We all love targeting sleepers on Draft Day in our Fantasy leagues. These are players you can draft with a mid-round pick, or someone you pick with one of your last selections. And the latter is something that can be the most gratifying when that player succeeds. It's why you clicked on this story.
For this week, as the calendar turns from June to July, I'm going to look at players you can draft at pick No. 150 overall and later. I'll use the Average Draft Position data on FantasyPros now, and we'll revisit this topic again in August using our ADP on CBS Sports.
You can call these players deep sleepers. And some of these guys are being selected after kickers, which is amazing, because several of these players will be league-winners in 2020.
We'll start with quarterbacks, and many of you -- myself included -- love waiting on this position in your draft. If you had selected a quarterback in this range last year, two options you could have had were Josh Allen and Matthew Stafford, who both went after Round 13 based on ADP.
Allen finished as the No. 9 quarterback in 2019, and Stafford was No. 2 in Fantasy points per game (25.4) before missing the final eight games of the season with a back injury. Hopefully, several of these quarterbacks listed here are just as successful.
Editor's note: Players are listed in order of Jamey Eisenberg's rankings.
This ADP is going to change dramatically after Newton signed with the Patriots on Sunday night. He now has the chance to be a starting Fantasy option in all leagues. Newton still has to beat out Jarrett Stidham for the starting job, but it would be shocking if he's not New England's starter in Week 1. And if Newton is healthy after battling foot and shoulder injuries the past two years, he could be a top 10 Fantasy quarterback -- if not better -- with his combination of passing and running. If his ADP stays above 150, he could be among the biggest steals on Draft Day in all formats.
Minshew could be a surprise top 10 Fantasy quarterback this year. He played well at times in his rookie campaign in 2019, scoring at least 20 Fantasy points in eight of 14 appearances. He averaged a respectable 19.3 Fantasy points per game, and he was fifth among quarterbacks with 344 rushing yards. The Jaguars could be chasing points every game based on their rebuilding defense, and Minshew got new weapons to use with rookie receiver Lavishka Shenault, running back Chris Thompson and tight end Tyler Eifert. Along with D.J. Chark, Dede Westbrook and Leonard Fournette, Minshew should have enough talent around him to help to make him a starter in all leagues.
We'll include Justin Herbert here (ADP No. 338), but I'm hoping Taylor starts the majority of the season for the Chargers. If the team committed to Taylor in 2020, barring injury, I would have him ranked near or inside my top 12. He has that kind of upside. The talent on the Chargers' roster is great with Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, Hunter Henry and Austin Ekeler, and the offensive line should be much improved with offseason additions of Trai Turner and Bryan Bulaga. Taylor also has proven he can run the ball with two seasons on his resume of at least 568 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns. The threat of Herbert starting has Taylor lower in my rankings and in ADP, but the upside is immense. Herbert doesn't have the same upside, but he could be helpful whenever he takes over -- if that happens.
Lock is another one of my favorite targets in this range after what Denver did for him this offseason. The Broncos signed Melvin Gordon as a free agent and drafted talented rookies in Jerry Jeudy and KJ Hamler. Along with Courtland Sutton and Noah Fant, this is a talented, young receiving corps, with huge upside. Lock had one big game in his five appearances as a rookie in 2019 when he scored 29 Fantasy points at Houston in Week 14. Otherwise, he scored 16 Fantasy points or less in his four other outings. However, with the added talent around him, Lock could prove to be a quality Fantasy quarterback worth targeting in this range.
Bridgewater is another quarterback who could surprise us this season now that he's the starter in Carolina. I like the fit with new offensive coordinator Joe Brady, and the weapons for the Panthers are solid with Christian McCaffrey, D.J. Moore, Robby Anderson, Curtis Samuel and Ian Thomas. Carolina could be chasing points with a mediocre defense, and Bridgewater scored at least 20 Fantasy points in three of five starts for an injured Drew Brees (thumb) last season in New Orleans. We haven't seen Bridgewater as a full-time starter since 2015, and he only averaged 14.3 Fantasy points per game that year. But in this offense, I'm hopeful Bridgewater has a higher ceiling, and he's worth taking a flier on in this range.
