Thankfully the 2023 fantasy football season is just around the corner. Each year fantasy players want to construct their team with a proper mix of good-value players and upside sleepers while avoiding players with high bust potential. Let’s take a look at a few sleepers.
- AFC ADP Sleepers, Busts & Values: East | North | South
- Draft Targets for Every Round: Early | Middle | Late
- Fitz’s Draft Primers: QB | RB | WR | TE
- 2023 Fantasy Football Draft Kit
Fantasy Football Sleepers: AFC West
Samaje Perine (RB – DEN): ADP 109.3 | RB38
Thankfully Javonte Williams appears ready to go for Week 1 after suffering a severe knee injury last season. However, running backs typically struggle in their first year returning from a torn ACL. More importantly, Perine’s ADP has slipped over the past two weeks following the positive news about Williams. Yet, fantasy players should still target the former Oklahoma running back at his ADP.
Last year Perine averaged 7.7 half-point PPR fantasy points per game, a career-high. Furthermore, he averaged 24 touches and 17.9 fantasy points per game in his two starts.
Meanwhile, the Broncos didn’t sign Perine this offseason to be Williams’ handcuff. Sean Payton has historically used two running backs in his coaching career. The good news for fantasy players is that both guys usually have meaningful production. Williams likely will receive most of the groundwork while Perine handles the passing game role.
The former Oklahoma back finished 15th among running backs in yards per route run (1.34) and 14th in yards per reception (7.6) last season. The lower Perine’s ADP slips, the better value it is for fantasy players.
Russell Wilson (QB – DEN): ADP 146.3 | QB18
Wilson had high expectations in his first season in Denver. Unfortunately, it was a nightmare for the team and fantasy players. The veteran quarterback averaged 15 fantasy points per game and had only 16 passing touchdowns, both career lows. However, the former Seattle Seahawk played better at the end year. He averaged two passing touchdowns and 20.1 fantasy points per game over his final four contests, scoring 23 or more points three times.
More importantly, Wilson had arguably his two best performances after the team fired Nathaniel Hackett.
The veteran quarterback had 505 passing yards, four passing touchdowns, and two rushing scores in the two games without Hackett, scoring at least 23 fantasy points in both matchups. Meanwhile, he finished first in deep ball attempts (87), fourth in air yards per attempt (9.2), and eighth in dropped passes (30) last season.
Wilson has reportedly cut weight this offseason and looks like his old self. While the Broncos recently lost Tim Patrick to a season-ending injury for the second consecutive year, the veteran quarterback still has plenty of weapons around him.
Wilson likely won’t have a top-five year in 2023. Yet, he will easily outperform his QB18 ADP.
More Players to Target & Avoid
- Pat Fitzmaurice: (Targets | Avoids) (Premium)
- Andrew Erickson: (Targets | Avoids) (Premium)
- Derek Brown: (Targets | Avoids) (Premium)
- Fantasy Football Sleepers for Every Team (Premium)
- How to Identify Fantasy Football Busts (Premium)
- Erickson’s Guide to Drafting Players on Good Offenses
- Fantasy Football Draft Values for Every Round
- Predicting First-Round Bust Candidates
- DBro’s Wide Receiver Lottery Tickets
- Erickson’s Running Back Lottery Tickets
- Players to Target in Each Round (v2 | v3)
- Players to Avoid in Each Round
- Late-Round Draft Targets
- Late-Round QB Targets in Superflex Leagues | More QB Sleepers
- Late-Round RB Targets | More RB Sleepers | July RB Targets
- Late-Round WR Targets
- Late-Round TE Targets
- How to Identify Fantasy Football Busts
- How to Identify Fantasy Football Busts (v2)| How to Identify Fantasy Football Busts | How to Identify Fantasy Football Busts
- How to Identify Fantasy Football Busts | How to Identify Fantasy Football Busts
- How to Identify Fantasy Football Busts
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Mike Fanelli is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @Mike_NFL2.