A lot can, and will, change between now and September, but it’s never too early to identify sleepers! One of the difficulties, however, is determining who we classify as a sleeper. Where is the cutoff point? With that in mind, and knowing all the things that can change before the start of the season, it’s only fair that we dig deep for our sleepers for 2024. These guys are unlikely to generate a ton of hype over the next few months, so they should remain safely asleep on draft boards.
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- Erickson’s Free Agency Primers: QB | RB | WR | TE
- 2024 Best Ball Fantasy Football Draft Kit
- Free Fantasy Football Mock Draft Simulator
Early Redraft Sleepers to Target
Michael Wilson (WR – ARI)
The Cardinals are currently the heavy betting favorites to land the biggest prize of the rookie wide receiver class: Marvin Harrison Jr. It’s no secret that Arizona needs an injection of talent in its receiver room. Trey McBride was the team’s leading receiver in 2023 with 825 yards, and Marquise Brown led the wide receivers with 574 yards followed by rookie Michael Wilson at 565. It feels like a near-certainty that Brown is on his way out of the desert after an underwhelming season. Outside of projecting what the depth chart will look like in 2024, Wilson has a lot to build on after being selected in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft.
Through the first eight weeks of the season, nobody was questioning that draft pick any longer. Wilson posted 401 yards and two touchdowns on 25 grabs across those eight weeks, pacing towards 852 yards over the course of 17 games. Then, Wilson began dealing with a shoulder ailment, halting his upward trajectory. Wilson missed four games and collected six weeks’ worth of injury reports, and was then quiet until the last two weeks of the season, in which he posted 130 yards and a touchdown. Outside of the time he spent playing through injuries and adjusting to a new quarterback, Wilson was quietly one of the better rookie wide receivers in the league. After a full offseason to work with Kyler Murray, Wilson will have an opportunity to establish himself as a featured part of the offense, even if a shiny new rookie is lined up on the opposite side of the field.
Chuba Hubbard (RB – CAR)
Admittedly, I don’t believe Chuba Hubbard is a particularly special player, but I think he’s a good player. Plus, he shares a backfield with Miles Sanders, so there’s that. Sanders began the season as the starter while the ink from his four year, $25M contract dried, but he struggled, to say the last, gaining over 50 rushing yards in just two games throughout the entire season. With 190 rushing yards through the first five weeks, Sanders then missed Week 6 and did not regain his starting role for the rest of the season.
From Week 6 through Week 18, Chuba Hubbard was the RB18 in half point PPR. The Panthers gained more trust in Hubbard as the season went along. He handled 20 or more carries in four of the last six weeks and saw at least two targets in four of those games. Hubbard went on to tally 902 rushing yards and five touchdowns, adding in 233 receiving yards.
Although the Panthers’ offense doesn’t project to be the most fruitful for running backs next season, it’s unlikely they will add significant pieces to the backfield. With a new coaching staff and a new play caller in Dave Canales, the offense should be more creative in how they utilize Chuba. And with so many holes across the roster, these Carolina cats cannot afford to spend more cap space or draft capital on the running back position. The new coaching staff has no commitment to Sanders; he has an out in his contract after the 2024 season and that feels like an inevitably. I’m not sure Hubbard will be featured as a workhorse in 2024, but he proved that he can handle that workload late in the 2023 season and Sanders is unlikely to reclaim a large piece of the backfield.
Khalil Herbert (RB – CHI)
Okay, I admit, I tabbed Khalil Herbert as a potential breakout player ahead of last season. I’m going back to the well again here, and you may be scratching your head, but hear me out. The exact reason you’re scratching your head is why Herbert is likely to fall into the sleeper category. D’Onta Foreman is a free agent and most of the fantasy excitement will shift towards Roschon Johnson. He was a trendy rookie name heading into the season and he had his moments, but he rushed for just 350 yards and posted a 66.8 PFF rushing grade. Herbert, on the other hand, finished with the 21st-highest rushing grade at 79.4.
It’s easy to forget that Herbert was in the process of taking over the backfield when he suffered a high ankle sprain in Week 5. He rushed for 103 yards on 18 carries in Week 4 and 76 yards on 10 carries in Week 5 prior to the injury. The third-year back then went on to miss five weeks before returning in Week 11. By this time, D’Onta Foreman was the leading man and it took a few weeks for Herbert to get back to full speed, but he closed out the season with 264 yards in the last three games. He was the RB11 in half point PPR scoring in the final three weeks, registering two 100-yard rushing games.
Herbert has yet to fully breakout at the NFL level, so many will be skeptical, but he’s been extremely efficient. He’s handled upwards of 12 carries in 11 career games, and in those games, Herbert averaged 99.5 rushing yards and 16.4 fantasy points. His 4.9 yards per carry is ninth-est among running backs across the last three seasons, and the fourth-year pro is stepping into a contract year. If he can remain healthy, I like his chances to hold off Johnson and lead the backfield. That role could be even more valuable role if the offense takes a step forward with a certain rookie quarterback behind center.
More Early 2024 Fantasy Football Draft Prep
- Erickson’s Early Fantasy Football Rankings, Tiers & Notes: QB | WR
- 5 Players Experts Avoid Drafting
- Early Must-Have Running Backs: Feb
- Early Must-Have Wide Receivers: Feb
- Early Must-Have QBs & TEs: Feb
- Early Undervalued Players: RB | WR
- Early Overvalued Players: RB | WR
- QB2s With Top-5 Upside: Feb
- RB3s With RB1 Upside: Feb
- TE2s With Top-5 Upside: Feb
- Players to Avoid: QB | RB
- 3 Early Breakout Candidates
- 6 Early Fantasy Football Draft Sleepers
- 7 Fantasy Football Draft Targets: Underrated Handcuffs
- Draft Values, Breakouts & Busts: RB | WR | TE
- RB Dead Zone Running Backs: Draft or Fade?
- Most Polarizing Running Backs to Draft
- Most Polarizing Wide Receivers to Draft
- Tight End Draft Dart Throws
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