I’m sitting on my couch right now. The baby’s asleep beside me, but I know that at any moment he could wake up, screaming at the world because some small sound has disturbed his rest.
There’s some kind of metaphor there that relates to fantasy football sleepers, but I’m too exhausted to think of the perfect one, so instead I’ll just say that these NFL players have a chance to be like my son this weekend.
To count as a sleeper, quarterbacks and tight ends need to be ranked outside the top 15 at their position on FantasyPros’ weekly rankings, while running backs are ranked outside the top 20 and wide receivers are ranked outside the top 25.
Andy Dalton - QB - Carolina Panthers
Week 7 ranking: QB20
Andy Dalton finished as a QB1 in his first two starts for the Panthers, but fell to QB28 and QB17 in the next two games. But in Week 7, he has a shot for another strong showing against the Washington Commanders.
Washington has only allowed the 14th-most passing yards per game, but the team has struggled immensely at keeping opposing teams out of the end zone, as Washington is one of just five teams to allow 2.0 passing touchdowns per game or more.
Dalton’s the kind of quarterback who you’ve got to weigh the situation with before you decide whether or not to play him in fantasy. This is one of those weeks where the arrow points toward him being worth that spot in your lineup.
Tank Bigsby - RB - Jacksonville Jaguars
Week 7 ranking: RB22
I was surprised to see Tank Bigsby finish as the RB51 in Week 6. Here’s what I wrote about him last week:
"One of the best stories over the past few weeks has been the emergence of Tank Bigsby. The second-year back was a complete non-factor as a rookie, finishing with 132 rushing yards.
He almost surpassed that in Week 5, as Bigbsy finished with 13 carries for 101 yards and two touchdowns. Add in his 28 receiving yards and you get 129 scrimmage yards, which is just three fewer yards than Bigsby’s 2023 rushing total.
In Week 1, Bigsby carried the ball 12 times, but his usage dropped sharply in Week 2 and Week 3, with two total carries in that span. But the Jags started using Bigsby again in Week 4 when he had 90 yards on seven carries, which prompted another increase in role for Week 5.
On a per-touch basis, Bigsby is playing like one of the best backs in the NFL right now, and in Week 5 he more than doubled Travis Etienne in carries, so it appears that the Jaguars are adjusting quickly to Bigsby’s breakout campaign."
I still stand by all of that, but last week was weird. Bigsby played 27% of snaps in a game where Etienne got hurt as the team leaned on D’Ernest Johnson while down big.
Etienne has a hamstring injury and looks poised to miss Sunday’s meeting with the Bears, so Bigsby should be the lead back this weekend. He’ll get a chance to showcase why I was so high on him one week ago.
Alexander Mattison - RB - Las Vegas Raiders
Week 7 ranking: RB28
I’ve long been a believer in Alexander Mattison, so I’m kinda mad at myself for being so pro-Zamir White earlier in the season. Like … come on, Justin. What were you thinking?
White has been out the last two games and Mattison has finished RB29 (meh) and RB16 (ooh) in his stead. He has struggled on the ground, averaging 2.5 and 2.4 yards per carry, but has added value in the receiving game.
This week he faces a Rams defense that’s allowed the sixth-most fantasy points per game to opposing running backs. If White is out again, Mattison almost feels like a must play in the RB2 slot. Good matchup, not much competition for touches, it’s a good setup…
Jerry Jeudy - WR - Cleveland Browns
Week 7 ranking: WR46
The Browns are Brownsing. The team has had a really good defense over the past few seasons but has wasted that by making the ill-advised Deshaun Watson trade. Now, it looks like the team has started the process of selling off assets and tearing things down as the Browns traded Amari Cooper to the Bill this week.
That means the Browns have a new No. 1 receiver going forward. Barring some unexpected developments, that player should be Jerry Jeudy.
Jeudy hasn’t produced much this year because there haven’t been many yards to go around for Cleveland and many of those yards have gone the way of Cooper, but Jeudy should see an uptick in targets now. He has just two receptions over the past two games, but without Cooper, he almost has to do more than that.
I don’t think Jeudy becomes a WR2 option or anything, but he’s currently being ranked as a low-end WR4. That’s far too low. Volume should make him a solid WR3 play this week against the Bengals.
Grant Calcaterra - TE - Philadelphia Eagles
Week 7 ranking: TE22
Dallas Goedert is trending toward not playing in Week 7 against the Giants, which would lead to increased playing time for Grant Calcaterra this week.
Calcaterra is a third-year tight end out of SMU who was taken in the sixth round of the 2022 NFL Draft. His first two years in the NFL weren’t very productive, as he caught just nine passes as he played a reserve role for the Eagles.
But with Goedert going down during Philly’s win over Cleveland last weekend, the Eagles asked Calcaterra to step up and he did so in a strong way, catching four passes for 67 yards. That included a 34-yard reception that saw him catch the ball just a couple of yards past the line of scrimmage and weave his way through the Cleveland defense for a huge gain.
This week, Calcaterra looks like he’ll be the No. 1 tight end for the Eagles. This team likes to use its tight ends, so there’s definitely upside for the former Mustang. The Giants have done well against opposing tight ends, but Calcaterra has appeal in leagues where you start multiple tight ends or have your starter injured.