Fantasy Football: Will Saquon Barkley return to stardom in 2022?

For most fantasy football managers, Saquon Barkley was an absolute bust in 2021. Barkley finished as the 32nd ranked running back in 2021, playing in 14 games, scoring four touchdowns and compiling just 856 total yards. He averaged just 3.7 yards a carry.

If you compare that 2021 output with those of Barkley's first two seasons in the leagues — 29 games, 3,469 total yards, 23 total touchdowns — you get a sinking feeling. And that feeling stems from 2021 being Barkley's first season after the horrible ACL injury he suffered back in 2020. Barkley returned to the field in 2021 but was then hampered by an ankle injury (and the Giants' hapless offense) that occurred on a fluke play.

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You wonder, did that injury derail what looked to be a promising career? Will Barkley ever return to stardom, both on the NFL field and for fantasy managers?

Fantasy Football analysts Liz Loza and Dalton Del Don give their thoughts on the 25-year-old runner in the video above.

Are you in or out on Saquon Barkley for 2022?

Liz keeps it simple. She's not as high on Barkley to, say, rank him ahead of someone like Joe Mixon, but she is back in on the Giants RB. For one thing, Barkley's services in fantasy leagues won't cost managers a second-round pick. Instead, Barkley is going, on average, in the late third round of 2022 drafts.

Another thing working in Barkley's is that, armed with a new coaching staff that is very much expected to be better than last season's, his potential volume should trump any efficiency concerns that might be around him due to the injuries.

But even if Barkley's injuries are the biggest roadblock to his projections, Dalton reminds us that EVERY running back has injury concerns — and not all of them are as talented as Barkley.

Check out the video above for their full analysis on Barkley!