Fantasy Football Sleepers 2012: Biggest Boom-or-Bust Rookies to Target

Drafting NFL rookies onto your fantasy team is always a dangerous game, but one that sometimes pays off in the end.

It's hard to project how first-year players will pan out on football's grandest stage.

Despite that truth, owners must draft rookies on potential alone considering they have never showcased themselves at the NFL level.

Here we'll run down some of the biggest boom-or-bust rookies that fantasy owners should target this summer.

Russell Wilson, QB

After being named the Week 1 starter under center for the Seattle Seahawks, according to The Seattle Times' Tim Booth, rookie quarterback Russell Wilson has the potential to be either a mighty star or an epic bust. 

Wilson is a sensational athlete, which makes him a threat to rack up fantasy points through the air and on the ground.

Wilson completed nearly 73 percent of his passes in college last season with Wisconsin and posted 39 total touchdowns. Six of his scores came on the ground. 

He has looked phenomenal throughout the preseason this summer, but once he faces a first-string NFL defense for an entire four quarters, Wilson will be exposed for what he really is: either a boom or a bust. 

Alshon Jeffery, WR

Rookie wide receiver Alshon Jeffery boasts a 6'3" frame that will make him an easy target for Jay Cutler in Chicago this season. 

The former South Carolina Gamecock caught 23 touchdown passes in three seasons in Columbia and has a sticky pair of hands that should turn him into a star for the Bears. 

Of course, there is the risk that more experienced wideouts like Earl Bennett and Devin Hester will see more playing time than Jeffery, which could potentially turn the rookie into a mega fantasy bust. 

Considering the destruction that he could unleash playing opposite Brandon Marshall, however, Jeffery is no doubt a player with boom potential. 

Doug Martin, RB

Boise State running back Doug Martin rushed for over 1,200 yards in both his junior and senior seasons with the Broncos. 

At 5'9", 223 pounds, it's no surprise why the Tampa Bay Buccaneers drafted him in the first round last April. Martin was a touchdown machine in college, turning out 43 in three seasons in Boise. 

With fellow Bucs running back LeGarrette Blount's stock dropping after a lackluster second season in the NFL, Martin could have his number called enough times to make a legitimate impact for fantasy owners. 

Martin is smaller and much shiftier than Blount, which will certainly earn him a good amount of snaps in Tampa. If he can make the most of them and outplay Blount early on, he could challenge the league's top rushers in 2012.

On the other hand, if Blount comes out motivated to prove the doubters wrong this fall, Martin could find his snaps few and far between, turning into a bust for fantasy owners bold enough to draft him as a starting back. 

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