Lance's 2022 Fantasy Sleepers: Quarterbacks
I don’t normally write an explanation before jumping into these articles because it doesn’t really need an explanation. However, let me explain myself. The rules for my “top” pick and my “3 others” remain the same, they have to actually be sleepers. But I would like to elaborate on the rules behind my rookie and dark horse pick, for better understanding. For the rookie it has to be someone that wasn’t taken in the first round, and isn’t actively being hyped up by analysts. Quarterback is usually the exception with the first round rule because typically the only ones that have a shot at starting are drafted in the first round, that’s not the case this year as you will see below. For the dark horse it has to be someone so far down most people's boards that they forgot that player even exists, or at least that’s the case for RBs, WRs and TEs. For QBs, Kickers and Defenses it just has to be someone you’ll typically find in the 20-32 range, and if they’re name isn’t being talked about, or if they are being talked about it negatively then that’s a bonus!
I’d consider it a successful pick if my “top” pick finishes top ten, my 3 others finish top 15, and my rookie and dark horse finish top 20. Last year I almost hit on my top pick with Kirk Cousins who finished 11th and I knocked my Jalen Hurts pick (in the 3 others) out of the park after he finished 9th. Alright, enough of that, here are my QB sleepers:
Top: Derek Carr (Las Vegas)
Carr finished 13th at QB in fantasy land last year, and he’s never actually finished top ten (11th in 2016 was the closest he’s come), so this counts as a sleeper to me! Having Davante Adams can and will push him over the hump.
3 Others: Jameis Winston (New Orleans), Matt Ryan (Indianapolis), Zach Wilson (NY Jets)
I had Winston listed here last year and then he got hurt and finished 33rd. Having Michael Thomas healthy, a shiny new weapon in Chris Olave, and the always reliable Jarvis Landry will help him push for a top 15 spot. The potential backfire here is a) if he’s not fully healthy, or b) his defensive minded Head Coach elects to focus on running the ball in order lower the chances of Winston making a mistake.
Ryan, to me, seems like an obvious choice here. He's moving to an offense that has more weapons than Atlanta did last year, and I believe he still has juice left in the tank. Michael Pittman Jr. is a clear upgrade over Russell Gage, and as exciting as Cordarrelle Patterson was last year, Jonathan Taylor is the better Running Back (emphasis running).
The schedule doesn't do Wilson a ton of favors, but early talk from the Jets' camp is that he's showing a lot of improvement. They also brought in Garrett Wilson and Breece Hall, and fixed up their defense even more. All the pieces are there for Wilson to take the next step forward, and for the Jets to be a sneaky dark horse in the AFC.
Rookie: Desmond Ridder (Atlanta)
UPDATED POST MAYFIELD TRADE TO THE PANTHERS
I originally picked Matt Corral here, but with Mayfield now in Carolina, I've gotta change it up. Enter Ridder, who, outside of Pickett, I believe has the best chance to win the starting job for his team as a rookie. The talent is far from helpful, but he's an athletic QB with the arm talent to get the job done.
Dark Horse: Baker Mayfield (Carolina)
UPDATED POST TRADE TO THE PANTHERS
Now that he's in Carolina with established veteran talents like CMC, D.J. Moore and Robby Anderson (provided he doesn't retire), Mayfield is in a solid situation to explode. He'll need to keep his ego down and his eyes on the prize, but the talent is there for him to shoot up the rankings and to shut his doubters up.
