2022 QB fantasy football rankings: How high are Lamar Jackson and Jalen Hurts?

In gearing up for the 2022 fantasy football season, our QB rankings are constantly changing as we gain new information. Now that the key offseason events have come and gone, where do these players rank for redraft leagues heading into 2022? Let’s take a look at the latest consensus rankings at the position for PFN’s fantasy analysts Tommy Garrett and Jason Katz.

2022 QB fantasy football rankings

On the most recent episode of PFN’s Premier Fantasy Football Podcast, Tommy and I kicked off our first of a series of six episodes dedicated to our 2022 redraft rankings with the quarterback position.

The fantasy rankings in the table below are updated daily.

The rankings in the writeups below are correct as of June 24, 2022.

1) Josh Allen | Buffalo Bills

This is as easy as it gets. Josh Allen is coming off back-to-back overall QB1 finishes and is the first player in fantasy history with multiple 400-point seasons.

The Bills are a pass-first offense, ranking second in neutral game script pass rate. Allen also contributes about four fantasy points per game via rushing. He’s the total package and should be the first quarterback off the board in 99% of redraft leagues.

2) Justin Herbert | Los Angeles Chargers

Here’s a player that just keeps getting better. Justin Herbert is the ideal new-age quarterback that is a perfect blend of pocket passion and mobility.

Herbert averaged 23.2 ppg last season, good for an overall QB2 finish. The Chargers beefed up their offensive line and brought back Mike Williams. Herbert’s 11 QB finishes led all quarterbacks last season. While Allen is the clear QB1, it wouldn’t shock me if Herbert unseated him.

3) Lamar Jackson | Baltimore Ravens

We are above consensus on Lamar Jackson here. How quickly the fantasy community forgets that this guy averaged 28.2 ppg in 2019.

From 2019-2020, Jackson had 37 or more pass attempts in a game just four times. He hit that number five times in 2021, with Baltimore throwing at a 60% clip. Last year, the Ravens were forced to abandon their typical run-heavy offense due to the decimation of their backfield, offensive line, and defense. They will return to their running ways this season, and Jackson is set to dominate like he did three years ago.

4) Patrick Mahomes | Kansas City Chiefs

The Chiefs offense underwent some changes this offseason, most notably the departure of Tyreek Hill. While that’s obviously a downgrade for Patrick Mahomes, this is still, in my humble opinion, the most talented quarterback in NFL history.

Since 2018 (62 games), Mahomes has finished as a QB1 in 69% of his games and inside the top 24 in 98% of games while averaging 26.7 ppg. In those 62 games, Mahomes has 45 finishes inside the top 12 (72.5%) and 18 inside the top four (29%). If you remove games in which Mahomes didn’t play the entire game, his rolling four-year average is QB7.9. Allen is the only QB in the same realm, but Mahomes has done it twice as long.

He’s never finished lower than QB6 and never averaged under 20 ppg. Mahomes may not be the guy he was in 2018, but he’s still a locked-in high QB1.

5) Kyler Murray | Arizona Cardinals

I love Kyler Murray, but he frustrates me to no end. Murray finished as the QB4 last, season averaging a respectable 22.1 ppg. However, when I’m taking a quarterback as the first or second QB off the board, he has to be better.

The reality is Murray was either a week winner or no better than a back-end QB1. He scored 32.4% of his fantasy points in Weeks 1, 2, and 13. In his other 11 starts, he averaged 19 ppg. For comparison purposes, Kirk Cousins, who (spoiler alert) isn’t even on this list, averaged 19.2 ppg. Murray is undoubtedly a mid-to-high QB1, but he’s firmly below the top four guys on this list.

6) Jalen Hurts | Philadelphia Eagles

In my personal rankings, I have Jalen Hurts above Murray. I’m all in on Hurts this season. He posted 11 QB1 finishes last season, which was the highest rate in the NFL (he only started 15 games).

