Regular Season Tackles and Assists Leader: Massive Long-Shot Play Available at DraftKings Sportsbook
Roquan Smith, a linebacker for the Chicago Bears, is the favorite to lead the NFL in tackles and assists in the 2022 season. In this article, we have compiled a small cheat sheet that contains the odds for several defensive players to lead the NFL in tackles and assists this season.
Several of our top-rated sportsbooks offer futures markets where you can bet on who will lead the NFL in a particular statistical category. To see if there are any significant gaps between the projections and the betting markets, I decided to cross-reference these odds with the projections from Fantasy Pros and Pro Football Focus.
Check out our picks to lead the NFL in sacks, passing yards, receiving yards, and rushing yards.
Having compared their projections with their odds to lead the NFL in tackles and assists, the following players stand out to me.
2022 Regular Season Tackles and Assists Leader Odds
| Player | Projections via Fantasy Pros, and PFF | Most Regular Season Tackles and Assists via FanDuel | Most Regular Season Tackles and Assists via DraftKings | Most Regular Season Tackles and Assists via PointsBet |
| Jordyn Brooks | 134.1 | +700 | +750 | +700 |
| Foyesade Oluokun | 131.2* (Only PFF) | +1200 | +1000 | +1100 |
| C.J. Mosley | 129.3 | +1000 | +1200 | +1200 |
| Denzel Perryman | 127.2 | +2500 | +3500 | +3000 |
| Cole Holcomb | 120.8 | +2500 | +3500 | +3000 |
| Blake Martinez | 118.6 | +1600 | +3500 | +2000 |
| Eric Kendricks | 118 | +2000 | +2000 | +2000 |
| Bobby Wagner | 114.2 | +700 | +800 | +800 |
| Devin White | 114.1 | +2500 | +2000 | +2000 |
| Tremaine Edmunds | 111.1 | +3500 | +3500 | +3000 |
| Fred Warner | 111 | +1600 | +900 | +1300 |
| De'Vondre Campbell | 110.3 | +2000 | +1600 | +1600 |
| Roquan Smith | 109 | +500 | +600 | +550 |
| Logan Wilson | 107.2 | +3000 | +4000 | +3300 |
| Derwin James | 106.6 | +4000 | +4000 | +5000 |
| Ja'Whaun Bentley | 102.5 | N/A | +10000 | +8000 |
| T.J. Edwards | 101.8 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Cody Barton | 100.9 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Bobby Okereke | 100.1 | +5000 | +3500 | +4000 |
| Zach Cunningham | 99.7 | +2500 | +3000 | +2500 |
| Anthony Walker | 98.9 | +15000 | +10000 | +10000 |
| Christian Kirksey | 97.8 | +5000 | +6000 | +10000 |
| Demario Davis | 97.6 | +4000 | +4000 | +4000 |
| Kyzir White | 96.6 | +3000 | +4000 | +4000 |
| Shaquille Leonard | 96.1 | +2000 | +1300 | +2000 |
| Shaq Thompson | 95.6 | +5000 | +4000 | +4000 |
| Rashaan Evans | 95.3 | N/A | +25000 | +10000 |
| Myles Jack | 94.6 | +5000 | +6000 | +5000 |
| Dre Greenlaw | 93.2 | +10000 | +10000 | +10000 |
| Patrick Queen | 92.9 | +10000 | +4000 | +7500 |
| Devin Lloyd | 88.9 | +15000 | +5000 | +8000 |
| Zaven Collins | 87.5 | N/A | +15000 | +20000 |
| Nicholas Morrow | 85.6 | N/A | +15000 | +10000 |
| Micah Parsons | 85.5 | +10000 | +3000 | +2500 |
Regular Season Tackles and Assists Leader: Best Bets
- Perryman, ILB, Raiders (+3500 via DraftKings Sportsbook)
- Evans, LB, Falcons (+25000 via DraftKings)
Perryman, ILB, Raiders (+3500 via DraftKings)
When Pro Football Focus projects Denzel Perryman to lead the NFL in tackles with 151.9, a +3500 price tag at DraftKings immediately catches the eye. Perryman would be at the top of the projection list with odds of +3500 if his Fantasy Pros projection was not much lower than PFF's.
During his first season with the Las Vegas Raiders, Perryman made his first Pro Bowl appearance and recorded 154 combined tackles. Perryman's 154 tackles would have been sufficient to win the market in previous years, and he achieved this in only 15 games in 2021.
There are several reasons why I favor Perryman in this market in addition to the +3500 price point, which is by far and away the most compelling factor. First of all, this is Perryman's contract year, and for someone who has never signed a significant contract in the NFL, you better believe he is ready to excel.
Perryman is also appealing to me because of the Raiders' ddition of new defensive coordinator Patrick Graham. Over the last two seasons, Graham served as the defensive coordinator for the New York Giants. During each of these seasons, Graham had a linebacker record more than 130 tackles.
The Raiders defense is suspect at best, and I do not expect them to force too many three-and-outs during the course of the season. Perryman will see a great deal of action on the field and he'll have plenty of opportunities. With a price of +3500, I am betting on Perryman to lead the NFL in tackles.
Evans, LB, Falcons (+25000 via DraftKings)
Are you ready for a massive long shot in this market? Despite Rashaan Evans being projected to record more tackles, better-known defensive players like Myles Jack, Micah Parsons, and Patrick Queen trade for much lower prices than Evans.
The projection already does not match the price tag of +25000 and I believe Evans has a much higher ceiling with the Atlanta Falcons defense than his current projection indicates. Former Falcons linebacker Foyesade Oluokun led the NFL with 192 tackles last season.
Oluokun has moved on to the Jacksonville Jaguars and his spot has been filled by the former Tennessee Titans linebacker and first-round pick, Evans. Evans compiled 111 tackles in 2019 with the Titans and 96 in 2020, and now joins a defense in which 192 tackles are up for grabs following the departure of Oluokun.
Evans will rejoin his former Titans defensive coordinator Dean Pees in Atlanta. I am intrigued by the +25000 price tag associated with him at DraftKings as a result. Evans' 2021 statistics, which were accumulated while battling injuries, are undervalued, and the sportsbooks may regret this opening price of +25000.
Fade Roquan Smith (+600 via DraftKings)
Across the sportsbooks, Roquan Smith is the consensus favorite to win in this market, with prices as short as +500 at FanDuel, yet he is ranked 13th on our projections board. It is not what you would expect from someone who is trading at such a low price to begin the season. A price point of +500 should easily place Smith at the top of the projections, similar to what was seen with Pittsburgh Steelers edge rusher T.J. Watt in the sacks market.
If the favorite is mispriced in that spot, you should pay close attention to that particular futures market. It means that there are plenty of players who may carry inflated odds, and we have found a couple of players that I am really excited about in Perryman and Evans.
It is likely that Smith's price will increase significantly as the season progresses, as his price point does not reflect his projected performance. Due to Smith's popularity and well-known name among fans, sportsbooks are protecting themselves from any serious liability related to him.
In addition, Smith and the Chicago Bears have a contract dispute, which Smith claims has been resolved, but who knows once the losses begin to pile up? The bottom line, Smith is priced way too short at +500 and should be entirely faded at this price.
Where to Bet on the NFL's Tackles and Assists Leader
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