There's no article I get more excited to write each year during Fantasy football Draft Prep season than this one. That's partially because this article comes out the just before the final draft weekend of the year, which means it's almost time for real football. But it's also because this is where we can find some serious upside often available in the final rounds of Fantasy drafts ... or not getting drafted at all. Last year this article featured the likes of A.J. Brown, Daniel Jones, Chase Edmonds, Dallas Goedert and Diontae Johnson. Of course it also featured DaeSean Hamilton and Zay Jones. That's the nature of deep sleepers; a lot of them miss. This year I'm focused on players outside the first 15 rounds (top 180) based on Fantasy Pros Consensus ADP. They're sorted below by their NFL division with a short write up on my favorite deep sleeper in each division. And we're getting started with my No. 1.
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I've selected Laviska Shenault as high as the ninth round this summer, so don't be shy about drafting him with a pick in the double digit rounds. He's a versatile player who was used as both a runner and a receiver at Colorado, and Jacksonville has indicated they'll do the same. There have also been comps to greats like Anquan Boldin and Andre Johnson out of camp. While that's an unfair expectation in Year 1, this could be a pretty great setup. Jacksonville's defenses looks atrocious on paper and their run game doesn't look much better. You should expect 600 passes from Gardner Minshew and D.J. Chark is the only pass catcher locked into guaranteed targets. It also doesn't hurt that Dede Westbrook is battling injuries once again in camp.
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Joshua Kelley has slowly moved up my draft board this season and I'm fine with him as early as Round 10. It sounded like he was outperforming Justin Jackson before Jackson got hurt , which gives Kelley an excellent chance to slot into something resembling the Melvin Gordon role alongside Austin Ekeler. The expectation for Kelly should be flex-type production, but it wouldn't be that surprising if he earned short yardage work at some point and worked his way into the top-25 discussion at running back.
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With the release of Adrian Peterson, everyone is rightly going gaga over Antonio Gibson. But don't forget about Bryce Love after Round 10. Love missed last year due to an injury suffered in his final year at Stanford, but he's been a full go during training camp. This is a guy who was a Heisman finalist at Stanford, and rushed for more than 2,100 yards his junior year. I expect he'll start the year behind Peyton Barber, but if he's back to the player he was in college he won't stay behind Barber for long.
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Remember Jerick McKinnon? The 28-year-old is finally healthy after two years on the shelf in San Francisco and it sure sounds like he's going to be the third down back to start the season. The 49ers have been steadfast in their committee approach, which limits everyone's upside, but it also turns Fantasy afterthoughts into useful pieces. Just look at Raheem Mostert. Kyle Shanahan's offenses have averaged 118 targets to running backs over the past three seasons and that could go up with the injuries their receiving corps is facing.
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Yeah, I know. O.J. Howard burned you in the past. You're done with him. I get it. But he's free now. And he has Tom Brady. And camp reports have been pretty fantastic. Yes, they have Rob Gronkowski. But Gronk didn't even play last year and Bruce Arians has been noncommittal about his snap share. It wouldn't be surprising if Howard leads Bucs tight ends in snaps and targets. And again, he's free.
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Last year we saw both Daniel Jones and Gardner Minshew start their rookie year on the bench and turn into quality low-end starters when their number was called. Like them, Tua Tagovailoa will start the year on the bench, but he has a much better pedigree, and a lot more upside. This was the consensus No. 1 overall pick heading into last year and he's reportedly fully recovered from the hip injury that derailed his final season at Alabama. The Dolphins should be a pass heavy team and you could do worse than the duo of Devante Parker and Preston Williams at wide receiver.
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I love James Conner, but the injury history is undeniable. The problem last year is that there wasn't a true handcuff behind him. Reports out of Pittsburgh suggest that has changed, with Benny Snell taking a giant step forward, shedding weight and looking better as a receiver. Snell was mediocre as a rookie but still scored double-digit Fantasy points in his only two starts. This is a very good offense and if something goes wrong with Conner, I'd expect Snell to be a borderline top-25 running back with upside beyond that.
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Now we're getting to the divisions where there isn't a whole lot of there there. But that doesn't mean I don't think Irv Smith has upside. In the second half, Smith was outperforming Kyle Rudolph everywhere but the red zone. Now the team has lost Stefon Diggs and Justin Jefferson has not looked ready to replace him. That's led to talk of Smith lining outside more often and being targeted as a downfield receiver. Smith is best saved for tight end premium leagues, but there's a chance he takes over as the No. 1 tight end in Minnesota and finishes as the second-most targeted Viking.
Which players are poised for breakouts, which sleepers do you need to jump on, and which busts should you avoid at all costs in your Fantasy football league? Visit SportsLine now to get early rankings, plus see which WR is going to come out of nowhere to crack the top 10, all from the model that out-performed experts big time last season.
