Consensus Sleepers from 55+ Experts (2020 Fantasy Football)

Fantasy managers build championship-caliber teams by grabbing guys in the late rounds who have the potential to become starters on their fake football squads. Jameis Winston, Miles Sanders, DeVante Parker, and Mark Andrews all heavily outproduced their average draft position (ADP) last season to become highly reliable options every week. The uncertainty provided by the pandemic, the lack of a preseason, and fewer practice reports does make the task of finding these hidden gems a bit tougher, but it’s still far from impossible. With that in mind, we’ve polled 58 experts on which QB, RB, WR, and TE have the best odds at ending the year way above their half-PPR draft cost. Check out who they nominated and also take a look at who their favorite sleeper of 2020 is.

Want to see all the votes? Click here to view which experts participated and who they voted for.

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Top Consensus Sleepers

Click here to view which experts participated and who they voted for.

Running Backs

_{Running backs who received one vote were: Alexander Mattison, Deejay Dallas, Jerick McKinnon, Justin Jackson, Darrynton Evans, A.J. Dillion, Darrell Henderson} 

Wide Receivers

_{Wide receivers who received one vote were: Michael Pittman Jr., Preston Williams, Jerry Jeudy, Breshad Perriman, Curtis Samuel, Emmanuel Sanders, Miles Boykin}

Quarterbacks

Tight Ends

_{Tight ends who received one vote were: O.J. Howard, Tyler Eifert, Ian Thomas, Will Dissly, Dawson Knox, C.J. Uzomah}

Q. Who is the player you expect to be this year’s biggest fantasy sleeper and why?

Running Backs

Antonio Gibson (WAS) 
“Pegging Gibson as a sleeper probably isn’t the cool thing to do anymore now that people are woke on him — see what I did there? But guys, he was my sleeper choice for FantasyPros’ ’10 Early Sleepers’ piece in May before it was cool, ‘K? There’s no reason for me to change my mind now. In fact, there’s more reason for Gibson to bring this sleeper prediction to fruition. Adrian Peterson will be the primary beneficiary of Derrius Guice’s transgressions, but Gibson waits in the wings to take over as Washington’s new Chris Thompson. He’s too big, fast, and athletic to keep off the field. Adding intrigue to Gibson’s appeal is the potential of Washington falling behind in games and needing to pass frequently to stay afloat. With less than a month to go, I’m tabbing Gibson as an RB3 in half-PPR scoring with RB2 upside in PPR formats.”
– Zach Greubel (Gridiron Experts)

James White (NE) 
“The addition of quarterback Cam Newton skyrockets White’s value for the 2020 season! Among running backs last year, White ranked first in red zone targets, first in red zone catches, and second in red zone touchdowns. In fact, he has seen the second-most red zone targets (34) among all NFL players since 2018 (Michael Thomas leads with 44). The 28-year-old back once again has a quarterback who relies on throwing to his running back. Since 2017, 22% of Newton’s completions have gone to running backs.”
– Tozzi Brothers (Legion Report)

Boston Scott (PHI) 
“In the last four games of 2019, Scott was the RB9 in half-PPR scoring (70.5). I normally don’t consider the end-of-season run to be a reliable indicator of future projection, but Miles Sanders was the primary running back in each of those games. Scott may have benefited from a few extra touches in Week 17, but he appears to have solidified the ‘Darren Sproles role’ in this offense with the Eagles neglecting to add to the running back corps in the offseason.”
– Kevin Wheeler (Draftwize)

Zack Moss (BUF) 
“Moss was drafted in the third round by the Buffalo Bills just one year after they selected Devin Singletary in the third round. Moss and Singletary should form a thunder-and-lightning combination for the Bills — think Mark Ingram and Alvin Kamara in 2017-18. I don’t expect Moss and Singletary to both be top-20 running backs, but Moss should see plenty of volume in between the tackles and will be the goal-to-go option as well. If Singletary goes down, Moss will have top-15 fantasy back potential in the Bills’ run-heavy offense.”
– Bill Dubiel (RotoBaller)

J.K. Dobbins (BAL) 
“Dobbins has league-winning upside. If you watched him at Ohio State, you know how good he is. You know how good Baltimore’s running game is. Mark Ingram remained effective last season — but he’ll be 31 by the end of this year, so the cliff isn’t too far away. If Dobbins gets his foot in the door, he might just whip it open and become the Ravens’ lead back.”
– Jared Smola (Draft Sharks)

