 touches per game and a 66% snap share. Upon Coleman’s return from injury in Week 10, Carter averaged 14 touches per game and a 55% snap share in the games they played together.
Round 6, Pick 11: Derek Carr (QB – LV)
The biggest winner in the aftermath of the Davante Adams trade is Derek Carr. He now has the luxury of throwing to a surplus of offensive weapons including arguably the best wide receiver in the NFL in his old college teammate.
Let’s not forget that when Carr had everybody available last season, the Raiders quarterback ranked second in the NFL in passing yards and 15th in fantasy points per game. However, his ceiling was limited due to his lack of mobility and weaponry; Carr did not finish better than a top-8 quarterback at any point in 2021.
But Adams figures to provide Carr with a red-zone weapon like no other that will unlock his fantasy ceiling. He’s the exact positive touchdown regression that should launch Carr’s fantasy numbers. Carr’s 3.7 TD rate in 2021 was below his career average (4.3). And his 23 total passing touchdowns were seven below expectation.
Fully anticipate Carr throwing for 30-plus laser scores bare minimum with Adams at his disposal. Every quarterback last season that threw for at least 30 touchdowns finished inside the top-10 in 2021.
Round 7, Pick 2: Josh Jacobs (RB – LV)
The Raiders offense looks to reach new heights in 2022 with No. 1 wide receiver Davante Adams added to the fold. And that greatly benefits the team’s lead ball-carrier Josh Jacobs. A more efficient offense lends itself to more scoring opportunities, and Jacobs will reap the most rewards as the team’s primary red-zone back.
Last year’s RB13 smashed career highs in all receiving categories in 2021 despite playing alongside Kenyan Drake and Jalen Richard. Injuries to the back-ups boosted Jacobs’ role as a receiver slightly, but it was not the only cause.
There was a deliberate effort to feature Jacobs more as a receiver with him catching at least two passes in 12 of his 15 games played. And more importantly, the receiving capability that Jacobs displayed puts to rest the narrative that he is “game-script” dependent. Whether the Raiders are winning or losing in a loaded 2022 AFC West, JJ has proven he can be used in all facets.
Now the Raiders did elect to sign both Brandon Bolden and Ameer Abdullah this offseason to bolster their running back stable behind Jacobs. Bolden has been a special teams guy nearly his entire career, so I doubt he carves out any legitimate role on offense.
Abdullah has been used as a third-down back on the several teams he has been on at the NFL level, but I am not ready to declare him as a huge threat to Jacobs’ workload. Sure he might work in some, but not enough to hurt Jacobs’ bottom-line value. The team also drafted Zamir White in the fourth round, but I would not expect much from White in year one based on Josh McDaniels’ track record from New England of not featuring Day 3 rookie RBs.
The new head coach is more likely to run Jacobs into the ground on an expiring contract as he did with Dion Lewis, LeGarrette Blount and Shane Vereen during his Patriots tenure. And besides, the red-zone role is the most significant for fantasy points, and that looks to be clearly in Jacobs’ grasp.
Two-down back Damien Harris was in the red-zone role for the Patriots last season and flourished because of it. He ranked fourth in carries (46) and third in rushing TDs (13) from inside the 20-yard line.
Round 8, Pick 11: Hunter Renfrow (WR – LV)
There’s really not much left to say when it comes to Hunter Renfrow. The kid’s a certified stud and doesn’t get the respect he deserves. The Raiders slot receiver hung a WR13 overall finish last season due to a spectacular late-season surge.
He went over 100 receiving yards in three straight games (Weeks 12-14) while maintaining a 25% target share. From Week 12 onward, his production generated a WR8 standing in half-point scoring.
Renfrow made the most of the opportunities he got in 2021, and that won’t change in 2022. Adding Davante Adams and Darren Waller will make targets for Renfrow harder to come by, but stay rest assured that the shifty wideout will perform if either guy is forced to miss time.
Round 9, Pick 2: Brandon Aiyuk (WR – SF)
Fantasy managers are still trying to figure out what went wrong with Brandon Aiyuk during the first half of last season. He was hyped up after an impressive rookie campaign but suffered a hamstring injury during training camp that made him unreliable in the starting offense. Through Weeks 1-7, Aiyuk had just one weekly finish inside the top 25. He also averaged an abysmal 0.63 yards per route run – a mark that ranked 98th out of 102 qualifying WRs. Woof.
But give credit to Aiyuk for turning his season around during the second half. His yards per route run increased substantially (2.16, 13th) and he averaged 13.1 PPR fantasy points per game as the WR24.
If Aiyuk can roll over his second-half production into 2022, he could end up a smashing fantasy value in a similar way that Deebo Samuel was viewed in 2021.
