Summer Sleeper: Jacksonville Jaguars
In our annual 32-part Summer Sleeper series, DLF scribes identify a lightly-touted player on each NFL roster who may be worthy of your consideration. Our subjects all have varying levels of “sleeperness,” but each merits a bit of in-depth discussion here in the Premium Content section.
To help everybody along, we are going to be categorizing our sleepers under one of three headings:
Super Deep Sleepers – Players who aren’t roster-worthy in 12-team leagues, but are still worth keeping an eye on.
Deep Sleepers – An end of the roster player who is more often than not on the waiver wire in 12-team leagues.
Sleeper – A likely rostered player who makes for a good trade target. Their startup ADP puts them out of the top-175 or so.
Because we aren’t going give you the likes of mainstream sleepers, most of these players will undoubtedly fizzle. All we are asking is for you to keep an open mind and perhaps be willing to make room for one of these players on your bench. You never know when the next Adam Thielen is going to spring up. Feel free to add your own thoughts about our choice for the designated sleeper, or nominate one of your own in the comments below.
The Jacksonville Jaguars are stockpiled with talent on the offensive side of the ball. They drafted Leonard Fournette with the fourth overall pick in this year’s draft. They also have veteran running back Chris Ivory ready to fill in at a moment’s notice, not to mention former Alabama stand out running back T.J. Yeldon who is eager to get the opportunity to prove himself after starting his career with back-to-back lackluster seasons.
The receiving corps is also bursting out of the seams with talent. Allen Robinson is one of the team’s prized possessions, catching 153 passes for 2,283 yards and 20 touchdowns in the last two seasons. Another talented wide receiver is Marqise Lee who was once considered one of the top wide receiver prospects in the country after his tremendous sophomore season at USC. He is still in the developmental stages of his career and has yet to reach his potential. Allen Hurns eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark in 2015 and is one of the key staples to the passing offense. The team also spent a fourth-round pick on Dede Westbrook who caught 80 passes for 1,524 yards and 17 touchdowns last year for the University of Oklahoma.
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Amba Etta-Tawo, WR JAX
Category: Super Deep Sleeper
Etta-Tawo slipped through the draft and landed with the Jaguars as an undrafted free agent. He had a very untraditional college career that began with a three-year stay at the University of Maryland where he was intermittently used in the offense, catching just 30 passes in his final two seasons with the Terrapins. He then transferred to Syracuse University for his senior season where he caught 94 passes for 1,482 yards and 14 touchdowns while owning a 38.44 percent market share of the team’s offensive production. He dominated against tough competition, eclipsing the 100-yard mark in seven of the 12 contests that he played in.
Not only was he very productive in college but he is also a tremendous athlete. He tested with a 4.49 40-yard dash while weighing in at 208-pounds. His 6.95 three cone suggests he has the short area quickness to swiftly get in and out of his breaks and create separation while running routes. Justin Blackmon is the most notable player on Etta-Tawo’s athletic comparable list. Blackmon was drafted by the Jaguars in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft. Although he was tremendously talented, his career became a flash in the pan due to his off the field complications. The main thing to hammer home with Etta-Tawo’s athleticism is that he has the speed and quickness to beat corner backs at the NFL level.
There are a lot of obstacles that stand in his way since there’s currently a long road ahead of him to pave in order for him to work his way to the top of the depth chart. Like most undrafted free agents who are fighting for a roster spot, Etta-Tawo will need some luck to fall his way for him to get enough opportunities to showcase his talents. He’s currently at the bottom of the totem pole which means he’s receiving limited reps in practice and preseason games. He will need to make every play count for him to gain more opportunities within the offense. Supplanting Allen Robinson to become the top receiver on the roster is virtually impossible unless he receives a devastating injury, gets suspended or somehow gets traded. The WR2 and WR3 spots are more suitable for his arrange of outcomes.
Allen Hurns and Marqise Lee are currently cemented at the top of the depth chart and Etta-Tawo will need to figure out how to surpass either one of them to receive a considerable amount of playing time. Dede Westbrook is the wildcard on the roster because he was very productive in college and the Jaguars spent significant draft capital on him. Honestly, if Etta-Tawo plays to his potential then he could easily jump Westbrook on the depth chart, but for this to happen he will need to develop at a rapid pace and be efficient at all phases of the game.
Ian Rapoport, National Insider for NFL Network, tweeted that Marqise Lee suffered an injury and was carted off during one of the Jaguar’s practices. According to his post, the injury wasn’t considered serious, but there could be increased opportunities within the offense for many of the receivers on the roster while Lee recovers from his injury. This is the time where the other wide receivers, including Etta-Tawo, need to capitalize on the extra work allocated in practice.
#Jaguars WR Marqise Lee, who was carted off today, did not suffer a serious injury, source said. Looked a lot worse than it was.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 13, 2017
He’s a super deep sleeper for a reason and that’s because there’s a very good chance he could never materialize as a usable asset in fantasy leagues. Undrafted free agents who start their career on the backend of the roster rarely ever become functional options in fantasy. Knowing the talent at the bottom of the depth chart is key to making the appropriate waiver claims when the bullets are flying in the middle of the season, because it allows you to get ahead of your league mates by being able to quickly connect the dots to find the next “out of nowhere” fantasy asset.
Per DLF’s Rookie ADP, Etta-Tawo is currently going undrafted in most rookie drafts, causing him to fall to the waiver wire in many leagues. He’s also nowhere to be found on DLF’s startup ADP, which means he’s more than likely hanging out on the waiver wire in your league. Right now, he’s only worth the pickup in leagues with super deep rosters and he’s best left on your watch list in leagues with shallow benches. Keep an eye on him for now, but be ready to pounce if you hear positive news projecting him to gain a sizable role within the offense.
Etta-Tawo is a very talented prospect who has the potential to develop into a valuable fantasy asset. Luck will have to be on his side and he will need to maximize all opportunities that come his way. An NFL season is a war of attrition and it’s not outside the realm of possibilities that he could get thrusted into a large role within the offense if injuries mount up. Pay attention to him and act accordingly if the Jaguars decided to promote him up the depth chart.
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