2022 Fantasy Football Red Zone Report: Trevor Lawrence Racking Up Red Zone Opportunities
As we all know, volume and opportunity in the red zone is key, because they are the important touches in fantasy football. With the fantasy football playoffs happening now, perhaps these numbers are more important than ever, considering that you’ll have key waiver wire moves to make, tough start/sit decisions, etc. From red zone passing, to rushing, to receiving, we’ll take a look at some notable numbers from the season thus far that can help your fantasy football teams down the stretch. Using the red zone report here at Fantasy Alarm, here are the key numbers and notes to know for fantasy football in this week’s red zone analysis.
NFL Red Zone Report
Red Zone Passing
Tom Brady, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Knock the Buccaneers’ offense all you want, but Brady does have the third most passing touchdowns inside the 10-yard line this year. Over the last three weeks, he’s 7-for-10 with five touchdowns inside the 10-yard line, and given some of the run game woes for the Buccaneers, they might just put it on the back of Brady to put points on the board by throwing it to Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Leonard Fournette, Rachaad White, and Julio Jones in the red zone. Brady and the Buccaneers are still in playoff contention, and they have winnable games against Cincinnati, Arizona, Carolina, and Atlanta down the stretch. Oh, those are also good matchups for Brady from a fantasy perspective, too.
Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars
Over the last three weeks, Travis Etienne Jr. and JaMycal Hasty have accounted for 11 rushing attempts in the red zone, but Lawrence has 15 pass attempts. Yes, Jacksonville, let Lawrence sling it inside the 20s! During this run, Lawrence is only 8-for-15, but he does have four passing touchdowns, and he has one rushing touchdown on his two red zone carries. Lawrence and the Jaguars are putting up points, and he has enough weapons at his disposal to be a QB1 throughout the fantasy playoffs, especially if Jacksonville leans more on Lawrence’s arm in the red zone.
Red Zone Rushing
Cam Akers, Los Angeles Rams
Akers is the goal line guy for the Rams the rest of the way. Over the last three weeks, he’s the only back with a red zone rushing attempt, and he has six carries during that stretch. If Baker Mayfield can be a QB upgrade, compared to John Wolford and Bryce Perkins, the rest of the way, Akers could have some nice flex appeal the rest of the way. Akers is averaging 12.8 carries per game over his last four, scoring three touchdowns (all inside the 10-yard line) during that stretch.
Justin Fields, Chicago Bears
Finally, they are using Fields’ legs! It’s about damn time! He can honestly score from anywhere on the field, but the red zone carries have been beautiful to say the least. Over his last three games, he has six red zone carries, four of which have come inside the 10-yard line. His legs provide another element that defenders have to respect, and he now has a rushing touchdown in six straight games. His fantasy floor is so high right now, because his rushing volume as a whole has been crazy (12.3 rushing attempts per game over last 7), and he’s getting the all-important red zone carries. Health willing, he’s a tried and true QB1 the rest of the way, despite some tough matchups looming.
Red Zone Receiving
Keenan Allen, Los Angeles Chargers
When healthy, Allen is a target hog in this high-octane Los Angeles passing attack, and since returning from injury, he’s been Justin Herbert’s No. 1 in the red zone. He has nine red zone targets over the last four weeks, and over half of them have come inside the 10-yard line! Sure, it has only resulted in one score, but positive touchdown regression will be in store for Allen, especially with good matchups looming, as he’ll face the Titans, Colts, and Rams throughout the fantasy football playoffs.
David Njoku, Cleveland Browns
Watson loves throwing the ball to the tight end. In 2019, Darren Fells and Jordan Akins combined for nine receiving scores, and the former actually tied DeAndre Hopkins for the team lead. In 2020, tight ends accounted for seven receiving scores. Last week, David Njoku saw three targets from Watson in the red zone, including one that went for a 13-yard score. Since Watson has returned to the lineup, Njoku leads the team in red zone targets, and I don’t see why that can’t continue the rest of the way. Njoku is tied for the team lead for the year as a whole, and now he has a quarterback that loves to utilize the tight end inside the 20s. As long as he can stay healthy, you have to like Njoku’s outlook for the rest of 2022, and beyond.
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Related NFL Links:
- Fantasy Football Running Back Handcuff Grid
- Fantasy Football Weekly Rankings
- 2022 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Pickups
- 2022 NFL Injury Report
- 2022 Fantasy Football Stock Watch