Fantasy football sleepers are players who are expected to outperform their preseason expectations and provide excellent value for fantasy team owners. Week 1 of the NFL season is always full of surprises, and it’s important to move with the tide of the season, but with only one week in the books, it’s equally important not to overreact.
So, while starting 0-1 is always a disappointment, you don’t want to tear down the house just because one player underperformed.
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With that said, there are some sneaky players that you can pivot to if there are options on your team that don’t look like they’re in as good of an environment as you thought they were when you drafted them. Below, we are going to run through every fantasy roster position and find some Week 1 Fantasy Football Sleepers that your leaguemates are overlooking.
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Week 1 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Quarterbacks
Jared Goff, Lions (vs. LAR, 28)
The Goff Gambit begins. For those who didn’t read my Draft Day Strategery opus, the Goff Gambit is simply drafting Goff and star🔴ting him whenever he plays at home.
In 17 home games over the last two seasons, Goff has av🦄eraged 277 passing yards, 2.5 touchdowns, and 0.5 interceptions, or 21.3 fantasy points per game. That’s a higher average than Lamar Jackson’s 20.7, which made him the fantasy QB3 last season. Managers can stream another quarterback whenever Goff goes on the road–13.9 PPG in all road games, 14.5 PPG in all indoor road games–though I would consider Goff on the road if he’s indoors in a great matchup.
Matthew Stafford, Rams (@ DET, 31)
Stafford finished as the fantasy QB15 last se🧔ason and gets a tasty m⛎atchup against his old team.
The Lions yielded the sixth-most passing yards (4,205) and the sixth-most passing touchdowns (28) last🦂 s💖eason. Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp are good to go, which certainly helps.
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Week 1 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Running Backs
Zamir White, Raiders (@ LAC, 18)
White is slated for RB1 duties after Josh Jacobs moved onto Green Bay. White filled that role for four games late last season, gaining 83, 145, 106, and 121 total yards in consecutive games. He scored one touchdown, caught nine 💯passes, and was the fantasy RB8 in that span. Among the 41 running backs with 25+ total carries in the last four weeks, Whꦕite was ninth in yards after contact per attempt.
He had 𒊎the No. 20 rushing grade (out of 55 backs) in that span per PFF, and he fared well as a pass-blocker. The Chargers were middle of the pack in rushing yards allowed but gave up the seventh-most rushing touchdowns (18) last season. There is some concern about White’s role due to preseason snap shares, but when asked about his ru༺nning backs, HC Antonio Pierce recently said, “Early downs–a lot of No. 3 (White’s jersey number).”
Chuba Hubbard, Panthers (@ NO, 23)
Hubbard finished as the RB28 last season but didn’t take over as the “starter” until Week 6. From that point on, he was the RB18, so he should provide fantasy RB2-type numbe𒈔rs while Jonathan Brooks is on the shelf. The Saints yielded the 11th-most rushing yards last season.
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Week 1 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Wide Receivers
Brian Thomas Jr., Jaguars (@ MIA, 16)
Thomas was𝄹 the fourth receiver taken in the draft and he has had a good camp. He caught three passes (41, 38, and 14 yards) in the preseason and is stepping into an offense that lost both Calvin Ridley (136 targets) and Zay Jones (64 targets), so there should be plenty of work for the rookie from the get-go.
Xavier Worthy, Chiefs (vs. BAL, 12)
With Marquise Brown out with a shoulder injury, there should be plenty of snaps and routes available for the speedy rookie, who had a good camp. ♎It’s a small sa🍃mple size, but he saw a 29% target share in the 16 dropbacks that both he and Patrick Mahomes were on the field during the preseason.
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Week 1 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Tight Ends
Taysom Hill, Saints (vs. CAR, 1)
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported in early August that the Saints are “leaning into the Taysom Hill experience.” Of course, Hill is not even TE-eligible in some leagues, but that’s where we rank/project him since that’s the only position where he’s startable. Hill’s preseason snaps were over 60% after languishing last year around the 37% mark. If he’s on the field that much in a similar role, he’s very likely to produce TE1 numbers.
Jonnu Smith, Dolphins (vs. JAX, 19)
Last season, Jonnu Smith finished as the TE19 in half-PPR formats and had the 15th-most receiving yards–a career-high 582–at his position. He’s a terrific athlete and could shine in an every-down role, especially with Mike McDaniel scheming the offense
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4for4 is home to the most accurate rankings since 2010! Sync your fantasy football league and stay a🏅head with custom cheat sheets, advanced ꦦtools, and data-driven content.
- Most Accurate Rankings & Projections
- Custom Rankings, Cheat Sheets & Top 200
- Unlimited Access to Season-Long Tools & Reports
