Lamar Jackson or Kyler Murray: Who’s the better fantasy draft pick in 2022?
With 2022 on the clock for your fantasy football draft, some decisions will be harder than others, especially when two players like QBs Lamar Jackson and Kyler Murray are in their overall rankings and average draft positions (ADP).
Here helps you make the tough decisions of who to accept in tricky tossups. At quarterback, Josh Allen, Justin Herbert and Patrick Mahomes are, in some order, the clear top 3 fantasy options for the upcoming NFL season, but who do you pick as the next QB1 at the start of League Two, Jackson or Murray? Let’s break down who is the better choice:
DOMINATE YOUR DRAFT: Ultimate 2022 Fantasy Cheat Sheet
Lamar Jackson Fantasy Outlook, Projection 2022
Results 2021: QB15 based on total score, QB7 based on average score
Jackson missed a total of five games last season through injury and illness, allowing him to rush for just under 3,000 yards again. He threw for just 16 TDs with 13 interceptions. He fell well short of a third straight 1,000-yard rushing season with just two more TDs there.
When Jackson was on the field, he still produced like a borderline top-half QB1. When he was out, Tyler Hundley and Josh Johnson combined for 1,385 passing yards, 304 rushing yards, for a total of seven TDs.
PPR RANKINGS 2022:
QB’s | RB’s | WRs | TEs | D/STs | foosball | Top 200 | Superflex
The Ravens have improved their offensive line and ready their traditional running game to provide more reliable support for Jackson as JK Dobbins and Gus Edwards are on the mend after neither suffered a loss last season. Baltimore recorded a drop of 592 rushing yards from 2020-21.
The totals are available to Jackson to meet QB4 rebound settlement. He lost big-play wide receiver Marquise “Hollywood” Brown, but he still has prime targets in tight end Mark Andrews and sophomore wideout Rashod Bateman. He also has a rapidly developing connection with James Proche.
STANDARD RANKINGS 2022:
QB’s | RB’s | WRs | TEs | D/STs | foosball | Top 200 | Superflex
Jackson is perfectly healthy and appears to have improved as a passer ahead of his fifth season. Whether he gets his new lucrative pre-season contract extension or later, there’s a source of motivation to justify it with a stellar statistical performance.
2022 FANTASY THRESHOLDS:
QB’s | RB’s | WRs | TEs | D/STs | One from each team
Kyler Murray Fantasy Outlook, 2022 Projection
Results 2021: QB10 based on total score, QB4 based on average score
There were two reasons Murray crashed off his QB2 total in 2020. One was that he only got 10 healthy plays from veteran go-to-wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins. The other was the fact that while he ran a lot less, his rushing production was only about halved (819 yards on 423 yards, 11 TDs on five). Murray himself also missed three games.
RANKING 2022 & DRAFT STRATEGY:
QB’s | RB’s | WRs | TEs | D/STs
Hopkins will play 22 at most 11 games after early serving a PED suspension. Brown was traded from the Ravens to reunite with Murray, his Oklahoma college QB, but he’s an inefficient big-play threat against all-around star Hopkins. Murray wants to be known as a passer and second runner, while the Ravens and Jackson are more embracing his dynamic athleticism as a cornerstone of their offense.
The Cardinals’ other weapons are varied, including wide receivers AJ Green and Rondale Moore and tight end Zach Ertz. While Moore fills the slot-heavy role vacated by Christian Kirk, Darrel Williams replaces Chase Edmonds in the complementary backfield receiving role of James Conner.
AUCTION VALUES 2022 (Standard & PPR):
QB’s | RB’s | WRs | TEs | D/STs | foosball | In total
While Jackson should be hitting more than 3,000 passing yards, Murray’s first three seasons suggest he will stay under 4,000 passing yards. Then it comes down to speeding up production and who can shoot past 30 combo tank destroyers.
While it seems like Murray got an upgrade with Brown, there’s more reason to think it’ll be more status quo for him with solid ground as QB1. There are just more factors in Jackson’s favor to outperform Murray.
The choice is…Jackson