Drake London Fantasy Outlook & Injury Update 2022 (The Next Rookie Fantasy Football Star?)

Every fantasy football season, there's usually a rookie wide receiver or two that managers immediately expect big things from. This year, the Atlanta Falcons' Drake London fits the bill after the first-year wideout was selected eighth overall in the 2022 NFL Draft.

London is in a fantastic opportunity to emerge as the Falcons' No. 1 WR due to Calvin Ridley's season-long suspension. Having said that, can the 21-year-old pass-catcher reach those lofty expectations in his first NFL season? And will his injury history affect his production?

Drake London Fantasy Outlook

London was one of the most fun WRs to watch last college football season. He recorded 88 catches for 1,084 yards and 7 touchdowns in eight games with the USC Trojans before a fractured ankle forced him to miss the remainder of his third NCAAF season.

Assuming he stays healthy for the full 17-game schedule, London has a chance to rise to fantasy prominence as a rookie. Even with Marcus Mariota as the starting quarterback, being one of Atlanta's primary passing weapons creates a solid floor.

Sophomore tight end Kyle Pitts is his only real competition for targets and considering how Atlanta is largely devoid of pass-catching weapons, both young players should thrive.

ESPN's Mike Clay ranked the Falcons as having the fifth-hardest 2022 schedule back in May. Though London will face some tough matchups, the fact that Atlanta could be trailing more often than not should yield more passing plays, opening up the door for some solid garbage time production.

Drake London Injury Update

Ankle injuries are usually concerning, so it's natural that fantasy managers are wondering if London's injury history will bite him this season. Fortunately, that doesn't appear to be the case.

London has been a full participant at Falcons training, even going as far as making highlight-reel catches. His ankle hasn't limited his on-field abilities whatsoever and assuming he doesn't suffer a setback, it looks like there aren't any causes for concern heading into Year 1.

Drake London Projections

Projections from the NFL odds on FanDuel Sportsbook aren't that high on London. For example, he's in a 26-way tie for the 44th-best odds (+10000) to lead the league in receiving yards.

While FanDuel isn't listing any projected receiving yards or touchdown totals for London, he's tied for the third-best odds (+1000) to be named the 2022 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Is Drake London a Good Fantasy Football Pick?

It's always good when you can land a team's No. 1 wide receiver, which happens to be the case for London as well. Even though the Falcons are far from the best team, he should still see the lion's share of targets, hopefully using garbage time to help pad his fantasy stats.

The Duel's PPR player rankings currently have London as the WR43 ahead of the 2022 campaign. Meanwhile, Fantasy Pros lists him as having an average draft position of 99.5, making him a player who likely won't be on the board beyond the start of Round 9 in 12-team leagues.

If you've drafted London, then check out the best Atlanta Falcons fantasy football team names for your squad.

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Devon Platana is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Devon Platana also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username PepeSilvia0. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.