NFL teams are deep into the dog days of training camp, and fantasy football draft season is getting underway. FantasyPros analysts Mike Maher, Derek Brown, Andrew Erickson and Pat Fitzmaurice continue a series of preseason roundtables by discussing their favorite deep fantasy football sleepers to draft. You can find the first two articles in our roundtable series here and here.
Deep Fantasy Football Sleepers Experts Draft
Who is your favorite deep sleeper — someone typically being drafted outside the top 200?
Kyle Monangai (RB – CHI)
Andrew Erickson: Bears head coach Ben Johnson continues to praise the seventh-round rookie running back, with Johnson citing the former Rutgers star as a player who can be trusted this fall with reps as the No. 2 RB. The Bears’ new head coach has no allegiance to either D’Andre Swift or Roschon Johnson.
The 5-foot-8, 211-pound Kyle Monangai posted back-to-back seasons at Rutgers with 1,200+ rushing yards, with a top-10 Pro Football Focus (PFF) rushing grade in 2023 (33% dominator rating). His ball security (zero career fumbles) and overall dependability as a workhorse will be appreciated by NFL coaches. So far, so good.
Jaylin Noel (WR – HOU)
Mike Maher: He’s buried on the depth chart in Houston right now, but I’m a Jaylin Noel truther. He put on a show at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, and I’m hoping the talent ends up forcing him onto the field.
I wish Noel and fellow Iowa State Cyclone Jayden Higgins were drafted to different teams, and the main reason Higgins was drafted a round before Noel is that Higgins has ideal height (6-foot-4) and Noel does not (5-foot-10).
It’s going to take an injury or Noel outplaying veteran receiver Christian Kirk by a wide margin to force Houston’s hand, but I’m betting on the talent late in drafts while acknowledging the situation is not ideal. I might end up having to cut him if I start dealing with my own team’s injuries and need the roster spot.
Brashard Smith (RB – KC)
Derek Brown: All roads in the late rounds lead back to Brashard Smith. He has the pass-catching chops to be inserted into the yesteryear Jerick McKinnon role, which we have seen pay dividends in the Chiefs’ offense. Smith also has the ability on early downs to take over if Isiah Pacheco misses any time.
Kareem Hunt is a dependable known commodity, but he offers no upside at this juncture of his career in any department. For everyone who says a seventh-round pick could never assume the starting role in the Kansas City backfield, I smugly point to Pacheco.
Miles Sanders (RB – DAL)
Pat Fitzmaurice: Miles Sanders is the forgotten man in the Dallas backfield, but based on training camp reports, it seems as if he has a chance to play a prominent role.
Sanders became an afterthought during his two years with the Panthers, but in 2022, he ran for 1,269 yards and 11 touchdowns with the Eagles. The 28-year-old Sanders has averaged 4.7 yards per carry and 3.03 yards after contact per attempt for his career, with a 27.7% breakaway percentage over his six NFL seasons, per PFF. And he’s a functional pass-catcher.
Sanders is as unsexy a pick as you can make, but he might be able to help fantasy teams win ugly.
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