Underdog Fantasy Sleepers To Draft In 2023

Sleepers To Target In Your 2023 Underdog Fantasy Football Drafts

Look, we’re all bored and gotta scratch that itch. The fantasy gods bestowed best ball drafts upon us and a new monster was created. Thank you fantasy gods. With everyone chasing best ball glory there is a ton of debate on draft strategies. Most of them focus at the top of the board. Hitting those dudes is obviously important but your hit rates overall are way higher up there. If you can hit a few diamonds at the end of your draft you can find yourself flying up those leaderboards. We all want that massive upside score to fill out our bench. This is much harder said than done. People chase the athletic freaks buried in depth charts, the workhorse hand cuffs, and even backup quarterbacks. This strategy doesn’t make a ton of sense to me.

Sure, I might take a stab or two a guys like this but I’d rather round out my teams with guys who have one thing in common. Playing time. Why would you waste all your roster spots hoping your guys even get a shot when you can just draft guys who already have the shot? You gotta play to score points. Here are four underdogs I will be extremely over exposed on in Underdog best ball tournaments. (All ADPs are from Underdog)

Chase Claypool – Pick 189 Round 15

First up is Chase Claypool. After a promising first two years in the league he was a massive disappointment last season. Before his trade to the Bears he played with a rookie quarterback in Kenny Pickett and after the trade he found himself in one of the worst passing offenses in the league. He didn’t exactly find himself in positions to succeed. I expect that to change. I’m a huge believer in Justin Fields as a passer (go watch the OSU tape) and find his situation last season similar to Trevor Lawrence’s rookie season with Urban Meyer.

I expect Fields to prove the haters wrong through air in 2023 and D.J. Moore should change the entire landscape of this offense. There is now that dude defenses have to be concerned about. Claypool should benefit from not only this but an overall functional offense. As I mentioned earlier another big reason I like Claypool here is playing time. There aren’t many starting receivers you can grab this late and at 6’4” and 238 pounds he will be great red zone target for Fields.

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Sam Howell – Pick 199 Round 16

This is honestly a pure gut call for me. The once highly touted prospect out of North Carolina took a major slide in the draft to the 5th round. The Commanders clearly like Howell enough to get him on the field for some live reps and film in week 18 last year. Yeah it was against the Cowboys who were resting for the playoffs and he didn’t even complete 60% of his passes. I know. However, he did flash some playmaking ability and I think it’s enough to give him the shot in 2023. They know what Jacoby Brissett is and this is not a roster that can carry its quarterback. Take a shot and see what the kid has and if it goes horribly you find yourself in the race for Caleb Williams or Drake Maye.

My favorite part about Howell is the rushing upside. It gets mentioned a ton with quarterbacks but it’s because it matters. In week 18 he went 11/19 for 169 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Not great, Bob. But because he was able to tack on 35 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown he ended 18.26 fantasy points. He is currently going as the 28th quarterback off the board. I wouldn’t be shocked to find Howell somewhere in the 15-20 range at the end of the year with a few pop weeks that make him a great stash.

Marvin Jones – Pick 206 Round 17

Entering his twelfth season in the league, Marvin Jones has been underrated in all 12 of those seasons. All this guy has done in his career has been a solid, dependable receiver for his quarterbacks. He has played in 13 games in 8/11 seasons in the league. He has also tallied between 712-1101 receiving yards in seven of those seasons. That’s insane consistency. Throw in he has 58 career touchdowns and has four or more in eight seasons this dude just gets it done. He now finds himself in Detroit where he finds himself as the teams WR2 until Jameson Williams returns from his six game suspension. Even after dropping a spot in the pecking order I still expect him to have some solid performances in a good offense. Sometimes hitting a single this late in the draft can feel like a double. Don’t overthink and underrate this dependable veteran.

More: 2023 Wide Receiver Values

Jake Ferguson – Pick 209 Round 17

My personal favorite best ball sleeper is Jake Ferguson. The 6’5” Cowboys tight end is entering his second year in the league and finds huge opportunity in front of him after Dalton Schultz left in free agency to the Houston Texans. He caught 19 passes on 22 targets as a rookie for 174 yards and 2 touchdowns. Nothing flashy but rookie tight end expectations are super low to start. In week 6 without Schultz, Ferguson recorded 4 catches for 40 yards and a touchdown. A solid night for a fill in. Dalton Schultz leaves behind a combined 282 targets over the last three season and he also 17 touchdowns over the same stretch.

I don’t expect Ferguson to step in and produce in the exact same way but he’s not being drafted like it. He finds little competition at the position this season. Even if Luke Schoonmaker works out as planned he likely won’t be a huge factor in the passing game this season. The Cowboys should once again be a top offense in the league and the starting tight end is being drafted at TE30. Make that make sense! Ferguson to the moon!

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