Terry McLaurin Fantasy Football Outlook 2022 (Will Wentz Hurt or Help Him?)

A third-round pick in 2019, it didn't take long for Terry McLaurin to become a Washington Commanders fan favorite. The 26-year-old wide receiver is now coming off his second straight 1,000-yard campaign, which earned him WR25 status across PPR fantasy leagues.

Having said that, it could be argued that we haven't seen the best that McLaurin has to offer. With Carson Wentz taking over as the Commanders' No. 1 quarterback, can 'Scary Terry' have his best fantasy season yet this fall?

Terry McLaurin Fantasy Football Outlook

McLaurin was Washington's leader across most major receiving categories in 2021. He finished with 77 receptions, transforming them into 1,053 yards and 5 touchdowns.

Though McLaurin's performance was solid, fans might be concerned that he saw four fewer targets and 10 fewer receptions in 2021 compared to 2020 despite playing two more games last year. His 59.2% catch rating was also the worst mark of his three-year career.

Many see Wentz as an improvement over last year's quarterback situation and that's a valid opinion. However, it's important to point out that he did lead the league in interceptions two years ago and was less accurate last year (62.4%) than the Commanders' combined QB room (64.7%).

I still think that McLaurin is more than capable of another 1,000-yard campaign, however, I don't believe that Wentz really moves his ceiling that much (if at all).

Terry McLaurin Projections

Projections from the NFL odds on FanDuel Sportsbook are far from high on McLaurin. For example, he's available at +5000 to pace the league in receiving yards, putting him in a nine-way tie for the 26th-best odds. He also has +4000 odds (T-No. 19) to be next year's receiving TD leader.

FanDuel has also set McLaurin's projected receiving yards total at 1,000.5, favoring the under at -118 while the over sits at -108. While he's surpassed the total in each of the last two years, it is understandable that the under is being favored given the uncertainty of how Wentz will play with his new team.

Keeping that in mind, McLaurin averaged 13.7 yards on his 77 receptions last year. If he averages the same amount this fall, he'd need about 73 receptions to hit the over — a realistic goal if he remains healthy.

Is Terry McLaurin a Good Fantasy Football Pick?

I think that McLaurin is still a solid fantasy football pick, though, I wouldn't put him in WR1 territory. A healthy Curtis Samuel and rookie Jahan Dotson should take some pressure off his shoulders, but any potential success hinges on Wentz consistently playing well most nights.

McLaurin is the type of boom-or-bust player that works better in standard leagues. He only saw 4.5 receptions on 7.6 targets per game last year, which isn't the kind of player that you can always have confidence in when it comes to PPR formats where reception numbers are crucial.

For now, McLaurin is listed as the WR16 in PPR formats with an average draft position of 42.4. If you're planning on drafting him, chances are he won't be on the board once the draft reaches its fourth round in formats with 12 teams or more.

Oh, and if you drafted McLaurin as one of your top WRs then you might want to check out the best Terry McLaurin fantasy football team names for your squad too.

New users earn an instant FREE entry when you sign up for FanDuel DFS! Sign Up Now!

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.