Fantasy football season is fully underway, which is a sign that the 2023 NFL season is right around the corner. While Week 1 of the season doesn't get underway until next week, fantasy football drafts have been taking place for weeks now, and if you haven't drafted yet, chances are that will be changing over the next few days.

The quarterback position in fantasy football is a unique one, as its valuation compared to the actual game of football differs greatly. In the NFL, you need a great quarterback in order to be a Super Bowl contender nowadays. But in the fantasy landscape, you can have a middling quarterback and still find a way to win the championship.

Despite that stark contrast in valuation, many fantasy football owners bite on quarterbacks in the draft way sooner than they should. So with that in mind, let's take a look at five quarterbacks who are being valued way too high using their average draft position (ADP) and see why that's the case.

5. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys (ADP: 88.8)

Dak Prescott has typically been a very reliable quarterback for fantasy owners, but he turned in a dud in 2022 (261/394, 2860 YDS, 23 TD, 15 INT, 45 CAR, 182 YDS, 1 TD). The Cowboys relied heavily on their rushing attack led by Tony Pollard and Ezekiel Elliott, and a thumb injury that Prescott suffered in Week 1 certainly didn't help matters either.

There's a sense of renewed optimism surrounding Prescott heading into 2023, as the Cowboys look to shift back to an imposing aerial attack after they released Elliott and traded for Brandin Cooks. But it's clear there's a lot of pressure on Prescott, especially after they went out and traded for Trey Lance. When you consider his constant injury concerns, and the fact that he is fresh off a down year, Prescott shouldn't be getting drafted as a starting quarterback by fantasy owners right now.

4. Aaron Rodgers, New York Jets (ADP: 100.3)

Similar to Prescott, there's a lot of hope that Aaron Rodgers will be in for a bounce back year. He has gone from a desolate Green Bay Packers offense to a New York Jets unit that has a ton of options for him at his disposal, and even though Rodgers struggled in 2022 (350/542, 3695 YDS, 26 TD, 12 INT, 34 CAR, 94 YDS, 1 TD), that isn't stopping fantasy owners from treating him like one of the top quarterbacks available.

Rodgers' ADP isn't outrageously bad, but it's pretty clear that he shouldn't be expected to be a Week 1 fantasy starter in 2022. Adapting to a new team and offense is easier said than done, and again, he looked awful for much of the 2022 campaign. Everybody hits a wall at some point, and with Rodgers set to turn 40 in December, that proverbial wall could end up destroying fantasy football owners who end up with him at quarterback.

3. Deshaun Watson, Cleveland Browns (ADP: 76.3)

Another guy looking for a bounce back campaign, Deshaun Watson had a ton of hype surrounding him after his year-and-a-half long absence from the league. Watson was understandably rusty during his quick six-game debut with Cleveland (99/170, 1102 YDS, 7 TD, 5 INT, 36 CAR, 175 YDS, 1 TD), but there's hope that will change in 2023.

Watson is being regarded as a solid starting option if you don't want to use a draft pick on one of the true top-tier quarterbacks, but realistically speaking, he's a huge gamble under center. Watson looked awful with Cleveland last year, and he hasn't actually been a usable quarterback since 2020. Watson had an offseason to figure things out, but there's no reason to treat him like a starter right now.

2. Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals (ADP: 34.5)

Joe Burrow proved last year that his run to Super Bowl 56 wasn't a fluke, and he ended up asserting himself as one of the best fantasy football quarterbacks in the league in the process (414/606, 4475 YDS, 35 TD, 12 INT, 75 CAR, 257 YDS, 5 TD). The problem is that Burrow has already sustained a calf injury that has held him out for most of training camp.

Many fantasy owners haven't been too bothered by Burrow's injury, and have opted to draft him very early in the draft. Burrow isn't part of the Patrick Mahomes/Josh Allen/Jalen Hurts top-tier of quarterbacks, but he's still getting selected in the fourth-round of many drafts. Burrow is solid when he plays, but his injury problems this early in the year are concerning, and you can find better value at the spot by simply waiting a few extra rounds.

1. Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs (ADP: 15.8)

Nobody is saying that Patrick Mahomes is a bad quarterback. Far from it, in fact, and he is rightfully being selected as the first quarterback off the board in many fantasy drafts. But despite his overall greatness, which saw him win his second MVP award in 2022 (435/648, 5250 YDS, 41 TD, 12 INT, 61 CAR, 358 YDS, 4 TD) he is easily the most overvalued quarterback in fantasy football.

For Mahomes to be getting drafted in the early second round on average is outrageous. Your first two picks should always be either a running back or wide receiver, with the only exception being Mahomes' running mate in tight end Travis Kelce. Mahomes will produce, yes, but you can find minimally worse production at quarterback way later in the draft, and the value you pass up by burning an early draft pick on Mahomes could be the difference between winning and losing your league.