The Fantasy Footballers “My Guys” For 2022

Merry Fantasy Christmas! The Fantasy Footballers have announced their official  “My Guys” for the upcoming 2022 season. Each season, Andy, Mike, and Jason go out on a limb and pick three players each they believe will help you on your way to a #footclan title.

So, what’s a #myguy? It’s more than just someone you think will be good for fantasy. We’re talking about the players you can’t stop drafting; players who could crush their draft capital and send you on your way to a Footclan title. These players often come with risk, but you believe. It’s the players you’re tying your fantasy fortunes–nay, reputation–to, and the ones you’ll hang your hat on for all time. So take your shot. Check out the podcast and share your #myguys on Twitter for all the world to see. Now let’s ride.

Andy’s My Guys for 2022

Allen Robinson II, WR (LAR)

Sleeper ADP: 5.11/WR23 || Underdog ADP: 4.05/WR18

To start things off, Andy is jumping right into the #myguy danger zone with Allen Robinson II, who finds himself in a new situation after a disastrous 2021 season. The story of Allen Robinson has been a laundry list of quarterbacks (Blake Bortles, Mitchell Trubisky, Justin Fields) who haven’t been able to get it done through the air. But let’s take it in a different direction. Robinson’s head coaches have been Gus Bradley, Doug Marrone, and Matt Nagy. Not helpful. But now Robinson enters the Sean McVay ecosystem. Since McVay became head coach in Los Angeles in 2017, the Rams have targeted the wide receiver position a league-leading 67% of the time. That’s #1 in the NFL over that span, and it’s not just because of Cooper Kupp. Until his season-ending injury, Robert Woods was the WR11 and had 16 red-zone targets in 9 games. Allen Robinson should fill the Robert Woods role, except he’s a contested-catch dominator, two years younger, and 25 pounds heavier. He’s dominating in camp and being paid like a star, so Andy is calling his shot for Allen Robinson to find that magical connection with Matthew Stafford and finish the season as a top-12 receiver one of the fantasy MVPs on a lot of championship rosters.

A.J. Dillon, RB (GB)

Sleeper ADP: 6.03/RB25 || Underdog ADP: 6.05/RB23

We all know Aaron Jones is great. He’s the name brand, the fancy stuff. But sometimes you can’t pay the premium, so you buy in bulk. If you pick the right stuff, it might even taste as good as the big name. We have to remember just how much work A.J. Dillon got last season: Aaron Jones had 223 touches; Dillon had 221. Jones and Dillon had 6 goal-line carries each last season, and Dillon isn’t just a bruiser. He had 34 receptions last season. Perhaps most importantly, he has the stamp of approval from Aaron Rodgers, who is now without Davante Adams and doesn’t mind checking down to his running backs. In the last 10 years, running back teammates who see 200 touches each always end up in the top 24. Despite finishing as the RB24 last season, Dillon is still being drafted as the RB25. He represents a massive value for his draft position, and he’s got league-winning upside if Aaron Jones misses time.

Mike Williams, WR (LAC)

Sleeper ADP: 5.02/WR19 || Underdog ADP: 3.09/WR14

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Mike Williams got off to an incendiary start in 2021– he was the overall WR1 through Week 5 and finished as the WR10 despite some nagging injuries. He’s being drafted as the WR19, despite signing a 3-year, $60 million extension as the explosive option in a Justin Herbert-led offense. Reports out of camp are encouraging, with Williams adding intermediate route running to his deep ball threat. Herbert should throw for 40 touchdowns, and Williams is the perfect type of player to inject week-winning volatility into your lineup. Per Rich Hribar, Williams only secured four-of-fourteen endzone targets, so he could be in line for some serious positive touchdown regression. He’s a huge value for where he’s being drafted, and his 2022 could be even better.

Jason’s My Guys

Jalen Hurts, QB (PHI)

Sleeper ADP: 6.06/QB7 || Underdog ADP: 6.03/QB6

Jason leads things off with no surprise here; it’s Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts. There are lots of reasons he could give for his first #myguy. He could tell you Hurts finished as the QB6 in 2021 with only 16 passing touchdowns, and now A.J. Brown is in town. One could bring up the fact that Hurts has more rushing attempts per game than Lamar Jackson, or he could remind you that Hurts’ ADP sits behind Kyler Murray, Lamar Jackson, Patrick Mahomes, and Justin Herbert. Instead, let’s compare Jalen Hurts to fantasy darling Patrick Mahomes. Since Hurts became a starter, he has the same fantasy points per game (21.3 fppg), top-12 fantasy finishes (13), and weeks scoring more than 25 fantasy points (6). In that same span, Hurts has had fewer interceptions (12 vs. 17) and games with less than 15 fantasy points (3 vs. 5). To top it all off, Mahomes just lost Tyreek Hill, and Hurts has a new WR1 in A.J. Brown. With proven fantasy performance and an ADP three rounds later than Mahomes, Hurts is a league-winning steal in the sixth round.

