It’s officially summer, which means football season is right around the corner. The NFL’s preseason is set to begin in August, making now the perfect time to begin digging into who the best sleepers are in fantasy football. The Tennessee Titans should produce several of some of the best fantasy producers in the league. Derrick Henry leads the way as the best pure running back in the NFL. Additionally, AJ Brown looks to continue his improvement, while Julio Jones brings an entirely new element to the Titans’ offense.
Ryan Tannehill will be a highly sought-after quarterback in the fantasy football world, as he has the weapons at his disposal to potentially finish within the top 10 quarterbacks. He was a bit of a sleeper pick last year, as he went undrafted in most Redraft leagues. Many will have Tannehill on their draft boards, removing him from the list of sleepers for good.
With those four garnering most of the attention, there is one more player that could be overlooked in upcoming fantasy drafts. The Titans passing attack should be on full display this season, and a new target could emerge as a consistent fantasy option that provides solid FLEX production. With that said, here is the top sleeper on the Tennessee Titans in 2021.
Fantasy Football: Titans’ Top Sleeper
TE | Anthony Firkser
Tight end is a tricky position in fantasy football. Everyone has their eye on the “Big Three,” as Travis Kelce, Darren Waller, and George Kittle can give your fantasy squad a massive advantage throughout the year. Outside of those three, it’s essentially up in the air. In fact, Kelce and Waller finished last year with over 100 fantasy points over Robert Tonyan and Logan Thomas, who both tied for third-most points, per Fantasy Pros.
If you can’t draft one of the top three tight ends, history says the smart decision is to punt the position in your drafts and pick up a tight end in round 12 or later. There will be a lot of late-round tight ends available, but the key is to find the one (or two) that are the most consistent. In comes Anthony Firkser.
Firkser gained some fantasy value this offseason after the Titans’ front office elected to not re-sign Jonnu Smith. Tennessee hasn’t done anything to improve the position, leaving Anthony Firkser as the starting tight end for the 2021 season. Many already had Firkser listed as a nice late-round flier, but since the addition of Julio Jones, people have lost interest in Firkser as a fantasy option. However, Firkser still has the potential to finish as a top 12 tight end in fantasy football next year.
Why you should draft Anthony Firkser
In the 2020 season, Jonnu Smith led the way as the Titans’ top tight end. He finished the year as the TE16, totaling 140.2 points in 14 games. He averaged 10 fantasy points per game, which put him alongside Noah Fant with the 12th highest points per game average. Smith accomplished this serving as the Titans’ third passing option behind AJ Brown and Corey Davis. Brown finished with over 1,000 receiving yards, whereas Davis ended with 984. The Titans nearly had two 1,000 receivers, and Jonnu Smith still finished as a viable FLEX streaming option as a tight end.
Now, Firkser takes over Smith’s role and could be in line for a big year. However, Julio Jones is a massive upgrade in comparison to Corey Davis and should garner more interest from Tannehill. Even so, when Jonnu Smith was on the team last season, Firkser proved to be one of Tannehill’s favorite targets, as he served as a legitimate third-down option. For that reason, Firkser finished 2020 as the TE26, recording 83.7 points in PPR formats.
Firkser has already built great chemistry with Tannehill, and with opposing defenses more concerned with Henry, Brown, and Jones, the Titans’ tight end should be finding some open space throughout the year. Tannehill likes to go to Firkser when it matters most, as he has consistent hands and serves as a great possession receiver. Tennessee’s quarterback targets his tight end on important downs, which bodes well for Firkser’s potential in the red zone as well.
With that information at hand, Firkser has the potential to average over nine fantasy points per game in 2021. If that’s the case, he could break into the top 12, offering decent FLEX value in a top-heavy position for fantasy football. Firkser might not light up the scoreboard like his teammates will, but he’s still worth a late-round flier. He might just be the biggest sleeper tight end available this coming season.
