Fantasy football: Bears rookie TE Adam Shaheen a nice dynasty league sleeper
Chicago Bears rookie tight end Adam Shaheen is a fantasy football sleeper to target in dynasty leagues.
Nothing is better in fantasy football than finding the perfect late-round sleeper. If you can find a player in the tail end of your draft who ends up being a major contributor, it increases your chances of winning your league dramatically. Finding the right sleeper in dynasty leagues is even better. When you can find a late-round star in a dynasty league, it costs you essentially nothing and helps for many years. It does not get any better than that.
Every year, we all see many lists of fantasy football sleepers. Some that we will agree with and some that we won’t. My favorite sleeper for dynasty leagues this year is Chicago Bears rookie tight end Adam Shaheen.
The Bears took Shaheen in the second round (45th overall) in the 2017 NFL Draft. Shaheen is a rare prospect. He played his college ball at Division II Ashland University and left school early to enter the NFL draft.
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Getting to know the player
At 6-foot-6, 278 pounds with great speed and natural athleticism, Shaheen probably could have played at a major college. However, he started his college career as a basketball player at Division II Pittsburgh-Johnstown. He later transferred to Ashland to walk on to the football team. I think it is safe to say he made the right move.
Watching Shaheen on tape, it is not surprising to know that basketball is in his background. His quickness and athleticism are impressive for a man of his size and he goes up and gets the ball extremely well.
Shaheen caught 57 passes for 857 yards and 16 touchdowns last season. He was legitimately a man amongst boys as you can see in his highlight tape below.
There are obviously concerns about his ability to translate to the next level. The jump from D2 to the NFL is absolutely huge talent wise. However, Shaheen undoubtedly has the skill set to make an impact at the next level.
Will he see the field?
On top of all that, the path to playing time is certainly there. Shaheen will likely begin the season as the third tight end on the Bears’ roster, behind veterans Zach Miller and Dion Sims. Miller is more of a receiving tight end like Shaheen, while Sims is the blocker. That being said, it is not difficult to see the Bears giving him a shot to prove himself soon.
The Bears are unlikely to be competitive in 2017 and are going to want to know what they have in their young players at some point. I would not be the least bit surprised to see Shaheen take over the primary receiving tight end role at some point in 2017. Once he gets the playing time, anything can happen. Even if he does not fully develop right away, Shaheen should be a dangerous weapon in the red zone. We all know how valuable that can be in fantasy football.
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At worst, he will undoubtedly take over the role in 2018 as Miller becomes a free agent after this season.
Shaheen is far from a sure-thing. That being said, he undoubtedly has some big-time upside at a tough position to fill in fantasy football. Considering he is going to be basically going to be free, Shaheen is undoubtedly a smart target late in your dynasty or deep keeper league draft.