What the experts say is true. You can’t win your draft in the first round, but you can lose it. Same goes for the other cliché — you win your draft in the middle rounds.
So how do you win your fantasy football draft in the middle rounds and hopefully propel yourself to that glorious championship trophy, belt or toilet? By drafting the guys no one else expects to produce top results, players otherwise known as ‘sleepers.’
Here are our favorites to exponentially outperform their average draft position for 2014:
Related: Football Recipes: How To Eat Like A Man This NFL Season
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Josh Helmuth is the editor of CraveOnline Sports
Fantasy Football Sleepers 2014
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Andre Williams RB - New York Giants
Williams' stock shot up the board following David Wilson's sudden retirement announcement. Add to the fact the rookie got a bunch of looks in their first preseason game and has averaged nearly 6 yards per carry through their first two August matchups and it's easy to see Williams will be an integral part of a brand new Giants west coast offense.
The G-Men are going to throw a lot and Rashard Jennings is still first on the depth chart, and will therefore get a bunch of looks, but the Giants are making it clear Williams will get a share of the run load in New York. If the young horse learns to improve his blocking, which is likely considering his youth, his value will only continue to rise.
ADP: 138
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Brandin Cooks WR - New Orleans Saints
All reports indicate Cooks could be the offensive rookie of the year in 2014. He was the fastest WR drafted and he's on a team with a Hall-of-Fame quarterback that's going to throw the ball on nearly every down. The Saints also have the most favorable pass-defense schedule in the NFL this season. All of those factors alone have us drooling over Cooks.
ADP: 104
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Carlos Hyde RB - San Francisco 49ers
Frank Gore is on the wrong side of 30 and Kendall Hunter is out for the year. This leaves us with Hyde, a tremendous rookie running back out of Ohio State that is expected to produce right away.
Sure, he'll be a direct hand cuff to begin the year, but no one is confident Gore can get through an entire season unscathed with this mileage. The Niners like to run the ball A LOT and our confidence in Hyde has only been climbing since he was used in shotgun sets in the Niners' last preseason game.
ADP: 131
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Devonta Freeman RB - Atlanta Falcons
No one -- probably not even the Falcons -- believe the 31-year-old Steven Jackson can play most of the season, especially at the level we were used to seeing in St. Louis. Jackson is already battling a hamstring injury, which means Freeman and Jacquizz Rodgers are getting all the carries for the Falcons.
In his first preseason game, Freeman totaled 107 yards of offense, rushing for 50 yards on 10 carries and catching one of his two targeted passes for 57 yards. Take note that preseason means absolutely nothing, but seeing the Falcons invest a lot of time and effort in challenging Freeman in exhibition games while their "RB1" is sidelined is promising.
ADP: 142
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Kelvin Benjamin WR - Carolina Panthers
It's rare for a rookie wide receiver to make much of an impression, but it's happening more lately in the pass-happy NFL of today. We like Benjamin, not only because of his well-known prowess out of Florida State, but because the Panthers will have no one else to throw to.
Carolina lost a plethora of WRs this off-season, including their No. 1 go-to Steve Smith. Benjamin has been touted as the "star of Panthers training camp" by a local ESPN reporter, and all signs point to Cam Newton throwing a lot of balls his way this fall.
ADP: 139
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Kyle Rudolph TE - Minnesota Vikings
Fantasy nerds go absolutely bonkers over a Norv Turner offense but we also like Rudolph because he's 6-foot-6, 259 pounds and hopefully now has a competent quarterback. So let's see, a huge Gronkowski-like tight end in a highly potent offense that features a coordinator that used to use Antonio Gates as his primary weapon? Minnesota just gave Rudolph a 5-year, $36.5 million extension -- you bet they want to put that money to good use. If you draft the 24-year old around his current ADP we think he'll be of good use for your fantasy team as well.
ADP 93
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Tom Brady QB - New England Patriots
Yes, this appears to be Tom Brady throwing two footballs at the same time while giving the 'A-Okay' gesture. Brady is currently going in the 5th round because of an awful (for Brady standards) 2013 that featured an anemic offense without Rob Gronkowski, Danny Amendola or any veteran receiver that could actually hold onto the long ball. But still, it's friggin TOM BRADY!
Well, this year, Gronk is back -- and hopefully stays healthy -- Amendola is back and the Pats have two solid running backs healthy in Shane Vereen and Stevan Ridley, two horses that -- with a solid attack -- will open up the passing game even more.
Brady was 4th in points among all QBs last year upon Gronk's return. As long as Gronk is in the lineup, Brady is worth drafting long before Cam Newton, Matt Ryan, RGIII or Colin Kaepernick.
ADP: 55
