Anyone can look at fantasy football rankings, but what if you like risks and want to swing for the fences? As the season goes on, this will be the spot for you to find the sleepers to start in your fantasy football league. Especially when byes and injuries start to pile up. Each week I will be picking one fantasy football sleeper at each position. These players are set to outperform their ranking and help win your week on the way to becoming a League Winner! Welcome to Fantasy Football 2023: Week 13 Sleepers.
Now let’s look at what we are picking from:
- I’m defining a sleeper as someone ranked outside of the top 30 for WRs and RBs who will finish in the top 20 at the position. That would be around 14 fantasy points based on the average of last year.
- For QBs and TEs, I am defining them as outside the top 12 but will finish in the top 10. Last year using average points per game that would be 21 fantasy points for QB and 11 fantasy points for TE.
- PPR Expert Consensus Rankings (ECR) on Fantasy Pros will be used. These players may not be on the waiver wire but could be big
- I will track the hit rate based on the above settings but also how far the picked sleepers outperform their initial rankings for the week.
Week 12 Review
Week 12 was a mixed bag. Two big misses but the Pat Freiermuth hit was huge and if you played him, he could have won you your matchup. I am 10/37 on sleeper hits and 19/33 on players finishing higher than they were initially ranked. Just like I said last week, the hit rate is not huge but when we do hit it is for a huge difference!
So, now let’s take a look at some fantasy football sleepers for Week 13 of the NFL season.
QB: Kenny Pickett vs the Arizona Cardinals
Fantasy Pros ECR: QB17
The touchdowns were not there last week but the Pittsburgh Steelers offense looked much better since the firing of Matt Canada. Kenny Pickett had his best game of the season in terms of completion percentage and passing yards. It was also his second-highest finish in yards per attempt with 8.4. He now looks to build on that performance against the Arizona Cardinals who give up the seventh most fantasy points to quarterbacks. With so many teams on bye, Pickett could definitely end up as a top 10 option this week.
RB: Dameon Pierce vs the Denver Broncos
Fantasy Pros ECR: RB31
Dameon Pierce was back in the lineup last week but did not put up much production. I think this week he will have a better day. I know C.J. Stroud has been lighting it up but the Denver Broncos pass defense has been very good lately. The Broncos have only given up 183 pass yards per game in the last three weeks but are giving up over 150 rush yards per game in that time frame. I do not think Devin Singletary is going away but the rush attempts were pretty even last week. It was the lack of volume with only 11 carries between the two backs. I see a steadier workload for Pierce and with so many teams on bye, he could be a sleeper into the top 24 at the position.
WR: Jonathon Mingo vs the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Fantasy Pros ECR: WR46
Jonathon Mingo has had a slow start to his rookie season but in the last three games he has averaged over six targets per game. This past week Mingo had his second game with over 50 receiving yards and his highest fantasy finish amongst wide receivers. He gets a great matchup this week vs the Tampa Bay Buccaneers who give up the fourth most fantasy points to wide receivers. Mingo is out wide 75% of the time and the Buccaneers give up over 24 fantasy points per game to receivers out wide.
TE: Tyler Conklin vs the Atlanta Falcons
Fantasy Pros ECR: TE16
The New York Jets offense is not good but someone has to get the ball. They are going to put Tim Boyle out there again and I see some short passes to get the ball out of his hands fast. Tyler Conklin has received 19 targets in his last four games and only received 20 targets in his first seven games. The Atlanta Falcons are giving up the fifth most fantasy points to tight ends and I think Conklin could sneak in the top 12 this week.
Good luck to everyone this week! Hopefully these Week 13 sleepers can take your fantasy football team over the top. Make sure to follow our content all year so we can help you to be a League Winner!
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Brandon Haye
Brandon grew up in Jacksonville, Florida and works as a health insurance data analyst. He has no children, but two fur babies - Squirt and Brownie. He and his wife, Katie, spend their time playing poker and enjoying time with their pups. Brandon is a huge Michigan Wolverine and Jacksonville Jaguars fan. He at one time was in 77 fantasy leagues and loves the game of football. Brandon started writing for The Leauge Winners in 2021.