Fantasy Football Rankings 2022: Sleepers, breakouts, busts from strong model that nailed Taylor’s big season
Written by Lucky Wilson | KJMM.COM on August 14, 2022
Identifying potential 2022 Fantasy football sleepers, breakouts and busts is a top priority as owners begin their 2022 Fantasy football draft prep. Accordingly, a reliable set of 2022 Fantasy football rankings is critical. 2022 Fantasy football rookies could be difficult to gauge because college production doesn’t always translate to the pros. Drake London and Treylon Burks were both first-round receivers drafted into situations where they have a path to being their respective teams’ No. 1 receiver, but London hurt his knee on Friday, while Burks played well behind several other Titans receivers. Before setting your 2022 Fantasy football draft strategy, be sure to check out the 2022 Fantasy football cheat sheets from the proven computer model at SportsLine.
Last year, the model accurately predicted that Colts running back Jonathan Taylor was being dramatically undervalued. Taylor was being drafted behind running backs like Aaron Jones, Ezekiel Elliott and Austin Ekeler last season but the SportsLine projection model predicted that he’d outproduce all of those backs and be a fixture in your Fantasy football lineups. The result: Taylor led the NFL with 1,811 rushing yards and 18 rushing touchdowns to finish as the overall RB1 in 2021.
The same model has a proven track record providing Fantasy football tips, also identifying A.J. Brown as another sleeper in 2020 and players like Julio Jones and JuJu Smith-Schuster as Fantasy football busts last season. Additionally, it’s called past Fantasy football sleepers like Derrick Henry in 2019, Christian McCaffrey and Alvin Kamara in 2018, and Davante Adams in 2017. Anybody who banked on players like those made a run at their league title.
The model is powered by the same people who generated projections for all three major Fantasy sites, and it beat human experts last season when there was a big difference in ranking. The projections update multiple times daily, so you’re always getting the best Fantasy football advice.
Now, SportsLine has simulated the entire NFL season 10,000 times and released its latest Fantasy football rankings 2022, along with plenty of sleepers, breakouts and busts. Head to SportsLine now to see them.
Top 2022 Fantasy football sleepers
One of the 2022 Fantasy football sleepers the model is predicting: Dolphins running back Chase Edmonds. After spending his first two seasons as a lightly-used reserve who showed potential on a per-touch basis, Edmonds grew into a role with the Cardinals that saw him receive 150 touches or more the last two seasons and he produced in a big way.
Edmonds rushed for 448 yards and a touchdown while adding 53 receptions for 402 yards and four touchdowns as a receiver in 2020. He followed that up with 592 rushing yards and two touchdowns while adding 43 receptions for 311 yards in 2021. Now, he enters a backfield situation in Miami where he has potential to be the most utilized option. That’s a big reason why the model ranks him ahead of backs like Ezekiel Elliott and Clyde Edwards-Helaire, who are being drafted at least 30 picks earlier on average. See more Fantasy football sleepers 2022 here.
Top 2022 Fantasy football breakouts
The model is also projecting Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown as one of its top 2022 Fantasy football breakouts. St. Brown had a strong end to the 2021 season with 51 receptions for 560 yards and five touchdowns over the final six games. Detroit added former Jaguars receiver D.J. Chark in the offseason, but didn’t otherwise do much to bolster the offense.
Chark missed the majority of last season with a hand injury, while tight end T.J. Hockenson had trouble staying on the field as the regular season came to an end. A case could be made that St. Brown’s numbers will improve with both players back on the field in 2022. Hockenson commands significant defensive attention, while Chark’s main job will be to stretch the field vertically, so St. Brown should see plenty of targets on intermediate and underneath routes. See more Fantasy football breakouts 2022 here.
Top 2022 Fantasy football busts
As for players to avoid, the model lists Saints wide receiver Chris Olave as one of its 2022 Fantasy football busts. The rookie from Ohio State was taken in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft and finished his career as a Buckeye with 2,702 receiving yards and 35 touchdowns. Longtime top receiver Michael Thomas is currently on the physically unable to perform list, but the position is still relatively crowded.
Fantasy players who have tracked the Saints for the past few seasons will recognize names like Marquez Callaway and Tre’Quan Smith, but the team also added Jarvis Landry in the offseason. Quarterback Jameis Winston is now throwing footballs without wearing a knee brace following his ACL and MCL injuries last year, but the appeal to his success in 2022 has less to do with gaudy numbers and more to do with limiting mistakes. With plenty of veteran receivers already on the roster, an unsettled QB situation and Thomas waiting in the wings, the model projects that Olave most likely will be mired in a situation with numerous variables that could affect his production. See more Fantasy football busts 2022 here.
How to find proven 2022 Fantasy football football rankings
SportsLine is also extremely high on a surprising quarterback you aren’t even thinking about being taken in the middle rounds of 2022 Fantasy football drafts. This quarterback is listed as a shocking top-five option ahead of superstars like Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson. You can only see who it is, and the 2022 Fantasy football rankings for every player, at SportsLine.
So which 2022 Fantasy Football sleepers, breakouts and busts should you target and fade? And which QB shocks the NFL with a top-five performance? Visit SportsLine now to get 2022 Fantasy Football cheat sheets for every single position, all from the model that called Jonathan Taylor’s huge season, and find out.
The post Fantasy Football Rankings 2022: Sleepers, breakouts, busts from strong model that nailed Taylor’s big season first appeared on CBS Sports.