NFL Best Ball Strategy: A Beginner’s Guide to Building Winning Tournament Teams

Over the last few seasons, Best Ball contests have exploded in popularity largely because they combine the strategy of fantasy football with the excitement of a season-long tournament. You draft your team, set no lineups, make no waiver claims, and simply watch your roster compete all season.

While, this seems simple, winning a large-field best ball tournament requires understanding roster construction, player correlation, playoff schedules, and how to build teams that can actually win when the money is on the line.

At Fantasy Theory Optimal, our goal is to find the edges that separate casual drafters from consistently competitive players. Let’s break down the basics.

🔍Understanding the Differences: DraftKings vs. Underdog

Before discussing strategy, it is important to understand that not all best ball formats are created equal. DraftKings and Underdog have some major differences that should impact how you build your roster.

DraftKings Best Ball Strategy

DraftKings uses a larger 20-player roster:

• Full PPR scoring

• Scoring also includes yardage milestone bonuses (100+ rushing yards, 100+ receiving yards, 300+ passing yards)

  
  

The larger roster size allows you to take more chances. Since you have more bench spots, you can afford to draft players who may start slowly but could become league winners later in the season. Moreover, the larger roster size on DK makes it easier to draft three quarterbacks, three tight ends, and to stockpile more high-upside running backs and wide receivers.

The yardage bonuses also create more value for players who accumulate massive volume. A 150-yard receiving game or a 100-yard rushing game can provide a significant advantage over touchdown-dependent players.

Underdog Best Ball Strategy

Underdog uses a smaller 18-player roster:

• Half-PPR scoring

• No yardage bonuses

  
  

Because rosters are smaller, every selection matters more. You cannot simply draft several players hoping one emerges.

Underdog scoring also increases the importance of touchdowns. Since receptions are only worth half a point, players who dominate red-zone opportunities become more valuable.

Our general Underdog approach is to still leave each draft with three quarterbacks, but we are less likely to draft three tight ends. Half-PPR scoring also justifies us prioritizing running backs slightly more than over on DK.

🗺️General Roster Construction Principles

While every draft is different, and presents a unique set of challenges, a few principles remain consistent:

Prioritize Ceiling Over Floor

In tournament formats, you are not trying to build the safest team. Your goal is to build a team capable of beating thousands of other entries.

As such, a player who could finish as the WR5 is often more valuable than a player who is guaranteed to finish as WR25.

Avoid Too Many Players Who Need Injuries

Handcuffs and backups have value, but do not overload your roster with players who require something bad to happen. The best roster construction usually contains a majority of players who can succeed on their own.

Do Not Ignore Late-Round Picks

The final rounds are where tournaments are won. Late-round picks should generally be players who have a clear path to increased opportunity, athletic upside, big-play ability, and/or potential to become a starter.

You are not drafting these players for Week 1. You are drafting them because they could completely change your roster by November.

The Importance of Stacking

One of the biggest edges in best ball tournaments is stacking. A "stack" means pairing players from the same offense, usually a quarterback with one or more pass catchers.

Examples:

• Patrick Mahomes + Rashee Rice

• Joe Burrow + Ja’Marr Chase

• Dak Prescott + CeeDee Lamb

Stacking works because fantasy football outcomes are not independent. When a quarterback has a massive fantasy week, his receivers often benefit.

Stacks increase your team’s ceiling, which is critical in large-field tournaments.

You do not need to force stacks, but they should be a major part of your draft strategy.

Fantasy Playoff Schedules Matter

In best ball, your goal is not simply to start fast. Your goal is to build a roster that can win in Weeks 15-17.

A player who starts slowly but has an elite playoff schedule can be more valuable than a player who dominates September but disappears when championships are won.

Fantasy playoff schedules matter so much that we broke it all down in a separate blog that you can find here.

Bring-Backs Create Even More Upside

Now that we understand the importance of the NFL schedule, we want to introduce the concept of a "bring-back" player.

In sum, if a game turns into a shootout, adding a player from an opposing team can help your roster benefits from multiple elite fantasy performances in the same game. This is especially valuable during the fantasy playoffs when one massive game can determine whether you advance.

🧠 Final Thoughts

Winning best ball tournaments requires balancing probability and upside. Profitable drafters understand player values based on the format (DK vs UD), stacking increases tournament-winning outcomes, playoff schedules matter, and late-round upside is essential to success.

👉 Remember: Best ball is not about building the team with the most predictable points. It is about building a roster with enough talent, correlation, and upside to peak at the exact moment when championships are won.

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