DFS Army’s Gthom breaks down which 2022 quarterbacks are falling in best ball drafts, but can still provide incredible value. ADP’s as of 04/25/2022.
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Oct 17, 2021; London, England, United Kingdom; Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) throws the ball against the Jacksonville Jaguars during an NFL International Series game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. The Jaguars defeated the Dolphins 23-20. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Deshaun Watson – Cleveland Browns – Best Ball ADP (113.2)
In a full season, Deshaun Watson is a fantasy football player who can throw for over 4,000 passing yards, reach 30-plus passing touchdowns (including at least 3-or-4 on the ground) and rush for 250 yards. From 2018 – 2020 he finished as the QB5 overall every season.
The former Clemson product has the ability to finish as the number one quarterback in all of fantasy football. Watson’s talent, plus the opportunity around him with Cleveland, may be enough to get the Browns to the Super Bowl.
The not-so-obvious reason for Watson slipping in drafts is the legal issues that surround him. At this time, Watson will not face criminal charges but there are civil cases against him that are still pending a resolution.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell left the door open for a possible suspension of Watson when he said ‘a suspension has yet to be determined, but a decision will come.’ Goodell did not provide a time frame on the suspension decision.
Watson is looking at missing six-or-more games according to the league’s personal conduct policy, but that potentially leaves 11 games of having Watson accrue fantasy points. That is a good chunk of games for a guy who has a ceiling of 40-fantasy points.
Some of the quarterbacks being drafted over Watson are inexperienced, and-or, inferior in the talent department. Grabbing Watson along with another formidable quarterback as a plan-B creates a solid rotation of best ball quarterbacks for a fantasy manager.
Check out the Top-3 Value Picks at RB for Best Ball
Kirk Cousins – Minnesota Vikings – Best Ball ADP (113.8)
Kirk Cousins always causes fantasy football players to overlook him. In best ball, he certainly has the ceiling to bring stakeholders high-end fantasy finishes.
In 2021, Cousins had four weeks where he finished as a top-six quarterback and eight weeks where he finished top-12 at his position. The 10-year vet also finished with 21-plus fantasy points seven times and even achieved 28.5-fantasy points in Week 6.
The offense around Cousins is well above average too. Cousins will certainly find solace in Justin Jefferson. The third-year receiver has the most receiving yards by any player through their first two seasons. He also has Adam Thielen, K.J. Osborn and Irv Smith JR to spread targets too as well.
I really like taking Cousins with another risky quarterback option. Cousins is solid enough to get fantasy managers there on most weeks but pairing him with a take-the-next-step player, like Trey Lance or Justin Fields, could maximize his value even further in 2022.
Cousins is being drafted as the QB15 but has finished as QB11 over the previous two seasons. While he is the least sexiest on this list, and carries the lowest season-long upside, he consistently has big games and big moments on a week-to-week basis. This makes Cousins an excellent QB2 on your best ball team.
Tua Tagovailoa – Miami Dolphins – Best Ball ADP (140.3)
With new weapons and an offensive minded head coach, Tua Tagovailoa is at a crossroad in his NFL career. Whether or not he excels or flounders is yet to be determined, but in a format like best ball he falls into play as value dart-throw.
The main attraction of Miami’s offseason is obviously Tyreek Hill. The former Kansas City Chief has perennially achieved 1,200 receiving yards, 80 receptions and seven touchdowns throughout his career. Hill will run opposite of sophomore wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, who had a great rookie season. Waddle finished with 104 receptions, 1,015 receiving yards and seven total touchdowns in 2021.
The dual-threat combination of Hill and Waddle is the most appealing part of Tagovailoa. Hill can take any touch to the house while Waddle has yet to reach his ceiling and is coming into his second season. With these two receivers, along with the additions at running back, Tagovailoa carries optimism for fantasy football. Waddle and Hill could be enough to carry the quarterback.
Of course the biggest risk is that Tagovailoa fails to live up to his outlook. The 24-year-old quarterback has never stuffed the stat sheet. In 23 games played across two seasons, Tagovailoa has 4,467 passing yards, 33 total touchdowns, 15 interceptions and a 66.32-completion percentage. His fantasy finish in those seasons were QB32 and QB26, respectively.
Despite his mediocre stats Tagovailoa has hit his ceiling a few times throughout his career, albeit very sparingly. In 2020 he was able to score 28-fantasy points in a single week and in the following season, he hit 28.5-fantasy points in a game as well. Accessing his ceiling 3-or-4 times in 2022, combined with a higher floor, could be enough for Tagovailoa to bring late-round value to his best ball managers.
Currently Tagovailoa is being drafted as the QB18 on Underdog Fantasy and he certainly could finish much higher than this. He has a dart-throw chance to finish inside of the top-10.
MORE FANTASY FOOTBALL ANALYSIS FROM GTHOM:
Best Ball:
Early Redraft Rankings:
- QB rankings 1-12
- RB rankings 1-6 and RB rankings 7-12
- WR rankings 1-6 and WR rankings 7-12
- TE rankings 1-6 and TE rankings 7-12
Follow Gthom on the cesspool they call twitter, @GarettThomas.
