Perhaps the most polarizing of the elite NFL fantasy football quarterbacks is the Baltimore Ravens’ Lamar Jackson. He changed the way the position was viewed with his ability as a rusher and the massive points he compiled when combining his passing yards and rushing ability.
Below, we look at Lamar Jackson’s 2022 fantasy football average draft position (ADP) and where you should draft him.
Two seasons after winning the MVP when he threw for 36 touchdowns and ran for 1,206 yards and 7 more TDs, Jackson and the Ravens were ravaged by injuries that saw his numbers dip severely to 16 touchdown passes and 2 TD runs in 12 games last season.
Lamar Jackson’s ADP: 39.69
(ADP data courtesy of MyFantasyLeague.com; last updated at time of this publishing – ADPs continually change as more drafts occur)
Jackson’s fantasy value has dropped him to 4th among QBs in 2022 ADP analysis. Buffalo’s Josh Allen is 1st with an astronomical ADP of 17.74, followed by Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes (28.65) and Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers (29.67). Arizona’s Kyler Murray (46.86) and Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow (50.07) are 5th and 6th, respectively.
With the $200 million question being when will the Ravens and Jackson agree to a long-term extension – it’s coming because Jackson has a 37-12 record as a starter and you don’t ignore that sort of success – will it impact his fantasy value if he isn’t re-signed before the start of the season and starts making in-game “business decisions.”
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Lamar Jackson’s 2021 stats
Games: 12
Passing yards: 2,882
Completions | attempts: 246 | 382
Passing touchdowns: 16
Interceptions: 13
Carries | rushing yards: 133 | 767
Rushing touchdowns: 2
Where should you draft Jackson?
There have been two schools of thought on Jackson over the last couple of seasons because he has depended too much on his legs to do damage than as a pure passer – despite having a cannon for an arm.
You can’t set a value for 2022 based on his 2021 season. The Ravens were as gutted by injuries as any team in the league, including Jackson missing 5 games. While 2021 was the first time Jackson missed an extended period of time, he has never played every game in a season and with his reckless running style, the potential of taking a big hit that sidelines him is always a possibility.
Once again, the Ravens don’t have much in the way of depth at wide receiver, having traded away Marquise Brown to Arizona in the offseason. Jackson will likely be forced to be just as dominant running the ball as throwing it. The Ravens are going to run a lot by design and, to date, that has always included a steady diet of Jackson taking advantage of his lightning quick speed. If he ever stops being such a threat on the ground, his value will drop. At some point, it’s going to happen, the only question is when?
Jackson is the most dangerous QB in the league in terms of the ability to create explosive plays, but he is too dependent on his rushing ability to be counted on to play every week. His ADP slotting is pretty much spot on, but whoever takes Jackson as their QB1 will likely be quicker to grab a QB2 than other fantasy league owners drafting QBs immediately before and after him.
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