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Five fantasy football quarterback values and sleepers to target in the middle rounds of 2022 drafts. Can these quarterbacks surpass their ADP expectations?
Once you reach the middle rounds of drafts, everyone wants to draft high-upside players that can provide a great return on value. You can afford to take some risks on a variety of different players, including forgotten veterans, players returning from injuries, or even skilled players with potential playing time concerns.
It's essential to have at least a handful of these players at each position heading into your fantasy football drafts, no matter the format. Here are some mid-round quarterbacks for you to consider drafting this season.
Our editors have hand-picked these specific NFL players for your draft prep enjoyment. Normally only available to Premium subscribers, the outlooks below are meant to give you a taste of the in-depth analysis you receive with our industry-leading 2022 Draft Kit. Be sure to subscribe today and start reading all 300+ of our 2022 player outlooks, along with many other premium articles and tools available exclusively in our 2021 Draft Kit.
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Dak Prescott, Cowboys, Fantasy Football Outlook
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott's arsenal of weaponry will look a lot different to start the 2022 season, as two of his top-three wide receivers will be new faces in Week 1.
After the departure of Amari Cooper to the Cleveland Browns and Cedrick Wilson Jr. to the Miami Dolphins, CeeDee Lamb, James Washington, and rookie Jalen Tolbert will lead the wide receiver room to start the year as Michael Gallup could miss some time in the early portion of the season while he recovers from ACL surgery.
The offensive line unit protecting the Dallas franchise quarterback got a facelift as well, with La'el Collins and Connor Williams no longer in the picture. After a devastating injury in the 2020 season, Prescott once again found himself as a solid fantasy QB1 in 2021, finishing the season with 20.7 points per game which was good for ninth among quarterbacks. Prescott threw for 4,449 yards and 37 touchdowns and was fairly efficient as a passer.
He finished with 7.5 yards per attempt (10th), 0.5 fantasy points per dropback (11th), and a 74.0% true completion percentage (4th). Now being two years removed from his gruesome injury, we could see Prescott use his legs a bit more, as 2021 saw him finish with a career-low in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns in a full season.
From 2016-to-2019, Prescott averaged 305 rushing yards and 5.3 rushing touchdowns per season, which is far better than the 146 rushing yards and one touchdown he finished with in 2021.
Considering he gets an offseason where he is fully healthy, the 28-year-old is set up to have yet another strong showing in his seventh season. Yes, the loss of Cooper certainly doesn't do him any favors, but the likes of Dalton Schultz, Lamb, and Gallup are a formidable group of receiving threats to sustain QB1 fantasy production.
It is possible an increase in rushing volume will heighten his fantasy floor, but Prescott should still be valued as a lower-end QB1. He has some upside considering his weak strength of schedule in 2022 and makes for a great target to those who prefer to wait on drafting a quarterback.
Tom Brady, Buccaneers, Fantasy Football Outlook
Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady announced he was retiring from the NFL during the offseason. The 44-year-old's retirement lasted about a month, and he decided to run it back with Tampa Bay for at least one more season. He was terrific in 2021, throwing for 5,316 yards, 43 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions while rushing for 81 yards and two scores over 17 games.
The GOAT has shown no signs of slowing down and has now thrown for at least 40 touchdowns in back-to-back seasons. He led the NFL with 719 pass attempts, 47 more than any other quarterback in 2021.
Tampa Bay's defensive coordinator Todd Bowles replaced Bruce Arians as the team's head coach. However, fantasy managers can expect the same pass-heavy approach in 2022 as offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich is still calling plays.
The seven-time Super Bowl Champion will be without All-Pro tight end Rob Gronkowski, Pro Bowl guard Ali Marpet who both recently retired, and Chris Godwin for part of the season as he recovers from a late-season torn ACL. Brady is currently ranked seventh among all quarterbacks in the latest Rotoballer quarterback rankings.
Still, managers can expect the GOAT to continue to defy father time and compile another 40-plus touchdown campaign in 2022, making him a high-end fantasy QB1 in what might be the final year of his incredible career.
Derek Carr, Raiders, Fantasy Football Outlook
Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr was given a gift this offseason when the new front office regime promptly sent their first and second-round picks in the 2022 NFL Draft to the Green Bay Packers in exchange for wide receiver Davante Adams.
The pair are now reunited from their college days at Fresno State, and the Raiders offense is looking quite potent with a trio of pass-catchers in Adams, Darren Waller, and Hunter Renfrow.
