Fantasy Football: Geno Smith, Trey Benson among top sleeper candidates off the waiver wire for Week 2


We’re all looking for that hidden gem to give our fantasy football team an edge, so we can kick back and relax on Sundays while gleefully watching our squad march to victory. Let Scott Pianowski help you rest easy this draft season with his top sleepers.

We had a couple of solid hits in Week 1 of the sleeper page, with Hollywood Brown finishing at WR13 and Michael Penix Jr. checking in at QB10. Most of the other offerings failed to launch, but that’s typical for an article of this vein. If we can find multiple hits every week, it’s worth it.

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We’re onto Week 2. Let’s see what players rostered under 50% in Yahoo might be worth a shot.

Juwan Johnson, TE, Saints vs. 49ers (32%)

I’m surprised Johnson is still sleeper-eligible after his smashing debut (8-76-0, 11 targets), but the market has not completely accepted him yet. Johnson missed just one snap in Week 1 and ran a route about 80% of the time (he also received a bunch of slot reps, which are preferred for any tight end). The Saints don’t have great answers in the QB room, but new coach Kellen Moore does have his offense playing at a quicker pace. New Orleans was also extremely narrow in its Week 1 pass distribution, which is good news for Johnson. Even if you don’t need a tight end, I want you to find room for this under appreciated asset.

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Kayshon Boutte, WR, Patriots vs. Dolphins (23%)

The Boutte emergence dates back to last year — if we track his last four games with New England, we see games with 95, 117 and 103 yards (last week). And Boutte isn’t just popping in the traditional box score — he also led the Patriots in targets, routes and snaps last week, operating as their featured option. We understand that Stefon Diggs should be ready for more work in Week 2, but it’s unlikely the Patriots will steer away from a player like Boutte who’s producing well. Perhaps this is a case of a slowly-developing pedigree; keep in mind Boutte was the nation’s No. 2 receiver in his high school recruiting class.

Trey Benson, RB, Cardinals vs. Panthers (48%)

Running back sleepers are primarily stash-and-hope guys for the opening month; we generally don’t need to start fliers here until injuries and the bye weeks kick in. So while I mention Benson in good faith, he’s mostly as someone I want settled on your bench for now. That said, it’s interesting that Benson made it to 33% of snaps last week, a number he only saw once as a rookie. Benson also popped off a 52-yard run among his nine touches. James Conner is the unquestioned king of the Arizona backfield, but he’s also in his age-30 season. I expect Benson to be heard from this year, and perhaps against a Carolina front seven that was trampled by the run against Jacksonville last week.

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Brenton Strange, TE, Jaguars vs. Bengals (28%)

Strange gets a repeat mention after a respectable 4-59-0 opener. The attraction this week is the Cincinnati defense, which allowed the most tight end points last year and the fourth-most in 2025’s opening week. The Jacksonville passing game will always center around Brian Thomas Jr. and Travis Hunter, but Strange is capable of carving out a solid role as the third option. It was encouraging to see Strange playing on 79% of the snaps last week.

Geno Smith, QB, Raiders vs. Chargers (25%)

Perhaps Smith was never fully appreciated in his Seattle days — he was the QB5 back in 2022 and never fell out of the top 20 in three seasons as the starter. Smith rang up a juicy 362 yards at New England in the opener, hitting on nine plays of 20 yards or more. To be fair, Smith does come with some caveats — his red-zone play could be better, and he did throw a pick and take four sacks last week. But tied to decent skill talent and imaginative OC Chip Kelly, Smith is well-slotted for a decent score on Monday night.

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Calvin Austin III, WR, Steelers vs. Seahawks (15%)

Aaron Rodgers threw touchdowns to four different teammates in the opener, so this passing tree might look complicated at first. But Austin separated himself as a primary piece, posting a 4-70-1 line and playing on 80% of the snaps (only DK Metcalf saw more run from the Pittsburgh WR room). Whenever an NFL team introduces a new starting quarterback, we’re in a hurry to figure out who that quarterback has established rapport with. Rodgers-to-Austin was a winning combination in Week 1.



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