5 Lions Players Who Are Fantasy 'Sleepers'
The Detroit Lions will enter the 2023 season with multiple viable fantasy football options.
Amon-Ra St. Brown has emerged as one of the best fantasy football wideouts. Meanwhile, rookie running back Jahmyr Gibbs has the chance to be a high-impact player immediately, due to his dual-threat ability.
For the sake of this piece, though, let's take a look at the five biggest fantasy "sleepers" for the Lions headed into the upcoming campaign.
TE Sam LaPorta
The Lions entered the offseason needing a new No. 1 tight end, and appeared to have found just that in the form of LaPorta.
LaPorta, the No. 34 overall pick in this past April's NFL Draft, was one of the standouts of OTAs and mandatory minicamp for Detroit.
He consistently showcased fluid route-running and solid pass-catching ability, and established a nice rapport with Lions signal-caller Jared Goff.
As Sports Illustrated's Michael Fabiano writes, "LaPorta is the latest in a very long line of solid, pass-catching tight ends to come out of Iowa. In fact, he’ll replace another Hawkeye, T.J. Hockenson, who was traded last season, as Detroit’s projected starter. He might not be a consistent point producer, but the Lions like to use their tight ends in the offense and LaPorta certainly has the most upside on the roster. He's worth a late-round selection."
In Ben Johnson's tight end-friendly offense, you can expect LaPorta to be utilized often, and it's why he's worth a late-round look in your fantasy football draft.
RB David Montgomery
Johnson also likes to deploy the ground-and-pound on a frequent basis.
It's why Montgomery, taking over for Jamaal Williams as Detroit's lead back, has a chance to shine in 2023.
Montgomery joins the Lions after spending his first four seasons in Chicago.
In 2022, he suited up for 16 games, and amassed 801 yards and five touchdowns on 201 carries (4.0 yards per attempt).
He'll have the opportunity to run behind a better offensive line in Detroit, anchored by Pro Bowl center Frank Ragnow.
Thus, I believe he'll improve his output on the ground, and produce 934 yards and 11 touchdowns, on 217 carries, this upcoming season.
It certainly makes him a viable option at running back in standard-scoring fantasy football leagues.
WR Marvin Jones Jr.
Jones will take on a bigger role in Detroit's offense to start the season, due to Jameson Williams' looming six-game suspension.
Even though Jones is now 33 years old, the veteran wideout should be up for the task – at least for the first half of the season.
He's been heavily relied upon in previous passing attacks – and recently, too – having been targeted 115 times and 120 times, respectively, in 2020 with the Lions and in 2021 with the Jaguars. And, in both of those seasons, he grabbed at least 73 balls, and recorded north of 830 receiving yards.
I'm not saying he's going to be a game-changer in 2023. But, in deep fantasy football leagues, especially PPR ones, with 12-or-more teams, he's worth taking a late-round flyer on.
QB Jared Goff
Goff isn't going to be a quarterback that puts up big yardage and touchdown totals on a weekly basis.
However, I do believe that he will be consistently productive and thrive in Johnson's offense this upcoming season.
Goff possesses a strong offensive line to work behind, plus a more-than-competent running game to supplement what he does through the air. He also has been equipped with a No. 1-caliber tight end in LaPorta and one of the best young No. 1 wideouts in the league in St. Brown.
So, he's definitely got the resources to throw for 30 touchdowns and over 4,000 yards in 2023.
He's not a top-flight fantasy option at quarterback by any means. But, he's still a guy you can start in your QB spot in a pinch, especially when your starter is on his bye week.
WR Kalif Raymond
Raymond makes it on this list by virtue of him also being the Lions' primary punt returner.
A season ago, he had a solid season as a punt returner, returning 20 punts for 264 yards and a score. It was good for a return average of 13.2 yards.
Additionally, Raymond didn't drop a single pass, and he recorded a career-best 616 receiving yards in 2022.
His prowess on special teams and his ability to succeed as a pass-catcher make him the definition of a fantasy sleeper.
