We get it. You are sick of reading all the cryptic messages on Twitter, trying to sort out which players will have certain roles when the season starts. You just want some legitimate fantasy football sleepers to keep an eye on during your draft.
That’s exactly what we served up below. Whether or not you plan on drafting these guys, you at least need to understand their situation heading into the season. From there, you can balance the risk/reward of these fantasy football sleepers with the overall makeup of your roster.
Let’s get to it!
Top 7 Fantasy Football Sleepers: 2024
ESPN ADP of these fantasy football sleepers is for full PPR leagues, updated as of August 3.
Panthers WR Diontae Johnson (ESPN ADP: 94)
Johnson’s upside might be capped in the Panthers’ offense, but he’s still a great bet to beat his ADP. Bryce Young should take a sophomore leap (it’s a low bar, but still…), and Johnson will line up as his alpha target.
The Panthers will want to run the ball, but game flow should push them into passing situations regularly. That gives Johnson a nice floor of receiving targets to churn out consistent fantasy production.
Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba (ESPN ADP: 105)
There’s a good chance your league mates are on this one, too. Smith-Njigba started his rookie season slow due to injuries, then turned it on in the second half. The Seahawks have a new coaching staff, and their offensive coordinator — Ryan Grubb — likes to open up his playbook.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba
No more Pete Carroll.
No more run-first mentality.New coach Ryan Grubb is an expert at utilizing slot WRs.
JSN is the most versatile WR, and player, on SEA offense.
Elite college prospect being drafted at his absolute floor.
pic.twitter.com/Yazy6WNqAe— Joe Orrico (@NoExpertFF) June 19, 2024
New head coach Mike Macdonald said Smith-Njigba “is definitely going to be a massive piece of what we’re trying to do offensively.” And no, I don’t believe that’s just coach speak.
Packers WR Christian Watson (ESPN ADP: 98)
The “human hamstring pull” is a frustrating player for fantasy enthusiasts. But that’s why he’s a sleeper. We need to consider that Watson has caught 12 touchdowns in 17 games, and his quarterback is the real deal.
Will he play every game this season? Probably not. But trying to predict injuries (even in those with a history) is a game of whack-a-mole.
Keep this in mind: Watson could legitimately be this year’s Nico Collins if he stays healthy. All of the stats point to it, but the injury stigma has most people looking the other way.
Bills WR Curtis Samuel (ESPN ADP: 143)
You could argue that all of the Bills wide receivers are fantasy football sleepers with the potential to turn into Josh Allen’s top target. However, Samuel stands out from the rest. Here’s why:
- Bills OC Joe Brady helped Samuel to 1,051 total yards and 5 TDs with Carolina in 2020.
- Brady plans to utilize Samuel as a receiver and runner (Deebo Samuel light?).
We know that the Bills will be dedicated to running the football, and Samuel appears to be part of that equation. The upside as Allen’s potential top receiver is very intriguing too.
Chargers WR Joshua Palmer (ESPN ADP: 192)
We compared ESPN ADP to FantasyPros Championship Leagues with a $350 buy-in. The goal is to find players that the “pros” are drafting much higher than casual fantasy enthusiasts on ESPN.
The results were eye-opening, and you can get the full cheat sheet here.
Joshua Palmer was on that list, as his ADP is 192 on ESPN against 158 in the high-stakes league. That’s nearly three rounds of value!
Palmer is the most trusted option in the Chargers receiving corps, and it wouldn’t be shocking if he turned that into an alpha role. That’s worth a late round add in my book.
Steelers TE Pat Frieirmuth (ESPN ADP: 152)
This fantasy football sleeper is based more on a “hunch” than anything. After all, we aren’t quite sure how new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith plans to utilize his big tight end.
But we do know that Pittsburgh upgraded its quarterback situation, and that could lead to more red-zone opportunities.
Pat Freiermuth
•Russell Wilson now under center
•Diontae Johnson gone
•Arthur Smith loves to use TEspic.twitter.com/yv6Ca0UZkG— Nick Guglielmo (@NextLvl_Fantasy) July 27, 2024
On top of that, the Steelers don’t have many legitimate pass-catchers outside of George Pickens.
Because of that, Freirmuth is one of the late tight ends I’m willing to take a chance on.
Cowboys RB Rico Dowdle (ESPN ADP: 181)
UPDATE: Dalvin Cook has signed with the Dallas Cowboys, which could dilute Dowdle’s workload. For this reason, we are taking him off the fantasy sleeper list.
It’s not that hard to believe that Dowdle could beat Ezekiel Elliott for the RB1 spot in Dallas.
That’s a fantasy-friendly role on a good offense that will have plenty of red-zone looks. I wouldn’t say that Dowdle is anything special as a player, but neither is his competition for touches.
This is a low-risk, late-round pick that could be a solid return on investment at the FLEX spot.
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