Just finished up my 2nd fantasy football draft yesterday, so thought I would put together a list of players who I consider to be potential breakouts and sleepers. Last year, I gave a pretty decent list of sleepers, so hopefully this year I can do the same.
SleepersJoe Flacco, QB, Ravens: Call me crazy, but I think Flacco will be a solid # 2 QB in fantasy this year and possibly a # 1. He's looked good so far in the preseason and he has a year of experience under his belt. I think 3,000 plus yards and 25 TD's are possible
Matt Ryan, QB, Falcons: Matt Ryan has a ton of weapons around him and I could see the Falcons being one of the best offenses in the NFL this season. Ryan might have a season like Phillip Rivers did last year and get over 4,000 yards passing and 30+ TD's. I would not be mad at all if I had him as a backup. If you miss out on all the big name QB's, then Ryan is definitely worth a pick as a #1 QB.
Eddie Royal, WR, Broncos: Royal could have a Wes Welker like season this year for Josh McDaniels and the Broncos. I could see him getting well over 1,000 yards and 10 plus TD's. I think he'll be close to a Top 10 WR and I've been able to draft him as a # 2 and # 3 WR in my two leagues.
DeSean Jackson, WR, Eagles: I think that Jackson will get over 1,000 yards receiving, but I'm just not sure how much he'll get into the endzone. Either way he's at least a # 3 WR in fantasy and has the potential to be a very solid # 2 if he can find his way into the endzone.
Ray Rice, RB, Ravens: He's the # 1 RB on a team that likes to run the ball and he also is a good receiver out of the backfield. I think he gets to 1,000 yards and depending on his goal line carries could get close to 10 TD's combined rushing/receving.
Davone Bess/Tedd Ginn, JR, WR, Dolphins: One of these two will get over 1,000 yards and score 6+ TD's. Your guess is as good as mine as to which one it will be. Ginn is more explosive and I think he might breakout this year. Bess is like a poor man's Wes Welker and will probably give you at least 60 yards every week. His consistency alone is worth having, especially if you already have a stud as your # 1 WR. Bess has gone undrafted in both of my leagues, so you could probably get him late in your draft or just pick him up off waivers at some point later on.
Beanie Wells, RB, Cardinals: He looked good in his first preseason game and with the Cardinals explosive passing attack spreading the field, he should have a lot of room to operate near the line of scrimmage. He could be this season's answer to who will be the next Chris Johnson/Steve Slaton.
Darren McFadden, RB, Raiders: Hasn't been all that impressive in the preseason, but he has way too much talent to not take a chance on in the middle rounds. If he has a monster season then you don't want to be the guy who passed on him. He's good value in the middle rounds. I personally wouldn't take him before the 6th round.
Deep Sleepers
Here's a bunch of players I would consider drafting in the late rounds or pay extra close attention to on the free agent list once the season begins:Devin Hester, WR, Bears: Supposedly has gotten better at route running this year and you already know he's explosive as hell. He's the Bears # 1 WR right now and with Jay Cutler at QB he should get plenty of chances to make some big plays.
Leon Washington, RB, Jets: Washington is going to be MR Do-It-All for the Jets and he has a great chance to get combine for over 1,000 yards rushing/receiving and see the endzone a decent amount of times. Doesn't hurt that Thomas Jones is getting older too.
Darren Sproles, RB, Chargers: Sproles is in the same boat as Washington. He'll get a lot of touches for the Chargers and if Tomlinson isn't on top of his game he'll get even more chances to show what he can do.
Ahmad Bradshaw, RB, Giants: If Jacobs goes down he will the man in NY and should still get a decent amount of carries even with Jacobs healthy.
Felix Jones, RB, Cowboys: Similar to Bradshaw and probably more explosive. Jones should be getting touches this season regardless of if Marion Barber is healthy or not.
James Davis, RB, Browns: Davis has been getting a lot of praise from his teammates and coaches in the preseason and he could have a chance to replace an aging Jamal Lewis at some point this season.
Glen Coffee, RB, 49ers: Has been great in the preseason but will be tough for him to make an impact with Frank Gore in front of him. If Gore goes down though then watch out for Coffee.
Todd Heap, TE, Ravens: Believe it or not Heap went undrafted in BOTH of my leagues. He's look solid in the preseason and might be close to his old form. I'd definitely keep an eye on him or even take a chance on him late in the draft if you want to dump your TE position. He might not be a bad fallback option this year.
Mark Sanchez, QB, Jets: He wasn't drafted in either one of my drafts, but I think by the second half of the season he will be good enough to start against certain teams if you need a QB for your starter's bye week.
Chris Henry, WR, Bengals: Looks great in the preseason with 3 TD's and has a chance to steal some targets away from Chad Johnson and Laverneous Coles.
Rookies With Upside
Here's some rookies who have a lot of potential and most likely will be drafted in the middle-late rounds of your draft.Percy Harvin, WR, Vikings
Knowshon Moreno, RB, Broncos
Michael Crabtree, WR, 49ers
Brandon Pettigrew, TE, Lions
Earl Bennett, WR, Chicago
Hakeem Nicks, WR, Giants
Jeremy Maclin, WR, Eagles
Kenny Britt, WR, Titans
Donald Brown, RB, Colts
LeSean McCoy, RB, Eagles
Darrius Heyward-Bay, WR, Raiders
Other Sleepers
I personally wouldn't draft any of these guys, but I'll be keeping an eye on them throughout the season.Josh Morgan, WR, 49ers
David Clowney, WR, Jets
Joshua Cribbs, WR, Browns
Domenik Hixon, WR, Giants
Steve Smith, WR, Giants
Malcom Floyd, WR, Chargers
Robert Meachem, WR, Saints
Tim Hightower, RB, Cardinals
Fred Taylor, RB, Patriots
Joey Galloway, WR, Patriots
Vernon Davis, TE, 49ers
Fred Jackson, RB, Bills
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