If you're at all like me -- and if you're reading this article, there's a good chance you are -- you're into multiple different kinds of fantasy football. Each league type brings a slightly different take to the game we've come to know and love. I'm talking about re-draft leagues, keeper leagues, dynasty leagues, guillotine leagues, vampire leagues, daily fantasy and best ball, just to name a handful. Lately, though, best ball has occupied the majority of my free time.
In case you've never tried playing best ball before, you can draft a team just like you would for a normal fantasy league, but rather than manage the lineup decisions every week, the game automatically submits the best possible lineup for all teams across the board. At the end of the season, the team with the most total points wins. If you're interested in learning more, I encourage you to read a great intro to best ball by my colleague Mackenzie Kraemer.
After 45 best ball drafts and roughly 40 ESPN mock drafts, I've narrowed down a few of my favorite fliers at every position in leagues of different shapes and sizes. When you do this many mock, there are a bunch of guys you find yourself gravitating toward when you're in the 18th round of a draft, so I'm going to do my best to straddle the fence and talk about a few late-round best ball targets and discuss whether they have any crossover appeal for traditional re-draft fantasy leagues.
Justin Fields, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers
It might not seem like a lot, but the Steelers have invested future draft capital for a one-year rental to see if Fields can be the future of this franchise. Russell Wilson is slated to be the starter, although the QB competition seems to be heating up, but that doesn't mean the Steelers won't feel obligated to get Fields some playing time to help decide whether he's worth keeping around. While I may not be able to pick which weeks he'll get his chances, any QB who had six games with at least 24 fantasy points last season is worth taking a look at.
Re-draft: Fields doesn't make sense in most re-draft leagues given the nature of the waiver wire. Feel free to pass on him in drafts but get ready to scoop him up off waivers if he gets a chance.
Best ball: There isn't a single QB going in the 15th round or later that has the same level of upside as Fields, but you have to accept that you'll be taking a zero from his roster spot for a number of weeks. Even so, if you grab quality QBs earlier in the draft, he'll be your QB3 with week-winning upside if/when he plays. Fields is one of my favorite late-round fliers in best ball.
J.K. Dobbins, RB, Los Angeles Chargers
Last year, I couldn't have been more out on Dobbins, as he was returning from knee injuries that ended his previous two seasons. I just had so many doubts. So what's different this year, after an Achilles tear ended his 2023 season in Week 1? Maybe I just want to look at the positive side of these injury stories, but I'd like to think Dobbins still has some good football left in him. This year, I recognize Dobbins' potential in this Chargers offense.
New coach Jim Harbaugh is known for being a proponent of the running game, both during his tenure with the San Francisco 49ers from 2011 to 2015, where his offense ranked second in rushing yards per game over that span, and most recently during at his time at Michigan.
Dobbins is currently in line to share the workload with journeyman Gus Edwards, with rookie sixth-round pick Kimani Vidal maybe getting a sprinkling of touches. Don't forget, Dobbins is a guy who scored nine touchdowns, finished as RB24 and averaged a whopping 6.0 yards per carry in his rookie season with the Ravens in 2020.
Re-draft: You'll be hard-pressed to find a RB with greater upside than Dobbins after Round 11. There is always the risk he gets hurt again and misses another season, but in a re-draft league you can simply drop him and move on. Dropping your 11th-round pick won't hurt your championship chances.
Best ball: Because of Dobbins' injury history, it's entirely possible you get saddled with a zero on your bench for a prolonged period of time, which is a big blow to your weekly upside, so make sure the rest of your RB room is stable. But if he can stay on the field, Dobbins has the ability to be the featured back in LA, which can be quite a value as your RB5.
Isaiah Likely, TE, Baltimore Ravens
Likely absolutely crushed it down the stretch last season while filling in for Mark Andrews, scoring in four of his final five games and finishing as TE4 over that stretch. Mind you, that's a pretty small sample size, but it also highlights his explosiveness. Only seven tight ends had at least three games of 18-plus fantasy points last season: George Kittle, Sam LaPorta, Travis Kelce, T.J. Hockenson, Trey McBride, Evan Engram and Likely.
Likely doesn't seem to have much standalone value when Andrews is healthy, as the Ravens ran the seventh-fewest two-TE sets in 2023, but maybe they open up the playbook a little more and start leaning into Likely's skill set. Regardless of what they do, you can't argue with the production on the field, and that's what we're betting on here.
Re-draft: You do not need to select Likely in a re-draft league. He's a waiver target during weeks Andrews is out, or if the team shows a desire to use him more.
Best ball: Similar to our other candidates, you'll have to accept a handful of zeroes if the Ravens don't use two tight ends more often, and that's not ideal. But if you're banking on upside, Likely has it in spades as your TE3 with top-five weekly upside.
Jameson Williams, WR, Detroit Lions
I'll cut right to the chase here, the Lions have made it very clear during the offseason that Williams is their WR2 behind Amon-Ra St. Brown. The team drafted Williams 12th overall in the 2022 draft and he has had high expectations ever since. Now entering year three, Williams is being put in a position to succeed by joining an offense that ranked top five in points per game and second in passing yards per game.
The Lions did not add a WR in free agency, and they didn't address the position in the draft, either. Williams won't be a huge volume guy, but he showed us how dangerous he can be in last year's NFC Championship Game by scoring 20.7 fantasy points against the 49ers' defense.
Re-draft: If you want to have Williams, you'll have to grab him in the draft. As of this early-August writing, Williams is a great value with massive breakout potential. Grab him as your WR4 or WR5 in the double-digit rounds.
Best ball: This time, the advice is very similar to re-draft leagues. Williams should absolutely be drafted, especially for those putting together Lions stacks. He's still not a starting-caliber WR on a regular basis, but he's a solid WR5 with massive weekly upside.
Demarcus Robinson, WR, Los Angeles Rams
Robinson surprised most of us when he delivered five straight games with 13-plus fantasy points from Weeks 13-17. That late-season production highlighted how valuable he was as a part of the Rams' three-WR sets. He was second on the team in routes run over that span, ahead of Puka Nacua, and had a 19% target share. He likely won't have much value as the Rams' WR3 on a weekly basis, but If either Nacua or Cooper Kupp miss time, Robinson will be a valuable WR in a pass-heavy offense.
Re-draft: Robinson is another waiver wire candidate you don't need to fish deep for in most standard leagues.
Best ball: Robinson can be had as late as the 17th round and is a great WR flier given his production last season. I'm especially targeting Robinson as part of a late Matthew Stafford stack if I've already drafted Nacua or Kupp.