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Dan Fornek's five fantasy football deep sleepers and breakout candidates. His undervalued draft targets for 2026 fantasy football, including Tyler Shough and more.
Training camp is underway for all 32 teams, and this weekend we will finally see everybody in action for their first preseason games. The 2026 NFL season is upon us. There is a lot of information to consume for fantasy managers coming out of a long winter.
A lot of energy is spent on the early rounds of fantasy drafts, which makes sense because those players will be the most impactful in your weekly lineup. But finding hidden gems and deep sleepers is a way to have depth and potentially hit on a big upside that could tilt matchups throughout the season.
The purpose of this article is to find players that are (mostly) being undrafted that may have the ability to find their way into fantasy lineups. As such, these are players that will begin the season on your bench until we have more clarity on their respective roles. Make sure you draft wisely. Let’s dive in.
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Tyler Shough, QB, New Orleans Saints
As of right now, New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough is the only player being regularly drafted that will show up in this article. Given his current ADP on Yahoo (129.8, QB27), I have no problems including him in an article about deep sleepers.
Shough, the Saints' 2025 second-round pick out of Louisville, was brought along slowly to start the 2025 season before earning the starting job in Week 9 and immediately showed flashes of a starting-caliber NFL quarterback. Among signal callers with at least 100 passes, Shough ranked fourth in completion percentage (69.2%) and ninth in yards per attempt (7.6). He also added 42 carries for 174 yards and three rushing touchdowns.
Shough showed an instant connection with Chris Olave (48 receptions for 660 yards and six touchdowns in eight games) and Juwan Johnson (41 receptions for 521 yards and two touchdowns in nine games), but had very little proven NFL talent catching passes beyond those players. Despite that, he finished as the QB12 in points per game (17.6) with three 20+ point weeks.
Tyler Shough 63-yard completion to Chris Olave!
NOvsTEN on CBS/Paramount+https://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/OlVRsH6aHF
— NFL (@NFL) December 28, 2025
The second-year quarterback should be even better in 2026. Not only did the Saints upgrade their offensive line (left guard David Edwards) and backfield (running back Travis Etienne Jr.) in free agency, but they also invested in the wide receiver room with their top-10 pick.
New Orleans drafted Arizona State’s Jordyn Tyson with the eighth overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. Tyson has already impressed throughout training camp and should add another high-end pass-catching weapon for Shough this season.
It’s fair to expect growth across the board for the Saints in 2026 with a second-year quarterback and head coach. Early reports out of camp surrounding Shough (and the offense) have been optimistic thus far.
Shough showed the ability to be a low-end QB1 over his final nine games and now has a year of experience and an offensive environment to hopefully raise his floor. At the very least, he’s a fine late-round quarterback target given his solid rushing production as a rookie.
MarShawn Lloyd, RB, Green Bay Packers
To call the start of Green Bay Packers’ running back MarShawn Lloyd’s career a major disappointment would be an understatement. The 2024 third-round pick was drafted to serve as an explosive complement as a runner and pass catcher to Josh Jacobs coming out of college. Instead, Lloyd has been limited to just 10 snaps over his first two seasons due to a variety of lower-body injuries and an appendectomy.
However, things appear to be changing during the 2026 offseason. Lloyd is seemingly healthy and has been an active participant throughout practice, routinely making explosive plays this summer. He’s making the most of his opportunities as both a rusher and a pass catcher, adding a dimension to the offense that was sorely lacking toward the end of the 2025 season.
Lloyd has gotten even more opportunities to impress with Jacobs sidelined due to a groin injury for an undetermined amount of time. There is also the looming issue regarding his arrest for a domestic incident this summer that could potentially result in a suspension.
Unless there is major news regarding Jacobs, Lloyd is a player who will continue to fly under the radar given his lack of experience at the NFL level. He’s a player who can carve out a role for the Packers regardless of Jacobs’ health, with top-24 upside if Jacobs is forced to miss time due to injury or suspension. He just needs to stay healthy.
