Shooting for Upside: Late Round Best Ball Targets

The NFL season is long. Depth charts before the season can and will evolve. Some young players will force their way into more opportunities because their talent becomes undeniable. Some players may lose playing time if they do not perform as the coaches would like. Offenses and teams will evolve. Players will get injured in this brutal sport. 

This ever-changing and evolving landscape should be top of mind when drafting best ball teams. Do not mail in your last four picks. Do not draft players strictly because they project to have a role in Week 1. Instead, draft for upside that can help you win a tournament four months from now.

Note: Washington running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt would get a mention, but he has been rocketing up draft boards lately.

Here are players who fit the bill with ADPs in the 15th round and beyond on Underdog:

Running Backs Targets

Sean Tucker - Tampa Bay Buccaneers

• My Rank: 155 overall
• ADP: 204 overall

Tampa Bay has solidified itself as one of the most respectable organizations over the past half-decade. Baker Mayfield has stabilized the offense. They ranked ninth in EPA/Play and fourth in Rush EPA/Play last season. This is a great offensive environment for a running back to thrive in. You'll find no Bucky Irving shade here. Irving is awesome. But there is room for another back to produce, as evidenced by Rachaad White's relevance last season.

Here's some good evidence for Sean Tucker, though. In Week 6 last season, White missed the game due to injury. Tucker shared the backfield with Bucky Irving. Irving had a solid game: 16 touches for 105 yards and 1 touchdown. But Tucker outproduced Irving. Tucker turned 17 touches into 192 total yards and 2 touchdowns. He's already shown us his elite upside, albeit in just a one-game sample, while sharing work with Irving.

Tucker is not a player who is coming out of nowhere. He was a talented dual-threat in college who only went undrafted due to being diagnosed with a rare congenital heart defect shortly before the draft. Tucker put up 1,751 total yards and 14 touchdowns as a sophomore and 1,308 total yards and 13 touchdowns as a junior. He caught 64 passes in three seasons. He posted a strong 38" vertical at his pro day. This is an unquestionably talented player who has multiple outs to elite upside compared to his low draft cost: He can beat out White for the number two role, or he can simply benefit from either Irving or White getting injured.

Will Shipley - Philadelphia Eagles

• My Rank: 175 overall
• ADP: 183 overall

The Eagles' offense and offensive line are an absolute unit. They ranked seventh in EPA/Play and second in Rush EPA/Play last season. Saquon Barkley is a workhorse, but Will Shipley's value can skyrocket if Barkley gets injured, and he can also benefit from getting playing time during blowouts.

Shipley has NFL size at 206 pounds and is an elite athlete. He ran a solid 4.45 40-yard dash, posted impressive jumps of 38.5" vertical and 10'2" broad, and clocked in good times of 4.1 shuttle and 6.88 3-cone. Shipley's athleticism shows up on film. He's shifty, elusive, and dynamic for a 206-pound running back. He's also a dual-threat who caught 69 passes over his last two collegiate seasons.

To give an idea of how much contingent value Shipley has: Should something happen to Saquon Barkley before the season, I would be ranking Shipley in the mid-third round of drafts.

Keaton Mitchell - Baltimore Ravens

• My Rank: 177 overall
• ADP: 186 overall

The Ravens have the best offense in the NFL. They ranked second in EPA/Play and third in Rush EPA/Play last year. Derrick Henry is an absolute legend, but he is 31 years old with a lot of mileage on his tires.

Keaton Mitchell flashed as a rookie in 2023 before suffering an injury that derailed his 2024 sophomore campaign. Mitchell is not only reportedly healthy now, but he's also garnered a lot of praise and buzz for having an outstanding training camp, according to beat writers and Derrick Henry himself.

Mitchell is extremely athletic. Two years ago, he ran a 4.37 40-yard dash and posted elite jumps of 38" vertical and 10'6" broad. He has extremely high contingent upside in the event that something happens to Henry. Justice Hill is a good NFL player who has the passing-down running back role locked up in this offense. But Mitchell would project to lead this elite rushing offense in carries without Henry.

Tahj Brooks - Cincinnati Bengals

• My Rank: 184 overall
• ADP: 202 overall

Zack Moss has been released, and Samaje Perine is an uninspiring third-down pass blocking and receiving running back at this stage of his career. Tahj Brooks has very high contingent upside should Chase Brown get injured.

Brooks has solid NFL size at 5-foot-9 and 214 pounds. He is a good athlete who posted elite shuttle (4.06) and 3-cone (6.9) times. He's the leading rusher in Texas Tech history, who amassed 4,557 rushing yards and 45 rush touchdowns in five seasons. He's a dual-threat who caught 102 passes over his collegiate career and a proven workhorse who turned 314 touches into 1,704 total yards and 18 touchdowns last season. Brooks was a team captain in both 2023 and 2024. He was a first-team Academic All-American.

DJ Giddens - Indianapolis Colts

• My Rank: 185 overall
• ADP: 211 overall

Giddens looks to have already locked up the RB2 role in Indianapolis. The contingent upside is very exciting, should something happen to Jonathan Taylor.

Giddens was a very good prospect who could've fallen to the fifth round in part due to the plethora of talented running backs available in the NFL draft. He has good NFL size at 6-foot-0 and 212 pounds, totaled 3,766 yards and 27 touchdowns in his three-year collegiate career, and is an elite athlete. Giddens ran a 4.43 40-yard dash and posted elite jumps of 39.5" vertical and 10'10" broad.

Giddens' collegiate film was awesome. He has shifty footwork and elite shake/shiftiness in the open field. There is a possibility that his talent becomes too much to ignore at some point during his rookie season, and he carves out about a 30% rushing share even without a Taylor injury.

Wide Receivers Targets