1 Fantasy Sleeper at Every Position for 2022

Everyone is always looking for the fantasy player ready to break out in the upcoming year. This will be my 9th year playing and I still google “Fantasy sleepers” every August. I don’t have to this year because I went out and found my own. Now I am sharing them with you guys. Below is one guy I am targeting in each offensive position. They might not be starting for me in Week 1, but I will have them on my roster in as many leagues as I can, especially at each of their current ADPs. 

WR – Allen Robinson (Los Angeles Rams)

If this were any other year, I wouldn’t classify Allen Robinson as a sleeper. However, his current ADP is mind-boggling to me. He is only 1 season removed from ranking 15th in all positions in PPR leagues. 15th! His current ADP has him going in the 9th round, right at WR39. Is the consensus idea that he is old and washed up? It must be for such disrespect.

This offseason Robinson signed with the Los Angeles Rams, one of the most “pass-happy” teams in the league. They threw the ball 59.33% of the time in 2021, good for 10th overall. That number might come down a hair in 2022 with a healthy Cam Akers, but with the loss of Robert Woods (and most likely OBJ) a lot of targets are up for grabs. 

Having a WR like Cooper Kupp opposite him or a QB like Stafford throwing to him are things Robinson has also never had. In his greatest seasons, he was the #1 option on his team and the #2 and #3 guys were average at best. He will now be one of the best #2 WRs in the league and will benefit greatly from the extra attention paid to Kupp. Now the best QB he’s played with has been Mitch Trubisky. Hopefully I don’t have to explain to you how much better Stafford is than that guy.

RB – Mark Ingram (New Orleans Saints)

Hear me out, I know this guy will only be a sleeper for as long as Alvin Kamara is suspended but it still counts. The NFL rumor mill sees Kamara getting a 6 game suspension. Ingram is basically going undrafted at the moment. Getting a bell-cow back for 6 weeks and not even having to spend a draft pick on him is almost the definition of sleeper. 

The Saints will be getting Michael Thomas and Jameis Winston back in 2022. They also spent a high draft pick on a great, young WR out of Ohio State, Chris Olave. Both of these facts should mean their offense will be better in 2022. What does it mean for Ingram if it is? A lot of goal line rushing opportunities and wide holes to run through.

Defensively, the Saints are still a force to be reckoned with. They were already a strong unit in 2021. PFF had them ranked as the #2 overall defense. Just recently they went out and got Tyrann Mathieu, one of the best safeties in the game. Again, what does this mean for Ingram? The Saints could be up at the end of games and trying to run out the clock, giving a lot more attempts to Ingram. It also doesn’t hurt anything New Orleans plays 3 of the worst teams in the league in the first 6 weeks of the season (Atlanta, Carolina and Seattle). 

Will Ingram be a guy you want on your roster after Kamara comes back? No. But having a very strong RB or FLEX option could give you a few extra wins out of the gate.

TE – Mike Gesicki (Miami Dolphins)

Travis Kelce is one of the greatest Tight Ends to ever play in the NFL. But did having Tyreek Hill help him out tremendously? Yes. With a guy like Hill on the outside, the lanes on the inside are open for business. This is how Gesicki will rise to a top 5 fantasy TE this year. 

Last season Gesicki had 73 receptions, 780 yards and 2 TDs. The touchdown number does leave a little to be desired, but I believe there is a very good explanation. The Dolphins were 25th in the league in getting to the Redzone in 2021, only doing it an average of 2.9 times per game. When they did happen to get there though, Gesicki saw the second most targets on the team. Hill being there will guarantee more Redzone trips in 2022 and the opportunities for Gesicki to punch it in will come with it.

Currently Gesicki is going in the 10th round as TE10. Last year he finished as TE9 and I don’t think he will regress. Yes, Hill being there will also hurt Gesicki in ways. He will command a lot of the targets, but I don’t think that is a cause for concern. Devante Parker left, leaving 40+ targets on the table. Obviously Hill will collect a lot more than 40, but it does show there is still room for Gesicki to get his. Gesicki had 112 targets in 2021. That number will probably be more in the realm of 80 in 2022. This doesn’t have to be a bad thing. I believe these targets will be of much higher quality. Think wide-open over the middle instead of closely covered in the flat. 

QB – Trevor Lawrence (Jacksonville Jaguars)

I saved the hottest sleeper for last. A lot of NFL fans are already labeling Trevor Lawrence a bust. I haven’t given up on him just yet. What is the one thing you need from your fantasy QB? Rushing yards and rushing TDs. Look at Josh Allen vs Tom Brady last year. Tom had 909 more passing yards, 7 more passing touchdowns and 3 less interceptions. How many more fantasy points did he have than Allen? -28. That is another whole game worth of points because of how much Allen ran the ball. Lawrence also ran the ball a good amount last year, collecting 334 yards and 2 TDs. Just pushing that number to 400 and 4 would have taken him 2 rungs higher on the finished rankings last season.

Obviously, you want your QB to be able to throw the ball too and that is something Lawrence did not do very well last year. I’m willing to give the guy a break though for a few different reasons. One, he was playing in the most toxic environment a guy could be in. Two, he faced all those challenges and drama as a rookie. Three, the roster was awful. That is the trifecta of situations you don’t want to create for your rookie QB. 

The Jaguars did go out and get Lawrence some help this offseason. They brought in Christian Kirk and Evan Engram for an upgrade in the weapons department and also added a good lineman to give Trevor better protection. PFF had the Jaguars offensive line at 12th in the pass blocking category in 2021. Brandon Scherff will beef that unit up even more. 

Lawrence owners will also benefit greatly from the Jaguars awful defense. They will be losing in a lot of games. This means a lot of garbage time yards and TDs for Lawrence. Garbage time stats are a large part of fantasy players benefits and will play a huge part in how well Lawrence does in 2022 fantasy speaking.

Recap

Will you win your league if you have these guys on your roster? Who knows. Fantasy football is almost as much luck as it is skill. Your mid to late round picks can’t be awful (looking at you Bradon Aiyuk) and your early round picks can’t get hurt. What I do know is targeting the right sleepers can give you a leg up on the rest of your league. This list will help you do that.