2023 fantasy football sleepers: Deuce Vaughn, Elijah Moore and more staff picks - The Athletic 8/18/23,
8/18/23, 1:23 AM
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2023 fantasy football sleepers: Deuce
Vaughn, Elijah Moore and more staff
picks
By Jake Ciely Aug 16, 2023
The NFL landscape doesn’t maintain the status quo for very long, especially as
training camps and preseason action heats up. That’s why it’s time to update our
staff sleeper picks, as the first iteration was rolled out all the way back in July.
With the benefit of a few weeks of practice reports — not to mention preseason
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2023 fantasy football sleepers: Deuce Vaughn, Elijah Moore and more staff picks - The Athletic 8/18/23, 1:23 AM
game performances, roster additions, injuries, etc. — it only makes sense we
check in with the The Athletic fantasy football staff to see what new perspectives
they have in regards to fantasy football sleepers. Alright, let’s get to it…
Desmond Ridder, QB, ATL
He rushed for 2,180 yards and 28 touchdowns at Cincinnati. Atlanta will
operate maybe the most run-heavy offense in the league, so he’ll be a part of
that. The Falcons also have Drake London, Kyle Pitts, and Bijan Robinson as
pass targets, so Ridder benefits from top-flight help. It’s why he ranks 22nd in
my QB draft guide. — KC Joyner
Deuce Vaughn, RB, DAL
I never expected to write up Vaughn, as I assumed the hype (talent, team, fans)
would have him as an RB3/4, possibly higher. Well, Vaughn is outside the Top
65 in ADP, regularly going undrafted, and I’m shocked. Yes, Vaughn is
diminutive in size, but not in talent. He is as explosive as it gets and a serious
threat as a receiver. Tony Pollard is in store for a big season, sure, but Ezekiel
Elliott is vacating 231 carries. Those won’t all go to Pollard (424 carries? I think
not!). Vaughn will get a smattering of carries, and if you add that to his
receiving game threat, you have the makings of the next J.D. McKissic, Tarik
Cohen, or any number of half-PPR/PPR running backs with RB3/4 value.
Vaughn getting 7-8 touches a game and a mere 7.0 YPT, combined, would have
him finish with a stat line of 127-for-956. Additionally, half of those are likely
receptions, adding another 30+ points, or around 125 points before touchdowns
— the equivalent of RB37 last year. It’s easy to see why he’s worthy of an RB4
value pick and shouldn’t be going off he board in the last round, or not at all. —
Jake Ciely
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2023 fantasy football sleepers: Deuce Vaughn, Elijah Moore and more staff picks - The Athletic 8/18/23, 1:23 AM
Jerome Ford, RB, CLE
We aren’t far removed from Cleveland having two top fantasy running backs in
the same backfield. And while I’m not here to argue that Ford is Kareem Hunt’s
equal, I am here to argue that he’s the best option not named Nick Chubb to
carve out a role in the Cleveland backfield. The Browns offensive line is a Top 2
unit, and while Chubb will handle the vast majority of the work, I expect Ford
to carve out the third-down role, getting a bump in PPR formats. If his
hamstring is OK (and if not, Jordan Wilkins is interesting in a deep kind of
way), Ford can have standalone value in leagues. — Michael Waterloo
Mecole Hardman, WR, NYJ
The Jets’ depth chart, as far as I see it, is Garrett Wilson and then “field,” and
while everyone is playing the “Allen Lazard came over with Aaron Rodgers!”
