Especially in the late rounds of fantasy football drafts, everyone is always looking for a steal. Recently, fantasy football analyst Michael Fabiano with Sports Illustrated named Chicago Bears running back Kyle Monangai as someone who could be a steal in the draft this year.
Monangai will be a popular sleeper in fantasy drafts this season. While he remains behind D’Andre Swift on the Bears depth chart, there were signs of a committee in the second half of last season. Over their final 10 games, Swift averaged 15.4 touches while Monangai’s total was at 13.9. Bears head coach Ben Johnson has had success using multiple backs in the past (see Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery in Detroit), so don’t be surprised to see closer to a 50-50 split in the Bears'
backfield this season. In that scenario, Monangai would have flex appeal.
Signs of a committee would hurt lead back D'Andre Swift’s fantasy stock, but it really increases Monangai’s appeal to fantasy managers this season. Monangai can also step in as a starter if Swift is unable to play. He did once last season against the Cincinnati Bengals and had 176 rushing yards. So, even though Swift often is talked about as the better running back, Monangai has the potential to put up big numbers.
Monangai was also used in goalline situations a good amount last season. In fact, he had a stretch of four straight games with a touchdown. He may have been touchdown dependent in those games, but as Fabiano pointed out, Monangai started to get a greater share of the touches near the end of the season.
His average draft position right now is the No. 36 running back off the board, so he is certainly someone to pick up near the end of the draft. But, Monangai is also someone who could have a lot of upside throughout this season as his role in the offense increases.
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Sports Illustrated lists Chicago Bears RB as potential fantasy sleeper
