The way quarterbacks are valued in fantasy football continues to change over time. Drafting a quarterback in the first three rounds use to be frowned upon in the fantasy community.
However, due to names such as Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen, this narrative has shifted. Everyone wants one of these dual-threat, dynamic rushers, but there are only a select few.
If these elite options aren’t available, which names should earn your attention on draft day?Here are our favorite quarterback sleepers, mostly selected after Pick 100 of FantasyPros’ Consensus ADP as of early August.
Who are the best fantasy QB sleepers for 2025?
Drake Maye, New England Patriots (ADP: QB18)
This offseason, the Patriots focused on building a club that would Maye’s life easier.
With the fourth overall pick, the Patriots picked LSU’s star tackle Will Campbell, who allowed just five sacks in 38 collegiate games played. New England also used the draft to add speed with running back TreVeyon Henderson and wide receiver Kyle Williams.
The Patriots also brought in WR Stefon Diggs. The veteran may be past his prime, but he’s the closest thing to an alpha receiver Maye has had.
An improved situation is always needed for a true breakout, but the numbers from Maye’s rookie year suggest good things as well.
Rushing quarterbacks are a cheat code for fantasy football, and Maye was one of the best rushing quarterbacks in 2024. He finished ninth overall in rushing yards and second in QB scramble yards per game, only behind Jayden Daniels, per FantasyPoints.
This scrambling volume can be linked to the poor offensive line play and typical rookie adjustments, so we can expect to see some regression in this category.
However, Maye might have more in him. The Pats offense only drew him up for 7 designed quarterback runs:
QB Leaders in Scramble Yards per Game (2024)
1. Jayden Daniels – 36.1
2. Drake Maye – 31.3 🙊
3. Jalen Hurts – 28.1
4. Lamar Jackson – 27.4Those Same QBs by Designed Rushing FPG
Jayden Daniels – 3.6
Drake Maye – 0.1 🤫
Jalen Hurts – 7.4
Lamar Jackson – 4.4@FantasyPtsData pic.twitter.com/giagyKwE9l— Fantasy Points Data (@FantasyPtsData) June 23, 2025
Adding intentional rushing designs to Maye’s workload would raise his fantasy ceiling. Last season in Weeks 6-17, he finished as QB14.
For those who wait on their starting quarterback, Maye holds fantasy football league-winning upside.
Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys (ADP: QB13)
The veteran isn’t your average sleeper quarterback, but he feels significantly undervalued this draft season. The Cowboys’ lack of talent in the running-back room continues the belief that Dallas will rely heavily on the pass.
Dak is just one year removed from leading the NFL in pass completions and ranking fourth in passing attempts. In that same year, Prescott finished as fantasy’s overall QB3.
Prescott may not run as much as he did in his early days. Still, the arrival of big-play wideout George Pickens could tap into the downfield success that helped Prescott pile up stats that year:
this is wild
Dak Prescott last 2 years:
#1 most pass yds on 15+ yd go routes
#2 most att on 15+ yd go routesGeorge Pickens last 2 years:
#1 most rec yds on 15+ yd go routes
#2 most catches on 15+ yd go routesDak also #3 best accuracy of 40 QBshttps://t.co/5psYJ187vE
— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) May 7, 2025
Prescott still boasts alpha CeeDee Lamb and reliable tight end Jake Ferguson, putting him in fine position for a bounce-back year.
Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars (ADP: QB20)
Any fantasy manager who has gone through the Trevor Lawrence experience knows it’s frustrating. Lawrence hasn’t seemed to ever be able to get his feet under him in the NFL. Whether because of his rookie year coaching staff disaster or the injuries that plagued his season (including last year), there has always been some sort of excuse to lean on.
There isn’t a stat from last year that should make you want to draft Lawrence. He finished as the QB27 (14.5 fantasy points per game).
Barring a serious injury, however, Lawrence will have few excuses if he doesn’t perform this year. This is by far the best situation Lawrence has had entering a season with the Jaguars.
