As we enter the offseason, there’s a new format that’s emerged over the last couple of seasons which has caught the attention of many. In fact, it’s the preferred way to play for a lot of fantasy football enthusiasts. Best Ball.
Between DRAFT, Fanball (BestBall10s) and a few other established sites, there’s plenty of variety and fun to be had. Lobbies are open, ADPs have been created, and values have emerged. The goal of this article is to identify players that are currently undervalued (or overvalued) and will provide depth in the later rounds of best ball drafts.
It’s time to prepare for the rookies to enter the player pool. While some of you have already been dealing with rookies in BestBall10s, real ADPs on first year players should begin to solidify after the combine and create themselves on DRAFT. Pre-combine data is worthless at this stage, but let’s take a look at four rookies who should be valuable in year one of their careers.
ROOKIES
N’KEAL HARRY (WR)
Harry is primed to become a first-round pick after answering athletic concerns swiftly. Harry came into the combine with serious questions revolving around his speed but answered them quickly with his forty-yard dash time (4.53). Considering Harry’s size (228 pounds), he ended up posting an 89th percentile speed score, which is upper tier, directly opposing his perception. With the speed concern set aside, Harry is one of the best ball-skill based prospects to come along this decade. Harry was a dominant presence at Arizona State from the second he stepped onto campus his Freshman season, accumulating 3,033 yards from scrimmage in his career, along with one punt return touchdown. His blend of size and natural skills sets him apart, and at his ceiling, has a Dez Bryant type vibe to his style. While it’s still unknown what team Harry will land on (Hopefully not the Ravens), securing a first-round draft slot will almost guarantee him year one production. For DRAFT drafts, when Harry enters the field it’s reasonable to value him as a round five to seven VALUE. If it gets beyond Doug Baldwin, Alshon Jeffery, and Tyler Lockett, Harry is a great pick and someone to get high exposure to.
PARRIS CAMPBELL (WR)
Despite posting elite athletic testing, Campbell could still be the best kept secret in the 2019 class. Despite being a productive player (90 receptions, 1063 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns) in his final season at Ohio State, Campbell didn’t garner much hype. The 6-foot-1 and 205-pound speed receiver was viewed (and potentially still is) as a prospect with a limited skill set. Campbell tested out as an elite athlete, posting a 4.31 forty-yard dash (96th percentile speed score), 40 inch vertical and a 135-inch broad jump (seventh highest since 2006). Campbell’s production growth was stunted early on in his career (blame Michael Thomas and Curtis Samuel), but flourished (led Ohio State in receiving yards in his final two seasons) when given an opportunity. Considering the elite athletic testing, Campbell solidified top two round status, and even left open a chance to jump into late round one. Considering his projected draft position, athletic testing and final two seasons at Ohio State, Campbell has a serious chance at producing in year one for a very reasonable price.
KYLER MURRAY (QB)
While drafting quarterback in fantasy football has become a mundane process over the last five seasons, Murray brings a lot of upside to the table as a future top ten selection. Murray was a dominant player at Oklahoma in 2018, and it’s very likely the team that drafts him will mimic a lot of what he had success with there. Murray completed 69 percent of his passing attempts in 2018, accumulating 4,361 passing yards and 42 touchdowns through the air. There was also a casual 1,001 rushing yards and 12 rushing touchdowns. Murray measuring above 5-foot-10 at the combine sounds silly to value, but it’s one more factor in solidifying his stock as a top ten selection. While it’s in a very different fashion, Murray is similar to 2018 rookie QB Josh Allen in that he has an incredibly high fantasy floor if he earns the starting gig. Quarterbacks who can run have been a no-so-secret weapon for years, and Murray will be the latest version of that. Considering how many quarterback-needy teams there are, Murray has a high probability of going to a team that will start him in 2019, which makes him a great gamble as a third QB in best ball formats. It’s tough to tell where he’ll land when Murray enters the DRAFT pool, but barring him being a top 10 round selection, he’s worth a solid portion of a best ball portfolio.
A.J. BROWN (WR)
Much like N’Keal Harry, Brown came into the combine with some athleticism concerns, and snuffed out those ideas quickly. Brown is built like a brick house, weighing 226 pounds at only 6 feet tall. Brown ran a 4.49 forty-yard dash at the combine, which also qualified as an 89th percentile speed score, like Harry. Brown also posted solid results in the vertical (36.5 inches) and Broad Jump (120.0), fully negating any other potential athleticism concerns. Anyhow, what the combine also did (medicals and interviews checked out well), is guarantee Brown is a top two round selection. Regardless of where he goes in those two rounds, he’ll likely be provided with early opportunity at production, and will have a good probability at being a year one producer. Brown had a strong production profile at Mississippi, producing back-to-back seasons with 1,200 receiving yards. Brown is only the second WR from an SEC school to do this since 2000 (Jordan Matthews the other). Brown has an all-purpose skill set that should instantly translate to the NFL. If Brown is available in round eight or lower, he’s a solid selection and could bring huge returns. He’ s worth getting high exposure to at this time.
