Written by: Austin Thomas
This article marks the halfway point! With this week's read, we've gone over half the divisions and a quarter of the teams in the NFL. After we went over the AFC East, we'll be sticking to the Eastern Conference and analyzing the NFC East. Per usual, we're digging through the average draft positions (ADPs) here. Looking at the players being drafted outside the top 100 is the objective target we are focusing on. Let's go on and glimpse over the sleepers for the only division where every team has a Lombardi trophy, the NFC East.
Dallas Cowboys
Jake Ferguson (ADP 240.0; TE33)
I understand how some "starting" tight ends fall outside the top-32 ranks because their teams simply don't utilize them, but to leave one of the better offense's "top" tight ends where they've historically used the position out of the top-32 is ridiculous. Say all you want about rookie Luke Schoonmaker, but Jake Ferguson is the starter. On film, Ferguson looked the part during his limited role as the backup and made some spectacular plays last season. Over the last decade, there's only been one season (2018) where a Dallas Cowboys tight end did not finish top-12 in fantasy PPR scoring at the position. I realize that Ferguson is not Dalton Schultz nor Jason Witten, but the picture I'm trying to illustrate is that the Cowboys have had many years of production from the position and aren't going to suddenly change their philosophy. CeeDee Lamb is the top target, no contest, and Brandin Cooks is a solid veteran, but the other options aren't necessarily home-run hitters to steal targets away. When looking for a deep tight end sleeper you're looking for a player with the upside to be a top-three target on their respective team. Jake Ferguson can be in that conversation and trend toward being the next Dallas Cowboys tight end star.
New York Giants
Isaiah Hodgins (ADP 221.8; WR83)
There are a lot of wide receivers in the New York Giant's building and even more uncertainty in the pecking order. However, it's been regurgitated that the Giants have a plethora of "slot" receivers at their disposal and no one is really talking about the outside guys. Last season, Isaiah Hodgins filled in nicely for an injury-riddled New York Giants squad and earned himself a contract extension. Heading into the 2023 campaign, Hodgins can assert himself as the starting outside wide receiver and pick up where he left off to finish last season. Hodgins was claimed off waivers mid-season prior to the Giants' week-9 bye and from week-10 on he played over 50% in every game minus the week-18 affair where the starters were "rested" for playoffs. In the eight games Hodgins started, he hauled in 33 receptions on 42 targets with 351 yards and 4 touchdowns. In the fantasy world, he racked up 92.10 total points which averaged 11.51 points per game (PPG). That would've landed him in the top 40 at the position in PPG last season.
Philadelphia Eagles
Rashaad Penny (ADP 102.6; RB36)
In a day in age when most teams use a running back-by-committee approach, it's hard to understand why certain players on less-explosive offenses are going ahead of Rashaad Penny. The Philadelphia Eagles are poised to be among the best offenses in the league again and teams that score more touchdowns seem to have more fantasy-relevant players. I know that Penny has sustained injuries season after season, but projected starter D'Andre Swift has his fair share of missed time too. Besides, injuries are hard to predict and shouldn't be a "guarantee" to happen. All players are injury-prone until they're not and vice-versa. Purely from a talent standpoint, Rashaad Penny has shown promise and qualities of a 1A option. Penny has played in 14 games where he's played over 50% of the snaps and/or had at least 10 rush attempts in a game. In those games, he's averaged 14.71 attempts, 99 rush yards, and .86 touchdowns per game along with an astounding 17.32 fantasy PPG. Don't get me wrong, I'm not anticipating Rashaad Penny to overtake Swift and be the lead dog, but according to Statmuse the Eagles were one of the top-3 teams in rush attempts per game and Penny could get plenty of opportunities to be in weekly flex consideration.
Washington Commanders
Curtis Samuel (ADP 224.4; WR77)
I also like Cole Turner, but I don't think he'll be the starter to begin the season and Logan Thomas will cap his weekly upside when both are active. So, I pivoted with the Swiss-army knife that is Curtis Samuel. The Washington Commanders are getting a major offensive coordinator bump with Eric Bieniemy and should give all the skilled positions a boost in production. Going off the board at WR77, Curtis Samuel is currently a screaming value. He can be involved in so many different facets of the game, whether it's in the passing game or in the run game. In every season Samuel has played double-digit games, four in total, he's finished no lower than WR50 on the season. In those four seasons, he's totaled 707.26 fantasy points and his season average is 11.59 PPG. That doesn't appear to be a guy that's going in the WR7 range. Curtis Samuel is a good value where he's being drafted right now and has the upside to be a weekly flex play for your team.
With the conclusion of this article, we've officially reviewed half the divisions in the NFL and a quarter of the teams. As you've probably noticed by now, some teams have better upside players whereas others do not. It's all about finding the value and which players best fit your team's roster construction. For example, if you start your draft wide receiver-heavy, sleepers at the position don't really pertain to you, so, you're likely looking at multiple sleeper running backs with the upside to give you a weekly safe floor. Loading up on these types of players later in your draft can benefit you and give you a higher chance of at least one of them hitting for you. Sleepers are an important asset to your fantasy teams, but making sure they fit your roster's build before selecting a popular offseason or preseason darling to your squad is just as crucial. Until next week, happy drafting!
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