Editor’s Introduction: Mark Morales Smith has an eye for talent. He identified Antonio Gibson with Jamaal Charles ability when literally nobody was talking about him in early 2020. He’s a draft scout in his spare time and he sat down to talk about some deep sleepers in your fantasy drafts.
There is no set definition for what a ‘sleeper’ is but when you see one, you know it. As a general rule, a sleeper is defined as a late-round or unheralded player that outperforms their ADP. Training camps and preseason might not have started but fantasy football draft fervor certainly has. And with it, there is plenty of interest in finding out the 2022 fantasy football deep sleepers to target.
Here are some of those players currently being targeted in double-digit rounds who look like solid deep sleepers to prioritize in the latter rounds.
Tua Tagovailoa (QB) Miami Dolphins
With Tua, we are still trying to figure out if he’s the issue in Miami or if subpar weapons and the worst offensive line in football are the issues. Many advanced stats seem to point to the latter with the offensive line being the biggest culprit , Tua has been an above-average quarterback in the rare instance he’s had a clean pocket to throw from. His lack of deep attempts can also be equated to the terrible line and a system that forces him to throw quick passes to negate the onslaught of pressure.
This offseason the Dolphins have addressed these issues by adding an elite wideout in Tyreek Hill and one of the best tackles in the game in Terron Armstead among other offensive line additions. We know Hill is going to be elite, however, we still have to see the offensive line gel. But on paper, they should be much improved.
The combination of Hill and Jaylen Waddle should be deadly for an accurate quarterback like Tua. In a Mike McDaniel system, they should get the ball in space often and do most of the heavy lifting for Tua. Many people seem to ignore that Hill, even with Mahomes, received the bulk of his yards last season from screens, crosses, and dump-offs. Even moreso than his new teammate Jaylen Waddle. I would go as far as to say that I anticipate Cedrick Wilson and Mike Gesicki to average more air yards this season and be utilized as the primary deep threats. Wilson on the outside and Gesicki down the seam.
If McDaniel is what we believe he will be coming from San Francisco, the offensive system should be much improved. That alone should improve the offensive line and rushing attack. Which in turn should make Tua’s life much easier and open things up for him. We will see this year who he really is and my bet is he’s a better player than we’ve seen so far in Miami.
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