In recent years best ball has become one of the most popular formats for fantasy football enthusiasts, especially for those who find an abundance of enjoyment in drafting. Because that’s where your responsibility to the league starts and ends. That’s all you do. Draft. No start ‘em, sit ‘em decisions to be made. No drops. No adds. No trades. Just draft a team and let the algorithm do the rest as it puts the highest-scoring players from any given week into your line-up. Winners are not determined on a week-to-week, matchup-based criteria, but instead by how many total points they have at the end of the season. The average draft position often looks similar to your more traditional leagues, with the exception of a few players here and there being taken a bit earlier due to their upside on any given week. But for anyone new to this format, knowing when to take certain players (especially those late-round fliers) and how many of each position you’ll need can be a daunting task. While I don’t think it’s true that there is any one right answer, what is true is that the value of drafting well in best ball is arguably higher than that of any other league. But don’t worry, I’m here to help. While there are many routes you can take and a lot of strategies you can employ to find success, below are the tips I live and swear by to help you find best ball success and dominate your drafts.
TIP #1: KNOW YOUR LEAGUE RULES AND REQUIREMENTS
At first glance this should seem obvious, but you’d be amazed at how many newbies to a certain type of fantasy league, or fantasy football in general, don’t take the time to simply review the rules and roster size of their leagues. Both vary greatly from league to league. There are still leagues that play in a standard format where the reception itself doesn’t count for anything. Then there are half and full PPR leagues. In these leagues pass catchers, and especially pass-catching running backs, get a boost in value. Beyond that you’ll also want to know if your league is a four points per passing touchdown league or six points per passing touchdown. In leagues where touchdown passes are worth four points, quarterbacks that add production through their feet, like Lamar Jackson, Jalen Hurts, and Justin Fields have more value than if every type of touchdown is worth six. You also will need to know your roster size and how many of each position will be in your starting lineup each and every week. Is it a superflex league where you can play two QBs, or a two QB league where you’re required to do so? Is it a two or three WR league? How many RB spots are there? How many flex? While it’s true that you will not be making any lineup decisions, you also won’t have any opportunity to account for mistakes made during the draft by adding or dropping players during the season. So knowing how many of each position are required in your lineup still plays a major roll in who you draft and when you draft them, so make sure you know all the ins and outs of your league.
TIP #2: PAY ATTENTION TO BYE WEEKS
This is another thing that may seem glaringly obvious, but I have seen even the most experienced fantasy players forget this under the pressure of the clock of a best ball draft. But I can not stress enough how important this is. Generally, in more traditional season long leagues I don’t concern myself too much with bye weeks. I keep my eye on it, but if it comes my turn to draft and there’s a player I really want that will help my team, I’ll select him and just deal with it when their bye week comes. In fact, there are times in a season long league where stacking bye weeks can be a viable strategy. When it’s about whether you win matchups from week to week and not how many total points your team scores throughout the season, giving yourself one week using backups so that you can have every other week with your studs can make some sense. But in a best ball league, you can’t make any changes to your roster once the draft is over. So if, after the fact, you discover that you have multiple players with the same bye week, and not enough players to cover that deficiency, there is absolutely nothing you can do to help your team score that week. You need people that are capable of being a top tier scorer each week, or success will be difficult to find. So make sure you stagger those bye weeks effectively to avoid the one week you ignored being your downfall.
TIP #3: DON’T WAIT TOO LONG TO DRAFT A QB AND TE
In fantasy football, the general consensus has been to wait on QB and TE so that you can load up on more valuable positions that you have to play multiple of every week. But even in season-long leagues that logic, especially surrounding QBs, is beginning to change. Players are more and more willing to use an early-round pick on one of the elite QBs (Mahomes, Jackson, and Hurts.) While you don’t need an elite QB to be successful, it sure doesn’t hurt. QBs are still the most consistent fantasy contributors so making sure you have a solid stable of signal-callers from which to draw can make all the difference. But whether you invest an early-round pick on one of the top three QBs will determine who you target for your second and third. If you bypass those top tier guys then it’s imperative that you land one of the next tier of QBs, like Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert, or Justin Fields, all of whom have QB1 upside. Then you could choose to target a less exciting option with a solid floor like Kirk Cousins or Aaron Rodgers. They may not have the upside of the rest of those guys but should be good for a consistent 20-23 points every week. Or you could go after a player like Tua Tagovailoa who may not have the upside of the top guys but has far more than those who are strictly pocket passers. However, he is going a round or two higher than Cousins and Rodgers, so take that into consideration when drafting. But whichever way you decide to go, don’t forget the rookies. There are a few rookies this year that I feel confident are going to start and play the entire season, with varying levels of success. This year my favorite late round quarterback target in best ball is Anthony Richardson. Since it’s only about who performs best on any given week I like the upside Richardson provides with his feet, and as he gets more comfortable down the stretch he could become an every week starter that you’re able to take a late round flier on. Some of this will depend on how your draft plays out, but in best ball, viable QB2s tend to dry out pretty quickly which means sometimes you may have to reach for a player to make sure you’re not left holding the bag. Admittedly, in most of my best ball drafts I have found myself with the combination of Field, Tagovailoa, and Richardson, and I will gladly take that every time.
