Fantasy World: Time to Wake Up

What happened to everybody's sleepers?

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"Do you know where you are? It's not Detroit, but don't get your hopes up. It's a road game."

Like the great and hideous monster of Lake Loch Ness, the fantasy football sleeper is an enigma lurking beneath the surface of a murky football season. Capture the beast, and you will be rewarded in fame and cash money, like the dude who brought King Kong to New York. But be careful, one false move could make the monster angry, sinking your ship and possibly having you for a snack in the process. (If it's not clear, the "ship" in this instance is a stand-in for "your fantasy team's fortunes".)

And also like the Lock Ness Monster, we're not even sure if fantasy sleepers really exist! By the time the season starts, most forget about them, too worried about keeping their team afloat to look to the past. Good thing I have a lot of free time on my hands. Let's take a look back at a few of those stylish sleeper picks from earlier this year, see how they've been doing, and hey, maybe even learn a lesson or two along the way.

Quarterbacks

Wide Awake: Aaron Rodgers. The 3rd best fantasy QB so this year, this is the type of player who fantasy experts will tout as their "big pull" during next year's draft guide. And while it was a good one, all of the signs pointing towards his success were there. Rodgers had the skill set to justify a first round draft pick in 2005; the only thing keeping him back was the wishy-washy nature of Mr. Favre. Add to that talent an offense featuring a potent rushing attack and two downfield threats in Donald Driver and Greg Jennings, and it doesn't exactly take Nostradamus to predict this one. (Lesson: Players are drafted in the first round for a reason, even if it doesn't show for years down the road. Also: Tim Couch and Akili Smith do not exist.)

Stuck in a Coma: Matt Schaub. The only problem with Schaub last year was that he was plagued by injuries, so the thinking was that as long as he stayed healthy, he'd put up good numbers. Unfortunately, he has not. After missing a Week 5 match-up because of an illness, Schaub went on a sublime three-game stretch where he averaged 308 yards and 20 fantasy points. But that all changed when the Vikings' Jared Allen went all knee-crazy in Week 9, tearing Schaub's MCL and keeping him out of action since. Schaub is due back for this week's game against the Packers, but it's too late in the game to risk your fantasy playoff hopes on someone testing out his new leg.

Middling Zombie: Jason Campbell is still stuck somewhere between "sleeper" and "bust". While he might seem like a disappointment averaging only 213 yards a game, he is currently the 15th best QB in terms of fantasy points. Seeing as he was the 19th QB drafted in most leagues, that's a net positive, but still nothing to really get excited about. It's just the kind of season people have when they are healthy all year. In fact, that he's remained healthy should actually cause him to get drafted lower next year, since a performance like this seems to be his ceiling. But don't be fooled. Next season, Campbell will once again be someone to target, seeing as it'll be his second year in Jim Zorn's offense. However, as for the rest of this season, match-ups against the Ravens (2nd best pass defense), Bengals (20th ranked), and the Eagles (9th best) won't help any.

Running Backs

Wide Awake: Matt Forte, Thomas Jones and Michael Turner all had big questions coming into this season. Was Jones' two-TD year a sign of him slowing down? Was Turner worth all that money despite never being a feature back? Could rookie Forte steal the starting spot away from Cedric Benson? The answers, as we found out: No, yes, and Cedric who?

Stuck in a Coma: Jonathan Stewart. This first round draft choice was a trendy pick in most leagues because of the mystery that is DeAngelo Williams. Everybody knew Williams would begin the season on top of Carolina's depth chart, but the common thinking was that Stewart would claim the job by, oh, let's say Week 5 or so. After all, there was a reason the Panthers used a high pick on him. So imagine everyone's surprise when Williams not only held onto the starting spot, but has been one of the most productive backs in all of football, currently number five overall. Stewart isn't even getting the goal line carries, as exemplified by Williams' four one-yard TD runs last week. Not to say that Stewart hasn't been impressive (he's averaging 4.6 yards a carry), but he's a mere cog in the wheel this year. (Lesson: Never try to predict a midseason coaching move.)