Demond Claiborne, RB, Minnesota Vikings
Demond Claiborne was a solid producer during his final two years at Wake Forest, amassing 407 carries for 1,956 yards and 21 touchdowns while adding 51 receptions for 394 yards and two touchdowns. He emerged as a legitimate draft prospect after running a blazing-fast 4.37 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine.
Unfortunately, Claiborne’s explosiveness didn’t outweigh his lack of size (5-foot-9, 188 pounds) and ultimately pushed the rookie down to the sixth round of the 2026 NFL Draft. However, his landing spot with the Minnesota Vikings could prove to be a good one as soon as next season.
Claiborne has impressed when given opportunities in training camp and may have carved out a small role to start the season. He is still behind veterans Jordan Mason and Aaron Jones on the depth chart, but neither player can generate explosives like Claiborne can.
New assistant head coach Frank Smith joined the team after spending the last four years with the Miami Dolphins and is expected to try to incorporate a wide zone rushing scheme into the offense. That is an excellent fit for a back with Claiborne’s speed.
Fantasy managers drafting Claiborne shouldn’t expect immediate production. But he’s a worthwhile bench stash if he can carve out a role or earn playing time due to an injury ahead of him on the depth chart.
Pat Bryant, WR, Denver Broncos
The biggest news regarding the Denver Broncos this offseason was the fact that the team traded numerous draft picks to acquire wide receiver Jaylen Waddle from the Miami Dolphins. Waddle should instantly become the team’s leading target and will add an explosive element to the passing attack while being a reliable target for quarterback Bo Nix over the middle of the field.
However, most of the noise coming out of Broncos’ training camp has been the strong performance of second-year wide receiver Pat Bryant.
Bryant, a 2025 third-round pick out of Illinois, started slow his rookie season before gradually earning a role in Denver’s offense. However, he earned a consistent role midway through the season with some flashes. From Weeks 7 to 18, Bryant played in nine games (six starts). In that stretch, he averaged a 57.1% snap share with 43 targets, 27 receptions, 338 yards, and a touchdown.
Bo Nix throws it up to Pat Bryant II for the TD!
The first career TD for the rookie WR 🙌
DALvsDEN on CBS/Paramount+https://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/C3z7yWt6ft
— NFL (@NFL) October 26, 2025
The second-year receiver has gotten opportunities to show his growth throughout the summer with both Courtland Sutton (load management) and Waddle (soft tissue injury) missing time. At this point, it seems like he’s locked down the WR3 role in Denver and could even challenge Sutton for targets behind Waddle in 2026.
Denver finished fourth in pass attempts in 2025 (613) despite having an excellent defense. There is no reason to expect that to slow down in 2026. Bryant is an inexpensive way to get a piece of their passing attack in fantasy that could pay off in a big way.
Caleb Douglas, WR, Miami Dolphins
Many draft fans were confused when the Miami Dolphins selected Texas Tech wide receiver Caleb Douglas in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft. Douglas had strong seasons in his final two years after transferring to the Red Raiders, catching 114 passes for 1,723 yards and 13 touchdowns, but he struggled with drops and physicality throughout his college career.
Douglas has had some issues with drops in training camp, but for the most part he’s made plays when given opportunities within the offense. His size and explosiveness have both stood out consistently throughout camp to the point where he was listed as one of Miami’s wide receivers on the team’s initial depth chart.
Add in the fact that Miami doesn’t really have much competition for targets, and it’s easy to see a world where Douglas emerges as the team’s top target in his first season. His downfield playmaking ability is also a great match with quarterback Malik Willis’s arm strength and willingness to extend plays to attack downfield.
Nobody expects the Miami Dolphins to be a good team, but that could lead to more negative game scripts and pass attempts. If Douglas can continue to stack good days and earn opportunities, he could step into a fantasy-friendly role as a final-round fantasy pick.
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Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Draft tool for 2026 drafts for MarShawn Lloyd, Demond Claiborne, Pat Bryant, Caleb Douglas:
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