The best, worst, and sleeper KC Chiefs picks for fantasy football

Let’s look at the best, the worst, and the sleeper picks from the Kansas City Chiefs as you think about your fantasy football draft.

With the regular season only one week away, those of us who love fantasy football are gearing up for our league’s drafts. So, because we’re all homers for the Kansas City Chiefs, the question is raised: Who should we draft from our favorite team?

Fantasy data from 2021 is gathered from Fantasy Data. All data is based on Full-PPR league records.

Players to Avoid

Honestly, there aren’t all that many bad options on the Chiefs’ roster. But, there are a few that I would avoid in favor of better alternatives.

Blake Bell, TE

This one is a fairly obvious choice. Bell is currently injured. He’ll be placed on IR for at least the first four games and replaced by Elijah Lee, LB. Even when he returns, he doesn’t tend to get receptions, a vital component for PPR leagues. For these reasons, I suggest staying away from Bell.

Noah Gray, TE

Noah Gray doesn’t have the same issues as Blake Bell. He does get receptions when he plays, just not as many as WRs or Travis Kelce. Rather, my issue with Gray is that he doesn’t see the field very often.

Jerrick McKinnon, RB

McKinnon had breakout games in the 2021 postseason. That has led some to believe that he could be a viable bench RB. However, I don’t expect him to be used as much as CEH or RoJo. Better alternatives for RB3s include Rashaad Penny (Seahawks), Rhamondre Stevenson (Patriots), and Michael Carter (Jets).

Marquez Valdes-Scantling, WR

Don’t get me wrong. MVS will be a fine WR for the Chiefs this season. I just don’t think that he will produce in fantasy. He had a decent third preseason game. But I still think you should avoid picking MVS. Other viable late-round WRs include Chase Claypool (Steelers), Allen Lazard (Packers), and Robbie Anderson (Panthers).

Must-Have Players

This one is the easiest. Some players that the Chiefs have are so elite that, given the opportunity, you should not pass them up.

Patrick Mahomes, QB

Patrick Mahomes is my QB1. If I have the chance to pick him, I will. In 2021, he totaled 361.66 fantasy points over the course of the season. This ended up only being enough to land him at QB4, but I have a strong feeling that he will bounce back from last season with new weapons added to his arsenal.

Travis Kelce, TE

Travis Kelce is the greatest TE in the league at this moment. With six straight seasons of 1,000 receiving yards or more, he is a very reliable fantasy grab. Last season, he recorded 170.8 points in the season. While it could be argued that you should take Mark Andrews at TE1, if you have the opportunity to take Kelce, do it.

JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR

JuJu Smith-Schuster is a fifth-round pick, in my opinion. While he’s not the greatest WR in the league, he will produce now that he has a QB throwing to him that isn’t as old as the earth he walks on. In his last complete season, 2020, he recorded 137.1 fantasy points over the season. Now that he’s on a better team, I expect that number to rise. Swoop him up as your FLEX or Bench WR.

Sleeper Picks

These players are set to have breakout seasons in 2022. They may seem like risky picks in the moment, but they may end up paying off.

Isiah Pacheco, RB

Pacheco was the training camp sweetheart this season. He made the 53-man roster as the 4th string RB. This may not seem like the best recipe for fantasy success. But, dependent on Jerrick McKinnon’s regular season usage and Ronald Jones’… success, Pacheco could be a fantastic pick in the later rounds. In both of my leagues that have already drafted, I’ve picked him in round 15. He’ll be a bench RB until he proves himself, but he was my risk pick this season. Last season’s risk pick (based on his preseason performance, that is)? Ja’Marr Chase.

Clyde Edwards-Helaire, RB

CEH is a risky pick, based on his performance in previous seasons. However, it appears that he has improved over the offseason. His training camp instilled no doubt that he would be placed as RB1 in Week 1. Dependent on his performance in Week 1, he will either be a great pick, or a waste of one. For this reason, I project that Edwards-Helaire should be taken as a team’s RB3 or 4 and be benched until he has proven that he’s going to be the Chiefs’ RB1 going forward. I have CEH listed as RB25 on my Fantasy Cheat Sheet, which can be found pinned on my Twitter page @ZGKC08.

Justin Watson, WR

As Kansas City’s WR5, one wouldn’t expect much from Justin Watson this season. However, I expect that the Chiefs’ WR corps will be more or less similar in targets this season. Without Tyreek Hill, the ball will be spread out more. While JuJu Smith-Schuster will be the easy WR1 this season in targets and catches, don’t forget that the others will get targets, catches, and TDs as well. Watson showed his skill in the preseason, and I expect that it will continue into the regular season as well. I would take Watson in one of the back rounds of your draft as a backup WR.

Skyy Moore, WR

Moore has a similar explanation to Watson in that he will also receive a lot of targets in the regular season. Though he didn’t show out as much in the preseason, I still expect him to be good. Pick up Moore as a 4th or 5th WR and play him in Week 1. With the Cardinals shorthanded, I see Moore getting a lot of catches.

Jody Fortson, TE

As the 2nd receiving TE on the Chiefs, Jody Fortson will be a playmaker this season. With two TDs in the game against the Commanders in the preseason, I see Fortson getting a lot of receiving looks when he is on the field. Kelce is still TE1 on the Chiefs, but if you missed out on him and are looking for a reliable TE, look no further than Fortson, my TE22.

Chiefs, D/ST

I have the Chiefs D/ST being the 11th D/ST taken off the board. If you want to hope and pray that rookies pan out, this is your team. Either the Chiefs defense will be elite, or they’ll be god awful.

All in all, the Chiefs have a lot of very good talent to take in fantasy. QB1 and TE1 should both be from Kansas City. And, I see a lot of good WR and RB talent as well. I didn’t include Butker on this list, because most don’t consider kickers to be vital to a fantasy roster, but you can take him as K4 or 5. Of course, it’s never a good idea to base your fantasy team on your fanbase. But if you really want to, I hope this guide helped.