In every fantasy football draft there will be a handful of guys who go in the mid to late rounds who turn into the difference makers on some lucky owners squad. It never fails. Too many fantasy players look at the predraft rankings and treat them like scripture. Does anyone remember where Randy Moss found himself on the big board last year? His average draft position was between rounds 4-6. This is sickening to someone like me who didn't believe Moss could turn it around. Don't kid yourself into thinking that you can't find one of these ponies after round 4.
My first guy of interest is Thomas Jones. He was, for all intensive purposes, a total bust last year. Only in the deepest of leagues was he a week to week starter. This is great for his draft day value. Most mock drafts have him hanging around in the 4th round yet after teams have already stock piled their 2 starting RBs. I think Thomas can and will be a fantasy football starter this year. The Jets really focuses their offseason moves and draft day stragety around bulking up their offensive line. They've quietly done a damn nice job of it too. Alan Faneca comes from Pitt and gets plugged in along with their draft day addition of Vernon Gholston. Very well done. Thomas has always had good vision and an ability to find and hit a hole quickly. The holes just haven't been very big recently.
Come draft day I'll be taking the best WRs/QB off the board before I take my 2nd RB. Hopefully I can get lucky and have a guy like Jones fall into my lap.

My next target is actually a combo. I'm loving where I see Nate Burleson and Bobby Engram sitting on early rankings. With Deion Branch in question and DJ Hackett gone, these 2 guys have rising value. Hell, Engram was arguably their best receiver last year already. I expect Hasselbeck to look in his direction early and often. Burleson has extra value in leagues with KR points. Nate should be taking all the punts and kicks back. That doesn't mean that he won't be a big part of the passing game though. Hasselbeck targeted Burleson in the endzone more than anyone else last year. This guy caught 7 TD passes. The good level of production these guys put up was also with no running game. Defenses didn't have to work about Shaun Alexander last year so they were able to focus on stopping the passing game, yet they still couldn't get it done. This year Julius Jones gets added to the mix to open the field up even more. You can find both Engram and Burleson on the board yet in rounds 6-8. Ive seen Burleson go as late as the 10th round.
Id be happy as a pig in shit to have either one of these guys as my WR3 or even as a fantastic bye week option. Not to mention the trade bait come midseason once injuries start to play a factor. These guys could become crucial to success.

The TE position is becoming more and more difficult to handicap. Gone are the days of Gates being the man and everyone struggling to keep up. I think this might actually be one of the deepest positions. If you can't get 1 of the top 3 guys, don't bother picking anyone up until REAL late. There is few guys in particular that Im interested in. I really like Tony Scheffler from Denver. This guy is a big target that Cutler really seems to zone in on. He became a big option in the Broncos passing game late last year. Plus, Cutler continues to mature and become a better QB. That really bodes well for Tony. I see him having a real nice year and moving up to becoming a strong top 10 TE.
Come draft day don't forget about this guy even if you already have a TE. Another strong bye week play or a nice flex fit if you need it.
One other TE that I think is worth a look is Alge Crumpler. Not a real shocking name here but I think people will pass on this talent considering he is in the run heavy Tennessee offense. He's easily a top 5 TE based on skill, but should drop slightly because of his lack of numbers last year and the fact that he was traded.

Here's an obvious one. Selvin Young. Travis Henry gets the boot leaving Selvin to go ahead and fulfill that 2000 yr season prediction he gave us last week. Those are some lofty goals, but Id be willing to take a mid round shot on this guy. You have to figure he's going to be running with a purpose.

Please feel free to add your sleeper gems and explanations.

Nice thread idea, however, one question just jumps right out at me.

While some of your arguments for Thomas Jones make quite a bit of sense, there is one point you made that has left me stumped. Just how exactly does drafting Vernon Gholston help the Jets' run game?

Im kinda curious about that myself. Perhaps he means they wont have to try to go to the air so much with a better defense and that opens up opportunity for Jones.

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Good thoughts.

I think he just misspoke, it happens, thinking one thing and saying another. Probably meant to say Damien Woody.

so aside from my typo, what do you guys think? Is Thomas Jones a starter? What about the rest of the guys mentioned?
You guys have any sleepers??

I think Thomas Jones will up his TD total from last year but when its all said and done I still think he is a #3 RB. A very good #3 RB but still a #3. The O-line has definitely been upgraded, but whether it ends up being Pennington or Clemens as the starter I don't see defenses being afraid of stacking the box and making the QB beat them . Add the depth in the backfield-Leon Washington, Musa Smith and Jesse Chatman and I just don't see Jones putting up #1 RB stats. As far as sleepers- I like Frank Gore (not necessarily a sleeper but will absolutely drop from his #4-5 adp last year) rebounding and having a very good year under Mike Martz. And have you ever heard of a guy named Harry Douglas?

