The Atlanta Falcons have transformed from one of the best wide receiver rooms in the league to a room with more questions than answers over the last 18 months.
While wide receiver Drake London wasn’t the consensus pick to be the 1st wide receiver drafted in 2022, Atlanta jumped on the mismatch-making USC standout with the 8th pick of the draft. That opened the door for him to be the No. 1 wide receiver in an offense continuing to rebuild without longtime star WR Julio Jones or suspended WR Calvin Ridley.
Below, we look at Drake London‘s 2022 fantasy football average draft position (ADP) and where you should draft him.
The combination of London and tight end Kyle Pitts are the building blocks for the Falcons’ future, but it may take some doing to get there quickly. It didn’t help matters that London suffered a knee injury in the first preseason game and, despite head coach Arthur Smith telling the media in the aftermath that the injury was minor, London hasn’t practiced since.
Drake London’s ADP: 101.36
(ADP data courtesy of MyFantasyLeague.com; last updated at time of this publishing – ADPs continually change as more drafts occur)
London is the 40th ranked wide receiver by ADP, which puts him as the top of the end of the WR4 grouping and between other fantasy prospects with either questionable quarterbacks or new locations.
He checks in behind Christian Kirk (Jacksonville Jaguars) at 96.39 and Elijah Moore (New York Jets) at 97.94 and in front of DeVonta Smith (Philadelphia Eagles) at 101.93 and Robert Woods (Tennessee Titans) at 103.19.
[the_huddle]
Drake London’s 2021 stats
Games: 8 (at USC)
Receptions: 88
Receiving yards: 1,084
Receiving touchdowns: 7
Where should you draft London?
For me, a rookie with a suspect journeyman quarterback — Marcus Mariota is very qualified by that standard- – is always a light red flag. A rookie who suffered a knee injury in Week 1 of the preseason and hasn’t been on the field since is a blood red flag on Draft Day.
Players get hurt during the season. Those are the breaks. When you’re selecting players, you don’t want too many negative boxes checked. A substandard QB is a big box. Check. Didn’t get reps in his first preseason. Check. Coaching staff sketchy about a prognosis. Check.
As a late-WR5 in the event that the coaching staff was telling the truth and a solid front cast of wide receivers previously drafted in front of him, London makes sense. His ability to catch a ball thrown to a spot is exceptional. The ability of Mariota to get it to that spot? Not so much.
If you’re in this spot in a redraft league and London is calling, take DeVonta Smith instead and move on.
Play our free daily Pick’em Challenge and win! Play now!
Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter and like us on Facebook.
Access more NFL coverage:
BetFTW | TheHuddle Fantasy Football | BearsWire | BengalsWire | BillsWire | BroncosWire | BrownsWire | BucsWire | CardsWire | ChargersWire | ChiefsWire | ColtsWire | CommandersWire | CowboysWire | DolphinsWire | EaglesWire | FalconsWire | GiantsWire | JaguarsWire | JetsWire | LionsWire | NinersWire | PackersWire | PanthersWire | PatriotsWire | RaidersWire | RamsWire | RavensWire | SaintsWire | SeahawksWire | SteelersWire | TexansWire | TitansWire | VikingsWire | DraftWire | TouchdownWire | ListWire
Gannett may earn revenue from Tipico for audience referrals to betting services. Tipico has no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. See Tipico.com for Terms and Conditions. 21+ only. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO).
[lawrence-newsletter]
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=3472]