Adam Schefter Lists Drake Maye Among Fantasy Football Sleepers Before 2025 NFL Season

If you are looking to wait on the quarterback position at your fantasy football draft and find sleeper value down the board, ESPN's Adam Schefter would point you in the direction of New England.

"Drake Maye is poised, I think, to have a big year for the Patriots," he said on his latest podcast (33:16 mark).

Schefter isn't alone in that assessment:

Schefter also listed New England wideout DeMario Douglas, Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Brenton Strange, New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson, Chicago Bears running back Kyle Monangai, Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert and Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott as other potential sleepers (Herbert and Prescott are household names, so it's hard to call them sleepers, but they may be getting undervalued at drafts).

Maye had the usual ups and downs as a rookie, but he also had virtually no help around him and still managed to throw for 2,276 yards, 15 touchdowns and 10 interceptions, completing 66.6 percent of his passes. Just as importantly for fantasy players, Maye rushed for 421 yards and two scores, and that was without the Patriots really drawing up any designed run plays for him until very late in the season.

With an upgraded offensive line and the addition of more playmakers at the skill positions this offseason, he should have a much better supporting cast around him. Maye is still best considered a QB2 option, but you will be able to get him for fantastic value late in your draft.

As for the rest of the list, Douglas has shown flashes in his first two seasons, though the addition of Stefon Diggs could alter the pecking order in New England's passing game. Strange is now the TE1 in Jacksonville and could be in line for a greater target share. Johnson had a subpar first year in New York, but Russell Wilson needs someone to throw the ball to other than Malik Nabers and the options thin out quickly. And finally, Monangai feels like a very deep sleeper, with D'Andre Swift and Roschon Johnson still in Chicago, but he's had a strong summer and could be absorbing Johnson's role soon enough.