Bold Fantasy Predictions for Second Half of the Season
The first half of the 2022 fantasy football campaign has produced its fair share of surprises. Geno Smith and Daniel Jones are top 10 fantasy quarterbacks while Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers are bordering on irrelevant. Kyle Pitts has been missing in action while Amon-Ra St. Brown has emerged as a superstar.
With most fantasy playoffs beginning in Week 15, we’re beyond the halfway point. There are still plenty of constants that likely won’t change. You can still expect Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes and Cooper Kupp to get you a boatload of points. But what else do the next few weeks have in store? We asked our SI Fantasy crew to provide their bold predictions for the second half of the season. Here’s what they said:
Kenneth Walker has been on fire for the Seahawks since starter Rashaad Penny went down for the season.
Gary A. Vasquez/USA Today Sports
Michael Fabiano
Ken Walker will be a league winner in fantasy leagues. I said this about Walker in the preseason and now it's coming to fruition. He's been on absolute fire since the Seahawks lost Rashaad Penny, ranking fifth in fantasy points among running backs over the last three weeks. He also has the sixth-easiest schedule among running backs based on PFF data, which makes Walker even more attractive in an offense that wants to run the football. Seattle has also been surprisingly competitive in games with Geno Smith under center, so Walker should be able to avoid negative game scripts.
Jennifer Piacenti
Daniel Jones finishes as a Top 10 QB. Is it possible that Daniel Jones is the next Josh Allen? O.K., maybe that’s going too far, but Brian Daboll seems to be working some magic with the young QB. Jones is suddenly playing with poise, and he’s using his mobility to reward fantasy managers. It’s a pretty soft schedule down the stretch, and with the trade deadline approaching maybe he will even get another receiver in addition to promising rookie Wan’Dale Robinson.
Shawn Childs
Tom Brady leads Tampa Bay and fantasy teams to postseason wins. At the midpoint of the 2022 season, Tom Brady has been the punchline of too many jokes while falling short of expectations. He ranked 14th in quarterback scoring (128.2 fantasy points), prior to another loss to the Ravens on Thursday night. Brady is on pace to pass for 4,817 yards, but touchdowns (9) have been a struggle all year. The Bucs need to solve their offensive line issues (3.0 yards per rush and 13 sacks allowed). The Bucs play three of their next four games at home, and I expect Brady to rise from the fantasy mat while helping Tampa Bay get back into the playoff hunt.
Matt De Lima
Bears push into playoffs. Justin Fields turned a corner in Week 7. I'll admit I have an inflated sense of player evaluation, but the Bears never quite groomed this offense to fit his skill set. That is, until they did in Week 7 against the Patriots with RPO, moving him outside the pocket and using play action to challenge the defense to either respect the run game or challenge the secondary. I'm expecting an exciting second half and Chicago will push past the Packers in the NFC North standings—perhaps even into an NFC Wild Card spot.
Kyle Wood
Chris Olave finishes the season as a top-12 wide receiver. The Saints’ top pass-catcher has had a tumultuous rookie season already. New Orleans has cycled through quarterbacks, the other receivers around him keep getting injured and he's already missed a game due to a concussion. But regardless of the less-than-ideal situation, he's thriving. Olave has finished with at least nine PPR points in every game, and he already has two games with 100-plus receiving yards. Consistency and perhaps a few more trips to the end zone and Olave will end the year among the best players at the position, just as Ja'Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson did the last two seasons.
Bill Enright
James Robinson will be a Top 15 RB the rest of season. Breece Hall was absolutely balling out before tearing his ACL in Week 7. The Jets rookie was the No. 7 RB in PPR scoring but will now miss the rest of the season. That forced New York’s hands to acquire James Robinson from the Jaguars. Robinson doesn’t have the same type of speed as Hall but he’s proven he can not only handle a full workload but produce borderline RB1 fantasy points while doing it. Since his rookie season in 2020, Robinson sits 13th--just behind Ezekiel Elliott--in total fantasy points. Look for the Jets to continue to pound the rock with Robinson ultimately pushing Michael Carter to a secondary role in the Jets backfield.
Craig Ellenport
James Robinson will be a league-winner for fantasy managers. Robinson was a candidate for Comeback Player of the Year after rushing for 230 yards and three TDs in Jacksonville’s first three games, but then Travis Etienne took over and Robinson was traded to the Jets. It hurts that guard Alijah Vera-Tucker is out for the season, but Robinson is still in a good spot. He’ll be a free agent in 2023, so he’s highly motivated. And check out who the Jets are playing during the fantasy playoffs: Week 15 at Lions (allow third-most fantasy points to RBs), Week 16 vs. Jaguars (seventh-most), Week 17 at Seahawks (fifth-most). Grab him now.
Matt Ehalt
Jonathan Taylor fails to finish as a top-10 RB. With the Colts moving on from Matt Ryan, an aging offensive line and Taylor dealing with injuries, I’m going to go bold here and say that Taylor finishes outside the top 10. It will be a stunning finish for the consensus No. 1 pick in summer drafts.
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