In a recent interview, Adams was asked about the switch from Rodgers and Carr and claimed that "as far as talent and ability, it's real similar, if I'm keeping it real." Carr signed a 3-year, $121.5 million extension with the Raiders this offseason. While his fantasy floor is relatively safe, Carr has only topped 30+ touchdown passes once in a season.
With behind-the-times Jon Gruden now gone and offensive guru Josh McDaniels taking over the helm, can they fix Carr's woes in the red zone? Carr has thrown for over 4,000 yards in four straight seasons and led the Raiders to the playoffs last season. With the AFC West now turned into a full-on powerhouse, every divisional game feels like it will be a boat race.
Given the improvements made to the offense, Carr feels likely to outperform his current QB14 ADP. He is also an intriguing pairing in Superflex formats with a quarterback like Jalen Hurts or Trey Lance, which provides you with a safe floor and league-winning upside every week.
Matthew Stafford, Rams, Fantasy Football Outlook
It took a while, but long-time Detroit Lions quarterback and now Los Angeles Rams passer Matthew Stafford finally broke through and reached the promised land. Yes, it took a change of scenery and a loaded offense, and whatever you want to think that helped Stafford get that chip.
Does any of that take from his talents? No, not at all. Because the 34-year-old has been a legit stud for all of his career. Barring his first two years in the league (13 of 32 possible games started), Stafford has averaged 17.7 FP per game while finishing as the average QB12 in the 2011-2021 span. Only Tom Brady has appeared in 160+ games since 2011 (included), putting up a higher FPPG average than Stafford.
Even if you lower the bar to 100+ games played, Stafford would still rank sixth-best in FPPG behind Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Cam Newton, and Russell Wilson. Not bad company.
The Rams have kept their offense intact, barring the virtually-impactless exchange of Odell Beckham Jr. (free agent departure) for Allen Robinson II (free agent signing). I said that because OBJ only played eight regular-season games for the Rams last year (average of 10.9 PPR points per game), and A-Rob logged 12 starts for the Bears while averaging 7.3.
Assuming a little bounce-back season from Robinson, he should reach that 10-point average and leave things where they stood last year. Stafford is one of the premier QBs in the NFL, a proven champion, and most probably the cheapest (in terms of ADP) option locked into a top-12 finish at the position with upside for a top-6 fantasy campaign.
Russell Wilson, Broncos, Fantasy Football Outlook
Russell Wilson has taken his talents to Denver, Colorado, after spending 10 years in Seattle. Last season Wilson missed three games and finished the fantasy season as QB16. It was the first time he did not finish as a top-10 fantasy quarterback in eight years.
Last season, he was armed with two reliable pass catchers, DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett, and was hampered with a hand injury; the 34-year-old still managed to complete 64.8% of his passes while tossing the ball 7.8 yards per attempt. Now Wilson lands in Denver, where he is gifted with reliable pass catchers.
His arsenal includes wide receivers Jerry Jeudy, Courtland Sutton, tight end Albert Okwuegbunam, and running backs Melvin Gordon and Javonte Williams. Wilson will now be playing under new head coach Nathaniel Hackett. Hackett, previously the offensive coordinator for the Green Bay Packers, helped boost quarterback Aaron Rodgers to two MVP awards.
According to Next Gen Stats, Wilson, who ranks first among other stats passing touchdowns and passes of 20-plus yards, should produce better than Rodgers (Wilson has more weapons) 2021 season, where he finished fantasy as QB6 with 531 passing attempts for 4115 passing yards and 37 touchdowns.
The Wisconsin product had 400 passing attempts for 3,113 passing yards and 25 touchdowns. He also rushed for 183 yards with two rushing touchdowns. Wilson should see himself playing in a faster offense. Last season Seattle ranked last in average plays per game (56.1). The Packers, under Hackett, ranked 18th (62.6). His passing opportunities will increase, moving from the run-first mentality of Pete Carroll to the West Coast hybrid style of Hackett.
In the 2021 season, the Seahawks passed the ball on average 29.1 times a game (32nd ranked), while the Packers passed the ball on average 34.6 times a game (18th ranked). As stated earlier by many, Hackett and the Denver Front Office did not acquire Wilson to hand the ball off.
He is 14th among all quarterbacks in the latest RotoBaller rankings, behind both Kirk Cousins and Aaron Rodgers. Wilson will enter the season with more weapons and an offensive-minded head coach for the first time in his career. That's getting a bargain for someone with a high ceiling and a high floor.
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