Fantasy Football 2025: 5 Deep Sleepers Whose Stock Will Only Rise After NFL OTAs

The 2025 NFL season may still be months away, but it’s never too early to start making preparations for a winning fantasy football campaign.

With OTAs about to get underway, managers will start to get some glimpses of how players could fare during the upcoming campaign. These non-contact drills and scrimmages may not be the most revealing events, but they are a piece of the puzzle and standout performances can impact fantasy stock going into draft season.

Those who want to get a leg up on their league rivals should pay close attention to the reports and highlights coming out of OTAs. If a prospect is absolutely cooking veteran competition or a coach sheds some light on the depth chart during interviews, this intel may wind up being invaluable down the line.

With that in mind, here are five sleepers to keep an eye on ahead of OTAs whose stock should rise with a strong performance.

Fantasy points, rankings and ADP courtesy of FantasyPros.com using PPR data.

QB Drake Maye, New England Patriots

AP Photo/Michael Dwyer

Drake Maye may not be an entirely unknown entity on the heels of an impressive rookie season that resulted in a Pro Bowl nod, but he’s still not getting the fantasy respect he deserves.

The New England Patriots star has a middling ADP of just 121 and is currently the QB15, making him a projected backup at best in most formats.

While Maye’s 2024 numbers don’t quote warrant a ranking that puts him in the same tier as the Lamar Jacksons and Josh Allens of this world, his upside alone should have him being selected near the QB12 spot or higher. He averaged a shade over 18 fantasy points per game in his Year 1 starts, marks that would have rated as the QB15 had he started every game even while playing on a downtrodden Pats squad bereft of quality pieces.

New England overhauled both its coaching staff and roster this offseason, bringing in a new head coach in Mike Vrabel, a proven offensive coordinator in Josh McDaniels and a slew of new pieces to augment the sophomore signal-caller.

The most impactful of these additions will be Will Campbell, the No. 4 overall pick who projects to take over as the team’s starting left tackle for the foreseeable future. He represents the most major upgrade in the offensive trenches, although the acquisition of veterans Morgan Moses and Garrett Bradbury will also help.

Defenses will have to respect New England’s ground game more this coming year. The Pats spent an early Day 2 pick on TreVeyon Henderson, the talented and versatile Ohio State product who can contribute on all three downs while rating as one of the best pass-protection prospects to enter the league.

Maye will have more talented targets to pick out when he drops back this season too. The presence of Stefon Diggs—who could quickly establish himself as the best wideout to suit up for New England in years if he’s fully recovered from a season-ending ACL tear—and Mack Hollins gives the Patriots' receiving corps an edge it had been lacking in recent seasons.

These moves, coupled with Maye’s continued development, should result in the young passer putting up some strong numbers in 2025. If all goes to plan for this up-and-coming Pats squad, he should vastly outperform his current ADP and may even compete for a top-five fantasy finish.

RB Kyle Monangai, Chicago Bears

AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh

The Chicago Bears made their final selection in the 2025 draft count. They created plenty of buzz late on Day 3 when they managed to land Kyle Monangai, one of the most exciting prospects in the class, at No. 233 overall.

He has the potential to immediately challenge for a sizable role in Chicago’s backfield platoon. While his combine performance left a bit to be desired—his 4.6-second 40-yard dash time underwhelmed onlookers—the Rutgers product has put plenty of impressive highlights on tape over the last couple seasons.

After breaking out as a junior with a 1,262-yard season in 2023, the 22-year-old capped off his half-decade collegiate career by rushing for 1,279 yards and 13 touchdowns on 256 carries last year.

The 5’8”, 211-pound back doesn't have the frame to handle the rigors of every-down work at the NFL level, but what Monangai lacks in size is made up for in elusiveness and balance. He’s extremely difficult for defenses to bring down, making the most of his low center of gravity and sturdy base.

He has drawn comparisons to Isiah Pacheco, another Scarlet Knights seventh-rounder, but he’s a relatively unique prospect who could leverage his unusual style to carve out a role within a Bears rotation that was disappointing in 2024.

While he may not completely usurp D’Andre Swift as the RB1 in the Windy City, Monangai could start cutting into the starter’s workload and push the underwhelming Roschon Johnson for backup duties during training camp.

Considering his ADP of 271 (RB85), Monangai currently represents a fantastic value in the late rounds, and it wouldn’t be a shock to see him rapidly ascend the rankings with a strong showing at OTAs.

RB Bhayshul Tuten, Jacksonville Jaguars

AP Photo/John Raoux

The Jacksonville Jaguars didn’t take Bhayshul Tuten until Day 3 of the 2025 draft, but the fourth-round rookie could end up being a key piece of their offense this year.

