The NFL has the largest DFS main slate of the season so far with 13 games on Sunday afternoon. With bye weeks and international games coming up, it’ll be the largest slate for a while, so get ready for a busy and wildly exciting Week 3. With 26 teams on the board, there are plenty of fantasy football sleeper plays available at WR. While we still have very limited info with only two weeks of results so far, we’re starting to get an idea of what to expect from teams on both sides of the ball. In this post, we’ll dive into the wide receivers who have the potential to be a fantasy football sleeper that makes a huge difference in your lineup in Week 3.
The fantasy football sleeper plays at wide receiver in this post each week can be excellent values for DFS contests, and they can also be sneaky plays in your season-long league since they should be poised to exceed expectations. Earlier this week, I highlighted my top-30 starters at wide receiver, and in this list, we’ll focus on players well outside those 30 who still bring a high ceiling.
Week 3 Fantasy Football Sleeper WRs (analysis below)
- Dyami Brown, Jacksonville Jaguars ($4,400)
- Troy Franklin, Denver Broncos ($4,000)
- KaVontae Turpin, Dallas Cowboys ($3,900)
- Elic Ayomanor, Tennessee Titans ($3,700)
- Dontayvion Wicks, Green Bay Backers ($3,700)
Week 2 Results:
- Cedric Tillman, Cleveland Browns ($4,300; 10.2 FPTS)
- Troy Franklin, Denver Broncos ($3,700; 24 FPTS)
- Tyquan Thornton, Kansas City Chiefs ($3,600; 13.9 FPTS)
- Isaac TeSlaa, Detroit Lions ($3,300; 3.9 FPTS)
- Tyler Johnson, New York Jets ($3,200; 0.0 FPTS)
Whether you’re looking for value plays in your DFS contests like the NFL $3.25M Fantasy Football Millionaire [$1M to 1st] or looking for a last-minute addition from the waiver wire, here are my top five fantasy football sleeper wide receivers for Week 3 of the 2025 season:
Dyami Brown, Jacksonville Jaguars ($4,400)
Brown has been a very involved part of new coach Liam Coen’s passing game in Jacksonville, and the Jags have a good matchup this week against the Texans, who are coming off a short week after the Bucs edged them 20-19 on Monday Night Football. Brown and the Jags also took a tough loss is Week 2, losing on a Jake Browning rushing score at the end of regulation to the Bengals.
Brown had five catches for 57 yards and a touchdown in that game and also took a carry for nine yards to finish with 17.6 fantasy points on the week.
In Week 1, he was also involved with three catches for 52 yards against the Panthers. He played 71% of snaps in Week 1 and 80% of snaps in Week 2, the second-highest snap share among the team’s wide receivers behind only Brian Thomas Jr. ($6,400).
Brown probably won’t be the team’s top receiver in terms of targets, but he has made the most of his opportunities and been very productive this season. The Texans will probably use Derek Stingley Jr. to try and lock down Thomas, which could open space for Brown to thrive at home on Sunday in this divisional showdown
Troy Franklin, Denver Broncos ($4,000)
Franklin was in my fantasy football sleeper picks at receiver last week, and he’s my one returning play again this week. His Broncos fell short against the Colts, but Franklin had a career day with eight catches for 89 yards, a touchdown, and 24 fantasy points.
He also caught four passes for 44 yards in Week 1 and should continue to have a clear path to playing time across from Courtland Sutton ($6,000) while Marvin Mims ($3,800) rotates through the slot and gadget formations.
Franklin played 59% of snaps in Week 1 and 83% of snaps in Week 2, and his targets climbed from six to nine. He continues to get more work this year and the offense seems to be clicking once again with QB Bo Nix ($5,800).
The offense has a tougher matchup against the Chargers this week, but Franklin should still be a great play at only $4,000.
KaVontae Turpin, Dallas Cowboys ($3,900)
The Cowboys and Bears play with the highest projected total of the week as they meet in Chicago. One affordable way to get some exposure to the potentially high-scoring contest is to go with Turpin, who is serving as Dallas’s big-play threat.
He only played 16% of snaps in Week 2, but he had 15.3 fantasy points by catching all four of his targets for 47 yards and a touchdown while adding six rushing yards on two carries.
He had a neck injury at the end of the game, but he has no injury designation and should be good to go in his usual role in Week 3.
Turpin is loaded with big-play potential, but he is high-risk since there are some weeks he isn’t able to get involved in the game plan. He definitely has potential in Brian Schottenheimer’s system and can return value if he gets free for a long touchdown.
Elic Ayomanor, Tennessee Titans ($3,700)
Ayomanor caught his first NFL touchdown last week at the end of this incredible play from fellow rookie Cam Ward ($4,900).
Ayomanor finished with 15.6 fantasy points by hauling in four of his six targets for 56 receiving yards. The rookie tied for the team lead with Chig Okonkwo ($3,400) and Calvin Ridley ($5,100) with six targets. Ayomanor played 79% of snaps in Week 1 and 73% in Week 2, and has quickly established himself as a go-to option in the passing offense.
He and the Titans are taking on the undefeated Colts in Week 3, who rank in the middle of the NFL against receivers so far this season.
Dontayvion Wicks, Green Bay Backers ($3,700)
Wicks is another bargain play to consider since he could be stepping into a larger role with the Packers. Green Bay will be without Jayden Reed (collarbone) for several weeks, and Tucker Kraft ($4,700; knee) could possibly be limited after a knee injury.
While Matthew Golden ($5,100) and Romeo Doubs ($4,800) will probably get more work ahead of Wicks, Wicks is also a candidate for more work. He hauled in four of his six targets last Thursday against the Commanders, finishing with 44 receiving yards.
Reed has been the Packers’ primary slot WR for the last 3 years, but Wicks has been the second-ranked receiver in slot snaps over those years. He is second on the team in receptions and third on the team in targets. He ranked second on this offense in first read percentage (17.6%) and second in team air yard share (23.8%).
Like the other options on this list, he comes with a degree of uncertainty, but he has a good ceiling and upside with great value potential in Week 3.