card, does that mean anything? Lazard’s career-high in GB was 100 targets for
788 yards — it’s not like they’ve thrown up multiple 1000-yard seasons
together. Hardman and Lazard have played the same number of games in their
careers (57) and Lazard has 2,236 yards to Hardman’s 2,088. Hardman’s not
that far behind for having been kind of, sort of, buried on the depth chart in
KC. — Nando Di Fino
Justyn Ross, WR, KC
Being drafted directly between Curtis Samuel and Chase Claypool in fantasy
leagues, Ross is the only one of these receivers who has the best quarterback in
the NFL throwing him passes. A standout receiver at Clemson, Ross only fell in
the draft due to a neck injury suffered in 2021. Before this injury, Ross was the
main target for Trevor Lawrence. Now, after a season of rehab, he has the
chance to be the same for Mahomes. While Travis Kelce is the main target for
the Chiefs, he is getting older and the team must find new blood to eventually
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2023 fantasy football sleepers: Deuce Vaughn, Elijah Moore and more staff picks - The Athletic 8/18/23, 1:23 AM
take over the role left when Tyreek Hill was traded the previous offseason.
Neither Marquez Valdes-Scantling nor Skyy Moore has the talent of Ross, who
could turn into an elite deep ball receiver in the NFL if he remains healthy. At
WR73, and pick 212, I am willing to take a risk on this deep sleeper. —
Dominick Petrillo
Elijah Moore, WR, CLE
Elijah Moore was a highly touted breakout candidate in 2022, only to be
underutilized and misused by the Jets. He finished his rookie season as a WR3
— overcoming the dumpster fire that was the Jets QB situation to show flashes
of brilliance and big-play ability. Moore gets a fresh start with a Cleveland
Browns team that plans to use him all over the field and is expected to shift to a
more pass-centric offense. At the cost of WR53, he’s practically free and could
bounce back in a big way. — Jay Felicio
John Metchie, WR, HOU
I’ve picked up Metchie as my final skill position player in four 12-teamer drafts
already, and I’ll keep investing in him in my upcoming drafts if those leagues let
me. How many receivers going outside the Top 60 at the position offer legit
first-round talent and an opportunity to be the alpha receiver for his team? The
go-to WR role for the Texans is currently unfilled, and I’m not betting on a 31-
year-old Robert Woods, who was a complete non-factor in Tennessee last
season, or Nico Collins, who has spent the past two seasons as a wallflower in
this offense. Coming back from the adversity of an ACL injury and a battle
with Leukemia, give me the feel-good story that is Metchie. — Brandon
Funston
Nico Collins, WR, HOU
Collins has yet to catch 40 passes or hit 500 receiving yards in a season. But his
target share with Davis Mills last year was north of 24 percent, and someone is
going to have to emerge as the No. 1 wide receiver for a Texans team that will
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2023 fantasy football sleepers: Deuce Vaughn, Elijah Moore and more staff picks - The Athletic 8/18/23, 1:23 AM
probably be playing from behind approximately 107 percent of the time. If that
guy is Collins, he’ll be an absolute steal with an ADP in the 50s among wide
receivers. — Gary Davenport
Luke Musgrave, TE, GB
Betting on rookie TEs has proven to be pretty risky historically. That said, I
think there’s a strong case for profit potential in Packers rookie Luke Musgrave.
Camp hype surrounding the NFL draft’s 42nd overall pick was already starting
to swirl. That was before Musgrave logged a 100% snap share with the starters
in an exhibition game, so you can expect the touting to continue. Couple in the
late-round price, an uninspiring positional landscape, plus the possibility for
target share and there’s a feasible pathway to a Top 8 TE finish from the last
round of drafts. — John Laghezza
Irv Smith, TE, CIN
Post-hype sleeper? He still has the skills and youth we loved last year (and the
year before that…), but he’s now in a new high-powered offense that has
featured the tight end in a fantasy-friendly manner. Smith was lauded as a fast,
athletic pass-catcher with good hands and good after-the-catch ability, who isn’t
a slouch as a blocker. We have seen meager glimpses of his potential in
Minnesota, but a torn ACL ruled him out of 2021 and a high ankle sprain
derailed his 2022 season. Smith probably isn’t the key to unlocking your fantasy
championship, but if you wait on TE, he’s one I don’t hate stashing at the end of
drafts. — Renee Miller
(Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images)
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2023 fantasy football sleepers: Deuce Vaughn, Elijah Moore and more staff picks - The Athletic 8/18/23, 1:23 AM
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