Five Un-Sexy Favourites in 2026 Best Ball Drafts

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Hey folks, I hope everyone is continuing to enjoy their hot best ball summer. While I was on vacation I wrote up two pieces on the Best Ball Economy and how it impacts the structure of teams I’m drafting. Over the next month or so I’ll be turning from that broader perspective on the best ball market toward more specific player-level analysis. The impetus for today’s specific column was a moment on an episode of ADP Chasing from two weeks ago in which I revealed my 42% exposure to Rachaad White, to which Davis Mattek reacted as though I’d casually admitted to having moved permanently to Neptune. It made me realize that while some of my most drafted players in best ball are rookies (KC Concepcion) or second-year players (Colston Loveland) I’ve written about plenty this off-season, or long-time Thinking About Thinking favourites (Jayden Reed, Josh Downs), some of my top targets might be less obvious unless you’re actively using my best ball rankings . In this article I wanted to pound the table for five under-the-radar players I’ve been drafting well above market this off-season. Tee Higgins (WR) — CIN UNDERDOG ADP: 34.7 — TAT RANKING: 29 What if the secret to best ball is as simple as drafting Tee Higgins in even years? Back in 2020, Higgins was one of the highest upside picks in the final rounds as a rookie. After two strong seasons in 2021 and 2022, Higgins crept up to the Round 2-3 turn in 2023 and had his worst season. However, he bounced back as a Round 4 pick in 2024 followed by another disappointing result as a 2nd-round selection last year. Back at the Round 3-4 turn in 2026, Higgins offers an excellent combination of floor and ceiling — even in a range with several other intriguing wide receivers. I often focus per-route stats when making the case for or against wide receivers and I’ll freely admit that Higgins tends not to look as strong as most receivers in his value range from that lens. He’s coming off a career low 1.62 YPRR and peaked at 2.18 in 2024. His TPRR typically lives within a 1-2 point radius of 0.20 — strong for a high-ADOT number two receiver but a ways off from the true elites or even players like Zay Flowers and Garrett Wilson — each of whom I’m also above market on and who are drafted in a similar range to Higgins this season. However, per-route data only tells part of the story (as Ben Gretch, Jacob Gibbs and I discussed at length on a recent episode of Beyond the Box Score). One player who notably looks worse in per-route data compared to his annual ADP is Higgins’ teammate — Ja’Marr Chase. However, I don’t think anyone seriously believes this means Chase isn’t one of the best wide receivers in the NFL. Per-route target earning is inversely correlated to route and drop-back volume and as full-time players on the league’s pass-happiest team, Chase and Higgins are the most consistent victims of this effect. In the past I failed to consistently recognize this and under-rated the degree to which Mike Evans could still dominate as a target earner after seeing his TPRR fall dramatically during the Tom Brady era. When Baker Mayfield became the starter in 2023 the team’s passing volume fell back toward the middle of the league but Evans made up for it by earning targets at a much higher rate. Per-route stats are a helpful talent indicator but you don’t earn fantasy points for them. While the Bengals’ drop-back volume won’t always help Higgins on the spreadsheet, it absolutely helps him compile raw production and fan…