Thankfully the 2023 fantasy football season is just around the corner. Each year fantasy players want to construct their team with a proper mix of good-value players and upside sleepers while avoiding players with high bust potential.
- AFC ADP Sleepers, Busts & Values: East | North | South | West
- Draft Targets for Every Round: Early | Middle | Late
- Fitz’s Draft Primers: QB | RB | WR | TE
- Fantasy Football Mock Draft Simulator
Sleepers to Target
Antonio Gibson (RB – WAS): ADP 98.7 | RB35
Last season Gibson struggled compared to his first two years in the NFL. However, the former Memphis star wasn’t awful for fantasy players. He was the RB30, averaging 9.5 half-point PPR fantasy points per game, finishing ahead of Brian Robinson Jr. While the arrival of Robinson impacted Gibson’s fantasy value, other things played a role in his struggles, including the dysfunctional playcalling. However, the former Memphis star was a top-12 running back during his rookie and sophomore season in the league. While he might not return to that level of play, fantasy players should expect a bounce-back season from the veteran running back.
Eric Bieniemy turned Jerick McKinnon into a low-end RB2 last season despite having only 72 rushing attempts, thanks to his role in the passing game. Meanwhile, the Commanders released J.D. McKissic, giving Gibson the featured role in the passing game out of the backfield. While he struggled on the ground in 2022, the former Memphis star was impressive in the passing game. He finished top-12 in target share (12%), yards per reception (7.7), yards per route run (1.66), and catch rate (79.3%) among running backs. The coaching staff has talked nonstop about Gibson this offseason. He has too much upside to be the 35th running back off the board.
Brandin Cooks (WR – DAL): ADP 100.3 | WR39
The veteran wide receiver had a disappointing 2022 season. Cooks was the WR49, averaging only nine half-point PPR fantasy points per game, the second-lowest average of his career. Some will argue that the former Oregon State star is washed up after seeing his fantasy points per game average decline over the past three consecutive years. However, that’s not true. Last season the Houston Texans offense was a disaster, averaging only 17 points per game, the third-fewest in the NFL. Thankfully, Cooks joined the Cowboys this offseason after the team averaged 27.5 points per game last year, the fourth highest in the NFL.
More importantly, the veteran wide receiver gets a significant upgrade at quarterback. Last year Cooks ranked 84th among wide receivers in catchable target rate (68.8%). That won’t be the case this season with Dak Prescott healthy. More importantly, the veteran wide was productive two years ago despite playing with Davis Mills. He was the WR20 in 2021, averaging 11.7 fantasy points per game. Meanwhile, Cooks has been outstanding at training camp and looks determined to return to his old level of play. While CeeDee Lamb will limit his fantasy upside, the veteran should easily outperform his ADP.
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Mike Fanelli is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @Mike_NFL2.