Middling Zombies: Kevin Smith and Darren McFadden. These two were hip sleeper picks for completely different reasons. McFadden was a top talent in the draft, while Smith was a sleeper just because he was expected to get most of the carries in the Lions backfield. But both scenarios got derailed. Following his huge Week 2 game, McFadden has been limited by an injured toe, never allowing him to get more than 14 carries in a game. Look for that number to increase as his foot heals and the Raiders, once again, find themselves auditioning for next season. Smith, meanwhile, had to deal with the surprising signing of Rudi Johnson, which limited his touches in the early going. But since the Lions have been forced to, once again, look to next year, Smith has become the main force in the backfield, if you can call any aspect of the Lions offense a "force". Look for him to continue getting carries, especially this week against a Vikings defense that will most likely be without the two potent Williamses clogging up the middle.

Wide Receivers

Wide Awake: Calvin Johnson. It was never a question of talent for Mr. Johnson. Instead, it was a question of how many points he could put up in an anemic offensive attack no longer featuring the Mad Bomber Mike Martz at the helm. Not helping matters any was the fact that another superstar receiver, Roy Williams, was lining up opposite him, stealing targets away on a regular basis. Luckily for those who took the gamble—Johnson was the 19th WR chosen, on average—talent prevailed and Johnson is currently the 4th best WR in the league. Best of all, next year he doesn't have to worry about getting targets stolen; he just has to worry about being double-covered every game. (LESSON: When in doubt, draft talent.)

Stuck in a Coma: James Hardy and Joey Galloway. There were two very good reasons for picking them as "sleepers"—Hardy was an early pick with the best chance at a starting gig, Galloway was coming off his 3rd straight 1,000-yard season and still not getting any respect—but there's a reason these aren't called "can't miss bets". Hardy never really got off the ground, as Roscoe Parrish, Josh Reed, Robert Royal and now, Steve Johnson all passed him on the depth chart. (LESSON: You can never trust a rookie WR.) Meanwhile, the 37-year-old Galloway succumbed to the one thing that kept him down on the draft charts in the first place: the middling injuries associated with old age.

Middling Zombie: Vincent Jackson was named a sleeper on virtually every list simply due to his amazing playoff performance last year, including 300 yards and two TDs in three games worth of action. This was proof that the tall, gifted receiver had turned the corner and was finally going to make good on his sleeper promise! And he certainly did! Sort of. Jackson's decent season (currently 22nd in WR scoring) has been more to do with teammate Chris Chambers being out than anything else. In the four games Chambers was gone, Jackson put up nearly 80 yards a game and three TDs. But in the three games since he's been back, Jackson has only caught 4 passes, including the dreaded goose egg last week. With Antonio Gates and upstart Malcolm Floyd in the mix as well, it looks like it's all downhill from here on out for Vinny-Jax, which is a shame because that nickname is awesome.

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Player on My Team of the Week: Thomas Jones, who continued his shocking run with a 2-TD, 138-yard rushing day. For the season, he's over 1000 yards and has collected 13 TDs. Considering where he was drafted in most leagues, it's amazing that Jones has made a more-than-compelling case for this year's Fantasy MVP.

How to Heckle One of My Players of the Week: "Hey Peyton Manning, thanks for letting us know that you officially quit your day job for your acting career."

The Proving An Urban Legend To Be False Award of the Week: Brian Russell of Maine, who took police on a short car chase, eventually stopping when he crossed the county border, thinking that the urban legend about cops not being able to arrest people out of their jurisdiction made him safe from their shackles. Turns out, he was wrong.

Buy High: Looking after your loved ones, after the Weekly World News has obtained indisputable proof that the reason Plaxico Burress accidentally shot himself was because he was "aiming at a leprechaun who had been getting fresh with his wife!" Who says romance is dead?

Sell Low: The ability or desire to hear, after Paris Hilton claims to have finished her second album.

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