A "sleeper" performance in a given week isn't going to be one of the top scorers. You won't see in this piece, for example, Knile Davis, who came out of nowhere to put up 21 fantasy points Sunday, because those 21 points aren't flying under anyone's radar.
Fantasy football stats: The sleepers of Week 2
Some under-the-radar names offered some big performances over the weekend. We break down the fantasy implications.
Cliff McBride
No, sleepers are good performances, but not great ones. Just good enough to perhaps portend future stuff. Let’s go:
Sleeper quarterbacks in Week 2
Geno Smith, NYJ (176 passing yards, 1 passing touchdown, 1 interception, 26 rushing yards, 1 rushing touchdown, 17 fantasy points)
It was the kind of above-average fantasy performance Smith didn’t offer much in his rookie season, when he seemed to score only 20-plus fantasy points or in the single digits. He’s still no great shakes as an real-football quarterback, but his running ability makes him at least on the periphery of fantasy relevance.
Kirk Cousins, WAS (250 passing yards, 2 touchdowns, -1 rushing yard, 18 fantasy points)
We've seen this movie before. Time will tell if Cousins is a one-week wonder or someone we need to pay attention to in fantasy, but with Robert Griffin III sidelined for perhaps the entire season with a dislocated ankle, we'll get a pretty good look at Cousins now. It'll be interesting to see what he does next week, when Philadelphia gets a whole week to prepare.
Fantasy football stats
Sleeper running backs in Week 2
Stevan Ridley, NE (101 rushing yards, 1 touchdown, 16 fantasy points)
Maybe I'm reading too much into this, but in a lot of ways, it makes sense that the Patriots would go to Ridley to run out the clock in a game they had won in the first few minutes. The other primary running back, Shane Vereen, is a less conventional running back, and when you need to just burn clock, it makes some sense to just give it to the typical guy. In addition, it gave the Patriots a chance to see how Ridley would do on ball security in a game they had won. And he did well. It's possible he played his way back into Bill Belichick's good graces.
Bobby Rainey, TB (144 rushing yards, 30 receiving yards, 17 fantasy points)
After doing a good job filling in for Doug Martin (and Mike James) last year, Rainey filled in for Martin again in Weeks 1 and 2 this year. At this point, the job might be Rainey's. Martin has been a disappointing combination of bad and hurt for far too long. The team might give the Muscle Hamster one more chance, but things don't look good for him, and they look pretty good for Rainey.
Sleeper wide receivers in Week 2
James Jones, OAK (112 receiving yards, 1 touchdown, 1 fumble lost, 15 fantasy points)
Jones now has 24 fantasy points in two weeks. He has 146 yards in two games; no one else on the team has even 100. Rod Streater, Denarius Moore and Andre Holmes are all still there in Oakland, but free-agent signee Jones clearly appears to be the team's top weapon.
Miles Austin, CLE (44 receiving yards, 1 touchdown, 10 fantasy points)
Austin was a non-factor in Cleveland’s opening game, with only 20 receiving yards. He didn’t do a lot more, yardage-wise, in Sunday’s game, but he went from two receptions on three targets to six receptions on 10 targets, and he did score a touchdown. Austin will be interesting as a low-end fantasy option as long as he’s healthy and getting that many targets.
Sleeper tight end in Week 2
Niles Paul, WAS (99 receiving yards, 1 touchdown, 15 fantasy points)
Filling in for the injured Jordan Reed, Paul has now led Washington in receiving yards in consecutive games. On Sunday, he led the team in receptions, targets and yards, working well with backup quarterback Kirk Cousins. As long as Reed is out, Paul is a reasonable fantasy starter; once Reed gets back, you still have to at least consider Paul.