Hurts is the second-best rushing QB in the NFL behind Jackson. He actually led the NFL in carries, yards, and touchdowns on the ground last season. The Eagles also added A.J. Brown, giving Hurts a legitimate WR1 and allowing DeVonta Smith to play his more natural WR2 role. It’s wheels up for Hurts in 2022.

7) Tom Brady | Tampa Bay Buccaneers

It sure looks wrong to rank last year’s QB3 down at QB7. It’s certainly not because we think Tom Brady is going to fall off. The problem is in the modern NFL, fantasy quarterbacks need to be able to run and Brady simply doesn’t.

It took Brady 719 pass attempts, 5,316 yards, and 43 passing touchdowns to finish as the QB3. Chris Godwin is going to miss at least the first few weeks of the season, if not half of it. Antonio Brown is gone, and we don’t know if Rob Gronkowski will return. If Brady loses 25 yards per game and 4-5 touchdowns, he falls into the mid-QB1 range, which is exactly where we have him.

8) Joe Burrow | Cincinnati Bengals

Joe Burrow led the NFL in completion percentage last season in his first year back after destroying his knee. He’s only getting better and more confident in his knee. The Bengals also have the best wide receiver trio in the NFL in Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, and Tyler Boyd.

With that said, Burrow was crazy efficient last season, leading the NFL in yards per attempt at 8.9, and still finished merely as the QB10 (20.5 ppg). The Bengals ran the fourth-fewest plays per game and played at the fifth-slowest pace in the NFL. Unless they give Burrow more volume by playing quicker, it’s possible he gets better, but his fantasy value remains relatively the same.

9) Matthew Stafford | Los Angeles Rams

Tommy is a little higher on Matthew Stafford than I am, but we both agree Stafford’s as safe as it gets. At worst, he will be a back-end QB1.

My concerns lie in the fact that Stafford threw for 4,886 yards and 41 touchdowns last season and still averaged just 20.4 ppg. Ten years ago, that would be an elite QB1 finish. Not anymore. With no rushing upside to speak of, I’m not sure how much better Stafford can be. He won’t fail you, but if you’re looking for a QB that can crack the top six, I don’t think Stafford is your guy.

10) Dak Prescott | Dallas Cowboys

As for a quarterback who can definitely crack that top six if things break right, look no further than Dak Prescott. Prescott averaged 20.7 ppg last season with a defense that led the NFL in turnover differential. We’ve already seen what happens when the Cowboys’ defense collapses. Prescott was on pace to shatter the single-season passing yards record in 2020 before going down with his ankle injury.

The Cowboys averaged 25.2 seconds per snap last season, the quickest rate in the league. If this defense gets just a little bit worse and Prescott runs a little more now that he’s two years removed from his ankle fracture, we could be looking at an elite QB1 once again.

11) Aaron Rodgers | Green Bay Packers

Similar to Stafford, what more can Aaron Rodgers really do compared to last season? He finished as the QB8, averaging 21.1 ppg, while throwing 37 touchdown passes.

The Packers play at the slowest pace in the NFL. Davante Adams is gone, leaving Rodgers to throw to Allen Lazard, Sammy Watkins, and rookie Christian Watson. This team is likely to lean more on its running backs. At best, Rodgers repeats what he did last season. The more likely scenario is he throws a couple fewer touchdowns and finishes right around where we have him ranked.

12) Russell Wilson | Denver Broncos

Rounding out the top 12 is Russell Wilson. Now freed from the shackles of Pete Carroll’s 1970s offense, Wilson may actually get a chance to average over 30 pass attempts per game this season.

Equipped with talented weapons around him in Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy, and Tim Patrick, Wilson’s upside remains as high as it has always been. Hopefully, he averages more than the career-low 13.1 rushing yards per game last season. Increased volume and a return to his scrambling ways are what would propel Wilson from low QB1 to mid-to-high QB1.