Look, I get it. Some folks are sitting there with three or four losses already. You really can’t afford to mess around with all these weird players in your lineup. What good are fantasy football sleepers who break out down the stretch if your team isn’t still alive then? 

But hear me out for just one second. What if your team is actually BETTER than you thought? Or maybe you just need one little spark. One final sleeper to breakout in a big way to get your back on track. Maybe you keep them on the bench this week just to see, or maybe you put them right in your lineup and win the matchup where you are a heavy underdog.

That’s what this article is all about. We are looking at players who are rostered in less than 40% of leagues on Yahoo who could break out THIS week. This year’s Michael Wilson, perhaps, who puts your team on their back and carries us to fantasy glory. Why not us? Why not now?

Week 5 Quarterback Sleepers

Deshaun Watson, Cleveland Browns

This one feels like it’s only a matter of time. He’s sustaining drives, which includes some key conversions. The team is winning games. And most importantly, he’s running again. He has the second most carries behind only Josh Allen and, if you remove the scrambles, kneels, and QB sneaks, they are tied for the league lead in designed runs. Allen, of course, has a bunch of rushing touchdowns and Watson has none, but that could change very soon.

Jacoby Brissett, Arizona Cardinals

The main goal of this article is to find guys BEFORE they break out so we can beat the wire and start them the rest of the way. We’ll admit that this one probably is more of a stream than a situation where Brissett just turns the corner and starts for our fantasy team every week. But we also recognize that conditions are lining up pretty perfectly, so we want to mention that. 

The Lions have been without BOTH starting safeties Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph for the whole year so far. They had hoped that once the four-game IR stint was up, at least one of them would be back. But neither is going to be ready for Week 5. Trey McBride could have a field day this week as the Cardinals try to punch back and force this into a shootout. The 54.5 point/over under this week is the highest one set for any game so far this season.  

 

 

 

Week 5 Running Back Sleepers

Keaton Mitchell, Los Angeles Chargers

It feels like we are inching closer and closer to the precipice of a Keaton Mitchell breakout. We just need the Chargers to fully commit. Mitchell was brought in because he’s potentially a better scheme fit for Mike McDaniel’s scheme than Omarion Hampton. And Mitchell now leads all RBs in routes run from a WR spot this year with 24. Just last week Mitchell also played 26 snaps to 25 for Hampton, the first time this year that has happened. He’s still rostered in less than 40% of leagues on Yahoo, so just barely qualifies for this article. All it takes is one good week, and he’ll be rostered everywhere. 

Austin Ekeler, Washington Commanders

Feels kind of crazy to say a veteran like Ekeler could “break out”. The odds of him just all of a sudden being the fantasy megastar he once was are low. But, as we saw this past week with Alvin Kamara, all it takes to be fantasy relevant is the right kind of usage. And Ekeler could find himself in that kind of spot.

No one has really done much to separate themselves in Washington. Rachaad White looked okay, but he got hurt. Ekeler hopped off the couch last week and, since he has been working with running backs coach Anthony Lynn for years and knows more of the scheme, he was able to jump right into 17 snaps. That included not only his typical routes but even a couple of snaps to kick off drives. Who’s to say Ekeler isn’t the best back in that backfield? He only played like a game and a half last year before he got hurt, so we didn’t really see him in the full mix. He’s only rostered in 4% of leagues right now. 

Week 5 Wide Receiver Sleepers

Tre' Harris, Los Angeles Chargers

Tre' Harris is a player we like. If you are a Fantasy Alarm member, you likely have him in at least one dynasty league. Like with a lot of young wide receivers we like, it just boils down to waiting your turn. It’s easy to forget that even great players like Jaxon Smith-Njigba and CeeDee Lamb were not full-time players early in their careers. Chris Godwin wasn’t until year three (then he finished as the WR2 in fantasy).

So Harris has been kind of stuck so far with Ladd McConkey, Quentin Johnston, and all the weird fullback and tight end stuff Mike McDaniel wants to do. But the tight ends started getting hurt, and now Ladd McConkey is banged up for the fourth time in four games. We aren’t entirely convinced that Quentin Johnston is better than Tre Harris at this stage. All Tre' Harris really needs is one big game, maybe one in which the Chargers actually look competent, and he can run with the job. 

Chris Bell, Miami Dolphins

We got ROBBED last week, ladies and gentlemen. Chris Bell once again passed the eye test and, this week, he actually DID make a big play. He had a 68-yard touchdown. But it didn’t count because his foot just barely grazed the sideline, meaning he technically “went out of bounds, then came back” before making the big play. A minor mistake that negated a major play.

And, in a game like the Dolphins had this week, that ended up being huge. Because the game script was very strange for the Dolphins, they only ran 39 offensive plays, with 20 of them being pass plays. Chris Bell actually ran 17 of the 20 possible routes, which is 85%, a healthy number that could lead to a much bigger day this week against a Bengals defense that is easier to pass against. So we are doubling down on Bell again this week. 

 

 

 

Week 5 Tight End Sleepers

Chig Okonkwo, Washington Commanders

We could just take the easy route, going with Mike Gesicki. The Dolphins are ranked dead last in DVOA against the tight end per FTN Fantasy (which is really saying something considering how bad the Lions have been against the tight end). But Gesicki is almost TOO popular among the sleepers, if that makes sense. We need more of a challenge.

So we are looking at Chig Okonkwo. In the first half of the first game, Chig looked good with Jayden Daniels. But then he pretty quickly got hurt. He finally returned last week, but there was no Jayden Daniels. This is the first full game we could potentially get with BOTH Okonkwo and Daniels on the field. Chig has 98th percentile speed, so he doesn’t need a lot of targets to make things happen. But with Terry McLaurin possibly out again, the targets could be there as well. 

Where Do We Rank The Fantasy Football Breakout Sleepers This Week?

The toughest question, week in and week out, is whether you should just start the “safe” guys you have or whether you can just throw a dart at this week’s possible breakout. Lucky for you, we rank every one of these guys for PPR, half PPR, and standard rankings every single week. So check out the Fantasy Alarm Weekly Rankings to see exactly where these guys fall compared to the other options out there. If it’s anywhere close, it’s always more fun to throw in that sleeper!