The 2022 Pro Bowl rosters have been announced, and they are loaded with fantasy football superstars. So, why not create a fantasy version of the NFL’s All-Star Game?
I did just that…
Before we dive into the players who made my Fantasy Pro Bowl, let’s take a look back at this tradition that started back in 1970. The coaches in that first-ever Pro Bowl contest were John Madden of the Oakland Raiders and Dick Nolan of the San Francisco 49ers. The contest, which the NFC won, 27-6, had not one but two Most Valuable Players ... LB Fred Carr of the Green Bay Packers and DB Mel Renfro of the Dallas Cowboys.
The game was played at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and each player from the winning team was awarded $2,000. The winning players from the 2022 Pro Bowl will be awarded $80,000, while the losers will take home $75,000. Not a bad day’s work, huh?
Had fantasy football been prominent in 1970, the fantasy Pro Bowl team would have included players like John Brodie, Fran Tarkenton, Ron A. Johnson, MacArthur Lane, Gene Washington and Dick Gordon. Brodie led all quarterbacks with 2,941 passing yards and 208.5 fantasy points. Compared to the current era of football, that total would have been good enough to finish a mere 22nd at the position in 2021.
The top fantasy running back, Johnson finished with 1,514 scrimmage yards, 12 total touchdowns and 271.4 fantasy points. That would have earned him a top-five finish among 2021 running backs. Washington, the top-scoring wide receiver, recorded 1,100 yards, 12 touchdowns and 235 fantasy points. He would have been the WR19 in 2021.
Times have changed, folks.
Now that we’ve taken a short trip down memory lane, let’s take a look at the best of the best in the here and the now -- the 2021 Fantasy Pro Bowl squad, according to me!
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QUARTERBACKS
Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills: Allen finished as the highest-scoring quarterback in fantasy football this season, scoring 402.6 fantasy points. That’s 6.5 points more than he scored last season, when he was also the best player at the position (396.1 fantasy points). Allen has now recorded the fourth- and sixth-best seasons in fantasy football history at his position, and he’ll be ranked as the top quarterback in fantasy leagues in 2022.
Runner up: Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers
RUNNING BACKS
Jonathan Taylor, Indianapolis Colts: Taylor emerged as the most productive fantasy running back this season, scoring 373.1 points. He recorded 20-plus points nine times, including one game where he put up 53.4 points. Taylor also led the league with 1,811 rushing yards, which was a bananas 552 yards more than the second-best runner, Nick Chubb, who finished with 1,259 rushing yards. He’ll be the consensus top pick in 2022.
Runner up: Austin Ekeler, Los Angeles Chargers
WIDE RECEIVERS
Cooper Kupp, Los Angeles Rams: Kupp is coming off the greatest fantasy season ever among wide receivers, scoring a ridiculous 439.5 points. That passed the previous record set by Jerry Rice in 1995 when he scored 414 points. Rice played in one fewer game, however. Kupp was uber consistent, scoring 20-plus points 14 times, including six games where he had 30-plus points. He also had 1,947 receiving yards, which was just 17 yards short of the NFL record of 1,964 yards set by Calvin Johnson in 2012.
Davante Adams, Green Bay Packers: Adams finished the season with 123 catches, 1,553 yards, 11 touchdowns and 344.3 fantasy points. He averaged 21.5 points per game, which is the second straight season he’s posted 20-plus points a game and the third in his last four seasons. Adams has 47 touchdowns in his last 57 contests.
Runner up: Deebo Samuel, San Francisco 49ers
TIGHT ENDS
Mark Andrews, Baltimore Ravens: Andrews posted career highs across the board en route to his 301.1 points, which was the most among tight ends this past season. It’s also the fourth-most fantasy points a tight end has scored in a single season in league history behind Rob Gronkowski (2011), Travis Kelce (2020) and Jimmy Graham (2013). His 1,361 receiving yards is third-most ever in a single season at the position, too.
Runner up: Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs
FLEX
Deebo Samuel, San Francisco 49ers: Samuel enjoyed a breakout season in 2021, finishing third in fantasy points among wideouts with 77 catches, 1,405 receiving yards and 14 total touchdowns. His 1,405 yards through the air is ninth most in the history of the 49ers franchise. He trails only Jerry Rice (1995, 1986, 1993, 1990, 1994, 1989) and Terrell Owens (2000, 2001). Samuel also led all wide receivers with 365 rushing yards. That’s 15th all-time at the position, and it’s the fifth most among wideouts since 2000.
Runner up: Justin Jefferson, Minnesota Vikings
KICKERS
Daniel Carlson, Las Vegas Raiders: Carlson squeaked past Nick Folk at the top of the list of kickers, scoring 162 fantasy points. He made 93% of his field-goal attempts, with a long of 56 yards, and he missed just three of 33 extra-point attempts. Carlson has ranked in the top three in fantasy points among kickers in each of the last two seasons.
Runner up: Nick Folk, New England Patriots
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LINEBACKERS
T.J. Watt, Pittsburgh Steelers: Watt was the top linebacker in fantasy football, posting 22.5 sacks and 48 total tackles in 15 games. Those 22.5 sacks tied the record set by Michael Strahan in 2001 with the New York Giants, though he did it in 16 games. Watt’s 203.3 points were nearly 23 more than the second-best linebacker, Foyesade Oluokun.
Runner up: Micah Parsons, Dallas Cowboys
DEFENSIVE BACKS
Derwin James, Los Angeles Chargers: James is coming off a tremendous season, as he put up a career-best 118 tackles (75 solo) with two sacks, three forced fumbles and five passes defensed. James was also the lone defensive back to average nine points per game in IDP formats, though Antoine Winfield averaged 8.8 points (13 games).
Runner up: Harrison Smith, Minnesota Vikings
DEFENSIVE LINEMEN
Aaron Donald, Los Angeles Rams: The top player among defensive linemen, Donald put up 12.5 sacks, 84 total tackles (38 solo) and forced four fumbles. His total of 157.1 fantasy points was less than a full point more than Nick Bosa, who had 15.5 sacks and 52 total tackles (40 solo). Donald has now scored 130-plus points in five straight years.
Runner up: Nick Bosa, San Francisco 49ers
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Michael Fabiano is an award-winning fantasy football analyst on Sports Illustrated and a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association (FSWA) Hall of Fame. Click here to read all his articles here on SI Fantasy. You can follow Michael on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram for your late breaking fantasy news and the best analysis in the business!
