2020 Summer Sleeper: Carolina Panthers
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 to 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 Panthers have undergone massive changes since the 2019 season, moving on from longtime coach Ron Riviera as well as their franchise quarterback since 2011, Cam Newton. Matt Rhule turned around Temple and then Baylor at the college level and he is the new head man in Carolina. New offensive coordinator Joe Brady was one of the archetypes of the LSU offense in 2019, the most proficient offense in college football history. And steady veteran Teddy Bridgewater was signed to be the new signal-caller.
Carolina ranked 20th in points and 19th in yards gained offensively with terrible quarterback play as Newton missed 14 games. The offense will be a focus in 2020 with the addition of Rhule and Brady as well as three new offensive linemen. Second-year wideout DJ Moore managed to rake in 87 catches for nearly 1,200 yards. Superstar Christian McCaffrey rushed for 1,387 yards and caught 116 passes for another 1,005 yards. He accounted for 403 touches, 2,392 yards, and 19 touchdowns. He has over 900 touches in three seasons and the offense runs through McCaffrey.
If something were to happen to the young back, his handcuff becomes an invaluable asset…
Reggie Bonnafon, RB
Category: Sleeper
At the University of Louisville, Bonnafon was recruited as a dual-threat quarterback and played sparingly behind center in 2014. His final three years, the Cardinals had him lining up at running back and wide receiver primarily. In 2017 he returned 12 punts as well. He didn’t see a lot of touches but did look efficient in the few he garnered.
Stats courtesy of Sports Reference.
After the 2018 NFL Draft, the Panthers picked up Bonnafon as an undrafted free agent. He didn’t see the field in the 2018 season but did get an opportunity to spell McCaffrey in 2019.
Stats courtesy of Pro Football Reference.
On only 16 carries, Bonnafon averaged over seven yards a tote and also caught six passes. He has the skills to be used in many ways and has a similar stature to McCaffrey. Bonnafon is an upright runner who gets downhill and doesn’t mess around when he gets the ball. He has decent vision and is decisive when he sees the hole or crease. His lateral movement is good – he shifts subtly at full speed when running but doesn’t take huge cuts. As a receiver, he is fairly dangerous with good moves, soft hands, and solid route running. Add in the fact of which he can also throw the ball and it makes him versatile and valuable as an ancillary piece.
On the current 2020 Panthers depth chart, Bonnafon is listed as the number two back ahead of journeymen Mike Davis, Trenton Cannon, and Jordan Scarlett. Bonnafon’s knowledge of the offense and how seamlessly he fit in when spelling McCaffrey may be his biggest leg up in the competition. The other backs have not been world-beaters when given chances in the NFL thus far.
The Panthers invested $64 million in signing McCaffrey to an extension through 2025 but can not continue giving their stud back 400 touches a season. I found several articles trying to quantify the correlation between a workload such as 400 touches and the career arc but none of them fit the situation he is in. McCaffrey is only 24 and has been able to handle the workload given thus far. He had nearly 400 touches his sophomore season at Stanford. At some point, he is going to start breaking down and he’s too big of an investment to push to a breaking point too often. The Panthers will be more apt to try to protect him from wear and tear with so much money invested.
The price point you can acquire Bonnafon is ridiculously low. Using DLF’s Dynasty Trade Finder, I found a few recent trades and I would much rather have the Bonnafon side in each.
The value of a back who could slide into a proficient offense and take on a role that could rely on him is worth far more than the trades I have been seeing. Bonnafon will not be a feature back without something breaking right for him. But as a depth back who could work himself into an eight-ten touch a game role, he is easily worth the investment. He is the type of back to help your fantasy teams as the season rolls on and injuries take their toll.
- Devy Roundup: Week Ten - November 10, 2020
- Devy Roundup: Week Eight - October 27, 2020
- Devy Roundup: Week Seven - October 20, 2020
