Fantasy Football Sleepers 2012: Late Round Gems That Will Pay Big Dividends

In fantasy football, it's often not the early picks that make or break a team or season. You expect Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice to rush for 1,200 yards, just as you plan for Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers to throw the pigskin all over the field and post big stats.

In many leagues it's the so-called "sleepers" that can propel a team to the title, those players selected in later rounds who go on to vastly outperform their draft position. Here is a trio of just those sorts of players, each with an average draft position at MyFantasyLeague.com of over 120. This means that in a 12-team fantasy league, they are being selected in the 11th round or later.

James Starks, RB, Green Bay Packers (MFL ADP: 129)

There may well be no starting running back in the National Football League receiving less love in fantasy drafts this season than James Starks of the Green Bay Packers. Starks gained nearly 900 total yards last year and will be the unquestioned lead back for the Packers this season with the departure of Ryan Grant.

Granted, Green Bay is a pass-happy attack. Starks could conceivably lose some third-down work to Brandon Saine, and fan favorite John Kuhn could vulture some goal-line scores. That said, Starks averaged a respectable 4.3 yards per carry in 2011, and he and Grant combined for over 1,100 rushing yards last season.

If Starks can come anywhere near that level of production and up his touchdown total a bit, the third-year pro would represent an absolute steal in the 11th round as a depth selection that could, at the very least, make for a fine flex option or bye-week fill-in.

Lance Moore, WR, New Orleans Saints (MFL ADP: 140)

Every year, there are a number of wide receivers that fly "under the radar" in many fantasy leagues. But it's more than a bit strange to see Lance Moore of the New Orleans Saints falling this low, especially since Moore has finished as at least a fantasy WR3 in three of the past four seasons.

Yes, there are a lot of mouths to feed in the New Orleans passing game. But that number decreased by one with the departure of Robert Meachem, and just in case you haven't noticed, Drew Brees has a tendency to rack up the yardage through the air in the Big Easy.

Moore is presently the 46th wide receiver being drafted despite averaging over 50 catches and seven touchdowns the past four seasons, and that's if you throw in a 2009 season in which Moore played in only seven games.

There will likely be weeks where Moore is the odd man out in the Saints aerial assault, but there's also a very good chance that the eighth-year pro will vastly outproduce his current draft position by the time all is said and done.

Tony Gonzalez, TE, Atlanta Falcons (MFL ADP: 128)

It feels an awful lot like cheating to call a future Hall of Famer a "sleeper," and this may be as much an indicator of the depth at the tight end position as anything. However, the fact remains that Tony Gonzalez isn't coming off the board until the 11th round of 12-team fantasy football leagues, after the likes of Jared Cook and Coby Fleener.

Yes, "Gonzo" is 36 years old, and much closer to the end of his career than the beginning, which raises the risk that 2012 could be the year that the proverbial wheels fall off for the 16th-year veteran.

The exact same doubts were tossed about prior to the 2011 season, and Gonzalez responded by racking up 80 catches, 875 yards, seven scores and a top-five fantasy finish at his position. Toss in the fact that Gonzalez has missed a grand total of two games in his entire career, and given his current price tag, I'll gladly take the chance that the old man has one more solid season left in him.

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