Fantasy News & Analysis

Premium Content Sign Up

Finding 2022’s Fantasy Football Breakout Wide Receiver: Chase Claypool, Pittsburgh Steelers

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Chase Claypool (11) reacts after a first down against the Washington Football Team during the second quarter at Heinz Field. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

In this series of articles, we're looking at breakout potential for second- and third-year wide receivers in fantasy football for 2022, and this analysis focuses on the Pittsburgh SteelersChase Claypool. You can find articles for other wide receivers from the 2021 and 2020 NFL Draft classes here.

One of the best ways to determine the range of outcomes and the probability of success for fantasy players is by comparing them to similar historical players. In this analysis, I’ll compare Claypool to hundreds of receivers drafted since 2006 and project the likelihood of his breakout based on those who had the most similar size, draft position and second-year NFL metrics. 

METHODOLOGY

The matching methodology for this set of articles is similar to that for focusing on 2022 wide receiver and running back prospect comps, where I found the closest statistically comparable players using principal component analysis (PCA) and the euclidean distance between the players' components, and then gave each a “similarity” score based on percentile of distance. 

The metrics for PCA are draft position, weight, and a number of second-year stats: yards per route run (Yards Per), average depth of target (Avg Depth), PPR fantasy points per game (PPR Per Gm) and top-24 fantasy weeks (Top-24 Wks). 

All PFF+ subscribers now have access to our revamped fantasy football draft guide, which has all the streamlined and intuitive features you’ll need to dominate your draft this season. CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR PFF+ AND TRY IT FREE TODAY

CHASE CLAYPOOL COMPS

DOMINATE FANTASY FOOTBALL & BETTING WITH AI-POWERED DATA & TOOLS TRUSTED BY ALL 32

Unlimited Fantasy League Sync
Fantasy Start/Sit Line-Up Optimizer & Waiver Wire
WR-CB & OL-DL Matchups, PFF Player Grades, & Premium Stats 2.0 Tools
Nathan Jahnkes Rankings - #1 Most Accurate Last 70 Weeks
PFF Best Bets, Player Props, & Power Ranking Tools
NFL Mock Draft Sim with Trades & Draft Grades

Already have a subscription? Log In

Subscriptions

Unlock the 2023 Fantasy Draft Kit, with League Sync, Live Draft Assistant, PFF Grades & Data Platform that powers all 32 Pro Teams

$31 Draft Kit Fee + $8.99/mo
OR
$89.88/yr + FREE Draft Kit