Fantasy Football 2014: Top 10 PPR Sleepers
Being in a PPR league widens the potential options for fantasy football owners, as many more players carry value and are worthy of roster spots in that format.
With draft season rolling along, here are my top-10 PPR sleepers for 2014.
10. Rod Streater, WR, Oakland Raiders
10. Rod Streater, WR, Oakland Raiders
Streater had 60 receptions for 888 yards in 2013, and he will still have a prominent role even with James Jones being brought in as a free agent. Matt Schaub is an upgrade under center, and being a Raider makes Streater a potential steal in deep PPR leagues.
9. Jordan Matthews, WR, Philadelphia Eagles
9. Jordan Matthews, WR, Philadelphia Eagles
Jeremy Maclin has apparently had some residual issues coming off a torn ACL, and Riley Cooper is in for a decline after a career year in 2013. Matthews has the size (6'3") to be a prominent red zone option, and the prospect of more targets puts him in line to be an immediate all-around producer as a rookie.
8. Dexter McCluster, RB, Tennessee Titans
8. Dexter McCluster, RB, Tennessee Titans
McCluster has 151 catches over the last three seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs, and he should have a bigger role as a runner in Tennessee after seeing just 20 carries over the last two seasons. I don't expect elite production from McCluster, but Titans' head coach Ken Whisenhunt will find a way to use his talent.
7. Jeremy Kerley, WR, New York Jets
7. Jeremy Kerley, WR, New York Jets
Kerley missed four games in 2013 with an elbow injury, but he still led the Jets in catches (43) and yards (523) along with three touchdowns. If Geno Smith improves this year, or Michael Vick takes over at some point, Kerley could be a nice second fiddle to Eric Decker and carry some consistent value in PPR leagues.
6. Garrett Graham, TE, Houston Texans
6. Garrett Graham, TE, Houston Texans
Graham moved into a prominent role last year, and finished with 49 receptions for 545 yards and five touchdowns. New Texans' head coach Bill O'Brien may use plenty of two-tight end sets, so Graham could easily have the third-most targets on the team and catch 60-plus passes based purely on that volume.
5. Brian Hartline, WR, Miami Dolphins
5. 5. Brian Hartline, WR, Miami Dolphins
Just 10 of Hartline's 259 career catches have gone for touchdowns, but he does have 150 receptions over the last two seasons with over 1,000 yards in both campaigns. A more proficient Dolphins' offense will be good for everyone involved, and I wouldn't be shocked to see Hartline put up 80-90 catches this year.
4. Doug Baldwin, WR, Seattle Seahawks
4. Doug Baldwin, WR, Seattle Seahawks
Baldwin has at least 50 catches in two of his three seasons, and a more prominent role is coming this year with Golden Tate gone in free agency and Sidney Rice retiring. Seattle's conservative offense puts a significant ceiling on all of the team's pass catchers, but Baldwin has sneaky upside as a PPR option.
3. Mohamed Sanu, WR, Cincinnati Bengals
3. Mohamed Sanu, WR, Cincinnati Bengals
Sanu will move into a starting role while Marvin Jones (broken foot) is out. I wouldn't expect big yardage, and once Jones returns his outlook will get cloudy, but Sanu is worth a roster spot through at least the first few weeks of the season in PPR leagues.
2. Andrew Hawkins, WR, Cleveland Browns
2. Andrew Hawkins, WR, Cleveland Browns
With Josh Gordon facing a lengthy suspension, and underwhelming options around him (Miles Austin, Nate Burleson, etc.), Hawkins is line for plenty of targets and is an excellent value pick late in PPR league drafts.
1. Marqise Lee, WR, Jacksonville Jaguars
1. Marqise Lee, WR, Jacksonville Jaguars
I'm surely driving the fantasy sleeper bandwagon for Lee right now. But with durability concerns around Cecil Shorts the rookie from USC could be Jacksonville's most-targeted receiver this year, which would make him startable more often than not in PPR leagues.