Fantasy football sleepers: WR - Week 2

September 15, 2011 @ 23:43:10

By Cory J. Bonini
Edited by Tim Heaney

Fantasy football sleepers: QB | RB | WR | TE | PK | DT

In this article KFFL breaks down the fantasy football sleepers of the week. We will avoid marquee names because players of that caliber are rarely benched, regardless of their matchup. Instead, we will focus on the players that make your fantasy lineup decisions stressful each week. Read on to learn which midrange to low-end players you wouldn't necessarily consider that you need to get into your lineup.

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Fantasy football sleepers: Wide receivers

NEW - Malcom Floyd, San Diego Chargers at New England Patriots

Fantasy value: Midrange No. 2

• Most of the Minnesota Vikings' defensive attention went toward Vincent Jackson in Week 1, so Floyd benefited with eight targets. He was only allowed three catches for 45 yards.
• The deep threat will face a similarly welcome opportunity, though, in a Patriots squad that's still trying to get their secondary together after a slew of preseason cuts. They allowed the Miami Dolphins to take to the air often and successfully in Week 1; it was a catch-up effort, but it still allows for fantasy points. Plus, Philip Rivers is "slightly" better than Chad Henne.
  

Nate to be Great

Nate Burleson, Detroit Lions vs. Kansas City Chiefs

Fantasy value: Midrange No. 2

• In Week 1, against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Burleson caught five balls for 60 yards and rushed once for 20. He sees single coverage opposite Calvin Johnson in Detroit's potentially lethal passing attack. Johnson (ankle) is a little sore, so the team could rely more on Burleson this week.
• The Chiefs were blown out by the Buffalo Bills in Week 1, and their defense of the wide receiver position was largely responsible for it. KC surrendered 10 receptions for 135 yards and two touchdowns last weekend. The Chiefs sacked Ryan Fitzpatrick just one time, and they cannot afford to give Matthew Stafford that kind of time to pick apart their Eric Berry-less secondary.
• Burleson is a crafty route-runner and should find creases in the defense that could put him in the end zone. His numbers rarely will be impressive overall since Megatron will get the majority of looks, but this matchup could result in two strong performances from Detroit's starting wideouts.

Jacoby Jones, Houston Texans at Miami Dolphins

Fantasy value: High-end No. 3

• Other than Miami's abysmal effort against the Patriots' passing game Monday night, Jones offers other reasons to enter your fantasy lineup this week. He caught only three passes for 43 yards in Week 1 as the Texans employed a run-heavy assault on the Indianapolis Colts. The Texans could lose starting wide receiver Kevin Walter (shoulder) for at least this coming week, possibly much longer. This would pave the way for Jones to see more looks. He also sees single coverage playing across from Andre Johnson.
• The Texans' passing game isn't as good as New England's, and we're not going to try to make that claim. However, they can still move the ball through the air with the rest of the best of them, and that should be good enough for a strong fantasy day from Jones.
• Miami, for the record (one they probably want erased), gave up 42 non-PPR fantasy points in Week 1. That translates to 18 receptions for 322 yards and two scores to the wide receiver position. Wes Welker's 99-yard touchdown catch didn't help their stats against, of course.

Brandon Gibson, St. Louis Rams at New York Giants

Fantasy value: Midrange No. 3

• Sam Bradford (finger) should be just fine for Week 2, and he'll need all the help he can get out of his receiving corps with Steven Jackson (quadriceps) not expected to play. Danny Amendola (elbow) likely will be out several weeks, and Gibson will be asked to step up.
• Gibson caught three passes for 50 yards (16.7 per catch) in Week 1. He displayed his chemistry with Bradford in the offseason, so there is reason for hope here. Well, more reason to have hope than facing the Giants' secondary.
• Last week, Washington Redskins' receivers picked on the injury-weakened New York pass defense by scoring twice on 11 catches that went for 154 yards.

Fantasy football sleepers: QB | RB | WR | TE | PK | DT

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Cory J. Bonini

Cory J. Bonini is a senior editor at KFFL. In late 2002, Bonini joined the KFFL staff as a research analyst. He vaulted himself into one of the industry's leading fantasy analysts.

Bonini has been involved in fantasy sports since 1996. A member of the Fantasy Sports Trade Association as well as Fantasy Sports Writers Association, he has been featured in print, on the radio and is also a published writer on scores of sites. Bonini co-hosted Big Lead Sports on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio from 2011 to 2012.

Bonini was recognized with the 2010 Best Article in Print Award from the FSWA and was a finalist for the same award in 2011. In '11, he finished first overall in the FSWA NFL experts challenge that featured 60 of the industry's best competitors.

Follow him on Twitter @CoryKFFL

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