Fantasy Sleepers Week 3: Ryan Tannehill Gets Weak Vikings Secondary

If you are in need of a fill-in option due to a bye week or injury, this is your chance to find some potential sleeper options to stun your opponent. This is also a spot to see what some of the best FLEX options are for Week 3. With a lot of injuries already sinking lineups, you are going to need to dive into deeper names that you might not be familiar with. To help set those lineups, head on over to our rankings and projections pages.

Quarterback

Ryan Tannehill – QB – Tennessee Titans

Ryan Tannehill has produced six touchdowns in the first two games and has thrown for 239 and 249 yards. He has done this without AJ Brown, but Corey Davis is having a rebound season and Jonnu Smith has stepped up. Even with Tannehill not seeing a ton of volume in Week 2, he still had 239 yards and four scores. Minnesota’s secondary is one I want to target, they have a lot of young names and it shows. They are also not getting much pressure due to an injured front seven, but missing Danielle Hunter is hurting. Tannehill and this Titans offense overall should have a field day.

Running Backs

Darrell Henderson – RB – Los Angeles Rams

Chances are that you are trying to find a running back this week. Darrell Henderson is someone to plug in with the injury situation to the Rams. Cam Akers is looking less likely to play but even if he does I would expect Henderson to still lead the way. It was Malcolm Brown in Week 1, and Henderson had the big game in Week 2. He rushed for 81 yards on 12 carries with a score, and also had 40 yards through the air. The Bills are a good defense but are not as good against the run as they are against the pass. They also might be down two key linebackers again and if that is the case it will be an easier matchup.

Joshua Kelley – RB – Los Angeles Chargers

Carolina has allowed a ton of rushing production dating back to last season and 2020 has been no different. They have allowed six total touchdowns to running backs and 243 yards on 49 attempts. Both Joshua Kelley and Austin Ekeler are in a great spot this week. Kelley has seen a ton of volume and last week he had 25 touches and over 100 all-purpose yards. Because of the matchup, Kelley is worth starting this week. The Chargers are touchdown favorites at home.

Wide Receivers

Golden Tate – WR – New York Giants

We have dealt with the Sterling Shepard injury situation before. Golden Tate played five games without Shepard last season. He had 44 targets in those five games and posted 80.8 yards per game and 3 touchdowns. Tate in the six games with Shepard had just 272 yards 41 targets and 19 catches. I am big on both Tate and Slayton in the span that Shepard is out. The San Francisco matchup is going to look red on whatever matchup detector your site has, but it won’t factor in Jason Verrett and Richard Sherman being out. The 49ers are also without two of their top pass-rushers.

DeSean Jackson – WR – Philadelphia Eagles

DeSean Jackson will get a Bengals secondary worth targeting this week. This is a good spot for the Eagles offense to get going. They have had a slow start, and Jackson’s workload was odd in Week 1 but he has 16 targets over the first two games. Jackson continues to be that downfield threat and the injury to Jalen Reagor will make sure Jackson gets those stable targets each week. Jackson makes sense as a WR3 or FLEX option this week.

N’Keal Harry – WR – New England Patriots

I wasn’t sure what to make of this Patriots offense before the season, but Cam Newton has pumped some life into it. There are two clear targets in New England right now with N’Keal Harry being one of them. He has seen 18 targets, catching 13 of them. He has a 28.5% target share and a 30% red zone target share. It is a good matchup against the Raiders secondary. Keep an eye on Harry not just this week but moving forward.

Russell Gage – WR – Atlanta Falcons

Russell Gage has been taking advantage of the clear WR3 role in Atlanta and all the volume from this offense has helped carve out a strong role for him. Gage also has four red-zone targets, which is second on the Falcons. Overall he has a 22.8% target share and if Julio Jones’ hamstring injury is truly bothering him, Gage could have a larger role in Week 3. Although I prefer Jones in and still taking away two of the top corners with him and Calvin Ridley.

Tight Ends

Dalton Schultz – TE – Dallas Cowboys

The Blake Jarwin injury opened the door for Dalton Schultz. He has jumped into starter type snaps and also has 15% of the targets in Dallas, which is third on the team. Dallas will keep finding themselves in these shootout games, especially this week against Seattle. The Seahawks struggled against tight ends last season, although that might change this year. Given the potential game script and PPR potential, Schultz is someone to look at as a streaming option if you are in need.

Logan Thomas – TE – Washington Football Team

Cleveland struggled against tight ends last season, allowing the 5th most fantasy points per game. That has continued in 2020 allowing an 18-148-3 line already through two games. Logan Thomas has 17 targets so far this season, which is one behind Terry McLaurin. This is solely a volume play as Thomas is due for some positive regression if this continues.

Defense

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tampa Bay heads on the road this week to face a Denver offense that lost two big pieces. Courtland Sutton is done for the year and Drew Lock will miss the next few weeks. Tampa Bay has been quietly building a strong defense. We saw them take a major step forward against the run last season and now this year looks like the step against the pass. Tampa has six sacks and four forced turnovers through two games.