Week 13 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Drake Maye, Braelon Allen, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine and More
These are some sleeper options you should consider starting in Week 13.
Quarterbacks
Drake Maye, New England Patriots
The Pats take on the Indianapolis Colts this week and I am predicting the Patriots win this game. The Indy defense can be exploited, especially in the middle of the field. It just so happens that Maye loves to target his tight ends more than any quarterback in the league.
Maye is a maturing rookie quarterback with a big arm and has a ton of upside this week against a struggling Colts defense. There are far worse options than Maye if you are stuck searching for a streaming QB option this week.
Russell Wilson, Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers take on a putrid Cincinnati Bengals defense this week. They are torched by opposing quarterbacks on a weekly basis. On the season, they have allowed the third-most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks.
We fully expect Wilson and his stud wideout George Pickens to have their way with this defense in Week 13. The Bengals' offense is also good enough to score enough points to keep the Steelers throwing the ball throughout the second half and not just draining the clock with rushing attempt after rushing attempt with Najee Harris.
Running Backs
Kimani Vidal, Los Angeles Chargers
The assumption in Los Angeles is with J.K. Dobbins sidelined with a sprained knee that Gus Edwards is the next man up and you can just plug him in as a replacement. What if that's not the case, and we aren't so sure it will be?
Prior to Edwards' injury earlier in the season, Vidal was overtaking him for the RB2 job. This is going to be some sort of a committee, and there is a real chance that Vidal leads this team in rushing yards and has displayed significantly more explosive play ability than Edwards.
Vidal comes with a ton of risk but could end up being the running back to start in LA. Hassan Haskins is also another guy who could be considered as a sleeper in this backfield if you feel more strongly about him.
Braelon Allen, New York Jets
In an unexpected turn of events, Breece Hall has been struggling to practice this week due to a knee injury he apparently suffered in Week 11 before the Jets bye week. It sounds like Hall is expected to attempt to play on Sunday, but there is a real chance he can't finish the game or is limited right off of the bat.
Allen has already proven to have value even when Hall is fully healthy. He's an excellent runner and his size makes him a go-to guy down by the end zone. If he ends up seeing an expanded role to Hall's potential limitations, then he could be a week-winning type of sleeper option who probably won't kill you, even if things don't go as planned because he does have a floor that sleepers usually don't possess.
Wide Receivers
Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, Tennessee Titans
This guy just can't stop scoring touchdowns. It's scary because he doesn't do much else otherwise, but at some point, you have to accept that this has become a trend and isn't just a fluke. He has now scored a TD in six of his last seven games. Only once during that span has he caught more than three passes in a game, and only once during that span has he topped 50 yards.
Somehow, he has become a TD or bust option who almost never busts. He has been becoming a safe option to plug in as an emergency flex even if the fantasy community refuses to acknowledge it.
Marquez Valdes-Scantling, New Orleans Saints
We can't believe we are saying this, but you may want to consider that MVS in New Orleans is a real thing due to necessity. With Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed out, he has suddenly gone from not being on the roster to the focal point of the WR corps.
In two games with the Saints in which he's seen significant snaps, he's caught five passes for 196 yards, and three TDs while averaging almost 40 yards per reception, including 67- and 71-yard TDs. No one would be less surprised than us if he went out there and caught one pass for three yards, however, we also have to consider that he could just be the guy in New Orleans because of how devasted the offense has been by injuries.
