The 2022 NFL season is approaching, and that means it’s time to prepare for your fantasy football draft. What better way to do that than to practice drafting with our free mock draft simulator! Beyond our tools, we’re also going to have you covered throughout the draft prep season with our content.
One of the most important aspects of completing a successful fantasy football draft is knowing who to target. Sure, there could be ‘value’ that presents itself through the draft, but sometimes there’s a reason a player is ‘falling’ down draft boards. You need to know when to scoop up value and when to move on. Here are Joe Pisapia’s top players to avoid in 2022 fantasy football drafts.
T.J. Hockenson (TE – DET)
T.J. Hockenson has been a hot stater, but injuries have hampered him his first two years in the league. That aside, the Lions drafted Jameson Williams (who has real No. 1 WR upside), signed D.J. Chark and enjoyed a breakout season from Amon-Ra St. Brown, not to mention D’Andre Swift‘s pass-catching ability. Hockenson is a TE1 in theory, not necessarily in practice based on all these factors. I’d much rather take Dalton Schultz over him, who has real No. 2 target appeal in his offense or just wait on the position.
The 2022 NFL season is approaching, and that means it’s time to prepare for your fantasy football draft. What better way to do that than to practice drafting with our free mock draft simulator! Beyond our tools, we’re also going to have you covered throughout the draft prep season with our content.
One of the most important aspects of completing a successful fantasy football draft is knowing who to target. Sure, there could be ‘value’ that presents itself through the draft, but sometimes there’s a reason a player is ‘falling’ down draft boards. You need to know when to scoop up value and when to move on. Here are Joe Pisapia’s top players to avoid in 2022 fantasy football drafts.
T.J. Hockenson (TE – DET)
T.J. Hockenson has been a hot stater, but injuries have hampered him his first two years in the league. That aside, the Lions drafted Jameson Williams (who has real No. 1 WR upside), signed D.J. Chark and enjoyed a breakout season from Amon-Ra St. Brown, not to mention D’Andre Swift‘s pass-catching ability. Hockenson is a TE1 in theory, not necessarily in practice based on all these factors. I’d much rather take Dalton Schultz over him, who has real No. 2 target appeal in his offense or just wait on the position.
Alvin Kamara (RB – NO)
The same approach I took on Ezekiel Elliott last year I’m applying to Alvin Kamara this year. Five years is a really good run for an NFL RB. Year six, that’s where things can start to come apart at the seams. The wear and tear of the league could set in quickly. No one wanted to listen to me last year about Zeke, but hopefully, I have your ear now. Kamara’s PPR appeal dropped dramatically from 80+ receptions per season since he came into the league to 47 in 13 games last year. He saw a career-high in carries (240, but his YPC fell from 5.0 to 3.7 year over the year). Drew Brees is long gone and so is Sean Payton. This offense could look nothing like the one that made Kamara a fantasy stud.
Clyde Edwards-Helaire (RB – KC)
When you have four running backs, you really have none. The problem with the Chiefs is they don’t have a “commitment” to running the football to begin with, and now CEH has Ronald Jones II, Jerick McKinnon and Derrick Gore to compete with for carries. It’s still possible that CEH is the best of this group and wins out the lion’s share, but is that lion’s share worthy of a top-60 ADP? I don’t think so. The Chiefs ranked 20th in rush attempts last year and 23rd in 2020. Too many options, too many outcomes and not enough upside for the investment cost in my opinion.
Kyler Murray (QB – ARI)
Kyler Murray played 14 games last year, and was banged up in some he did play. He also suffered an injury in 2020 that he played through that clearly zapped him of his deep throws for a stretch. His smaller frame makes him a bigger injury risk. Murray’s rush YPC fell from 6.2 to 4.8 and he’ll clearly miss his alpha WR DeAndre Hopkins, who will miss the first six games due to a PED suspension in 2022. If I want a rushing QB, I’ll draft Lamar Jackson, Jalen Hurts or Trey Lance late. Otherwise, I’d rather have “safe” guys like Tom Brady, Matthew Stafford and Joe Burrow over Murray.
Chris Godwin (WR – TB)
Chris Godwin is a great talent on a desirable fantasy offense, but he may be starting the year on the PUP list. At WR24 right now, that’s an expensive cost for a guy missing games and working his way back from an injury. Russell Gage can be had at WR45 and is certainly the cheaper and safer early-season investment.
Elijah Mitchell (RB – SF)
Eli Mitchell came out of nowhere and put up numbers for the 49ers backfield last year. Who’s to say some other RB doesn’t do the same in 2022? They drafted Tyrion Davis-Price and they still have Jeff Wilson Jr. and Trey Sermon on the roster. Mitchell’s rushing metrics were not inspiring, and if Trey Lance does take over, every 49er RB loses TD equity immediately. The Shanahan Family doesn’t have a good history of staying true to the same RB year over year.
Chase Claypool (WR – PIT)
Chase Claypool went from 11 TD to two last year and although Ben Roethlisberger certainly wasn’t a world-beater at the end, Mitchell Trubisky and Kenny Pickett are unproven QBs at the NFL level. George Pickens was drafted by the Steelers and I already think he has more talent than Claypool. He could end up the way of Devin Funchess. Big-bodied WR that teased and then never delivered.
Joe Pisapia’s 2022 Redraft Fantasy Football Rankings