2022 Fantasy Football – Rookie Sleeper Candidates

Nothing beats the feeling of finding solid players for your dynasty team in the later rounds of your rookie draft or even on waivers. It happens almost every year, a few players selected in rounds three and four go on to out-perform their draft position and become great assets to any squad. It is difficult to spot these future fantasy starters in the later rounds but it’s worth a shot.

I don’t believe that these players will ever reach Top-5 or even the Top-10 at their position, but I do think these players have the potential to contribute to winning teams throughout their careers. 

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Tyler Badie

22 Years Old, RB, Ravens

Tyler Badie has been going under the radar for most of his college career. Badie was very successful in his first and only season as the workhorse back at Missouri last season. Badie rushed for 1,604 yards and 14 touchdowns on 268 attempts. All this while additionaly recording 330 receiving yards on 54 receptions and four more touchdowns. Badie was rewarded for his historic season at Missouri by being named to the All-SEC first team. 

After a dominant last season at Missouri, Badie continued to fly under the radar throughout the NFL Draft process. Former Missouri running back was selected in the 6th round, 196th overall to the Baltimore Ravens.

The Ravens struggled mightily with injuries at the running back position last season. JK Dobbins, coming back from a torn ACL, will resume the duties as the first and second-down back. Gus Edwards, who is also coming off a season-ending torn ACL, will most likely be the backup to Dobbins. The Ravens also recently added veteran Mike Davis in free agency. While this seems like a crowded backfield, Badie specializes in being a pass-catching back, something most of this running back room has not shown to be effective at. While Davis adds competition for Badie to make the roster, after seeing how ineffective Davis was last season for the Falcons, I believe Badie will beat out the aging Davis for a roster spot.

Dobbins and Edwards are used more as the power backs in this run-heavy offense. This could result in Badie having a vital role in passing situations for a team that does not have many receiving options outside of Mark Andrews and Rashad Bateman.

Abram Smith

23 Years Old, RB, Saints

Abram Smith surprisingly went undrafted after rushing for over 1,600 yards and 12 touchdowns at Baylor last season. Smith was picked up by the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent. 

Smith has the opportunity to carve out a role in the Saints offense. Pro-Bowl running back Alvin Kamara is facing legal troubles due to an incident that occurred back in February. There’s still a chance that Kamara could be looking at a suspension to start the 2022 season. Behind Kamara is 32-year-old Mark Ingram. Ingram has had fantasy success being the primary backup to Kamara in this New Orleans offense. Tony Jones had a disappointing season for the Saints this past season only averaging 2.6 YPC. 

The former Baylor running back has the potential to show his skills in the preseason and make his way onto the roster for 2022 and beyond. With Kamara potentially facing a suspension, Ingram getting older, and Jones struggling on the field, Smith has a real chance at producing for the Saints offense this season.

Snoop Conner

22 Years Old, RB, Jaguars

Snoop Conner was drafted by the newly-led Jacksonville Jaguars with the 154th overall pick in the NFL Draft. While this might not look like an enticing landing spot for a late-round running back, Conner could find himself having a role in this offense. 

After last year’s debacle at head coach, the Jaguars hired former Super Bowl-winning head coach, Doug Pederson. Pederson has had a good deal of success with his offenses going with a committee of runners instead of one lead running back. 

James Robinson suffered a nasty Achilles injury late in the season last year. Robinson was undrafted but had success in a depleted backfield the past two seasons. With a new coaching staff and former 1st-Round pick Travis Etienne coming back, Robinson might not be as favored in this backfield as before. It would not surprise me if Conner was able to leap ahead of Robinson on the depth chart due to the coaching staff favoring a player they drafted, over a player who was undrafted and suffered a serious injury. I believe Conner could find himself having a role as a goal-line back in a committee of runners this season.

Justyn Ross

22 Years Old, WR, Chiefs

Not too long ago former Clemson wide receiver Justyn Ross was being taken in the 2nd or 3rd round of dynasty rookie drafts. After Ross was not selected in the NFL Draft and was signed by the Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted free agent, he fell to the late 3rd and 4th rounds of rookie drafts.

Talent is not the issue when it comes to Ross. The former Clemson star was once considered a no-brainer for being a Day 1 or Day 2 pick in the NFL Draft. The cause behind Ross going undrafted was his injury history. 

After the Chiefs traded away Tyreek Hill, wide receiver has been a major need for the team. The Chiefs signed JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling to contracts this offseason to fill the need at the position. The team also drafted Skyy Moore in the second round of the NFL Draft. These three receivers will likely be the starters come September, but with injuries as a possibility, Ross could step in and succeed as a nice weapon for Patrick Mahomes.

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