NFL Best-ball season is well underway but the casual drafters will start drafting teams closer to the start of the season. It’s time to learn some core strategies and important team construction philosophies that people often overlook when drafting their best ball teams. NFL gamblers are often fans of specific teams with major biases or just thoughtless degenerates wanting to make some big money that have no idea how behind the eight-ball they are. So, let’s get to it.
Introduction: To win in best-ball (in any sport) we have to take risks, because we are only playing to win. Getting in the top 2 in a 12 player league means that we only have around a 17% chance of cashing if all drafters were created equal. So, we want to maximize upside and take risks on players outperforming their average draft positions (ADP). We also will want to take stands on certain strategies, and if you are building a team a certain way, you have to commit to that build. There is no half-assing anything in regards to best-ball, you have to push your chips in.
Jan 4, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase (1) reacts after catching a touchdown pass against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the first quarter at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
Core Concepts: In order to take down a contest we need a little bit of luck, as well as a standard concept of what we want to do. The core crop of players you want to draft is learnable from several different NFL experts that exist, but of course I am going to suggest the DFS Army NFL coaches and team. I am not an NFL expert, I am an avid best-ball drafter and strategist/coach here at the DFS Army.
My first core strategy is if you have a relatively similar player grade between a running back (RB) and a wide receiver (WR) or a tight end (TE), always take the RB, especially early or in the middle portion of the draft. Starting RB’s are impossible to come by later in the draft, and the more touches you can get at that position, the bigger advantage you have. Positional scarcity is a real thing in all sports and it is no different here in the NFL.
In general if a player significantly falls beneath their average draft position (ADP), then accept the gift you competition has given you and move on. Except in very specific circumstances, this rule of thumb should be applied. If you took an early quarterback (QB), or drafted a stud TE like Brock Bowers, and one of those positions fall in ADP, then maybe you should pass on another QB or TE. This rule applies all the time, but primarily for RB’s and WR’s which are the meat and potatoes of your fantasy team.
Unless we are handcuffing our RB’s (taking the starter and their backup), or are wanting to stack our primary QB with a pass-catcher, we should not be significantly over-drafting players. This means that we shouldn’t be drafting players way past their ADP. Players with a higher ADP are getting drafted higher for a reason, in general they are projected to score more fantasy points than their peers at the same position.
There is a significant difference between Draftkings and Underdog site wise. Draftkings is full point point per reception (PPR), and Underdog is half point PPR. Another key difference is based on team construction strategies because Draftkings has 20 roster spots and Underdog has 18 roster spots, which is a larger difference than one would think. On Underdog you may only want to take 2 QB’s or TE’s instead of 3 like you may want to in Draftkings.
These strategies seem pretty basic, but they are often not thought of, and you’d be surprised how soft some of your competition is closer to the season. People will over-stack teams, overdraft players, and not build their teams properly. We want to smack the fish and advance over 20% of our teams.
