Best Ball: Late Round Fliers

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  • Last Updated on July 1, 2025 12:03 pm by Jon Mosales | Published: July 1, 2025

    Its the 17th, 18th round and your team is pretty much set. You’re looking for one or two last fliers to hopefully make even a small impact. The biggest question is, how do you maximize your personal Mr. Irrelevant? Stacking is such a big part of best ball, even more so than any other format of fantasy football. There’s also an edge in having low rostered players heading into the post season, giving yourself a potential x-factor. I’m here to tell you that correlating your final selection with one of your QBs might just be the advantage we really need. Rest assured, I’ve done the heavy lifting and will present to you 32+ last round selections, one per team. Now listen, most of these guys are not going to hit.. that’s why they are all but free in drafts. There may be an edge to be had by stacking one more player with your QB, or making a leverage play with week 17 correlation on a low rostered player. Think about if you tacked Jauan Jennings onto your San Francisco builds.. sheeeeeeesh. Same goes for Alexander Mattison with the Raiders and Alec Pierce with the Colts. Now imagine you did the same with Puka Nacua and/or Kyren Williams with the Rams, Tank Dell with the Texans, or even adding Trey McBride stack with Kyler Murray and the Cards in 2023. That’s the hidden, undrafted, and unnoticed upside that we can look to add and make ourselves look “sharp” or whatever.

    The 17th round starts with pick 193, so that’s the ADP threshold I’ll be using for this article. More times than not I’ll try and highlight a player in the 18th round, or ADP 205 plus. Some teams have more depth, meaning their corresponding flier may be more enticing than another teams. I’ll provide a priority ranking of either low, medium, or high to go with each pick to assist with, well… prioritizing your dart throws accordingly. ADP’s may slightly vary as they are ever changing, day by day, hour by hour, draft by draft.

    Arizona Cardinals: WR Zay Jones (216, WR155)

    Zay Jones is three years removed from having over 120 targets, so there is a history of Jones handling significant volume. During the at 2022 season, Jones was second on the Jaguars in targets (121), receptions (82), yards (823), and receiving touchdowns (5). The past two seasons have been affected by injury and a suspension to start the year in 2024 after joining a new team. His primary competition for WR3 on the team is Greg Dortch, who’s best season (also 2022), only produced slightly more than half Jones’s best (with the exception of touchdowns (7)). Presumed WR2 Michael Wilson hasn’t been very productive in his first two NFL seasons, but age and expectations at the respective point they are at in their careers has us believing that Wilson will win the job. I’m not saying I love Zay Jones or anything, but what if he emerges as the third option in this passing offense behind Marvin Harrison Jr. and Trey McBride?

    Week 17: Cincinnati Bengals Priority: Low

    Atlanta Falcons: WR Ray-Ray McCloud (213.8, WR91)

    The Falcons decided to stand pat with their offensive weapons, meaning McCloud has another chance to build on what was a fun 2024 season for him. He saw career highs in targets (87), receptions (62), and yards (686). There is a path for the eight year veteran to finish third on the team in terms of targets. He already beat running back Bijan Robinson last season in all major receiving categories (tied with one touchdown), as well as the much maligned tight end Kyle Pitts (who’s four touchdowns were the lone stat he surpassed McCloud in). While the Falcons only threw the ball 32 times a game last year, in Penix’s three starts to end the season, they surpassed 35 pass attempts in two of these contests (35, 38). It’s not out of the realm of possibility the team pushes closer to that 35+ number more often, meaning there’s could be plenty of production to go around on an offense I expect to take a leap.

