SportsLine Model Names 2026 Fantasy Sleepers: Likely, Pollard
Get the Sports newsletter
Daily sports — scores, transfers, the storylines from the leagues you actually follow. Free.
- SportsLine's model simulated the 2026 NFL season 10,000 times and released fantasy football rankings, sleepers, and busts, with the regular season starting in roughly three weeks.
- De'Von Achane validated the model last year, finishing as RB6 with 1,838 scrimmage yards and 12 touchdowns after SportsLine slotted him at RB6 despite an RB12 ADP.
- The model's past correct calls include A.J. Brown as a 2020 sleeper, Jonathan Taylor's 2021 breakout, C.J. Stroud stepping back in 2024, and Daniel Jones's 2025 season.
- Isaiah Likely, now with the Giants after following coach John Harbaugh from Baltimore, is ranked TE9 by the model despite an ADP of 97, ahead of Sam LaPorta and George Kittle, who are being drafted nearly two rounds earlier.
- Tony Pollard is flagged as a sleeper at RB27 (ADP around pick 75), with the model placing him in the same tier as TreVeyon Henderson and Rico Dowdle, after Pollard cleared 1,000 rushing yards in four straight seasons and averaged 100 yards per game with three total scores over the final five weeks of 2025.
- A veteran wide receiver is called a 'shocking top-10 option' by the model, ranked ahead of CeeDee Lamb and A.J. Brown, though the player's identity is gated to SportsLine's site.
Why it matters: Mid-round drafters get a data-backed case to grab Isaiah Likely at TE9 value versus an ADP of 97 and Tony Pollard ahead of his RB27 price tag — a model that called Achane's RB6 finish last year. Hitting on just one sleeper of that magnitude swings a fantasy title, and the model's track record since 2017 makes its 2026 calls concrete rather than speculative.
Ask SkimNews