I guess the improved defense puts the ball back in his hands quicker. What I like about Jones is the addition of Richardson at fullback, and the additions on the offensive line. Jones best work comes from the "I", and he will be in it more.

Rudi Johnson will bounce back and have a good year. I've been seeing him go in the 4th/5th rounds in alot of mocks.

Man rudi just bugs me.

On Thomas Jones: I'm starting to warm up to the idea of him as a sleeper, my biggest concern with him is how much I like Leon Washington. Washington is not a full time, carry the load guy, but he is a great change of pace that I expect to be more involved this season.

On Burleson & Engram: Nice take, of the two, I actually like Burleson. I think he's going to turn into a nice #2 WR this year.

At TE, your right, it's a different game now. Crumpler could have a great bounce back year. Another name to keep an eye on is Ben Utecht. The Bengals have not had a TE with his pass catching abilities in some time. With all the questions at WR the Bengals have, expect the TE to get more involved in opening the middle of the field. Utecht could be a surprise top 10 TE.

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I like this pick. This is the kind of guy you pick up in the last 2 rounds as a backup that turns into either a starter or great trade bait for whoever takes Todd Heap. Once Heap goes down, that owner will be going through everyone else's rosters looking for his new TE. If you're holding a suprise guy like this it can really pay off.

I had that same situation last year in week 8. I had Ben Watson just parked on my bench. This was right in the height of the unstoppable NE offense too. I got Engram for him. That was a dynamite deal.

Don't forget that they have also acquired Musa Smith from the Ravens. He may muddy the waters a little bit.

Bad part Utecht tends to get banged up often. He might go down before Heap.

Well hell, Heap goes down faster than Heap.

Hey...what are 'Jems'? I have heard of Gems, but 'Jems'? I googled Jem and it came up with a cartoon Jem and the Holograms! I think you must have mistaken it for that. LOL

Wow. I spelled Gems with a J. Thanks for pointing that out and making me feel like an idiot. Especially on Spelling Bee week.

Fixed for you ER

Dude...I hope you didn't take too much offence to my joke. Just giving you a hard time and thought you'd get a good laugh out of it. Feel fre to point out any errors I make! LOL

I hope nobody is getting upset about spelling.

ER, won Da_Bombs Post of the Day yesterday and had 10,000 vbucks added to his total.

I like Thomas Jones to have a good year this year as well. He started off with a camp injury holding him back. As said already, with an improved D, the Jets should be behind less. The Jets literally abandoned the running game many times last year. Add an improved O line built more towards running should help Jones out a lot. If the Jets D can actually stop anybody this year games should be closer. This will result in the running game being abandoned less. This results in more overall carries/touches which allows for plently of improvement for both Jones and Washington.

Last year I did grab Jones as a number two RB in one league, big dud. But it won't be the first time I grabbed a sleeper a year early.

I will be tracking Garrard as a #2 Qb, and I see great potential for a McNair type season. He has the team rallied behind him, and the team is ready to make a push for the next step. I am watching Campbell as a #2 QB. Young up and coming star with a great safety blanket at TE, and a few new drafted targets. The Portis running dimension helps a bunch.

I feel Jonathan Stewart, Kevin Smith, then a few rounds later Chris Johnson, are some young legs to keep track of. I was really liking the thought of stealing Selvin Young also, but that is going to be like catching keeping track of gas prices with Henry's departure.

I am real excited about where I'm seeing Roy Willimas fall to, and feel he will still be the guy in Detroit. I also see great value in Bowe from KC. Keep your eyes on old vets like Ward, Galloway, and Mason, and second year players on teams like Welker, Chambers and Curtis, who all had some success last year.(Welker fit like a glove) I like Reggie Williams late, liking what I saw between he and Garrard. A full year could lead to career #'s for Williams, which really isn't saying much. I liked his 16.6 ypr last year and 10 td's. He has had a 62 catch season, and I am hoping for 55 and 8 td's this year.

I start my TE watch with Cooley and Clark. They are as good as I need for a #1 and always a good value. I am also going to keep my eye on Daniels and Heath Miller as they both showed great promise last season. Lee from the Pack wil be my sleeper as Rodgers will like his size and presence in the crease, and he will also find his security blanket. Favre had Driver, but i don't think rodgers will choose between the 2 wideouts and hurt any feeling. I believe he will ride his tight end quite heavily.