The Virginia Tech product is one of the most electrifying of the 25 running backs to be selected in this year’s draft, showcasing incredible speed (he ran a 4.32-second 40-yard dash at the combine) and playmaking ability during his time with the Hokies. He exploded for 1,159 yards and 15 touchdowns on just 183 carries in 2024 and put an immense amount of highlights on tape during that span.

While there have been issues with ball security—he fumbled nine times in 2023 alone—and injuries could be an issue if he continues to take hard head-on hits, Tuten clearly possesses the athleticism required to be a star at the next level.

There’s hardly a better spot for a first-year back to have landed in, either, especially with incumbent starter Travis Etienne Jr. looking washed just four seasons into his NFL career and a new regime led by head coach Liam Coen seeking to jump-start a flailing ground game with hand-picked draft prospects.

Tuten will have a shot at earning the lion’s share of the backfield volume if he can beat out Etienne during camp, although the most likely outcome will see him begin the season in a timeshare with Tank Bigsby should Etienne continue to struggle.

Regardless of how things start, Tuten has the potential to vastly outproduce his ADP of 125 (RB39) and should be on the radar of any fantasy manager hunting for RB sleepers.

If he can get his fumbling under control and stay healthy, he’ll be a key piece of Jacksonville’s platoon and offer far more value than both Bigsby (ADP 138, RB42) and Etienne (ADP 118, RB38).

WR Ricky Pearsall, San Francisco 49ers

AP Photo/Rick Scuteri

The San Francisco 49ers selected Ricky Pearsall on Day 1 of the 2024 draft but never had much opportunity to feature the dynamic receiver during his injury-shortened rookie year.

Pearsall didn’t get on the field until Week 7 due to a gunshot wound he suffered leading up to the campaign and struggled to find a rhythm during a lost 49ers campaign until the final weeks.

The 24-year-old did provide a glimpse of what he’s capable of over the season’s final fortnight, though. He broke out in Week 17 with a career-best eight-catch, 141-yard, one-touchdown outing against an elite Detroit Lions opponent and followed that up with a 6/69/1 performance versus the rival Arizona Cardinals in the finale.

Despite this upside, the departure of Deebo Samuel and top wideout Brandon Aiyuk’s uncertain return from an ACL injury, Pearsall is still only being taken in fantasy drafts as the WR40 with an ADP of 71.

Managers should capitalize on this incredible value, as he is poised to open 2025 as a starter across from Jauan Jennings and should make the most of this opportunity.

Pearsall has put his vast potential on display despite missing valuable practice reps to open his first NFL season and will benefit from having a full summer to prepare as a key cog in San Francisco’s dynamic offensive attack.

Even with Aiyuk slated to come back in the back half of the season, Pearsall should already be well-entrenched as one of Brock Purdy’s preferred targets and is a sure bet to finish as a top-25 WR in 2025.

TE Terrance Ferguson, Los Angeles Rams

AP Photo/George Walker IV

Terrance Ferguson isn’t on the fantasy radar right now, but it may not be long before managers are clamoring to scoop him up on the waiver wire following a breakout start to his upcoming rookie year.

Ferguson entered the 2025 draft following a steady four-year run at Oregon. He emerged as a reliable part of the Ducks’ passing attack two seasons ago, tallying 85 catches for 1,005 yards and nine touchdowns since the start of the 2023 campaign. While these aren’t eye-popping stats, the 22-year-old has all the tools necessary to become a more productive contributor at the next level.

Standing a hulking 6’5”, 247 pounds while running a respectable 4.63-second 40-yard dash and showcasing a 39” vertical leap at the combine, he clearly has the size and athleticism to develop into an elite NFL tight end.

His run blocking needs major improvements before he can be trusted to take on every down work, but he’s ready to hit the ground running as a pass-catcher and could benefit heavily from tutelage under head coach Sean McVay and his staff.

ESPN’s Ben Solak sees a rapid rise for Ferguson, projecting the first-year talent to emerge as the starter by the second month of the season and finish 2025 with a respectable 63/821/6 stat line.

While Ferguson may take a back seat to star receivers Puka Nacua and Davante Adams in L.A.’s veteran-laden passing attack, he’s gifted enough to usurp current starting tight end Tyler Higbee (who finished as fantasy’s TE6 as recently as 2022 in this offense) and eclipse the incumbent starter’s usual contributions.

Given Ferguson’s ADP of 257 (TE38), managers looking to take a late-round flier on a high-upside tight end in a powerful offense should look no further than this promising rookie.