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Playing fantasy football is full of good and bad experiences, but one of the best feelings any fantasy manager can experience is seeing one of their late-round rookie sleepers hit and become a key part of their fantasy team.
Sure, the probability of that happening is unlikely. You might need to play fantasy football for years just to experience this feeling once. But when you do, it'll be all worth it when you can see a future Pro Bowler and say: "I called it!" In this article, I will look at some rookies who have the chance to be sleeper hits this season or in the next few seasons, and maybe you'll have a higher chance of experiencing this magical feeling.
Without further ado, let's look at my four late-round rookie sleeper picks.
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Jalen McMillan, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Bucs are slowly building their WR room for the next decade. From Keyshawn Johnson and Joey Galloway to Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, Tampa Bay has had its fair share of superstar wideouts in the 21st century.
The Evans/Godwin duo has been one of the best duos in football for years now, but Jason Licht knows better than everyone else that nothing lasts forever. Evans led the league in receiving TDs last year but will turn 31 soon, while Godwin's contract will expire at the end of this season. That's why they drafted Trey Palmer last year and Jalen McMillan in the 2024 NFL Draft. They want these young WRs to learn behind two established stars before they can overtake them.
#Bucs ran a simulated 2 minute drill and who else catches the game winner other than Jalen McMillan.
Fantastic day today for the rook. pic.twitter.com/1lmXiFBuvE
— James Hill (MrBucsNation) (@MrBucsNation) July 25, 2024
McMillan had an amazing third season at Washington, recording 1,098 yards in an offense that also featured Rome Odunze and Ja'Lynn Polk. However, his stock fell off after an injury-riddled 2023 season which caused Polk to steal his spot. He still managed to return from injury to help Washington make it to the national title game.
He's not blazing fast, but he's not slow and has good hands. His physical profile is almost identical to Chris Godwin's; similar speed, same height, around the same weight, similar hand span and arm length, you get the idea. He's also a good blocker which could give him more snaps than Palmer right out of the gate.
Malik Washington, Miami Dolphins
After spending four years at Northwestern, Malik Washington entered the transfer portal and landed at Virginia. Washington broke out in his first and only season there, catching 110 passes (most in the country) for 1,426 yards (13.0 yards per attempt) and nine touchdowns despite having a terrible QB situation.
He's a short, but physical wideout who can be a slot receiver but also make contested catches and fight for yards after getting hit. He had 710 yards after the catch and forced 35 missed tackles, showing his toughness.
Malik Washington showing out 🤸 (@MiamiDolphins) #GoFins pic.twitter.com/q1HdclD3No
— FinsXtra (@FinsXtra) July 28, 2024
He also has a good chance of breaking into this Dolphins team as the WR3 if Odell Beckham Jr. goes down or underperforms. OBJ will turn 32 soon and hasn't had a good, injury-free season since 2019. Unlike Virginia, Washington will benefit from a good QB situation with Tua Tagovailoa.
Washington is an expert at catching slant passes, and Tua loves slant passes. According to Reception Perception, 26% of Tua's routes in 2022 were slant passes—by far the most out of any route—with a 78.8% success rate. Washington can become a good short-range weapon for the Dolphins when the opposing defenses are committed to shutting down Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle.
Kimani Vidal, Los Angeles Chargers
Kimani Vidal easily has the most immediate upside out of everyone else on this list. Vidal was picked in the sixth round 181st overall by the Chargers, and he'll be a perfect fit for Jim Harbaugh's offense. We all know Harbaugh loves to run the football, and Vidal is built to carry the load as the lead back.
Vidal had 528 carries in his last two seasons, around 19 carries a game. Vidal is short and explosive (most explosive runs in the country last year with 47) but he's also a good pass-blocker (83.5 PFF pass-blocking grade) which will help him stay on the field.
#Chargers OC Greg Roman on Kimani Vidal:
“Extremely productive. Maximizes runs. Really good vision, his brain and his feet are kinda connected quickly, so when he sees something, his feet are moving right there… Once we get the pads on, we’ll see more, and once we get into the… pic.twitter.com/nhypZIN954
— The Coachspeak Index (@CoachspeakIndex) July 26, 2024
Vidal is projected to be the Chargers' RB3 behind Gus Edwards and J.K. Dobbins, two very injury-prone running backs who have never had seasons with 200+ carries or 1000+ rushing yards. Dobbins is coming off of a torn Achilles, and he tore his ACL in 2021. Edwards tore his ACL in 2021 as well.
Despite the mileage on his legs, Vidal is nowhere near as injury-prone as these two and can easily end the season as the Chargers' RB1.
Louis Rees-Zammit, Kansas City Chiefs (Dynasty Leagues)
Okay, hear me out on this one. This is the ultimate wildcard prediction, but Louis Rees-Zammit has what it takes to become a successful NFL player. Simply put, Rees-Zammit has the best situation possible to succeed. He signed with the Kansas City Chiefs, the NFL's premier franchise that has won two consecutive Super Bowls.
He will learn from Andy Reid, one of the greatest coaches ever. He will play alongside Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, two of the greatest players of all time. And he will learn from Isiah Pacheco, who managed to rise to stardom despite being a seventh-round pick.
#Chiefs Louis Rees-Zammit getting his first taste of a padded football practice.. pic.twitter.com/eksXLfo9Bu
— PJ Green (@ByPJGreen) July 26, 2024
Of course, Rees-Zammit won't overtake Pacheco anytime soon. He probably won't play too many offensive snaps for the Chiefs this year. But he's super coachable according to his coaches and knows how to handle the fame from his Rugby days.
Rees-Zammit is athletic and faster than his 40-time. He has to make an impact on special teams this year and possibly even next year to win over the coaching staff. Isiah Pacheco's contract will expire after the 2025 season and he'll be looking for a big payday. If the Chiefs can't pay him by then, they can trust Rees-Zammit and put the ball in his hands.
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