Wide Receiver

CeeDee Lamb (DAL) 
“Lamb is currently the 43rd ranked fantasy wide receiver in half-PPR leagues, the 43rd ranked fantasy wide receiver in 2019 was Golden Tate with 127.7 fantasy points. I think Lamb is in an ideal situation in Dallas playing for Mike McCarthy, who loves to pass the ball, and catching passes from Dak Prescott, who had 4,902 yards passing and 30 passing touchdowns last year. The combination of Lamb being a freak athlete and being covered by the second- or third-best defensive back on the opposing team should give him the potential to have a huge rookie season. He probably is not going to be a top-15 fantasy wideout option, but I think 150-175 points is completely reasonable and he could be one of the best sleeper picks in fantasy football this year.”
– Derek Lofland (FantasyPros)

“In general, I think we are undervaluing rookie wide receivers this year. There are usually at least a couple of first-year wideouts who provide top-30 production year over year. This season’s class of rookie wide receivers is arguably the best in NFL history. And yet, none are currently being ranked inside the top 40 by the consensus. There are at least a handful of candidates who I can list here, but I will go with CeeDee Lamb of the Dallas Cowboys. He was my favorite receiver in this class upon entering this year’s NFL Draft. He should make an immediate impact at the next level. Lamb worked primarily out of the slot in Dallas’ first training camp and I would expect him to play there regularly. He has an incredible ability to make plays after the catch and can score from anywhere on the field. I realize many fantasy managers may be hesitant to invest in Lamb because Dallas already has two established wide receivers in tow. However, Lamb will not need to be peppered with targets to be effective. A.J. Brown had 84 targets last year and we have no issue ranking him as a top-20 receiver. Randall Cobb had 83 targets as Dallas’ slot receiver last season. There is no reason Lamb should not receive a similar target share this year. If he does, he has WR2 upside for a fraction of the cost.”
– Mick Ciallela (Fantrax)

“CeeDee Lamb finds himself in a crowded offense for sure, but it’s one that can sustain multiple fantasy contributors. Jason Witten and Randall Cobb leave behind 166 targets for Lamb and Blake Jarwin to absorb. Jerry Jones has donned Lamb with the almighty number 88 and is expecting him to live up to the hype immediately. I expect he’ll have 100+ targets in his rookie season and since his current ranking is outside the top-40 wide receivers, you’ll be getting a tremendous return on your investment in your 2020 fantasy football drafts!”
– Nate Hamilton (The DomiNate Fantasy Football Show)

Jalen Reagor (PHI) 
“Reagor walks into the building as the WR1 in Philly with Alshon Jeffery on the PUP list and DeSean Jackson’s mouth and body letting him down. The misconception is that the Eagles don’t support a high-end fantasy wide receiver, but that is simply not the case. Jeffery had a 16-game pace of 228 PPR points in 2018, which would have been good enough for a WR17 finish last season. At worst, Reagor gives you Nelson Agholor’s healthy numbers: 100 targets, 65 catches, 750 yards, and six touchdowns. The best-case scenario is him being a mid-WR2 at the cost of a 13th-round pick.”
– Michael Tomlin (Fantasy Six Pack)

Anthony Miller (CHI) 
“Mitch Trubisky will need to be better for this to come to fruition, but I’m including Miller on here with the assumption that Nick Foles will be the starting quarterback for the majority of the season. Miller has shown flashes of fantasy relevance in the past, albeit with inconsistency. In his 2018 rookie season, he did find the end zone seven times, but only once did that happen in back-to-back games. His 2019 season was marred with nagging injuries and terrible quarterback play, yet he had a nice five-game stretch from Weeks 10-14 in which he was a fringe WR2. I like wide receivers that are entering their third season and Miller could sneak his way into WR2 territory again with the help of Nick Foles, who targets his slot receivers roughly 57% of the time.”
– Rich Piazza (Fantasy Shed)

Allen Lazard (GB) 
“The Pack Show did not add a receiving weapon for Aaron Rodgers in the draft, which perplexed many. They brought in Devin Funchess, who has now opted out. Geronimo Allison is currently in Detroit. Jace Sternberger has taken over for Jimmy Graham, who is now in Chicago. That means 115 targets have disappeared. Rodgers placed trust in Lazard down the stretch last season and is attracted to his 6’5″ height and 225-pound frame when not peppering Davante Adams. Rodgers will throw for 4,000+ yards and toss 25+ touchdowns. The No. 2 receiver in Green Bay is really cheap on draft day.”
– Todd D Clark (The Fantasy Fix)

