72 days – that’s how long it will be before the brown egg flies across the screens on televisions all over the world. Draft and free agency are behind us and slowly but surely the fantasy gamers are waking up from their summer slumber. High time for us at TOUCHDOWN24 to give all managers a long overdue ranking update for all positions in the coming weeks. The quarterbacks will start today, where there will only be marginal changes at the top compared to last year.
Before we jump into the rankings, a small note from me: Ranking players before each fantasy draft is a good way to keep track of time pressure. But even better are tiers, i.e. groups of players who have roughly the same value. They help you to see where the value currently lies in the draft and where you might leave it.
A small example to illustrate: You are “on the clock” and still have not picked a quarterback for your team. There are about four to five quarterbacks left on the board, though, all ranked in the same tier (let’s say Tier 2). The running backs, on the other hand, only have one option from their own tier, behind which there is a massive drop-off in quality.
In this case, it makes more sense to take the running back, even though it might be the third or even fourth on your team, since you can expect a Tier 2 quarterback to still be on the board in the next round is. It’s decisions like this that will help you keep value on the draft board and put together the best possible team.
If you’ve mastered this strategy, you’re now ready for our 2022 NFL Year Quarterback Rankings. Here we go:
Tier 1: The best of the best
1. Josh Allen, Bufallo Bills
2. Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers
3. Kyler Murray, Arizona Cardinals
4. Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs
5. Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens
The absolutely elite quarterbacks are represented in this tier, for which you will probably have to access in round 2 or 3 in the draft. What Murray, Allen and Jackson get on the floor, Mahomes and Herbert make up for with their incredible passing efficiency. For me, Allen is clearly in first place due to his status as the Bills’ de facto goal line back, behind which I think every position in the top five can be debated.
Josh Allen became the first signal-caller since 2003-04 Daunte Culpepper to post back-to-back overall QB1 finishes.
Allen (31 career rushing touchdowns) has a real chance to pass Michael Vick (36) by the end of 2022.
Alen had 66.3 more expected fantasy points than any other QB
– Ian Hartitz (@Ihartitz) June 17, 2022
Tier 2: The remaining QB1s
6. Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles
7. Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals
8. Tom Brady, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
9. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys
10. Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams
11. Russell Wilson, Denver Broncos
Maybe I’m a little too optimistic about hurts, but no other QB had more points per dropback (.63) last year than the Eagles’ starting quarterback. With the signing of AJ Brown, Philly should be less run-heavy than last year, which plays into Hurts’ cards. The other options in Tier 2 are all good to elite passers, but don’t have the same upside on the ground as Tier 1 QBs
A.J. Brown and Jalen Hurts are putting in that offseason work ?
(? @1kalwaysopen_) pic.twitter.com/aBSPNjXDVB
— PFF Fantasy Football (@PFF_Fantasy) June 23, 2022
Tier 3: QB2s mit Upside
12. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers
13. Derek Carr, Las Vegas Raiders
14. Trey Lance, San Francisco 49ers
15. Deshaun Watson, Cleveland Browns
16. Justin Fields, Chicago Bears
17. Kirk Cousins, Minnesota Vikings
18. Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins
Without his favorite reference station, Davante Adams, Rodgers slips out of the top two tiers in my fantasy rankings. While Rodgers has shown his ability to perform magic without Adams in individual games, a full season will clearly demonstrate the absence of the league’s top receiver. Still, the two-time MVP in a row is still a solid option with upside, as are the other quarterbacks in Tier 3.
Tier 4: The remaining QB2s
19. Ryan Tannehill, Tennessee Titans
20. Matt Ryan, Indianapolis Colts
21. Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars
22. Zach Wilson, New York Jets
23. Jameis Winston, New Orleans Saints
24. Mac Jones, New England Patriots
This is where we’re slowly getting into the area of rankings, where you shouldn’t be looking for fantasy starters anymore, but rather backups for your starter. Tannehill and Ryan play a run-first offense and Winston has an all-new offense in New Orleans with no coaching genius Sean Payton around – her upside is limited. Last year’s rookies in Tier 4 haven’t shown enough to be really viable fantasy options, but with the exception of Jones they have more upside than Ryan and company, especially Trevor Lawrence.
I truly believe Trevor Lawrence becomes a top-12 fantasy QB this season
— Adam Koffler (@AdamKoffler) June 22, 2022
Tier 5: QB3s with no real upside
25. Daniel Jones, New York Giants
26. Jared Goff, Detroit Lions
27. Carson Wentz, Washington Commanders
28. Marcus Mariota, Atlanta Falcons
29. Mitchell Trubisky, Pittsburgh Steelers
30. Sam Darnold, Carolina Panthers
31. Davis Mills, Houston Texans
32. Drew Lock, Seattle Seahawks
If you don’t play in a Superflex league with multiple quarterback spots, you can skip this section of the ranking. Tier 5 QBs all play on weak offense or have too many trouble spots in their own play to be relevant in single-QB leagues. In Superflex leagues, I’d most likely go on the upside of quarterbacks like Jones, Goff, and Wentz, who have already shown themselves capable of at least some solid fantasy performances on their good days.
One name that has not fallen in the rankings so far is Malik Willis. The former Liberty quarterback is likely to sit behind Ryan Tannehill on the bench and study all year in Tennessee. He needs an injury from Tannehill to be fantasy relevant as early as 2022 – and even then the Titans would probably just be leaning even more on Derrick Henry. As a late round flyer and in deep leagues, feel free to draft Willis or I’d stay away from the 23-year-old.
And now it’s your turn: Which ranking do you not agree with at all? Who flies under the fantasy radar for you and who gets overrated? Feel free to write us your opinions via our social channels such as Facebook and Instagram.