Let’s dive into fantasy football sleepers! I selected the start of Round 8 as my cut-off for sleepers because I’ve often found that’s the range in the draft when we start to see breakout RBs emerge.
The main goal is that one or several of them beat their average draft positions (ADP) by a significant margin, akin to performances from Rhamondre Stevenson, Tyler Allgeier, Dameon Pierce, Jerick McKinnon, Isiah Pacheco, D’Onta Foreman, Brandon Aiyuk, Christian Kirk, Garrett Wilson, Justin Fields, Daniel Jones and Tyler Conklin last season.
Be prepared to find hidden talents across all teams, including those in unexpected situations like the Arizona Cardinals. My only requirement is that these players possess ADPs outside the top-84 players (in some capacity because this can vary by draft platform).
Get ready to make strategic moves and uncover the next breakout stars! Here are my top fantasy football sleepers for all NFL teams. Below we’ll offer a free look at a few of these names.
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Fantasy Football Draft Sleepers
Smith is my favorite late-round quarterback because he’s being so vastly undervalued. The 32-year-old proved all his fantasy doubters wrong in his first year as Seattle’s fully-entrenched starter, finishing as the fantasy QB6 while averaging 19 fantasy points per game (QB8). The only QBs that scored more points per game than Smith last season were Josh Allen, Jalen Hurts, Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow, Justin Fields, and Lamar Jackson. Additionally, all the Seahawks did during the draft was invest in No. 1 WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Anything but fantasy QB1 territory is still too cheap for Chef Geno in early best ball ADP. He should be viewed as a low-end fantasy QB1. Oh well, more for me (and you).
Desmond Ridder stands out to me as a sleeper. With Bijan Robinson, Kyle Pitts and Drake London at his disposal, one would think Ridder can facilitate an offense that can win games in 2023. And there’s some fantasy sleeper appeal with his game considering he offers mobility. Ridder rushed for over 2,700 yards during his four-year college career (58 per game). That combined with elite weaponry, suggests he can make some noise as a late-round fantasy quarterback in 2023. Recall that Marcus Mariota was a top-20 fantasy quarterback last season in points per game. And who can forget how well Ryan Tannehill played for fantasy under Arthur Smith’s coaching in Tennessee? It’s an offense that relies heavily on play action and Ridder was PFF’s 3rd-highest graded QB when using play action during his final season at Cincinnati. No. 1, you ask, in last year’s class? Brock Purdy. Mic drop.
Jordan Love is slated to start for the Green Bay Packers in 2023 after sitting on the bench behind a future HOFer, Aaron Rodgers, for the past three seasons. Love was viewed as a raw prospect – a poor man’s Patrick Mahomes because of his traits and ability to make off-script plays – who needed time to marinate entering the league, so I am cautiously optimistic about his prospects this season and beyond. He played well in limited action in 2022 and possesses athletic traits that could translate to rushing production. Green Bay added a plethora of weapons to aid in Love’s first season in the 2023 NFL Draft between Jayden Reed, Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft. The Packers also have a very favorable schedule to open the 2023 season and the No.1 easiest strength of schedule for fantasy QBs per FantasyPros’ strength of schedule tool. Through seven games, they will face Atlanta, New Orleans, Detroit, Las Vegas, Denver, Minnesota and the Rams. Therefore, Love has the chance to surprise in fantasy circles early on, even if he’s just an average quarterback in real life.
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