Six Fantasy Football Sleepers for 2017

What is a fantasy football sleeper? A sleeper is someone that many fantasy owners will "sleep" on and overlook their potential value. We're really looking for guys who have value in the later rounds of your draft who have the ability to contribute significantly at some point during the season. Here are six players that we think fit that bill.



Jamaal Williams, RB - Green Bay

The Packers ranked 5th last season in number of pass attempts, so for a team that throws this often, pass blocking is paramount. Ty Montgomery has struggled in that area which is perhaps not surprising given that he is a wide receiver-turned-running back. At 6-feet, 220-pounds, Williams on the other hand is a true running back with experience in that area. There's a good chance that Williams pushes Montgomery for the starting gig at some point this season. He's going right around the 9th round in 12-team drafts making his value as a sleeper pretty solid. It's not a stretch to start the comparisons to Jordan Howard's situation from last season.

Samaje Perine, RB - Washington

Although he shared the workload in Oklahoma with Joe Mixon, Perine was incredibly productive when he had the ball in his hands (6.0 yards per carry). Just like in college, he'll share backfield duties. A persuasive argument could be made that even though he won't be at the top of the depth chart right away, Perine has more upside than Rob Kelley and Chris Thompson. He shined bright during the Redskins' second preseason game where he rushed 8 times for 45 yards and caught one pass for 29 yards. His ADP has him going at the start of the 9th round, and while we like Williams better as a sleeper in that spot, Perine would be a close second.

Robby Anderson, WR - New York Jets

The Jets wide receiving corp appears to be a complete mess. Quincy Enunwa is out for the season. Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker have moved on. The rest becomes a matter of simple math. Those 270 targets have to go somewhere, and Anderson is the most talented receiver left. There's no reason to think that 120+ of those targets will go his way. Even better, he's going at the tail end of the 11th round in 12-team drafts. How many other wide receivers are you going to find at the top of the Jets depth chart this late in a draft? Even if he doesn't put up huge yardage, the value of that pick is absolutely worth it.

Pierre Garcon, WR - San Francisco

Garcon is ranked 76th overall on FFN but his ADP has him going 94th overall in 12-team drafts. That means that he's being drafted at the end of the 7th/start of the 8th round. This is a round and a half later than where he's being ranked. There is great value in this pick. He's the 34th-ranked wide receiver and the #1 receiver on the Niners depth chart. The last time Garcon teamed up with coach Kyle Shanahan in 2013, he finished the year with 113 receptions for 1,346 yards. Even though Garcon is being drafted as a WR3, he can easily finish the year as a WR2. There is a ton of value here.

Tyrell Williams, WR - Los Angeles Chargers

With Mike Williams dealing with a back injury and Keenan Allen's injury history, Tyrell Williams makes for an interesting pick. With his ADP in the 9th round, he has a ton of upside. He has the potential to outperform his WR3/4 role on your team - particularly if Allen goes down again. He has shown that he can haul in the deep passes from Philip Rivers as well as make the most from the short throws.

Kareem Hunt, RB - Kansas City

Andy Reid has a history of turning out great PPR running backs. Even though Spencer Ware is the starting RB, Hunt may take that job before the season is over. We've watched Hunt go from an ADP in the 12th round to his current ADP in the late 8th. Some of that has to do with his recent performance against Cincinnati's starting defense where Hunt ran with the first team. He rushed for 40 yards on 8 carries and tallied 3 receptions for 23 yards on just 17 snaps. The Chiefs didn't pursue Hunt as aggressively as they did to let him sit idle.

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