NFL

The Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams blazed up with 420 (No. 23) rushing attempts last season. That marked their lowest finish in the Sean McVay era. We should expect the Rams to have a relatively pass-focused attack once again in 2022. Given the quality of the offense overall, there are certainly fantasy points to be had in this backfield.

Cam Akers offers one of the most high risk-high reward profiles among players currently going in the top three rounds of startups. It’s either a total “that sign can’t stop me because I can’t read” display of ignorance or a complete big dick move to take him there. I’m not sure I’ve got the stones to do it. Conversely, I’m hopping all over the upside that Darrell Henderson carries in the 12th round.

The Jets are in on what seems to be a small batch of players, Garrett Wilson Kayvon Thibodeaux, Sauce Gardner, and Drake London. Joe Douglas takes Thibodeaux and 4 and comes back for the Wide Reciever at no. 10 with Wilson.

After many many hours of Film Analysis, mixed with the results of the last month attending the NFL Combine and Reese’s Senior Bowl, I am ready to release the Top 300 Prospects in the 2022 NFL Draft. This list can change as new things come in, some would call “this is a Bayesian process” and while these prospects workout at their Pro Days this month and take Top-30 visits with NFL teams, things will change. But ever so slightly.

Things that are taken into account to come up with the below draft grades, you may wonder? 1. Film, 2. Athletic Profile, 3. Cody’s DAWG Rating(off-field actions/energy and on-field actions/energy), 4. Role in College vs NFL and how it will translate.

The Chicago Bears ran the ball 475 times in 2021, finishing No. 11 in the league in total rushing attempts. Last season marks only the second time in the Matt Nagy era that Chicago was in the upper half of the NFL in rushing. Nagy is now out, and replacing him is the defensive-minded Matt Eberflus along with new offensive coordinator Luke Getsy. This will be Getsy’s first stint leading an NFL offense. But he was on Matt LaFleur’s offensive staff in Green Bay for the past three years.

I’m not a huge fan of any Bears running backs at their current costs in dynasty. Khalil Herbert is a fine value. But as with most backs in the RB20-30 range, I’m likely opting for wide receiver over David Montgomery in startups. If I can move him to acquire Rashaad Penny plus pieces in a trade package, I’m doing it all day.

The 2022 season officially started a month ago, and we’re about two weeks away from the draft. Teams are hard at work trying to fix last season’s mistakes, and we are hard at work analyzing those teams. There’s never going to be a perfect team, so there is always something that needs to be fixed. Some rosters have more issues than others, but everyone has at least one big need this offseason.

The Cardinals have a solid roster at the top level, but don’t have much depth at pretty much every position. Their season last year tumbled after injuries hit Kyler Murray, J.J. Watt, and DeAndre Hopkins. So far this offseason, the roster has only gotten smaller. Christian Kirk, Chandler Jones, and Chase Edmonds all left. Their weakest position is probably CB, Byron Murphy and Jeff Gladney are serviceable but not true CB1s. With the little cap they have left, perhaps they could give a veteran CB a call hoping they will play on a contender’s discount.

The Philadelphia Eagles were one of the highest-volume rushing teams in the NFL last season. They finished 97 carries above league average and only one short of the league-leading Tennessee Titans. Regardless of where the carries are coming from, the Eagles are one of the most run-heavy teams in the NFL and have plenty of opportunity to go around.

Miles Sanders is likely to become a post-hype sleeper following this season. I’ll be in at cost if interest is unexpectedly low during his impending free agency. Kenneth Gainwell has one more chance, and his prospect profile hints at tantalizing upside. He’s one of the highest-upside zero RB targets in 2022. It would not shock me if he just outplayed Sanders this season.

The Houston Texans had a low-volume rushing attack in 2021, finishing No. 24 in the league in attempts. Their total of 420 was over 30 carries fewer than league average. It marked two consecutive seasons with carry totals near the bottom of the league (they ranked No. 31 in 2020). Houston is likely to be bad again next season, and we don’t have much to go off of to project how much they’d like to either run or throw the ball in an ideal world.

The Texans are going to be bad next season, but volume is the tail that wags the fantasy points dog. If Marlon Mack is healthy, he’s easily the best running back on this team. The other backs currently under contract are Rex Burkhead, Royce Freeman, Scottie Phillips, Dare Ogunbowale, and Darius Anderson. Still only 26, Mack could have one more RB2-level season left in the tank.

PlayerProfiler/RotoUnderworld Head Game Analyst and NFL Draft Analyst Cody Carpentier is back for more; now breaking down his NFL Mock Draft 5.0 in a short team-by-team series. Next up is the Chicago Bears. If you want to see your favorite team, go to Twitter @CarpentierNFL and leave Cody a comment on what team you want to see broken down next.

With the departure of many interior linemen over the last three years, it’s time to build back from the inside. Darian Kinnard is a massive human, and the interior version of Trevor Penning in this draft. During the Senior Bowl, Kinnard had the opportunity to take that next step. But he fell behind his counterparts in Zion Johnson and Cole Strange. Previously discussed as an early-second rounder, the Raiders re-coup some value due to a poor Combine and mediocre Senior Bowl.

The second-best running back on the Browns is D’Ernest Johnson, not Kareem Hunt. He’s one of the few best backup running backs in the league. And he deserves the same kind of sleeper/handcuff buzz in dynasty that guys like Khalil Herbert get. Johnson is also in a unique situation among handcuffs. He’s able to step into legitimate volume with an injury to either Hunt or Nick Chubb. His likelihood of fantasy utility is doubled in relation to guys like Alexander Mattison.

The improvement in quarterback play we’re likely to see when Deshaun Watson takes over for the Browns will be the tide that lifts all boats. Nick Chubb should see the lion’s share of that boost. And D’Ernest Johnson is a sneaky beneficiary as an under-the-radar stud who is likely to be usable in fantasy lineups in 2022. He’s one of the best throw-in trade targets in dynasty.

Derek Carr was great last season and now gets Davante Adams to throw the ball to. He finished as the QB14 in fantasy last season but should improve upon it with the best receiver in the NFL at his disposal and a loaded division with shootout potential. There will be many startable quarterback options this season. Carr is firmly entrenched as one.

Chase Edmonds is already one of the best receivers out of the backfield and will get the opportunity to showcase more of that skillset this season in a revamped Miami offense that saw them acquire Terron Armstead and Tyreek Hill. Miami’s offensive line should hold up better than the last two seasons while plenty of space should be created underneath as defenses have to deal with both Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. The Dolphins offense will improve as a whole, and Edmonds looks like a big beneficiary.