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 17 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 16 Review
Week 16 we had an overall good week. Three out of four players finished higher than their initial ranking and we got another sleeper hit with Gus Edwards finishing in the top 18. I am 13/52 on sleeper hits and 27/42 on players finishing higher than they were initially ranked. For the year I am at 64.2% of hitting the player ranking above their initial ranking.
So, now let’s take a look at some fantasy football sleepers for Week 17 of the NFL season.
QB: Geno Smith vs the Pittsburgh Steelers
Fantasy Pros ECR: QB17
It was not always pretty for Geno Smith last week but he did end up with two passing touchdowns in his first game back from injury. This week Smith gets the Pittsburgh Steelers, who just gave up 335 passing yards to Jake Browning and the two weeks prior gave up 3 passing touchdowns each game. The Steelers’ defense gives up the 12th least passing yards per season but in the past three games they have gone from 230 passing yards per game to 244 passing yards per game.
RB: Clyde Edwards-Helaire vs the Cincinnati Bengals
Fantasy Pros ECR: RB32
The Kansas City Chiefs have injuries at running back with Isaiah Pacheco recovering from a concussion and Jerrick Mckinnon on injured reserve. That means that Clyde Edwards-Helaire could have a feature role this week. He has not done much running the ball this season but has over 40 receiving yards in the last two games. Edwards-Helaire will face the Cincinnati Bengals this week who give up over 19 fantasy points to running backs per game.
WR: Adam Thielen vs the Jacksonville Jaguars
Fantasy Pros ECR: WR32
Adam Thielen has tailed off after the strong start of the season but he did have a strong game last week with over 90 yards receiving. He should be able to continue the momentum as he gets the Jacksonville Jaguars, who struggle against the pass. The Jaguars give up the eighth-most fantasy points to wide receivers and over 250 passing yards per game.
TE: Chigoziem Okonkwo vs the Houston Texans
Fantasy Pros ECR: TE16
Last week Chigoziem Okonkwo had his best game of the season with six catches for 63 yards and a touchdown. He finished as TE2 and has had five or more targets in four of five games. Okonkwo now gets a good matchup against the Houston Texans who give up the sixth most fantasy points to tight ends.
Good luck to everyone this week! Hopefully these Week 17 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.