    Week 17: Los Angeles Rams Priority: High

    Baltimore Ravens: RB Keaton Mitchell (208.9, RB65)

    Oh boy, what to say about Keaton Mitchell. Entering his third year in the pros, the 2023 UDFA says he feels 100% after his ACL tear. This would be terrific news seeing as he averaged a whopping 8.4 yards per carry in the eight games he played his rookie season. The Ravens didn’t add a running back in the draft, so Justice Hill remains the top competition for RB2 being Derrick Henry. Hill has been fine, but lacks the upside Mitchell displayed when given the chance. There’s no doubt Henry is going to dominate the touches out of the backfield, but he’s not a great pass catchers, and that’s something that Mitchell has proven capable of. Teams love to get speedsters out in space, and Mitchell’s 4.37 40 time qualifies him as one of those guys. This should bode well for when Baltimore plays from behind and Henry is game scripted out.

    Week 17: Green Bay Packers Priority: High

    Buffalo Bills: RB Ty Johnson (215.7, RB78)

    Will James Cook hold out? Will he be traded? Sign an extension? Despite reports that he showed up for some off-season work, there’s still a lot of uncertainty surrounding the situation. The Bills showed last season they weren’t afraid to use Ty Johnson, especially in two minute drills and obvious passing and third down situations. While he’s third on the teams depth chart behind Cook and Ray Davis, he did have two double-digit point performances last season – showcasing an ability to be productive with just a handful of opportunities. One of those games saw him find the end zone through the air, while Johnson’s 100+ receiving yards in the other was the path to production. With the aforementioned uncertainty surrounding the top of the depth chart, Johnson may be a good leverage play with a relatively clear path to more opportunity.

    Week 17: Philadelphia Eagles Priority: Low

    Carolina Panthers: TE Ja’Tavion Sanders (202.9, TE28), Jalen Coker (204.7, WR83), RB Trevor Etienne (215.9, RB82)

    We’ve got a nice little three pack for the Panthers here, allowing you some flexibility pending your roster construction. Don’t be afraid to take two of these guy’s in the 17th and 18th round either. Carolina is a friendly back-stackable team thanks in large part to these three, plus 15th round RB Rico Dowdle (shout-out to my highest exposure player). Sanders and Coker are both entering their second year with a viable path to a top 2-3 target share behind the presumed leader in the clubhouse, rookie Tetairoa McMillan. There wasn’t a whole lot to like from Sanders in his rookie season, scoring just one touchdown and topping out at 87 yards and only one other game above 50 yards to add to it, but his position volatility and the fact that tight ends can take longer to develop make him a really interesting choice in your 3 TE builds, or as a second fiddle if you took an elite one early. Coker found a bit more success, ranking 16th in yards per catch at 14.9, putting him just above guys like Justin Jefferson, Brian Thomas Jr., and Ladd McConkey. Everything about the Panthers passing offense was largely bad last season but there were some improvements from the team down the stretch, leading to some optimism heading into the upcoming season. Now when it comes to the younger of the Etienne brothers, Trevor find himself in an interesting position. He’s likely a better dynasty pick than banking on any 2025 production, but the Panthers were a run heavy team last season and I don’t see that changing. With second year player Jonathon Brooks set to miss the entire season after re-tearing his ACL, Etienne is one unfortunate event away from climbing the depth chart.

    Week 17: Seattle Seahawks Priority: Ja’Tavion Sander – High; Jalen Coker – Medium/High; Trevor Etienne – Low

    Chicago Bears: TE Cole Kmet (214.8, TE36)

    After the Bears selected TE Colston Loveland at 10th overall, Kmet’s ADP, and perceived fantasy value, has plummeted. I’m here to tell you that Kmet is still a viable option in the last round of your best ball drafts. He’s had some serious spike weeks over the past three seasons, with five games over 20 plus points. Add another one if you want to include a 19.5 point finish. We’ve seen what Ben Johnson’s offense did for Sam LaPorta, who immediately turned into a top fantasy tight end. With Loveland already recovering from shoulder surgery entering his first season, Kmet may have a window of opportunity to stave off his rookie competitor should Loveland miss some time this offseason to fully recover. We already noted it takes rookie TE’s time to adjust to life in the NFL, so Kmet could start off hot and provide some spike weeks early before the rookie starts to really eat into his opportunities.

    Week 17: San Francisco 49ers Priority: Medium


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    July 1, 2025, 11:36 am