2022 was another big year for offenses in the NFL and it saw some big performances from some of the league’s biggest stars:

• Justin Jefferson is within striking distance of Calvin Johnson’s all-time receiving yards in a season
• Travis Kelce only needs nine more targets to tie Zach Ertz for the all-time record of 156 in a season
• Austin Ekeler’s 102 receptions are the second-most all-time (behind Christian McCaffery‘s 116)
• Mike Evans extended his streak of consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons to nine

The league is in a great spot with young talent, and with the 2023 draft class shaping up to be rock solid at the top, the talent pool is going to continue to grow. Guys like Jefferson, Ekeler, Jalen Hurts, Patrick Mahomes and Ja’Marr Chase are fun to watch on a weekly basis and they are part of the league’s young core. Then you have a guy like Kelce, who is 33, dominating the position and you’re reminded that the league is built on veteran talent.

We only get 17 opportunities each year to watch these guys play and there were so many memorable performances from 2022. It is fair to wonder which players had a season that may not be sustainable into next year. I have looked at five players below who had surprising performances this year for various reasons. Some, like Jamaal Williams and Christian Watson, are unlikely to repeat their performances due to their efficiency. Others, like Daniel Jones, finished in the top 10 at their position and I am betting against that happening again.

I think looking at surprise performances is a good exercise in seeing where your blinders might have been heading into this year. For instance, how did we “miss” on Josh Jacobs and his big year? Should we have seen it coming? Same with Jones and Justin Fields being top 10 at their position.

As we continue to look back over the next few weeks, I’m sure we will see other places that surprised and there are some I missed. Leave yours in the comments or on Twitter so we can have some dialogue about these players and be better prepared for 2023.

Surprising 2022 Performances that are Unsustainable in 2023

Daniel Jones Finishes as a Top-10 QB

The Giants made the playoffs for the first time since 2016 and Daniel Jones is a big reason why. Jones had the best statistical season of his career, with over 3,900 total yards and a 67% completion percentage through Week 17. New head coach Brian Daboll worked wonders for Jones and took advantage of his strengths rather than trying to shoehorn him into a system that didn’t fit his skill set. As good as Jones was, however, I am betting against him finishing as a top-10 quarterback in 2023.

Even if he takes another step forward as a passer, the rushing upside is what pushed him into QB1 territory. His 700 yards and seven touchdowns rushing are highly unlikely to be duplicated next season. That said, the public has still not caught up to how good Jones was this season, so he makes for an intriguing target in best-ball leagues.

Jamaal Williams Scores 15 Rushing Touchdowns

Detroit was the Coors Field of fantasy football this year, making Jamaal Williams one of the league’s biggest surprises at running back. His 15 touchdowns are tops in the NFL and he was the Lions’ preferred option any time they got in the red zone. Williams led the NFL in red zone carries (52) and carries inside the 10-yard line (41). To put his workload inside the 10 in perspective, the next closest player to him is Joe Mixon with 28 carries. Yes, Williams has been awesome, but he benefited from such volume that there is virtually no chance he won’t regress next season.

Josh Jacobs Leads the NFL in Rushing

Before this season, Josh Jacobs had been an RB2 and was coming off his worst season as a pro. He bounced back in 2022 to lead the NFL in rushing yards and finished as the RB3 on the season. Jacobs also turned in nine weeks where he finished as a top-10 running back, including three where he was overall PPR RB1. His 1,608 rushing yards are a career-best and he tied his career-high with 12 rushing touchdowns as well. His 51 receptions are just icing on the cake as Jacobs was a PPR dynamo who handled over 80% of the rushing opportunities for Las Vegas.

As good as this season was, Jacobs has some uncertainty moving forward. He is set to be a free agent this offseason and there are no guarantees he will go to a team who will give him 20 or more touches per game as the Raiders did. Even if Las Vegas resigns Jacobs, I expect him to settle as more of a back-end RB1 in 2023.

Christian Watson’s Touchdown Efficiency

It took Christian Watson almost half the season to get going, but once he did, he exploded. From Week 10 to Week 13, Watson scored seven touchdowns in four games. This boosted him to WR3, WR8, WR10 and WR8 finishes in that span. His seven touchdowns on the season are tied for 11th most in the league, but they came on just 36 receptions. Watson won’t be able to repeat this type of efficiency, although with an increased route tree and target share, he could be one of the bigger breakouts in 2023. He is the perfect best-ball target as a boom/bust WR3, but in redraft, he will be a price-dependent target for me to be in on him next year.

Diontae Johnson’s Touchdown Inefficiency

In contrast to the aforementioned Watson statistic, Diontae Johnson has yet to score this year despite being targeted 137 times and hauling in 84 passes. We have to go back to 1961 as a comparison when Hall of Famer Raymond Berry caught 75 passes without scoring a touchdown. The good news for Johnson is that he still has one game left to keep his name out of the record book.

As for fantasy implications, Johnson is looking like someone I will want to be back in on next season. The Steelers will bring in a new offensive coordinator, and with Kenny Pickett having a full offseason with the team, Johnson should bounce back nicely. Consider this as well: If Johnson scored just two touchdowns this year, he would go from the WR29 to the WR24.

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Jason Kamlowsky is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Jason, check out his archive and follow him on Twitter @JasonKamlowsky.