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2026 Fantasy Football Best Ball: 32+ Late-Round Fliers to Target – Part 1
Last Updated on August 15, 2026 11:14 am by André Lemos | Published: August 15, 2026
Struggling to round out your squad? Looking to get unique? Trying to find some upside with an edge on the field? Each lobby is different, and each draft should look a little different. This article is meant to identify that perfect fit for your individual team based on what stacks you may have built your roster through. Late round guys come out of nowhere to make big impacts. The final month of draft season is a great time to dive into the depths of the ADP list.
There are two main ways I use this list when I’m constructing each of my teams. The first is obvious, and that’s to stack them with your quarterbacks. For me, stacking is extremely important to enhance your upside in tournaments that require 1% outcomes to win big. Its easy to tack on another weapon for your signal callers to stack a big game or two with throughout the year.
The second actionable way to utilize your late round picks is for week 17 correlation. Now, this matter more to some folks than others. I don’t prioritize because first and foremost, you have to get to week 17. I use it more as a tiebreaker than anything else if I’m deciding between two players. The odds of that are stacked against you to make it to the promiseland, so picking players you truly believe in is extremely tempting. However, it is nice to diversify every once in a blue moon, and what if you actually do make it to week 17? My two highest earning rosters in the my three compete seasons of best ball action both had week bring-backs that played a pretty big part in where I finished.
2025 saw Jacory Croskey-Merritt skyrocket up draft boards once the Commanders traded Brian Robinson. He didn’t pay off as a 10th rounder selection, though a couple of spike weeks were much appreciated as an 18th round pick earlier in the summer. Daniel Jones was the QB to have in Indy, and he was putting up MVP type numbers before a torn Achilles prematurely ended his campaign. There were a couple of backup tight ends who had top 12 numbers in week 17: Michael Mayer for the Raiders and Jake Tonges for the 49ers. Both afterthoughts in drafts. Both worthy of championship spots in your starting lineups due to their counterpart missing time.
Now of course, I’m not always right (just most of the time). Steelers wide receiver Roman Wilson was a dud while the clear dart throw was Kenny Gainwell, who is hovering inside the top 110 this draft season after top 20 finish last go ’round. I foolishly believed Mack Hollins was the late round receiver to draft because “vibez” when the correct click was Kayshon Boutte. There were plenty of misses where hits were never attainable, because that’s simply the nature of scrolling the f*** down.
Its a new year. A new list. A new chance at bringing home a title. New names. Repeat names. League winning names you would never expect.
Note: The ADP cutoff is the first pick of the 17th round, which is pick 193.
Arizona Cardinals – RB Trey Benson, ADP 216; QB Carson Beck, ADP 215.4
*week 17 matchup – Las Vegas Raiders
Benson was looking like a steal when contests first opened up, going at the very end of drafts despite being the only runner on the roster. Since then his ADP peaked in the 130s, the team signed Tyler Allgeier, resigned James Conner, and drafted Jeremiah Love. Talk about a whirlwind of emotions for the Benson bag holders. Now the talk is having a rotation between Love, Allgeier, and Conner. Notable omission: Benson. Now, he needs a few things to happen in front of him to see the field, but the 2024 third round draft pick is still just 24 years old and has a career 4/9 YPC on 451 totes. For the record: I am not trusting James Conner at this stage in his career.
Beck was taken in the third round of the 2025 NFL draft, and is in a prime spot to fight for reps behind incumbent starter Jacoby Brissett and QB2 Garner Minshew. Beck has played winning football in college, leading his teams to a 37-6 record during his career from 2020-2025 including two national titles. Those wins didn’t come without production, as he led the SEC in passing yards with 3,941 in 2023. Last season with Miami, he threw a career high 30 passing touchdowns. That was good for a tie for sixth most. Maybe not the most polished prospect or a true long term solution, but he landed in a great spot to compete for the starting job, especially if the Cardinals are lifeless after Halloween. Would be a great time to see what they have in rookie when the money is on the line for us best ballers.
Atlanta Falcons – Jahan Dotson, ADP 215.9
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Hi I’m Anthony, and I’m just happy to be here. From late January through early September you’ll find me in the best ball lobbies of your favorite platforms while I share everything I can right here at SportsEthos. I fell in love with the game of football at five years old, and that passion hasn’t faded. As we get older, our physical abilities start to slowly decline and our bodies fall apart. Once I became an Achilles rupture survivor at the prime age of 32, I knew my playing days were all but over. Fantasy football became a way to still connect with the sport I grew up enjoying so much. Join me while I venture into the depths of this space and shamelessly talk ball on the internet.