Welcome to the Best Ball edition of Stokastic’s Top Stacks. Best Ball has taken over the community as a form of fantasy that requires no in-season management. Drafters selected 18 to 20 players filling roster requirements of a quarterback, two running backs, three wide receivers, a tight end and a flex, with the additional roster spots left for bench players. Each week, the various platforms optimize for top scorers at each position, removing the need for in-season management. Like DFS, stacking quarterbacks with additional receivers, tight ends and running backs can increase the overall scoring output of individual rosters. This piece will examine the projections and Underdog ADPs for each stack to see who ranks best in our FREE Best Ball stack rankings.
Best Ball Stack Rankings
Best Ball Stack Rankings – Early Rounds
Kansas City Chiefs
Patrick Mahomes – 47.6 ADP
Isiah Pacheco – 46.4
Rashee Rice – 83.6
Marquise Brown – 58
Xavier Worthy – 59.8
Justin Watson – 215.9
Travis Kelce – 37.5
The Chiefs are cheaper than some of the other elite stacks due to uncertainty at the wide receiver position, but they still provide elite upside. There are at least four stacking options among the pass catchers. Rashee Rice braces for a suspension but could be a value if that amounts to six games or less. Rice ranked 13th in yards per route as a rookie. Marquise Brown and rookie Xavier Worthy provide serious potential at wide receiver after Patrick Mahomes threw to Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Justin Watson last year.
Travis Kelce still showed some juice, ranking second among tight ends in yards per route at the position. Finally, Isiah Pacheco is criminally under-drafted after averaging 23.3 touches per game in Kansas City’s last four contests. The Chiefs let Jerick McKinnon walk in free agency, leaving only plodder Clyde Edwards-Helaire behind him.
Indianapolis Colts
Anthony Richardson – 55.9
Jonathan Taylor – 15.6
Michael Pittman – 31
Josh Downs – 134.9
Adonai Mitchell – 119.7
Jelani Woods – 213.7
Anthony Richardson finished 15th among all quarterbacks in fantasy production on the ground last year. That came in 12 quarters of football. He is still being drafted outside the top 50 due to his inexperience, but Richardson has elite upside on his own. He also has an alpha in Michael Pittman Jr., who recorded a 30.5% target share. The receiver room should also receive a boost from rookie Adonai Mitchell and second-year receiver Josh Downs. Both go outside the top 100 picks.
Freak athlete Jelani Woods missed all of last year with a hamstring injury. He has received early hype in minicamp, making him a worthwhile dart throw at the end of drafts. In the run game, Jonathan Taylor‘s main competition is Evan Hull and Trey Sermon, making Colts super-stacks viable across formats.
Dallas Cowboys
Dak Prescott – 89.9
Ezekiel Elliott – 128.7
Rico Dowdle – 141.3
CeeDee Lamb – 2
Brandin Cooks – 128.8
Jalen Tolbert – 200
Jake Ferguson – 85.3
Dallas’ refusal to spend in free agency leaves much to be desired among the skill position players. However, the team only lost Tony Pollard and Michael Gallup from its main contributors. After a career season, Dak Prescott still comes off the board in the sixth round or later with clear top pass catchers. CeeDee Lamb usually goes at No. 2 overall, but Jake Ferguson and Brandin Cooks are locked in at tight end and WR2.
Jalen Tolbert began to play over Gallup at the end of last year, making him an interesting WR3 dart throw in a high-powered offense. Most expect Ezekiel Elliott to lead a running back committee over Rico Dowdle, but neither goes inside the top 125 picks. For an offense expected to score often, the price of the Dallas game stack is cheap.
Best Ball Stack Rankings – Middle Rounds
Washington Commanders
Jayden Daniels – 103.9
Austin Ekeler – 116.8
Brian Robinson Jr. – 111
Terry McLaurin – 54.5
Jahan Dotson – 132.5
Luke McCaffrey – 178.8
Ben Sinnott – 156.5
Zach Ertz – 215.5
Jayden Daniels profiles as a player who could break fantasy. However, his status as a rookie has him coming off the board outside the top 100. In his final year at LSU, Daniels completed 72.2% of his passes for 11.7 yards per attempt, 40 touchdowns and four interceptions. He also averaged 8.4 yards per attempt on the ground for 1,134 yards and another 10 touchdowns.
Among Commanders receivers, only Terry McLaurin comes off the board inside the top 100. Further down the board, Jahan Dotson functions as the WR2, while third-round rookie Luke McCaffrey faces little competition to lock down the WR3 role. At tight end, Washington drafted Ben Sinnott at pick 53, but Zach Ertz‘s presence on the roster could impede him to strong production. Running back Austin Ekeler is a bounce-back candidate after an early-season ankle sprain depressed the ability that made him a consensus first-round pick in 2023.
