Best Ball Draft Advice: 5 Overlooked Players in Fantasy Football

Let’s admit it. You need help. You need Best Ball Draft Advice! And we’re here for you.

While most people stick to traditional fantasy football formats, Best Ball has continued to become increasingly popular. For those who do not know, a Best Ball fantasy league has no transaction system so it relies solely on the fantasy draft when it comes to selecting your entire roster. Therefore, the fantasy draft is the all-powerful event when it comes to team building so it is important to find some value with some players who get overlooked. These five players are a great start to target, get value, and then give your friends Best Ball draft advice later after you win your league.

1. Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions

Although Matthew Stafford is known for being a solid fantasy quarterback, people have never really viewed him as a top-tier fantasy football option at the quarterback position despite his consistent production. Last season, Stafford was on pace to be one of the best options in the league as he recorded 2,499 passing yards along with 19 passing touchdowns and only five interceptions through just eight games before missing the second half of the season due to injury.

Although his stats will most likely not be comparable to Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson, Matthew Stafford has the talent and the receiving corps to put up elite fantasy numbers assuming that he can stay healthy for a full season. Plus, fantasy football managers know the value of garbage time and Stafford should be able to pad his statistics in the fourth quarter of meaningless games on a regular basis considering the fact that the Lions will most likely be trailing in a lot of their games in 2020.

2. Miles Sanders, Philadelphia Eagles

Miles Sanders had a very quiet start to rookie season as he was fighting for playing time with Jordan Howard over the first few games. However, once Howard was traded, Sanders took the starting job and left no doubt that he was the best running back on the roster. Sanders finished the 2019 season with 818 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns while averaging 4.6 yards per carry. In addition, he also showcased his skills in the passing game as he had 509 receiving yards and three receiving touchdowns.

Now, Sanders will get to start for the whole season and he should be able to put together an even better season with more reps. According to most projections, Sanders is expected to be a late first-round pick in most fantasy leagues but the workload alone should give him top-five fantasy running back upside assuming that he will physically be able to withstand the large quantity of touches.

3. A.J. Green, Cincinnati Bengals

A.J. Green has been an elite fantasy receiver during the course of his entire career. However, he has fallen through the cracks a little bit in fantasy draft this offseason since he was unable to play in any games last season. While one cannot be totally sure if he will look like the elite receiver that he once was, he is still going to be a massive red zone threat due to his height and length which gives him a lot of value as a projected fifth-rounder.

His production should also see a bit of a boost due to the upgrade at quarterback as Cincinnati was able to acquire Joe Burrow with the first overall pick in the NFL Draft. Burrow was viewed as being one of the best quarterback prospects in recent memory and he is incredibly accurate with his deep balls which should provide Green with a ton of opportunities to make big plays down the field if he is ever in one-on-one coverage. If Green is anywhere near the player that he once was, he should be able to record over 1,000 receiving yards for the seventh time in his career.

4. Christian Kirk, Arizona Cardinals

Although the Arizona Cardinals had their struggles as a whole last season, the offense actually looked good despite some red zone execution issues so this seems to be a bit of buzz surrounding Kliff Kingsbury’s offense in 2020. With the addition of star receiver DeAndre Hopkins, people are expecting Kyler Murray to have a big season from the pocket as Arizona’s receiving corps is now a very solid unit.

DeAndre Hopkins and Larry Fitzgerald are the well-known commodities of that receiving corps but Christian Kirk has become the forgotten man which has made him a bit overlooked in “Best Ball” leagues. Kirk had a solid 2019 season as he recorded 68 receptions along with 709 receiving yards and three receiving touchdowns. However, his statistics are even more impressive when one realizes that he only played 13 games last season so he has a lot of potential if he is able to stay on the field for the entire season.

While some people might assume that Kirk’s production might take a bit of a dip due to the presence of Hopkins, I actually think that his arrival could be quite beneficial to Kirk. Defenses should be spending a lot of time preparing for Hopkins and Fitzgerald which could lead to a lot of one-on-one coverage schemes for Kirk to take advantage of. Although he will most likely finish outside of the top-20 in terms of wide receivers by season’s end, he should still be hovering around 1,000 receiving yards which makes him a valuable commodity at his average draft position.

5. Jonathan Taylor, Indianapolis Colts

While it is a risky proposition to select rookies in fantasy drafts, they can actually be very valuable commodities if you are able to find some late-round value with players who possess a ton of upside. Jonathan Taylor is a perfect example of that as he projected to be a fifth-round pick when he has all of the physical attributes to become a bell cow running back in Indianapolis.

Marlon Mack will be the projected starter for the beginning of the season which is completely understandable after rushing for 1,091 yards last season. However, Mack has had issues staying on the field as he has missed at least two games in each of his first three seasons so durability has been a huge question mark throughout his career. Unlike Mack, durability is a strength for Taylor as he never missed a single game in college while torching defenses all across the country in Wisconsin for the last few years. Plus, Taylor is the much stronger running back which should give him more snaps since he is the superior pass blocker.

Taylor might be a bit of a late bloomer during his rookie season but he has the speed and strength to become a serious threat to put up some big games if he gets around 20 touches per game behind that elite offensive line. Taylor does have a bit of an issue when it comes to ball security which could lead to the occasional benching if that trend continues but he can be a difference maker in the fantasy playoffs if the coaching staff is able to tap into his potential.