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Chase Edmonds, RB (MIA)

Sleeper ADP:8.09/WR35 || Underdog ADP: 8.07/RB29

One of the points of a #myguy is putting your money where your mouth is. Chase Edmonds is being left for dead in drafts, but he’s Jason’s third-most drafted running back in his Underdog Best Ball leagues. Speaking of following the money, Edmonds was the first running back signed in free agency this season and is the 12th-highest cap hit among running backs in 2022. Edmonds is a perfect fit for the offensive scheme of Mike McDaniel and the Miami Dolphins, and he knows it. Jason projects Edmonds for a conservative 188 carries and 52 receptions. It’s very achievable, and Edmonds doesn’t have to have a massive workload to pay off in fantasy. Since 2018, the worst fantasy finish for a running back with those numbers was RB22 (Le’Veon Bell). Edmonds is 6th in fantasy points per touch, and when Edmonds has averaged 12 or more opportunities per game, his fantasy production hasn’t declined. In those cases, he’s averaged 14.1 fantasy ppg, 12th in the NFL. He’s being paid like the starter, perfect for the system, and he’s being drafted in the 8th round. A steal.

Gabe Davis, WR (BUF)

Sleeper ADP: 7.06/WR34 || Underdog ADP: 4.09/WR22

The man, the myth, the legend. The Buffalo Bills are the betting favorites to win the Super Bowl. They have an elite offense, yet they lost their #2 and #3 receivers this offseason. Why haven’t they rushed out to replace those 198 targets? Because the Bills believe the answer is already on the team in “the archangel” Gabriel Davis himself. In the first eight weeks of 2021, Emmanuel Sanders was great for fantasy and was averaging 83.5% of offensive snaps, while Gabriel Davis was sitting at an irrelevant 35% snap share. The story changed after Week 9, and the snap share essentially flipped between Sanders (36% snaps) and Davis (77% snaps) when the playoffs rolled around. And we know what happened in the playoffs, when Gabriel Davis went off for 8 rec/201 yds/4 TDs in the AFC Championship, one of the greatest games of all time. The Bills trust Gabe Davis. The pendulum has swung back now, and Gabe Davis is being undervalued. But don’t minimize the playoff performance. In regular season games, Davis has 13 receiving touchdowns in his first two years, trailing only Justin Jefferson from the 2020 draft class. Davis has 23 endzone targets in the last two years, more than Davante Adams and Cooper Kupp. He’s a legit red-zone threat on the best offense in the league, and he’s being drafted in the seventh round.

Mike’s My Guys

Courtland Sutton, WR (DEN)

Sleeper ADP:5.05/WR20 || Underdog ADP: 3.10/WR16

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Courtland Sutton has everything you want in a top receiver. He broke out his sophomore season, going for 1,100 yards and six touchdowns in 2019. Sutton is only 26 years old and just signed a contract extension in 2021. At 6’4″, 215 lbs, he’s a dominant downfield threat and was 2nd among wide receivers in average depth of target (15.4 aDOT) in 2021. The issue with Sutton has been quarterback play. Mr. Unlimited Russell Wilson is now in Denver, and “the juice is just different” now. Yeah, baby. Russ always has at least one top-15 wideout and has the most end zone pass attempts in the NFL since 2018. We haven’t seen Jerry Jeudy show that he can be a top receiver, and Sutton’s deep ball skill set matches nicely with Wilson’s love for the moon ball. Tim Patrick‘s season-ending injury clears up the path even more to a WR1 season for Sutton. He’s a good wide receiver who finally has a good quarterback, so don’t overthink it.

Allen Lazard, WR (GB)

Sleeper ADP: 9.08/WR48 || Underdog ADP: 7.03/WR37

Move over, lizard kings and queens! It’s Lazard King time! Davante Adams is gone, leaving his 30% target share behind. Allen Lazard is an athletic 6’5″, 227 lbs, and he presents Aaron Rodgers with a huge target in the passing game. Over the final five games of 2021, Lazard scored five times and finished as a top-24 receiver in four of five weeks. And that was with only a 16% target share. There are some hotter names at receiver in rookies Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs, but Aaron Rodgers doesn’t historically target rookie receivers. Further, Rodgers had this to say about Lazard, according to Curtis Patrick: “Obviously, Allen Lazard is going to step into the No. 1 role, and I think it’s going to be a very seamless transition for him.” Yeesh. Especially at Lazard’s ADP in the 9th round, Mike is going to trust the player with established chemistry with a future Hall of Famer.

Michael Pittman Jr., WR (IND)

Sleeper ADP: 4.05/WR13 || Underdog ADP: 3.04/WR12

Mike officially reclaims his mayoral position in Pitty City with his final #myguy for 2022. In 2021 Pittman became one of only seven second-year wide receivers since 2010 to post an 85 rec/1,000 yd /6 TD season, putting him alongside names like A.J. Green, Odell Beckham Jr., and Josh Gordon. Michael Pittman saw 129 targets last season and is the clear-cut No. 1 in Indianapolis. And he’s getting a QB upgrade. Only 99 of Pittman’s 129 targets were deemed catchable from Carson Wentz, which ranked 44th in the league among receivers. Matt Ryan has a long history of supporting WR1s and should still have enough left in the tank to help Pittman finish as an elite receiver in 2022. Pittman’s ADP is pricey,  but Mike is pushing in his chips and backing his guy to break into the elite tier of NFL receivers this season.