Fantasy Football 2018 Cheatsheet: Draft Rankings and Sleepers to Target

Some fantasy football players are already shifting their focus to Week 1 lineups. Yet plenty of others are cramming for a September draft.

Staying afloat on news is imperative when drafting right before—or perhaps even during or after—the Philadelphia Eagles and Atlanta Falcons commence the 2018 season on Thursday night. Unless you're competing against a bunch of newbies, a delayed draft complicates the already difficult task of finding sleepers amid an information minefield. 

Chris Carson, Peyton Barber, Corey Davis, Marquise Goodwin and Trey Burton no longer qualify for the title as their stocks have ascended. If anything, they're in danger of getting overdrafted over the weekend. (Take it from someone who saw Burton go three rounds ahead of Delanie Walker at pick No. 53.)

To avoid a theoretical debate, let's define sleeper as an undervalued player routinely going beyond the 10th round of 12-team drafts. Some gamers must dig deeper, but this should cover last-minute drafters seeking bench fliers.

Before diving into these late targets, see where they reside among this author's updated rankings. Even though standard scoring is no longer the norm, the table below shows the top 50 without any points per reception.

Fantasy Football Rankings

1. Todd Gurley, RB, LAR

2. Le'Veon Bell, RB, PIT

3. Ezekiel Elliott, RB, DAL

4. David Johnson, RB, ARI

5. Antonio Brown, WR, PIT

6. DeAndre Hopkins, WR, HOU

7. Saquon Barkley, RB, NYG

8. Melvin Gordon, RB, LAC

9. Alvin Kamara, RB, NO

10. Kareem Hunt, RB, KC

11. Odell Beckham Jr., WR, NYG

12. Leonard Fournette, RB, JAC

13. Julio Jones, WR, ATL

14. Michael Thomas, WR, NO

15. Christian McCaffrey, RB, CAR

16. Keenan Allen, WR, LAC

17. Devonta Freeman, RB, ATL

18. Davante Adams, WR, GB

19. Dalvin Cook, RB, MIN

20. Jordan Howard, RB, CHI

21. A.J. Green, WR, CIN

22. Mike Evans, WR, TB

23. Rob Gronkowski, TE, NE

24. Travis Kelce, TE, KC

25. Stefon Diggs, WR, MIN

26. Adam Thielen, WR, MIN

27. Jerick McKinnon, RB, SF

28. Doug Baldwin, WR, SEA

29. Alex Collins, RB, BAL

30. Joe Mixon, RB, CIN

31. Larry Fitzgerald, WR, ARI

32. LeSean McCoy, RB, BUF

33. T.Y. Hilton, WR, IND

34. Zach Ertz, TE, PHI

35. Demaryius Thomas, WR, DEN

36. Aaron Rodgers, QB, GB

37. Amari Cooper, WR, OAK

38. Lamar Miller, RB, HOU

39. Kenyan Drake, RB, MIA

40. Tyreek Hill, WR, KC

41. JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR, PIT

42. Jay Ajayi, RB, PHI

43. Royce Freeman, RB, DEN

44. Mark Ingram, RB, NO

45. Derrick Henry, RB, TEN

46. Marshawn Lynch, RB, OAK

47. Russell Wilson, QB, SEA

48. Chris Hogan, WR, NE

49. Allen Robinson, WR, CHI

50. Dion Lewis, RB, TEN

Marcus Mariota, QB, Tennessee Titans

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Anybody would have cackled at a sleeper designation for Marcus Mariota last year. Not because they knew he would backpedal to 3,232 passing yards and 13 passing touchdowns in 15 games, but rather because nobody was overlooking his breakout appeal.

This season could present the last chance to snag him at a discount.

Mariota's horrid third season concluded with the sixth-worst quarterback rating (79.3) of 32 qualified passers. Twenty of those signal-callers attempted more passes than his 453, so volume also was not on his side.

Ditching Mike Mularkey's exotic smashmouth offense for a more fitting scheme could do wonders for the 24-year-old. According to ESPN.com's Turron Davenport, Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator Matt LeFleur—who helped the Los Angeles Rams jump from last to 10th in total offense last season—expressed an openness to revisiting Mariota's Oregon roots by executing more run-pass options.

"He has done it [RPOs] his whole career. He has a lot of experience with it," LaFleur said. "The more reps you get at something, typically the better you will be at it."

This should create more running opportunities for Mariota, who has averaged 304.3 rushing yards per season. The former Heisman Trophy winner is capable of making a grander dual-threat impact. 

His rapport with second-year wideout Corey Davis will also be vital. The receiver delivered his first pair of NFL touchdowns in a divisional-round loss to the New England Patriots. Dion Lewis, who caught 32 of 36 targets last year, also presents an upgraded checkdown option in the backfield over DeMarco Murray.

Currently the 19th quarterback off the board, per FantasyPros' consensus ADP, Mariota is available as an end-of-draft flier despite flaunting flashes of stardom in 2016. 

Corey Clement, RB, Philadelphia Eagles

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A sleeper running back is especially hard to find in September. After sitting as late-round gems in August, Carson, Barber and Jamaal Williams have skyrocketed up draft boards now it's clear they will get a crack at starting reps. 

Drafters are always on the prowl for high-volume rushers. This late in the game, there needs to be a reason someone is still asleep. For Corey Clement, it's a lack of bulk opportunities behind Jay Ajayi on the Philadelphia Eagles' depth chart.

There's always concern of someone getting overvalued after breaking out in the Super Bowl. Yet the second-year rusher carries a No. 136 consensus ADP, per FantasyPros, despite posting 100 receiving yards and a score in the championship clash.

His 10 receptions in three postseason games matched his entire rookie season tally. That's far down the list of what makes him an intriguing sleeper.

Clement averaged 4.3 yards per carry and converted 13 red-zone touches into six touchdowns, per Pro Football Reference. Ajayi, on the other hand, failed to score on any of his 19 red-zone carries across his time with Philadelphia and the Miami Dolphins.

A more practical case for Clement: Ajayi has missed practice with an undisclosed lower-body injury. Hampered by knee problems throughout his career, he has yet to play all 16 games in a season. 

The ailing Eagles only have until Thursday to get him ready for Week 1, so it's possible Clement garners a featured role and momentary fantasy MVP honors.

Immediate success could lead to a split backfield, and Clement would easily carve out top-20 running back placement if given a featured gig on last year's third-best scoring offense. 

Geronimo Allison, WR, Green Bay Packers

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According to The Ringer's Michael Lombardi, the Green Bay Packers are shopping wide receiver Randall Cobb. While they're not likely to make a trade before Week 1, such a move would make Geronimo Allison the No. 2 wide receiver in an Aaron Rodgers-led offense.

Even operating as the third receiver makes him a superb end-of-draft value. Two years ago, Davante Adams and Jordy Nelson combined to compile 2,254 yards and 26 touchdowns with a healthy Rodgers. Nelson now plays for the Oakland Raiders.

This is entirely based on opportunity; Allison caught 35 passes in two years and did not register a touchdown last year. He also played in just 35.1 percent of Green Bay's snaps, courtesy of Pro Football Reference, with Brett Hundley spending most of the campaign under center.

Cobb, Nelson and Adams each logged a snap rate over 70.0 percent last year. 

Allison doesn't need a Cobb departure to validate a late investment. Yet a move (or injury) would swiftly eliminate any chance of swooping him off the waiver wire. Beat opponents to the punch by making him the last skill-player pick.