In 2019, Rivers scored fewer than 20 Fantasy points for the first time in eight seasons. Now, things are changing for Rivers with his move from the Chargers to the Colts. And we know Indianapolis wants to be more run heavy than pass dominant since the Colts were just No. 25 in passes per game last year (32.1). But that could change if coach Frank Reich has more faith in Rivers running the offense this year compared to Jacoby Brissett. Rivers likely doesn't have league-winning upside, but he could be a serviceable starter. It wouldn't be a huge surprise if Rivers was a low-end Fantasy starter this year.
Despite having the highest ADP of this group, he's not my favorite target in this range because the 49ers will likely be a low-volume passing offense, and he could be without lead receiver Deebo Samuel (foot) to open the season. In 2019, San Francisco was No. 31 in pass attempts per game (28.2), but Garoppolo was No. 13 in Fantasy points for the season. He did tie for fifth in touchdowns (27), which is a positive, but he doesn't have a high ceiling. He's safe as a fallback option, but he's better suited for two-quarterback and Superflex leagues.
Like Garoppolo, Cousins operates in a low-volume passing offense, and he was touchdown dependent in 2019. The Vikings were No. 30 in pass attempts last year (29.2), and Cousins passed for 26 touchdowns, which made him the No. 14 Fantasy quarterback. He loses Stefon Diggs, which could hurt, depending on how well rookie Justin Jefferson plays this year. And things in Minnesota could look dramatically different if Dalvin Cook is a holdout. But if Cook is there for Week 1, Cousins should have a low ceiling once again. He's another safe fallback option, but I only prefer him in two-quarterback and Superflex leagues.
We're getting to the point where quarterbacks like Darnold are being drafted this late for a reason. Darnold is more of an option in two-quarterback and Superflex leagues, but hopefully this is his best season yet in Year 3. He did close 2019 with at least 20 Fantasy points in five of his final eight outings. And he might have the most complete receiving corps of his career with Denzel Mims and Breshad Perriman joining the Jets, as well as having Chris Herndon back for a full year. Along with Le'Veon Bell and Jamison Crowder, that group should help elevate Darnold this year. I don't love him as a starting option, but this could be the year things finally click for him.
We're going to find out just how much Raiders coach Jon Gruden trusts Carr now that he has the potential to replace him with Marcus Mariota. I don't think that will happen unless Carr is completely awful in Las Vegas, but it's something to consider. Carr did close the season in 2019 with at least 21 Fantasy points in three of his final four games. And he got new weapons this offseason with Henry Ruggs, Bryan Edwards and Lynn Bowden joining Darren Waller, Josh Jacobs, Hunter Renfrow and Tyrell Williams. Carr is better suited for two-quarterback and Superflex leagues, but I would have him ranked slightly higher if the threat of Mariota replacing him wasn't there.
The Dolphins' quarterback situation could be fascinating for Fantasy this year because Tagovailoa and Ryan Fitzpatrick (ADP No. 249) both have the upside to start in all leagues. I would anticipate Fitzpatrick opening the season as Miami's starter, but Tagovailoa will take over at some point, which lowers the upside for both. But if Tagovailoa is healthy after last year's hip injury at Alabama, he could emerge as a low-end starter in all leagues. And Fitzpatrick scored at least 24 Fantasy points in five of his final six starts in 2019. In two-quarterback and Superflex leagues, it's not a bad idea to draft both Dolphins quarterbacks as your No. 3 option and see what happens during the year.
I'm hopeful that Haskins improves in his sophomore season under new offensive coordinator Scott Turner. Washington gave him some new weapons with Antonio Gandy-Golden and Antonio Gibson, and hopefully Derrius Guice stays healthy. If Terry McLaurin, Steve Sims and Kelvin Harmon continue to improve, that will help Haskins be a better Fantasy option in 2020. He's only a late-round target in two-quarterback and Superflex leagues, but he could be a surprise starter in those formats. Don't completely dismiss Haskins just because he scored 20 Fantasy points just twice in his final six starts last year.
I'm going with Foles over Mitch Trubisky (ADP No. 317) because I expect Foles to win the job, but neither of Chicago's quarterbacks are that intriguing. Maybe you can make the case for Trubisky, who averaged 22.1 Fantasy points per game in 2018 and scored 27 total touchdowns, including 421 rushing yards. But there's no guarantee he will start at all in 2020 with Foles now on the roster. Whoever is the starter in Chicago is only a late-round flier in two-quarterback and Superflex leagues.
