# Walt: Walt lists his favorite 2026 fantasy football sleepers — players with ADPs of 100 overall or later whom he expects to outperform their draft cost — including Zachariah Branch, De'Zhaun Stribling, Ja'Kobi Lane, Jayden Reed, Romeo Doubs, Kaelon Black, Tre Tucker, Tyler Shough, Dallas Goedert, Tank Dell, Isaac TeSlaa and Chig Okonkwo. He also stakes out several depth-chart roles, such as Branch starting in the slot in Atlanta, Doubs as New England's slot receiver, and TeSlaa as Detroit's clear No. 3 receiver. **Claimed:** Aug 3, 2026 **Pundit:** Walt — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/pundits/walt **Outlet:** Walter Football — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/outlets/walter-football **How it reached us:** published in writing **Original:** https://walterfootball.com/fantasy2026sleepers.php 5 checkable claims — 5 depth chart calls — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing bet. It names 10 players and teams, each linked to their own record. None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in. Of the 5 unsettled calls enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands below the rest of the room on every one. > This is a list of my favorite 2026 fantasy football sleepers - underrated players who are going way later than they should *(their words, quoted for attribution)* ## The claims - **Tre Tucker to be 1st on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Tre Tucker, Las Vegas Raiders - Verdict: not settled yet - **Romeo Doubs to be 1st on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Romeo Doubs, New England Patriots - Verdict: not settled yet - **De'Zhaun Stribling to be 1st on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: De'Zhaun Stribling, San Francisco 49ers - Verdict: not settled yet - **Zachariah Branch to be 1st on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Zachariah Branch, Atlanta Falcons - Verdict: not settled yet - **Isaac TeSlaa to be 3rd on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Isaac TeSlaa, Detroit Lions - Verdict: not settled yet ## Who this take is about - Tre Tucker — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/tre-tucker - Las Vegas Raiders — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/raiders - Romeo Doubs — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/romeo-doubs - New England Patriots — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/patriots - De'Zhaun Stribling — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/de-zhaun-stribling - San Francisco 49ers — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/49ers - Zachariah Branch — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/zachariah-branch - Atlanta Falcons — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/falcons - Isaac TeSlaa — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/isaac-teslaa - Detroit Lions — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/lions ## What others said about the same people - Ethan Hurwitz on Jeremiah Pharms Jr.: Hurwitz writes that the elevations of Jeremiah Pharms Jr. and Mike Brown likely mean Leonard Taylor III stays a healthy scratch and Joshua Farmer could be one too for the Week 3 game at Jacksonville, and that both elevated players will revert to the practice squad after Sunday. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/fc98ac5c-1a8e-4462-94fa-993b02c52d00 (scored 0) - Brian Peacock on Sebastian Valdez: Peacock lays out his projected 53-man roster for the 49ers, position by position: three specialists, three quarterbacks (including Curtis Rourke), five running backs, six receivers (cutting Christian Kirk), three tight ends (cutting Braden Willis), nine offensive linemen, ten defensive linemen (with Mykel Williams on PUP), five linebackers, six cornerbacks and four safeties. He also predicts a new player will take center snaps in preseason week three. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/62e9aad7-105c-45a0-95b3-3b43b64603ae (scored 0) - Tom Jensen on Sebastian Valdez: Jensen projects the 49ers' final 53-man roster ahead of the August 30 cutdown, naming a long list of players he expects to be released outright, another group he expects to be cut and return on the practice squad ("boomerang cuts"), and three borderline players (Jordan James, Jacob Cowing, James Thompson Jr.) he believes San Francisco will keep. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/30bfad12-5ff9-49d2-8849-9df9b47a054d (scored 0) - Fox Sports on Michael Penix Jr.: Fox Sports states that a healthy Tua Tagovailoa will serve as Atlanta's backup quarterback in Week 3, with Michael Penix Jr. handling the starting duties against Green Bay. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/a90e69a8-707f-43e9-a63e-cdb3e7bd0829 (scored 100) - Ethan Hurwitz on Christian Gonzalez: Hurwitz says several Patriots starting jobs and roster spots are already settled — Drake Maye at QB with Jared Wilson at center, A.J. Brown and Hunter Henry as pass-catchers, and Christian Gonzalez, Milton Williams and Kevin Byard locked into roster spots. Among camp standouts, he pegs undrafted rookie Cameron Dorner as roughly the eighth receiver on a roster likely keeping seven, and says Channing Canada is a strong practice squad candidate if he doesn't make the 53. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/b1d343fa-5684-4366-bbb6-73297fbae830 (scored 100) - Parker Hurley on Jaden Dugger: Reviewing 49ers rookies after the first preseason game, Hurley says linebacker Jaden Dugger has secured a spot on the roster after starting at MIKE. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/633eccb2-2e55-4252-832c-74f8ad98cbdb (scored 100) ## More depth chart calls The same kind of call, about other players and teams. - Pat Fitzmaurice on Aaron Jones: In previewing the 10 most intriguing fantasy performers of Week 2, Fitzmaurice expects Atlanta's quarterback problems to persist with Tua Tagovailoa unlikely to play and Michael Penix Jr. not ready to return, flags Falcons slot corner Billy Bowman Jr. as a possible Week 2 returnee, and describes Aaron Jones as Minnesota's lead back and Kaelon Black as the clear backup to Christian McCaffrey in San Francisco. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/31adc8bb-8f15-453f-bbcf-cab44e29b8b3 (scored 100) - Matt Severance on Deshaun Watson: The CBS Sports preview backs Tampa Bay to beat Cleveland in the Bucs' Week 2 home opener, and states that Deshaun Watson — not Shedeur Sanders — will be Cleveland's starting quarterback in Week 2. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/944568ce-7205-409f-8354-a392016fd8bf (scored 100) - Rafael Zamorano on Deshaun Watson: Zamorano reports Watson will start Week 2 at Tampa Bay and suggests there's little reason to expect improvement, raising the possibility Watson's five-year contract never yields more than single-digit wins. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/d7d7e0a2-61e0-4525-970b-b01a2356f11b (scored 100) - Bradley Locker on Carson Wentz: PFF's unsigned adjusted power rankings after Week 1 of the 2026 season place the Bills first, the Rams second and the Dolphins last, with notes on quarterback situations in Seattle, Minnesota and Cleveland. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/a3716f21-0488-4fc8-a414-c25c2d781a6e (scored 100) - Pat Fitzmaurice on Rashod Bateman: In his Week 2 waiver wire column, Fitzmaurice recommends a slate of pickups he expects to outperform their current rostership (Kaelon Black, Deebo Samuel, Tyler Shough, Geno Smith and others), lays out several depth-chart expectations (Black as the 49ers' No. 2 back, Shedeur Sanders eventually taking over in Cleveland, Penix returning for Atlanta), and flags Fool's Gold/drop candidates such as Mike Gesicki, Kendrick Bourne and Rashid Shaheed. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/6218d3c2-61e7-4ace-9976-b51eeefdf22c (scored 0) - Bill Huber on Chris McClellan: Huber's first Packers rookie progress report projects second-round cornerback Brandon Cisse to hold onto his spot with the No. 1 defense, third-round defensive tackle Chris McClellan to start in Week 1, and fifth-round lineman Jager Burton to be the team's top interior backup rather than a starter. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/dcf9daae-b511-490c-b438-173cf91e8597 (scored 0) --- Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages. Full method: https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/methodology We summarize what a pundit said and quote a short span for attribution; we never republish their article. If this is wrong, tell us: https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/corrections?pundit=walt