Fantasy Football Sleepers 2011: 5 Seattle Seahawks with the Most Fantasy Value

Up until the Seattle Seahawks' recent splurge on free agents this offseason, I thought that there really was no one on this team that I would want on my fantasy football team.

Now, this Seahawks team still has very, very little fantasy talent (a Seattle player doesn't appear until the 71st slot on the rankings of ESPN.com, which is the 31st-worst in the NFL), but there are a few players who I would consider to have on my fantasy football team.

Here are the five best fantasy football players from the Seahawks for the 2011 NFL fantasy season. Enjoy or hope we get better talent.

Disclaimer: I would still not draft any Seahawks player for my fantasy team due to the uncertainty at quarterback. This uncertainty could doom the Seahawks offense this season.

Honorable Mentions: Leon Washington and Mike Williams

Leon Washington is a very good football player and can be explosive and very productive at times (see game versus Chargers last year).

But, unless you are in a league where you get points for return yards and return touchdowns, you should hold off on Washington. Instead, possibly target the Seahawks defense/special teams.

Mike Williams is actually much higher on many fantasy lists all over. For me, I find it hard to believe that Williams will be able to reproduce the sort of season that he had last year with a quarterback named Tarvaris or Charlie.

The other flaw is that Sidney Rice is a very similar receiver to Williams, except younger and faster. Williams' role could decline in this new offense; be careful if you draft him.

5. Justin Forsett

One fact that always jumps off the page when looking up stats about Justin Forsett, is that his career average for yards per catch is 4.92.

If he was the feature back in the Seattle offense, then Forsett would easily be one of the best backs in the league with this YPC.

So then why does Forsett get so few carries?

This is a question that many pro-Forsett fans ask. To me, I do not believe that he could handle all of the carries that a feature back requires.

If Marshawn Lynch goes down at some point this season, though, look to pick up Forsett. He has a lot of potential and could be a star if given the chance.

4. Golden Tate

Sleeper alert!

Golden Tate only caught 21 passes last year, only played in 11 games and may not even be the third-string wide receiver on this Seahawks team. So why is he rated as the fourth-best fantasy player on the Seahawks?

Tate is rated this high because he has huge big-play potential coming out of the slot. Tate is the best slot receiver currently on this Seattle roster, as Williams, Rice and Ben Obomanu are all too big to play slot receiver.

Also, Pete Carroll knows far too well how good of a playmaker Tate is from past USC-Notre Dame games.

Some of you may think this a stretch for Tate, but watch out for him throughout this season; his big plays could make him an ideal waiver wire pickup.

3. Marshawn Lynch

I will limit the amount of "Beast Mode" references in this slide to two.

If you draft Marshawn Lynch, you can expect about 200 carries, around 1,000 yards and at least six or seven touchdowns. What is best, though, is what you do not expect.

Lynch has a strange tendency to break huge plays that result in touchdowns (I think everyone knows which run I am referring to). If there is any Seahawks player that you want to draft for some sort of dependability, Lynch is your guy.

He is the feature back in this offense, and after the postseason (or just the game against New Orleans), he will be consistently called upon to perform.

Do not be distracted by one run, though. While Lynch is good and talented, please do not yell "Beast Mode" and take him in the first five rounds. He's good, but maybe not that good.

2. Zach Miller

The first of the free agents, Zach Miller had five games last season of double-digit fantasy points. He also had five games of zero fantasy points.

Normally, a new player would have a disadvantage in the first few games because of having to adjust to a new system. However, the system that Carroll will introduce to Miller is similar to his system back when he played under Tom Cable—the same Tom Cable who now is an assistant coach with Seattle.

Seattle throws a lot of passes to tight ends (see John Carlson), and expect whoever the new quarterback is to look to the big man for lots of passes at the beginning of the year while the offense adjusts.

Miller is a huge target, who is only getting better with each season. Expect big things out of Miller and expect production for fantasy teams.

1. Sidney Rice

Sidney Rice is the new hope for the Seahawks offense. This 6'4'' receiver just breeds big plays. Rice has the size and speed to be a legitimate No. 1 receiver in the NFL and it seems will easily turn into their best offensive weapon.

Look for Rice to get loads of passes thrown his way at the beginning of the season because of the familiarity with quarterback Tarvaris Jackson, both of whom played for the Vikings.

Also, expect offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell, who was Rice and Jackson's offensive coordinator, to go to Rice in the clutch because Bevell has seen Rice come through in the past.

The last reason to look at Rice heavily is because of the division he plays in. The NFC West has some of the worst secondaries in the league.

Look for Rice to take advantage of this division and out-leap any cornerback who attempts to cover him. Draft Rice and expect good things.