New head coach Liam Coen brings one the league’s most brilliant offensive minds after reviving Baker Mayfield’s career and optimizing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ offense.
“This will all be about Trevor.”
Jaguars HC Liam Coen said in his initial press conference that their offense will be built entirely around Trevor Lawrence
🎥: @Jaguars https://t.co/c3tFpqsUpj pic.twitter.com/Oj8oKCk6zn
— The 33rd Team (@The33rdTeamFB) February 13, 2025
Lawrence should benefit from Coen’s play calling mixing with 2024 standout rookie Brian Thomas Jr., explosive 2025 rookie Travis Hunter, sleeper tight end Brenton Strange, and a blossoming running back group.
2025 Fantasy Quarterbacks: Deep sleeper QBs
Michael Penix Jr., Atlanta Falcons (ADP: QB23)
The polarizing southpaw showed some promise after he took away the starting role from Kirk Cousins. In Weeks 16-18 last season, Penix averaged 15.2 fantasy points per game.
With such a small sample size, any stats from those weeks need to be digested with a grain of salt, especially when we take his lack of notable rushing stats added in based on his playing history:
- Penix has 11 total rushing yards in the NFL, a low number is expected here because of the lack of action.
- Over 49 games in college (45 of those were starts), Penix ran for 442 yards. To put into perspective, Caleb Williams rushed for 489 yards in 17 games.
We’ve seen quarterbacks succeed in fantasy with little-to-no rushing stats added, but it takes an efficient downfield style of play. Penix’s big-time college experience could help him jump quickly into directing Zac Robinson’s offense, which ranked sixth in yardage last year and brings back top performers RB Bijan Robinson and WR Drake London.
Atlanta has two tough matchups out of the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Minnesota Vikings; holding Penix on your fantasy roster may require patience.
Still, in many leagues, you can probably pick him up for free after you draft your squad. In leagues where it makes sense to draft a second quarterback or rely on streaming, Penix could help fantasy players later in the season.
Bryce Young, Carolina Panthers (ADP: QB27)
Young is set to smash his current draft price. His electric performances last year in Weeks 16 (QB2, 27.1 fantasy points) and 18 (QB1, 36.4 fantasy points with 5 TD) teased his growth potential.
SUPERSTAR: #Panthers QB Bryce Young since Week 8 this season
• 1st in Big Time Throw %
• 1st in Big Time Throws
• 1st in Batted Passes
• 4th Most Pressured
• 5th in ADOT
• 5th in Pressure-to-Sack %
• 6th in PFF Passer Rating
• WRs: 5th highest drop %(h/t @ThomasWrrld) pic.twitter.com/41k634UCS4
— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) January 16, 2025
Despite concerns about his arm strength and pocket passing, Young ranked fourth among QBs with at least 275 plays last year with a 8.76 average depth of target (aDOT), per SumerSports.
The 2023 No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft will have his second season under offense- and QB-molding head coach Dave Canales; he also welcomes highly touted rookie wideout Tetairoa McMillan to a sneaky group of receivers.
Young also will play six games against his divisional rival defenses either middling (Bucs) and or bottom-feeding (Falcons and Saints), while likely facing many come-from-behind game scripts that will require aerial stat-padding.
Backup QB sleepers to stash
- Jaxson Dart, New York Giants
- Kirk Cousins, Atlanta Falcons
- Shedeur Sanders, Cleveland Browns
- Spencer Rattler, New Orleans Saints
All four of these options need to win or take over the starting job at some point to provide any value. Their upside should prompt superflex and 2QB fantasy players with room to tuck them away, though, via the final few rounds or the post-draft fantasy waiver wire.
Dart and Cousins both have top-end receivers to work with if they are able to get the start. Rattler and Sanders also would have an underappreciated group of pass-catchers and likely would face many pass-happy, late-game spots. (Dart and Rattler also may scramble a bit for extra fantasy points.)
