Darnell Mooney, J.K. Dobbins Headline Top 5 2025 Fantasy Football Sleepers

Any successful fantasy draft is going to include at least a sleeper or two for fantasy football managers. This season, there are quite a few players with sleeper potential.

For this article, I defined "sleeper" as a player who is currently ranked outside the top 100 on Fantasy Pros' re-draft PPR rankings. With that ranking, these players are not expected to be in the starting lineup at their respective positions in 12-team leagues.

However, each of these players have the potential to produce fantasy starter production. That's what makes them potential sleepers.

Let's dive into the five players:

Darnell Mooney, WR, Atlanta Falcons

Bijan Robinson, Drake London and Kyle Pitts steal all the attention with the Falcons offense. But not the ball, all the time. Mooney had plenty of chances to shine in 2024, and that should continue with second-year quarterback Michael Penix Jr. behind center this fall.

In 16 games, Mooney had 64 catches for 992 receiving yards with five touchdowns. He averaged a career-best 15.5 yards per reception last season.

Mooney might not be able to posted 15 yards per catch again. In four seasons with the Chicago Bears, Mooney posted 12.2 yards per grab.

But with London, Robinson and Pitts, it's easy to see why Mooney became the team's deep-threat. He draws single coverage, and Mooney showcased the speed to take advantage of those looks last season.

That makes Mooney a pretty solid WR3 option in fantasy leagues. He probably won't have the volume to be consistently produce as a WR2, but the upside is there, which is typically something fantasy managers want from their depth receivers.

Fantasy Pros has Mooney ranked as the No. 49 receiver and No. 117 overall player in redraft PPR formats.

J.K. Dobbins, RB, Denver Broncos

Dobbins landed with the Broncos on a one-year contract June 10. With the late signing, some fantasy managers could forget Dobbins joined Denver this summer, which could lead to Dobbins staying on draft boards longer than he should.

Fantasy Pros has Dobbins rated the No. 170 overall player in PPR formats.

If Dobbins can play like he did last season, he will greatly outperform that draft position. With the Los Angeles Chargers, he had 905 rushing yards and nine touchdowns while averaging 4.6 yards per carry.

Dobbins, who is only 26, also had 32 receptions, as he finished with 1,058 yards from scrimmage.

Pat Freiermuth, TE, Pittsburgh Steelers

It feels like fantasy managers have been waiting on Freiermuth to break out for a little bit now. The Steelers tight end has posted a pair of seven-touchdown seasons in his career. But he's been stuck in the 60-65 catch range throughout his four NFL seasons.

Freiermuth has also never eclipsed the 750-yard mark.

If Freiermuth is to become more fantasy relevant, though, it will happen this year with veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers. If any quarterback is going to be more aggressive and solve Pittsburgh's over-the-middle passing issues, it's Rodgers.

Pittsburgh has failed to utilize the middle of the field in its passing attack in recent years. If Rodgers attacks that area more in 2025, though, Freiermuth stands to benefit the most.

Based on the Fantasy Pros rankings, fantasy managers can find the Steelers tight ends still on the board in the 12th round of 12-team PPR leagues.

Fantasy Pros ranked him the No. 135 overall player and No. 15 tight end.

Matthew Golden, WR, Green Bay Packers

Drafting rookies can often be very tricky. A lot of fantasy managers fall in love with hype, which is all rookies are until they get on the field.

Hype can be dangerous just before a draft. It gets a player overdrafted.

Golden has the potetial to have a lot of hype because he's the first receiver the Green Bay Packers selected in the first round in years. But if he's still on the board where Fantasy Pros has him ranked at No. 164 overall, Golden is a potential sleeper.

At Texas last season, Golden averaged 17 yards per reception while posting 987 receiving yards and an SEC-leading nine touchdowns. With the Packers, Golden could start immediately with Romeo Doubs on the opposite side and Jayden Reed in the slot.

Cade Otton, TE, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tight end is often the easiest position to find a sleeper. Personally, I love the philosophy of trying to land one of the top tight ends early. But if other fantasy managers reach at the position, I quickly adjust to waiting at TE. Oftentimes, I wait several rounds until it's time to grab a pair of tight end sleepers.

One of the best late tight end sleepers this year could be Buccaneers' Cade Otton. The 26-year-old had 59 catches, 600 receiving yards and four touchdowns in 2024.

Fantasy managers would like to see more redzone production from Otton. But he's on a great offense, which should give him plenty of scoring opportunities in 2025. He's also increased his receiving yards and targets every season of his career.

Fantasy Pros has Otton ranked as the No. 183 overall player for redraft PPR leagues.