Quarterback

Gardner Minshew II (JAC)
“If you normally wait until the back end of your draft to select your fantasy football team’s QB1 or if you play in a superflex league, Minshew should be in your sights in 2020. Not only did the Jaguars move on from Nick Foles, showing a commitment to the second-year signal-caller, but the only other quarterbacks on the roster are career understudies — Joshua Dobbs, Mike Glennon — and will not threaten Minshew’s job. Although he only finished as the QB20 through 14 games played last season, the former sixth-round pick performed a lot better than the stats suggest. After all, if Foles didn’t get injured in Week 1, we probably wouldn’t know who Minshew is. He was unexpectedly propelled into the starting lineup on a team in the midst of a rebuild. Minshew made the best out of a dire situation. Coming off a 2019 season in which he threw for 3,271 yards with a 21-to-six touchdown-to-interception ratio while finishing as the fifth and sixth-best quarterback in deep ball (45.1%) and play-action (71.6%) completion percentages, respectively, Minshew also got the job done with his legs. He ended the year sixth in carries (67) and fifth in yards rushing (344) by a quarterback. Minshew’s rushing ability raises his floor. Adding shifty satellite back Chris Thompson and red zone tight end Tyler Eifert to a returning supporting cast that includes Leonard Fournette, D.J. Chark, Dede Westbrook, and Chris Conley, there are enough weapons at Minshew’s disposal for him to be ultra-productive and vastly outperform his ADP. Factor in a young and rebuilding defense, which will force him to play from the proverbial negative game script and create additional opportunities to air the ball out. Also consider the addition of Jay Gruden as Jacksonville’s offensive coordinator, who has produced five QB1 seasons combined from Andy Dalton and Kirk Cousins from 2011-2017, and the stars are aligning for Minshew to be one of fantasy football’s biggest sleepers in 2020. At his no-risk ADP, it would be foolish to pass on him in your fantasy draft.”
– Anthony Cervino (Gridiron Experts)

“You would think Minshew Mania would have shot up his ADP in 2020, but here we are, Gardner Minshew is sitting at the free price of QB28. In 12 starts last year, he posted a 21:6 TD to INT ratio and racked up the fifth-most rushing yards among all quarterbacks. Rushing yards is a base stat I use to help identify late-round signal-callers and Minshew checks that box. He also ranked third-highest in throws traveling 20+ yards last year, so couple that with the fact that the Jaguars likely have to throw early and often and I want Minshew in the late rounds. Pair him with D.J. Chark and prosper.”
– Tyler Orginski (Fantasy Hot Read)

“Gardner Minshew was the QB10 in fantasy during the first nine weeks of last season, while ranking 11th in fantasy points per dropback. During that span, he was also sixth among all quarterbacks in rushing attempts (42) and fifth in rushing yards (235). His 49 scrambles paced all signal-callers and on a bad Jacksonville team, we could see a nice combination of passing and running volume for Minshew in 2020.”
– Adam Pfeifer (FTN)

Teddy Bridgewater (CAR) 
“Bridgewater is the perfect sleeper because he’s always available in the final round of drafts, even though he’s in a dream situation with a great opening schedule. He’s surrounded by Christian McCaffrey, D.J. Moore, Curtis Samuel, Robby Anderson, and Ian Thomas … which is a sneaky good core of skill players. The Panthers also have one of the worst defenses in the league and are expected to play fast this season. Combine that with a great matchup against the Raiders in Week 1 and you have a perfect streaming quarterback that could easily turn into a weekly starter in the final round of your draft!”
– Nick Zylak (Fantasy Football Advice)

“I usually hate using a quarterback as a top sleeper, but with superflex formats all the rage currently, a sleeper quarterback is worth his weight in gold. Teddy Bridgewater performed so well in his time under center for the Saints and dispelled any remaining concerns about his health. Only 27 years of age and at the helm of one of the most dynamic young offenses in the league, I think he is flying well below the radar and will significantly outplay his current QB26 ranking.”
– Jeff Haverlack (Dynasty League Football)