Green Bay Packers
Jordan Love – 91
Josh Jacobs – 41.9
Marshawn Lloyd – 143.9
Jayden Reed – 57.9
Christian Watson – 81.1
Romeo Dobbs – 110
Dontayvion Wicks – 130.5
Luke Musgrave – 154.6
Tucker Kraft – 208.1
Jordan Love finished with a top-10 adjusted yards per attempt of 7.4 but excelled beyond that in the latter half of 2023. More impressively, he did so with Christian Watson banged up. Watson now returns from a hamstring injury, providing additional firepower. However, his return also leads to uncertainty at receiver.
In his absence, Jayden Reed, Dontayvion Wicks, Romeo Doubs and Bo Melton proved productive. Tight end presents a similar conundrum with Tucker Kraft playing well after a Luke Musgrave injury. While this leads to uncertainty, it also leads to lower ADPs. Those guessing correctly on the Green Bay stack could be paid off in a major way at the end of the year.
At running back, the Packers moved on from Aaron Jones, signing Josh Jacobs and drafting MarShawn Lloyd. There is some threat to Lloyd taking pass-game work from Jacobs, but that is already priced into their ADPs. Remember, Matt LaFleur once gave Dion Lewis 155 carries and Derrick Henry 215 in a season where Henry stayed healthy.
Cleveland Browns
Deshaun Watson – 163.7
Nick Chubb – 115.1
Jerome Ford – 135.5
Amari Cooper – 47.0
Jerry Jeudy – 127.2
Elijah Moore – 212
David Njoku – 98.3
There’s no way around it: Deshaun Watson has been a bottom-5 starting quarterback since his return from suspension. He has 8.0 adjusted yards per attempt over his career but marks of 6.0 and 6.3 in his two shortened seasons with Cleveland. We tentatively expect some positive regression, but Watson also has had some success on the ground. He posted three straight seasons of at least 495 rushing yards in his last appearances as a full-time starter.
Amari Cooper should be the alpha receiver after ranking 13th in yards per route last year. David Njoku also emerged as an elite option, ranking fifth in yards per route among tight ends. Of slight concern is that most of that production came with Joe Flacco. Behind those two, Cleveland added Jerry Jeudy to presumably play ahead of Elijah Moore as the WR2. Jeudy is one year removed from an efficient 2.08 yards per route in 2022 before Russell Wilson tanked Denver’s offense in 2023. Moore ranked last among all receivers with at least 100 targets in yards per route, but he faces little competition as the WR3.
Nick Chubb looks like a candidate for PUP after a Week 2 knee reconstruction. This leaves Jerome Ford as a potential feature back early in the year. Chubb’s inevitable return muddles this situation for the most important weeks of the year, but cheap prices at the running back position make Cleveland super-stacks easy to acquire.
Best Ball Stack Rankings – Late Rounds
Tennessee Titans
Will Levis – 182.1
Tony Pollard – 95.1
Tyjae Spears – 117.4
DeAndre Hopkin – 79.9
Calvin Ridley – 64.1
Tyler Boyd – 206.8
Treylon Burks – 215.5
Chig Okonkwo – 195.3
Tennessee’s offense should look different under new head coach Brian Callahan. Last year, the Titans passed the ball at one of the lowest rates (55%). Second-year quarterback Will Levis has the starting job with legitimate pass catchers in the form of DeAndre Hopkins and Calvin Ridley. As a rookie, Levis showed promise with 7.1 yards per attempt in a horrific situation. Veteran Tyler Boyd looks most likely to man the slot, but second-year receiver Treylon Burks is an interesting dart in the final rounds. Chig Okonkwo played 66% of the snaps last year and faces little competition for those looking to add on a late-round pairing with Levis.
In the run game, Tony Pollard and Tyjae Spears project to share the load, but both come off the board outside the top 95 picks.
Denver Broncos
Bo Nix – 209.6
Javonte Williams – 105.6
Courtland Sutton – 97.5
Marvin Mims Jr. – 169.6
Troy Franklin – 162.1
Greg Dulcich – 212.4
The top feature of the Denver Broncos stack is the cheap prices. Sean Payton has not disguised his desire to run the ball, but a 5.5 win total points to a pass-heavier approach. The Broncos spent a first-round pick on Oregon rookie Bo Nix, who will compete with Jarrett Stidham and Zach Wilson. This should give Nix a solid chance to start Day 1 and the entire regular season.
Almost every major pass catcher has an ADP outside the top 100 except Courtland Sutton at 97.5. Marvin Mims Jr. should operate as the WR2 after playing 38.3% of the snaps as a rookie. Beyond him, there is uncertainty at WR3 and tight end. Josh Reynolds came over via free agency. The Broncos selected Troy Franklin in the fourth round. Tim Patrick returns from a torn Achilles. Incumbents Lil’Jordan Humphrey and Brandon Johnson each played 44.5% and 48.7% of the snaps.
Tight end Lucas Krull emerged at the end of 2023, but Greg Dulcich also returns from injury. There is a chance Javonte Williams will come off the board too late in his second year removed from a season-ending knee injury. The backfield is crowded, but Williams previously showed features back potential. The overall uncertainty provides valuable stacking pieces, but even the premier Broncos stacks come with a dirt-cheap price tag and decent projection.
