Fortune favors the bold, right? If you follow the consensus and stick to fantasy football draft rankings, you’re probably going to have a good team. But in order to go from good to great, you have to take some chances. You have to go against the consensus or at least zig while everyone else zags. In short, you need to be bold.
Our analysts combed through the NFL rosters and came up with some of their favorite bold predictions. The results and accompanying justifications are below.
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Fantasy Football Bold Predictions
AFC North
| TEAM | Analyst | Prediction |
| Baltimore Ravens | DBro | Rashod Bateman is a top 24 WR |
| Cincinnati Bengals | Joe | Joe Burrow will throw for 45 TDs |
| Cleveland Browns | Joe | Elijah Moore will finish as a top 25 WR in PPR |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | Erickson | Diontae Johnson finishes as a top-10 fantasy WR |
Baltimore Ravens
Rashod Bateman is a top 24 WR
Rashod Bateman was an elite prospect when he arrived in the NFL. Bateman got the first-round draft capital we covet, along with leaving Minnesota with an 83rd-percentile college dominator and 93rd-percentile breakout age. Sadly the talent profile has never been allowed to flourish because injuries have held him back. Bateman looked like a player ready for a full-on breakout last year before getting shelved. In Weeks 1-3, he was the WR34 in fantasy points per game with an 18.8% target share, a 30.3% air yard share, and 3.14 yards per route run. Yes, Bateman has more target competition in the Baltimore passing attack with the arrival of Zay Flowers, Odell Beckham Jr., and Nelson Agholor. Still, if we believe targets are earned, and his collegiate talent profile is real, then we should also believe a breakout of epic proportions is possible. Assuming his health is finally in order. With increased passing volume and a modernized offensive system incoming, Bateman can crush the haters in his wake with a WR2 season in 2023. – DBro
Cincinnati Bengals
Joe Burrow will throw for 45 TDs
With Vonn Bell and Jesse Bates gone from this secondary, the Bengals will find themselves in more shootouts in 2023. That means Joe Burrow throwing the ball and when you increase the need and volume of a quality passer, big numbers will pile up fast. This may sound crazy, but he could even get to 50 if the run game sees injuries. – Joe
Cleveland Browns
Elijah Moore will finish as a top 25 WR in PPR
It’s hard to look at the Browns offense and not see a path for Elijah Moore to be excellent. Moore flashed some serious upside and has never played with anything close to a good NFL QB. Nick Chubb stands alone in the backfield, and with Kareem Hunt gone, there are short yardage targets available that Moore can take over in the slot and really give Deshaun Watson a viable quick outlet option to improve on his slowest release in the NFL in 2022. – Joe
Pittsburgh Steelers
Diontae Johnson finishes as a top-10 fantasy WR
BUT HOW. He can’t score TDs. First off, no. DJ averaged seven receiving TDs per year over the first three seasons. And over the past three seasons, Johnson ranks 5th in total targets (460), 7th in receptions (281) and 9th in target share (25%). As the greatest regression candidate of all time, Johnson can EASILY finish top-10 as he did so in 2021. This doesn’t even feel bold. – Erickson
If you want to dive deeper into fantasy football, be sure to 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 Trade Analyzer – which allows you to instantly find out if a trade offer benefits you or your opponent – we’ve got you covered this fantasy football season.