Philip Rivers (IND) 
“I think Rivers will come in much better than his QB23 ranking. He has all the tools that he is used to, a dynamic receiver in T.Y. Hilton, an excellent tight end in Jack Doyle, and a speedy pass-catching back in Nyheim Hines, who can play the role of his former targets, Darren Sproles and Danny Woodhead. Adding second-round pick Michael Pittman Jr. to a very quarterback-friendly coach in Frank Reich will equal an extremely motivated Rivers for this year.”
– Dan Yanotchko (EDSFootball)

Tight End

Blake Jarwin (DAL)
“Many of us are willing to wait to select our tight end after Darren Waller’s emergence last year, imploring to the fantasy gods to be the ones to discover the ultimate gem at the position. If anyone has a shot to replicate to some extent what Waller did in 2019, it is Jarwin. The departures of Jason Witten and Randall Cobb leave 146 targets vacant. There will be opportunities for the tight end in this offense and Jarwin can be among the most prolific throughout the season. Last year he was effective with limited volume, ending as the TE12 in yards per reception (11.8), TE6 in yards per target (8.9), TE8 in yards per route run (2.37), and TE14 in average target distance (8.4 yards).”
– Mauricio Gutierrez (Estadio Fantasy)

“I’m surprised Blake Jarwin even qualifies for this exercise. With Jason Witten now in Las Vegas, Jarwin should see a significant increase in targets even with the Cowboys adding CeeDee Lamb in the draft. Witten’s 83 targets last year tied him for third on the team with Randall Cobb, who also is no longer in Dallas, so presumably, those have to go to someone. Let’s also not forget that Witten was a top-15 fantasy option last year, so the potential is certainly there for the Cowboys’ new No. 1 tight end to break out.”
– Mark Ross (Athlon Sports)

“I get that tight ends aren’t the trendiest sleepers, but considering you can wait until the last round to draft Blake Jarwin or potentially pick him up off waivers, he fits the bill nicely. He is an underrated athlete who should now see the vast majority of Jason Witten’s vacated targets. Considering the two combined for 124 targets last year (the Cowboys ranked eighth in tight end targets in 2019) and that Dallas will run the same offense under Kellen Moore, there is massive upside for Jarwin. A top-five season at the position is hardly out of the question, yet he’s essentially ignored in standard-sized leagues.”
– Dan Harris (FantasyPros)

Chris Herndon (NYJ)
“Seven rookie tight ends have both surpassed 500 yards and averaged 12 yards per reception since 2000 — Mark Andrews, Noah Fant, Rob Gronkowski, Chris Herndon, Aaron Hernandez, Jeremy Shockey, and George Kittle (11.98 Y/R) — QUITE the impressive group. Adam Gase also loves his tight ends, evidenced by Ryan Griffin, who joined the Jets off the couch and still put up five top-15 performances in a nine-week span once Sam Darnold returned from mono. Herndon is being drafted as the TE21, which is just crazy talk. Draft him and reap the benefits.”
– Michael Petropoulos (BRoto Fantasy)

“Chris Herndon isn’t my favorite prospect. I don’t like Adam Gase teams, I’m not sure how much I trust Sam Darnold, and we basically haven’t seen Herndon on the field since 2018. However, when we did see him on the field, he was great. He was pacing neck and neck with Mark Andrews as a rookie and is in elite company, finishing his rookie campaign with over 500 receiving yards. He’s the only tight end sleeper that legitimately has a chance to be the No. 1 or No. 2 target in his offense. If I’m taking a super late tight end, I want the one with the highest upside.”
– Jason Moore (The Fantasy Footballers)

Jonnu Smith (TEN) 
“If you’re looking for a tight end to make a top-10 leap from the depths of ADP as seen with Mark Andrews, Darren Waller, and Austin Hooper in 2019, the first thing to look for is a condensed target tree. A few different tight ends seem to fit that mold in 2020, but my favorite option is Smith. His athletic prowess is akin to Andrews and Waller, and the Titans are extremely thin at receiver outside of A.J. Brown, so it’s not a stretch to envision Smith becoming Ryan Tannehill’s No. 2 target this season. If the volume comes and Smith can approximate his 2018-19 efficiency — 9.4 yards per target (seventh-best among tight ends in that span with at least 50 targets) — he’ll have a huge season and greatly outperform his draft cost in fantasy.”
– Greg Smith (TwoQBs)

Thank you to all the experts for naming their consensus sleepers. You can view each expert’s picks above and be sure to give them a follow on Twitter for more great advice. Also, please check out our latest podcast episode below.

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