Allen To Stafford And All Points Between; Best-Ball QB Values: The Fantasy Notebook
By Bob Harris - Exclusive to Footballguys
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Welcome to the weekly Fantasy Notebook, the must-stop spot for keeping your finger on the pulse of Fantasy Nation. NFL news and developments drive fantasy values. The Notebook is here to keep you in the loop on all of it throughout the season.
Follow The Bouncing (Best) Ball
Best-ball season has officially kicked off -- and if you're anything like me, you're already in the draft fray.
The unknowns are daunting.
Even as free agency plays out, the moves made cause almost immediate shifts in ADP (Average Draft Position) as investors react and look to leverage change in nearly real-time. Meanwhile, we're drafting rookies without knowing their NFL destinations, and injuries will change anticipated roles and workloads across the board.
Yet here I am, running through the best-ball mean streets on Underdog and Best-Ball 10s with reckless abandon.
Why?
Just like I lift weights to build muscle in real life, I draft to develop those mental muscles.
It also helps me set initial baselines, test the values for my Footballguys Rankings, and compare how the collective sees player prices versus our initial Footballguys 2025 Draft Projections. By tracking how values shift and players' trajectories evolve, I can sharpen projections ahead of the more important drafts this summer.
Whether you're a year-round degenerate drafter like me, a serious player who likes to follow the minutiae as it plays out, or a casual fan interested in keeping a finger on the pulse at various points in time, these drafts and the information gleaned from them is useful.
Over the next month, I'll share some of this information with you by position.
Let's dive in . . .
Top Shelf to Bargain Basement: There's a QB for You
Gone are the days when waiting until the late rounds to draft a quarterback was a badge of honor. The position has evolved -- today's mobile, athletic QBs have changed the game. Taking one early? Totally justifiable. But value still exists later -- you just have to know where to look.
My approach? Load up on other positions until the board dries up. When nothing jumps out, that's when I pivot to quarterback.
The good news is there's almost always a passer with upside waiting. Let's start at the top and work our way down . . .
Premium Purchases: The Jackson-Allen Tier
We all love luxury purchases. We love them even more when they deliver on the price paid.
Consistent Excellence
Meanwhile, Josh Allen carried Buffalo in 2024 -- so much so that he edged Jackson to win NFL MVP.
The Bills rewarded him with a six-year, $330 million extension, including a record $250 million guaranteed -- surpassing Deshaun Watson's $230 million in Cleveland.
Despite trading Stefon Diggs to Houston and losing Gabe Davis, Allen delivered. He posted a career-low 8.3 yards per attempt (per Next Gen Stats) but led a more efficient attack.
Buffalo scored 30-plus points in 12 games -- tied for the second-most in NFL history (behind the 2013 Broncos).
Allen totaled 41 touchdowns: 28 passing, 12 rushing, and even one receiving. He became the only player in NFL history with 25-plus passing TDs, 10-plus rushing TDs, and a receiving score in a season.
He threw just six interceptions and took only 14 sacks -- both career-bests. The Bills became the first Super Bowl-era team with under 15 sacks allowed and fewer than 15 giveaways in a season.
Allen (five seasons) joins Rodgers (six) as the only QBs with 40-plus total TDs in five or more seasons . . .
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