Week 3: Fantasy Football Deep Sleepers

Last week's picks were hit or miss, with Crockett Gillmore and Rishard Matthews having big games, while Charles Sims put up a respectable line. The others? Not as productive, but as is the case with many deep sleepers. They are dart throws that you hope will pan out. Sometimes they do, sometimes they don't. When they do materialize into good fantasy weeks, your team (whether in a regular league or a daily fantasy lineup) benefits greatly.

Quarterback

Nick Foles, St. Louis Rams (vs. PIT)

Foles started off with a good game against the Seattle Seahawks and followed that up with a mediocre game against the Washington Redskins where he couldn't really get the offense moving too much. After two tough matchups, he gets one of the better ones possible against a worrisome Pittsburgh Steelers secondary. JJ Zachariason of Numberfire is on the Foles bandwagon this week based mostly on the fact that the Steelers can't stop quarterbacks from putting up numbers against them. The Steelers offense is also nearly unstoppable, and they get Le'Veon Bell back this week, which means the Rams will have to throw the ball a good amount in order to keep pace. That bodes well for Foles' Week 3 potential.

Fanduel: $6,500

Draftkings: $5,200

Running Backs

Theo Riddick, Detroit Lions (vs. DEN)

Riddick has been very involved in the offense to start the season, as the backfield has shaped itself into a three-man committee of electric Ameer Abdullah, ineffective Joique Bell, and pass-game specialist Theo Riddick. Although he's preferred in PPR formats, Riddick has carved out a role for himself in a pass-happy offense that will feed its running backs targets. With Bell not looking good and Abdullah still a little inconsistent as a rookie, Theo can siphon a good amount of touches in this matchup against a Denver Broncos that will probably shut the run game relatively down.

Fanduel: $4,700

Draftkings: $3,100

Mike Davis, San Francisco 49ers (@ARI)

Carlos Hyde and Reggie Bush are both banged up, which could pave the way to some good usage for Davis. Hyde is expected to play, but was pulled in last week's game with a leg contusion. Bush is not expected to play, opening up some targets for running backs. Usually those would just go to Hyde, but Davis looked good in his opportunities last week and could get more against an Arizona Cardinals defense that is hard to run on.

Fanduel: $4,500

Draftkings: $3,200

Wide Receivers

Aaron Dobson, New England Patriots (vs. JAX)

Is the Aaron Dobson break out on the horizon? After an encouraging rookie season in 2013, Dobson was deemed useless in the first half of 2014 before landing on injured reserve. Last week against the Buffalo Bills he put up a 7 catch, 87 yard line. Given a golden opportunity with Brandon Lafell injured, Dobson has a good matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars, who don't have an imposing secondary. A repeat of last week's line should be in store.

Fanduel: $5,000

Draftkings: $3,000

Ty Montgomery, Green Bay Packers (vs. KC)

Montgomery ended up playing more than he probably anticipated after Davante Adams briefly left Sunday night's game with an ankle injury. Adams is likely to play (though he missed practice Thursday), but won't be at full strength. Also, the Packers offense is voluminous enough to support a fourth receiver. Montgomery has shown he can by dynamic and will get more chances on Monday night against a struggling Kansas City Chiefs secondary.

Fanduel: $4,700

Draftkings: $3,000

Quincy Enunwa, New York Jets (vs. PHI)

Third receiver Chris Owusu is out for this week and Eric Decker is questionable at best. Enunwa has a very impressive physical profile, but struggles with drops. Regardless, he is in a prime opportunity for production if Decker is out. Even if Decker plays, Enunwa will still get plenty of targets as the third receiver (Owusu was targeted 6 times in Week 1). The Philadelphia Eagles have a solid run defense, so the Jets will most likely have to beat them through the air, making Enunwa an intriguing sleeper.

Fanduel: $4,500

Draftkings: $3,000

Tight End

Gavin Escobar, Dallas Cowboys (vs. ATL)

The Cowboys can't catch a break on the injury front, as Tony Romo now joins Dez Bryant on the sideline for multiple weeks. With Brandon Weeden now running the offense, receiving production will be harder to come by but still up for grabs. Terrance Williams is too inconsistent, Cole Beasley is a short-range receiver and that's about it for the receiving corps. Jason Witten is the most reliable pass-catching option, but he is likely to be limited this week after spraining both ankles and his knee (seriously, how does that even happen) against the Eagles. Escobar is more pass-catcher than blocker and should get plenty of opportunities this week.

Fanduel: $4,500

Draftkings: $2,600

Defense

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@HOU)

The top-ranked fantasy defenses never seem to have the weeks that many count on. Last week we saw that be the case as the Miami Dolphins and Baltimore Ravens defenses combined for a whopping -1.0 points. The Buccaneers defense actually had a decent fantasy showing in last week's win against the New Orleans Saints, putting up 7 fantasy points. This week they get an easier matchup against Ryan Mallett and an Arian Foster-less Houston Texans offense.

Fanduel: $4,100

Draftkings: $2,500