The strategy for TE is similar to that of QB. It’s ok to wait on the position, just don’t do so too long. While TEs don’t score as many points as QBs, everyone knows there are two TEs unlike any other (Travis Kelce and Mark Andrews.) You could argue T.J. Hockenson should be thrown in there too but the sample size of him performing at that type of level is too small to draw that conclusion. But in order to get Kelce you’ll have to invest a first round pick, while Andrews is usually taken closer to the end of the second or beginning of the third. Two others round out the top four at the position, the aforementioned Hockenson and George Kittle. Just like QBs, you don’t need one of these top guys, but if you wait so long that you miss out on the next tier of TEs like Dallas Goedert, Darren Waller, and Kyle Pitts, it will be a very long season. Usually one or more of these players will fall to the fifth round or later, and at that point, if you don’t snag an elite option you need to be sure to end up with one these players, and then add a rookie TE that finds themselves in a favorable spot like Dalton Kincaid, Sam LaPorta, or Luke Musgrave. The chances of a rookie providing value every single week are low, but it is almost an inevitability that some rookie TE will have breakout weeks, and these are the most likely rookies to do so. Just make sure you are balanced at both QB and TE with good upside, solid floor plays, and potential sleepers, and because injuries happen, make sure you leave your draft with at least three at each of these positions.
# of QBs a Best Ball Roster Needs: 3
# of TEs a Best Ball Roster Needs: 3
TIP #4: DRAFT WRS EARLY AND OFTEN
It wasn’t that long ago that we would see running backs fly off the draft boards in the first two rounds of all drafts. No matter the format, it was general consensus that landing one of those top tier running backs was paramount to fantasy success. My how times have changed. Today, based on ADP, there are eight RBs who are consistently going in the first two rounds. This is due to many factors, but chief among them is that there has begun to be a lot more value at RB in the mid to late rounds than ever before. But fantasy managers are also realizing that if you pass on the premiere pass catchers you’ll have a harder time building a successful roster. This is, in part, because in a large portion of leagues you are required to play at least three WRs compared to two RBs, and that’s not including any flex positions. So it is important to be willing to invest in some of the stud producers that will consistently put up great numbers every week, and then will also have certain weeks where they go nuclear. But while landing that top tier talent at receiver is important, you still need depth at the position. But it’s not just about quantity, it’s about quality. There are plenty of solid receivers that come with a fairly safe floor and massive upside that can be found outside of the first few rounds. Players like D.J. Moore, Christian Watson, Christian Kirk, and Jahan Dotson can all be found outside the first four rounds and will provide much needed depth and upside. The more you take, the better your chances are of landing a top 15 (or better) receiver at a bargain price. Another thing to keep in mind when drafting WRs is that a QB/WR stack can be extremely advantageous. I’m not saying if you draft players like Dotson or Watson that you should necessarily target Sam Howell or Jordan Love , although targeting a rookie or second year signal caller who will hopefully develop as the season progresses isn’t a terrible late round strategy, but don’t reach for them. But if you take a player like A.J. Brown, Kelce, or Stefon Diggs, targeting one of the big three (Mahomes, Hurts, Allen) could be worth it. But it’s not just reserved for that type of WR/QB combo. If you target Moore, Jaylen Waddle, or Calvin Ridley, I would want Fields, Tagovailoa, or Trevor Lawrence as one of my QBs. Having a QB/WR stack that is projected to be a productive one gives any team with that stack a weekly advantage. In many cases it’s even worth it to reach in order to get a stack. But regardless of which route you go just make sure that you have more depth at receiver than any other position. It will pay off in the end.
