With the regular season officially beginning on Thursday, now is the perfect time to go out on a limb and cook up some hot, improbable (but not impossible) takes. The vast majority of bold predictions miss the mark by season’s end, but that doesn’t mean that there’s no value in this exercise. Practically all bold predictions are within the range of outcomes for the players discussed, and each of them is possible if things break in their favor.
For instance, analyst Jacob W. Dunne correctly projected that Najee Harris would finish inside the top five at the running back position in last year’s article. Dennis Sosic was only 172 Tyler Boyd receiving yards away from being right on his forecast of three 1,000-yard Cincinnati Bengals wide receivers. Our own Mike Maher would have been right about Jalen Hurts finishing as a top-five quarterback if Hurts had played in all 17 games and was just a slightly better passer. He was sixth in fantasy points per game among QBs in 2021.
Remember, the primary objective of bold predictions isn’t to get them exactly right; it’s to highlight the players with a strong chance to produce an outlier season and paint a picture of what that ceiling or floor looks like and why it could happen. Read on for our featured analysts’ bold predictions.
Q. What is one bold fantasy prediction for the upcoming season and why could it happen?
“Rhamondre Stevenson ranked as PFF’s highest-graded rookie running back in 2021. The last four rookie RBs to do that — Alvin Kamara, Nick Chubb, Josh Jacobs and Jonathan Taylor — finished as top-eight fantasy RBs in Year 2. My bold prediction is that Stevenson finishes 2022 as a top-12 fantasy RB. It’s Rhamondre’s world, and we are just lucky to bear witness to it.”
– Andrew Erickson (FantasyPros)
“Sammy Watkins leads the Packers in receptions, receiving yards and TD catches. Fantasy managers have long considered Watkins a tease, but he has size, speed and — most important to Aaron Rodgers — eight seasons of NFL experience. Would it really be a shocker if the fourth overall pick of the 2014 draft turned out to be Rodgers’ favorite wide receiver and was targeted more frequently than Allen Lazard (who hasn’t drawn more than 60 targets in any of his four NFL seasons) and a pair of rookies? Don’t be surprised if Watkins has a big Week 1 and becomes a popular waiver target in Week 2.”
– Pat Fitzmaurice (FantasyPros)
“JuJu Smith-Schuster finishes the year as a top-six wide receiver in PPR scoring. Ben Roethlisberger was a noodle-armed shell of his former self the past two seasons, yet JuJu still had 97 catches and nine touchdowns in 2020 before an injury-shortened 2021. Smith-Schuster’s 2019 season was a complete waste with Duck Hodges and Mason Rudolph starting all but two games. So the last time JuJu had even competent quarterback play, he caught 111 passes for 1,426 yards and seven touchdowns. Now he has the best quarterback in the league, is the WR1 in the Chiefs’ offense and is still just 25 years old.”
– Michael Tomlin (Fantasy Six Pack)
“Michael Thomas will finish as a WR1. In the three games he played last season, Thomas was targeted on 33 percent of the team’s pass attempts. Injuries and two years of absences have erased memories of his historical season in 2019. Now with Jameis Winston healthy and added offensive weapons in Chris Olave and Jarvis Landry, teams will struggle to contain Thomas in 1-on-1 situations.”
– Elvin Ryan (The Pregame HQ)
“JK Dobbins has over 45 receptions this year. The Ravens continually spoke last offseason about wanting to get Dobbins more involved in the passing game before, sadly, Dobbins was ruled out for the year. We were deprived of the chance to see that scheme, and while people might tell you Lamar Jackson doesn’t throw to his running backs, the Ravens have continuously added backs who can catch the ball well. When Dobbins is healthy, we’ll finally see how they plan to use him, and I won’t be surprised when that involves the passing game.”
– Tom Strachan (NFL Best Ball)
“We’ve been spoiled by the recent success of rookie wide receivers like Ja’Marr Chase, Jaylen Waddle and Justin Jefferson, but this year’s class might not live up to those standards. For that reason, I believe that no rookie will reach the 1,000-yard mark or finish as a top-20 WR in fantasy. The only first-year wideout who appears set to be the WR1 on his team is Drake London, but QB concerns and a potentially anemic offense, not to mention Kyle Pitts serving as the top target, make it hard to see London truly breaking out. George Pickens, Jahan Dotson and Garrett Wilson are in similar situations, while Treylon Burks figures to start out slowly. Chris Olave would be the best bet to reach 1,000 yards, but if Michael Thomas stays healthy and Alvin Kamara misses no time, Olave is the third target at best.”
– Pierre Camus (RotoBaller)
“My bold prediction is that D’Andre Swift will finish as a top-three RB in PPR leagues for the 2022 season. The last couple of years we’ve seen pass-catching running backs such as Austin Ekeler and Alvin Kamara turn in top-three finishes. Swift has that kind of ability where if he can just stay healthy, a 185-plus-carry season and 90-plus targets are not out of the realm of possibility. A player that talented touching that ball that many times should lead to a lot of good things happening.”
– Jon Jeune (Fantasy Football Diagnostics)
“Christian Kirk will be a top-12 WR. His paycheck indicates he will be on the field every play and be heavily targeted. He is a very versatile receiver and can be positioned to target a defense’s weak spots. The new coaching staff knows how to design an offense to player strengths. ”
– Kev Wheeler (The 33rd Team)
Thanks to the experts for sharing their advice! For more of their insight, be sure to follow each pundit on Twitter (click their names above) and visit their respective sites.
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | SoundCloud | iHeartRadio
If you want to dive deeper into fantasy football, check out our award-winning slate of Fantasy Football Tools as you navigate your season. From our Start/Sit Assistant – which provides your optimal lineup based on accurate consensus projections – to our Waiver Wire Assistant, which allows you to quickly see which available players will improve your team and how much – we’ve got you covered this fantasy football season.
