Values, overvalues, sleepers, lottery tickets, players to target, players to avoid.
You’ve probably heard a variety of these terms during every fantasy football draft season in articles just like this one. When it comes down to it, you’ll likely have a combination of all of the above when you finish your draft depending on who’s assessing your team.
It’s easy to get too caught up in a set draft strategy. Regardless of how your team was constructed, the goal is still to win. Style points don’t matter. We’re focusing on values in this piece, but a team too reliant on getting the best value will likely miss out on talent. You need a combination of talent, opportunity, situation and, of course, luck to put the best team together.
Values and sleepers are not the same thing. In fact, I’ll have an article dedicated to sleepers coming out next week. The value players presented here are those with an average draft position that’s significantly different from their potential top value. Almost all in this article don’t have strong name value and might be perceived as lesser players.
For instance, Matthew Stafford may not get mentioned among the top fantasy quarterbacks, but he’s been one of the most consistent options over the last five years, as you’ll see in his value profile. Taking advantage of those in your league who make selections based on perceived value instead of statistical evidence can put you way ahead of the game.
Note: All ADP data from Fantasy Football Calculator. All fantasy stats used to calculate finishes from FantasyPros. All advanced stats calculated using data from Pro Football Reference. All stats are based on points per reception (PPR) format.
NFL
Fantasy Football
Matthew Stafford
Rankings/List
Pierre Garcon
Bilal Powell