# of WRs a Best Ball Roster Needs: 6-9
TIP #5: OVERALL RB STRATEGY
Because the running back has historically been the thinnest position in football, some owners will load up at the position early. I’ve already addressed above why I believe that is a mistake, and to illustrate that all we have to do is look at last year. In 2022, there were several players going as an RB3 who easily outperformed their ADP. Think players like Tony Pollard or Rhamondre Stevenson (both 7th round picks last year), Jamaal Williams (a 12th rounder in 2022), or even Josh Jacobs who you could get in the fourth round and ended up the RB4. So it’s not necessary to reach and over-extend your roster creating weaknesses in other spots in order to obtain one of the absolute top tier guys. In best ball, it is very common to have rosters where you start two running backs. This means all you have to start at the running back position (and in most cases should start) is two. I understand the feeling that waiting on running back is risky. We have been programmed through years of playing fantasy to see the inherent value of this position, so it feels wrong to wait, but the fact is that there are plenty of options at the position (especially this year) that can be solid starting options, and downright league winners if things were to fall right due to an injury or just a simple breakout. Whether your looking at running backs that are backups on their team like A.J. Dillon, Elijah Mitchell, or Samaje Perine. Players that find themselves on different teams in different situations like Rashaad Penny, Miles Sanders, and David Montgomery. Players like Khalil Herbert, Alexander Mattison, or Rachaad White, who find themselves a starter for the first time because the player ahead of them on the depth chart has left for greener pastures. Or an under the radar rookie like Zach Charbonnet, De’Von Achane, or Tank Bigsby who simply need an opportunity and most likely will get one before the end of the year. All of these players provide terrific value at a fraction of the cost of those top tier players. Even players like Aaron Jones, Dameon Pierce, J.K. Dobbins, Cam Akers, and Kenneth Walker are going outside the top three rounds in PPR. Every single one of them has the chance to finish anywhere from a mid range RB2 to mid range RB1. Grabbing a few of these players while focusing mostly on receivers in the first few rounds will give your roster more upside, a key component in a best ball league. You should still take a running back with one of your first three selections but you can wait on your second and load up on those solid WRs with top tier upside.
Another smart thing to do in best ball drafts, which is something I would typically advise against in traditional season long leagues, is handcuffing your elite RBs. The one caveat to this is that you should only do so if they have a clear backup. If the backfield looks more like an RBBC type of situation the perceived backup(s) might not provide much value. But if you do land a high end back, it is smart to draft their backup, in fact, it’s ok to overdraft them. If you grab guys like Bijan Robinson or CMC you want to grab Tyler Allgeier or Mitchell in case they go down with injury. These are valuable backups to players who will get a huge workload, and if catapulted into the starting role could have league winning upside. You never want to anticipate an injury, but if either Robinson or CMC were to go down, good luck replacing that production if you don’t have their backup. But it doesn’t just go for those top tier guys. Players like Jones, Walker, and Pierce also have clear backups that could be solid contributors if given more work. So grabbing their backup later in drafts could be a shrewd move, especially since you are unable to make any in season moves. I would also advise you to grab at least a couple of rookies in this rookie class. There are several at varying costs that could provide a lot of value later in the season. There are the obvious cream of the crop like Robinson, Jahmyr Gibbs, and Charbonnet but there are also later round rookies I find intriguing. Chase Brown looks like the clear backup to Joe Mixon who slightly disappointed last year and can’t get 100% of the work. Roschon Johnson seems to have already leapfrogged D’Onta Foreman and could get a fair amount in Chicago even without an injury. And Bigsby could be an absolute steal if something were to happen to Travis Etienne. There are a lot of reasons to be excited about the rookies this year, so be sure to get one or two of them on your roster. It could pay big dividends.
# of RBs a Best Ball Roster Needs: 4-6
CONCLUSION
As I said to start this article, these are not the only tips to follow when entering a best ball draft. The opinions on how to succeed in best ball is as varied as the leagues and players themselves. Even some of these rules would have to be adjusted based on the type of league. For example, if you are in a Superflex or 2QB league, then you may want to grab QBs earlier than you normally would and the number of QBs you would want would change. So check those rules. But for the majority of leagues these tips will help you at least begin from a place of knowledge and help you build a competitive roster. But, as with any draft, it’s important to remain flexible with your draft strategy. It’s never recommended to enter a draft with one specific strategy in mind, and stick to it regardless of how things play out. It is very common for a real life draft to look far different from what any expectations or ADP would normally dictate. I also can’t overstate how draft position can impact any strategy you come in with, so always be ready to pivot when your ideal situation falls by the wayside. And above all have fun with it, and don’t automatically think a pick you made was a reach or a poor one. The truth is, no one knows until the season plays out how everything will fall into place. A pick that looks like a major reach and draft day fail could end up being that gem that far exceeds expectations and helps you win your league. So develop an overall strategy based on your rules and roster size, remember these tips, remain flexible, take everything in stride, and you’ll do fine. Happy drafting.
