Don't Doze: NFC North

By: Josh Frey-Sam

Is anyone else starting to get that itch?

We’re under 10 days until teams begin reporting for training camp and the unofficial beginning of the 2026 season, and football is now effectively consuming my every waking thought.

With that, let’s continue rolling on our Don’t Doze series by focusing on four sleepers in the NFC North.

Green Bay Packers: Marshawn Lloyd, RB

Lloyd could go from a sleeper to a hot commodity in a hurry if Josh Jacobs’ legal case takes a turn for the worse.

Even if Jacobs is still in the fold as the unquestioned lead back, Lloyd still presents as an intriguing stash option.

Per my Summer Series conversation with beat writer Andy Herman, the 2024 third-round pick is a player the Packers have had a niche role planned for over the last two seasons but have never been able to use, because Lloyd has hardly touched the field due to injury.

It’s been reported that Lloyd went to see a specialist this off-season to find out the root of his injuries and that he’s confident those issues are now behind him.

Lloyd’s speed, agility and elusiveness are all noticeable when he’s on the field, and he profiles as more than just a gadget guy with boom-or-bust potential. He’s a player who the Packers want to lean on in the run and passing game.

With Matt LaFleur’s penchant for rotating RBs, there’s a world in which Lloyd actually holds a solid floor as a fantasy asset this season.

If Jacobs’ legal case goes wrong, then he will almost certainly be released. And if that happens, I wouldn’t be shocked to see the Packers pursue a veteran on the free agent or trade market, but I would also expect Lloyd to become the de facto No. 1 RB in this backfield.

Lloyd’s stock has risen this off-season, but he is still going undrafted.

Minnesota Vikings: Jordan Mason, RB

It’s somewhat mind-blowing to me that Jordan Mason is still being drafted after Aaron Jones.

Listen, no one has more respect for Jones than me, who rooted for him across seven seasons as a member of the Packers. But as I spoke to beat writer Matthew Coller about in my Summer Series, Jones proved last year that he can no longer take on a big workload, and that it will be up to the bruising Mason to shoulder most of the work this season.

I admit that there’s nothing sexy about picking Mason, especially since Jones will still eat into his touches. He kind of is who he is: a hard downhill runner with limited upside in the receiving game.

But he’s also going in the 11th round of drafts, a full round later than his running mate.

Mason actually remained admirably efficient during a down season for the Vikings offence in 2025, carving out a career-high six rushing touchdowns while averaging 4.77 yards per carry.

The thing that perhaps gets you more excited about him this year than last season is that the offence should be better as a whole with Kyler Murray presumably at the helm, which should mean more scoring opportunities for everyone.

Mason appears to be in line for much of the goal line work, so if you’re buying into the Vikings offence, he could be a terrific RB4 with possibly flex upside for your team.

Chicago Bears: Kyle Monangai, RB

While Kyle Monangai certainly doesn’t qualify as a deep sleeper, it can be argued that he’s being overlooked in drafts this season.

The Bears’ second-year back had a dream rookie season for a seventh-round pick last season, racking up nearly 1,000 scrimmage yards and five touchdowns on 187 touches.

Now he returns for his second season in Ben Johnson’s lauded rushing scheme.

The obvious barrier that is capping Monangai’s ceiling is running mate D’Andre Swift, who is slated to lead this backfield once again. But with Swift entering a contract year, it’s fair to wonder whether Johnson will look to increase Monangai’s role.

There are several things that Swift does better than Monangai, but the latter also demonstrated some surprising explosiveness when given the opportunity last season. He clearly fits Johnson’s scheme well, and has the physical advantage over Swift, which could see Monangai earn more goal-line touches this season.

Monangai is currently ranked as the RB30, going in the seventh round of drafts, nearly two full rounds after Swift, who is the RB21 currently.

On teams that have built a stable RB core early in the draft, Monangai could be the perfect high-upside mid-round pick.

Detroit Lions: Isaac TeSlaa, WR

TeSlaa arrived in Detroit last season with a bit of fanfare after the Lions traded up to select him in the third round of the NFL Draft.

The big-body WR had the look of a player who could hold a key role in the Lions offence, behind Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams.

TeSlaa backed up that hype with an efficient rookie season that saw him carve out a role in the red zone. Despite running just 296 routes, he finished with six touchdown catches on 11 red zone targets (more than Williams’ nine RZ targets).

Now entering his second year — and Kalif Raymond signing with the Chicago Bears — the runway is clear for TeSlaa to take a stranglehold on the No. 3 role in new offensive co-ordinator Drew Petzing’s offence.

The talk around town is that TeSlaa has been a clear winner this off-season after adding more muscle to his 6-4 frame and improving his short-area quickness, which could allow him to be more of a factor in-between the 20s.

Of course, TeSlaa’s ceiling could be a bit capped with the likes of St. Brown, Williams, Jahmyr Gibbs and Sam LaPorta on the same offence, but also, he immediately becomes a priority waiver wire add if either of the two starting WRs go down.

What remains to be seen is how many two-WR sets TeSlaa plays in. Petzing is notorious for his heavy personnel, which is beneficial to the WRs who are on the field but could be detrimental to a tertiary weapon.

TeSlaa is going undrafted right now, and should probably stay that way until we have a better idea of how much run he’ll get.

Thanks for reading and, as always, have a great day.

Josh