Round 10, Pick 11: Dallas Goedert (TE – PHI)
It took much longer than many fantasy gamers would have liked, but Dallas Goedert finally broke out in 2021 after being overshadowed by Zach Ertz since his rookie year. The Eagles’ tight end finished as PFF’s second-highest graded receiving tight end (91.1) and as the TE10 overall, with the majority of his fantasy production coming from Week 7 onward. In those 11 games played — including the postseason –, Goedert averaged 11.8 fantasy points per game, which would have ranked as the TE8 from a season-long perspective.
Round 11, Pick 2: Melvin Gordon III (RB – DEN)
Gordon is bound to be written off by fantasy draft pundits this offseason due to his age, but he proved that he still has gas in the tank in 2021. The 29-year-old running back was efficient across the board, ranking eighth in both PFF rushing grade (83.4) and forced missed tackles (45) while compiling 231 touches (16th).
With him back on a high-powered offense and with the potential to receive goal-line touches, he could easily become a screaming value in 2022 like James Conner or Leonard Fournette last year.
Round 12, Pick 11: Tyler Boyd (WR – CIN)
Tyler Boyd was a victim of circumstances more than anything else in 2021, with two alpha wide receivers in the Bengals’ offense leaving him nothing but scraps. The Bengals slot receiver commanded just a 15% target share and target rate per route run.
The target rate per route ranked dead-last among 73 qualifying players last season that commanded at least 100 targets.
It’s clear that Boyd can’t be viewed as much working as a clear ancillary piece of the Cincinnati passing attack. Tight end C.J. Uzomah‘s departure does open up the potential that Boyd could shoulder a larger target workload, but his upside remains extremely limited while Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins are healthy.
Round 13, Pick 2: Alexander Mattison (RB – MIN)
Alexander Mattison has played out of his mind when given the opportunity with Dalvin Cook sidelined. In the four games since 2020 with 60% or higher snap counts, he’s averaged 23.5 rushing attempts with 148.2 total yards per game. In that quartet of games, he was the RB7, RB6, RB8, and RB4 in weekly scoring. Assuming Kevin O’Connell doesn’t upset the order of things or Ty Chandler or Kene Nwangwu don’t hop him on the depth chart, Mattison is primed to remain one of the top handcuff options in fantasy.
Round 14, Pick 11: Mike Gesicki (TE – MIA)
Mike Gesicki may see his target numbers dip in 2022 in a run-heavy offense alongside target magnets Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill. That will make his 2021 production difficult to replicate.
The tight end/slot receiver hybrid finished sixth in receptions, ninth in receiving yards, fourth in route participation (78%), and fifth in target share (17%) through 18 weeks of action of the 2021 season. This receiving and route volume led to only moderate success in fantasy football, as Mike Gesicki finished as TE9.
His efficiency metrics left something to be desired, though — he was 13th in fantasy points per game (9.9) and 15th in yards per route run. Part of that does fall on the up-and-down quarterback play, but it just further cements Gesicki as a good, not great tight end in fantasy football.
My biggest concern is that Gesicki has almost always underwhelmed after the catch — which will likely be a large part of the Dolphins’ new-look offense. His 3.2 YAC/reception ranked 41st of out 42 qualifying tight ends.
Gesicki did deliver worthwhile fantasy production at times, as displayed by his TE6 standing from Weeks 3-15 (11.5 fantasy points per game). And 94% of his snaps came lined up in the slot or out wide in 2021, which is another advantage for creating mismatches.
But all in all, he tends to only rise to the occasion for fantasy purposes when targets become available in the offense because of injuries to other players.
The athletic tight end will end up meeting his mid-range 2022 ADP/ECR based on his consistent play the past two seasons, but won’t enter the top-tier fantasy tight end conversation.
Round 15, Pick 2: Baker Mayfield (QB – CAR)
Last season before Baker Mayfield reinjured the partially torn labrum in his left shoulder (Weeks 1-5), he was on his way to a solid if not underrated season in Cleveland. While he was on QB23 in fantasy points per game, his efficiency metrics painted a rosier picture. He was 14th in big-time throw rate, seventh in yards per attempt, and held the eighth-lowest turnover-worthy play rate (minimum 20 dropbacks, per PFF).
While Carolina looks like a lousy landing spot, Mayfield will be flanked by Christian McCaffrey and D.J. Moore, which isn’t a bad start for any quarterback. If Ben McAdoo can recreate his former magic as an offensive coordinator, Mayfield could be an easy QB2 target with some upside. Before taking the head coaching reins in New York, he led an offense that was top 13 in yards and total points in back-to-back seasons.
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