Wingers have never been more important to team success than they currently are. They seem to get better and better every season.
Some of the tries we've seen over the past few seasons have to be seen to be believed. The metres made by these "smaller" players is so crucial in the modern game.
2022 saw a plethora of massive performances from a host of wingers. Whether that be tries, try saving tackles, highlight reel leaps or getting sets off to a solid start, the modern-day winger is a different animal.
Below are the ten best wingers from 2022.
As with our earlier fullbacks list, this is based purely on 2022 and isn't necessarily a list of the best wingers overall.
To qualify for this list the player must have played more games in the wing spot than at any other position.
There were genuine concerns about Addo-Carr's form in the early season following his move from Melbourne to the Dogs. He started slow but his class showed after five weeks.
16 tries, 17 line breaks, 109 tackle breaks, and 129 metres run per game proves that Addo-Carr was more than fine in blue and white.
The speedster's back end of the season was incredible and landed him a spot in the Kangaroos starting line-up against Fiji.
Addo-Carr's stats are almost identical to that of his 2020 when the Storm won the title. I still cannot believe he did not play Origin.
We'd all heard the talk of young Cobbo's talents. In 2022 we were witness to said talents, and then some.
His 18 games provided a return of 15 tries, 17 line breaks, 98 tackle breaks and 131 run metres per game.
Despite only being 20 years of age, Cobbo put himself in contention for the Kangaroos on the back of a monster season for the Broncos and a brilliant Origin series.
Cobbo is destined for a move into fullback but unlike other players in similar circumstances he accepted it, learned his craft and became a star, destined for superstardom.
Xavier Coates took a big punt on deciding to up and move to Melbourne to play for the Storm. Fair to say that the gamble paid off.
Coates had a career best season, which considering he was an established Origin star two seasons ago, says a lot.
17 games for 16 tries, 13 line breaks and 101 running metres per game. He certainly made the most of being in the lethal Storm backline.
Injury robbed Coates of eye-watering stats. If he didn't miss between Rounds 12 and 21 then there's every chance we're talking 25 plus tries.
Daniel Tupou is an Origin regular, a multiple time Premiership winner and a freak of nature yet still doesn't get the respect his stature deserves.
Tupou was magnificent in 2022. 16 tries, 20 line breaks and 156 metres run per game make for an awesome stat line but they don't reveal the entire story.
He's the most dangerous winger in the air and creates havoc for opposition defences. He's also one of the game's most dangerous early set runners.
Kickers started targeting him in the air so that he was unavailable to take the dummy half run on the second tackle. Considering his size that says a lot about his abilities.
Murray Taulagi graduated from being a handy first grader in 2021 into a superstar winger who played for the Maroons and will play in the World Cup for the Kangaroos.
In addition to his Origin debut he made 25 appearances for the Cowboys, scoring 17 tries, setting up five, making 20 line breaks, breaking 76 tackles and running for 140 metres per game.
Taulagi's season was so good that a three game without a try seemed like a massive drought. He broke it and scored in all six remaining games.
It's hard to believe that Tualagi is still only 23 year's of age. His size and abilities are years beyond his inexperience. What a season!
If there was a "comeback of the year" award going in 2022 then Corey Oates would be awarded such that honour.
Oates was an absolute monster in 2022. In 22 games he scored 20 tries, broke 79 tackles, made 18 line breaks and ran for 169 metres per game.
The Broncos flyer's form was so good that he was called up to the Origin decider where he more than played his part.
There were very real calls for Oates to be called up to the World Cup squad. He would have deserved it.
When the Panthers lost Matt Burton there were concerns that one of the backline spots at the foot of the mountains would be weakened. They need not have worried.
Taylan May, despite being just 20 and with one NRL game to his name, se the competition alight from the moment he ran out in Round Three.
16 tries, 98 tackle breaks, 18 line breaks and 155 metres run per game in his 22 appearances makes for good reading for a rookie.
Incredibly, and I had to double check this stat as correct, he made 110 tackles whilst missing only 11. A 90.9% tackle efficiency for a winger!
Plenty of players on this list have had some sort of wrap on them in their early days. Perhaps no one on that list, or any list for that matter, carried the hype of Joseph Suaalii.
His 2022 saw him deliver on said hype to the point he was the prize on offer across an international tug of war for his World Cup services.
15 tries, 16 line breaks, 64 tackle breaks and 138 running metres are impressive stats but his performances provided so much more than even they suggest.
Suaali'i's efforts saw him beat out a host of superstar performers to capture his first Dally M honour. I doubt it will be his last.
The Sharks underwent a massive turnaround on and off the park in 2022. Ronaldo Mulitalo played a huge, and until now often understated, role in said turnaround.
On the field Ronaldo ran out 24 times crossing for 17 tries, making 30 line breaks, setting up five tries, breaking 99 tackles and running for 150 metres per game.
He was the Sharks best in their loss to the Bunnies making one of the season's best tackles despite the game being gone, and scoring a blistering try.
Off the field, young Mulitalo established himself as one of the faces of both the club and the code. It is scary to think just how good this kid can be. His 2022 was near flawless.
Alex Johnston continues to cop unfair criticism for being "just a try scorer". Let that settle in for a moment; a winger being "just a try scorer".
This winger managed to cross for 30 tries so even if it were his only ability, that's perhaps the game's most sought-after trait.
Johnston ran for 123 metres per game in 2022 as well as making 41 line breaks, breaking 73 tackles and tackling at almost 85%.
In a generation of World Class finishers, Alex Johnston just may be the best of them all. He certainly was in 2022. I've stated previously that if I had to back a player to score with my prized possessions on the line, I'd want the ball in the hand of the South Sydney flyer.
