Fantasy Football Best Ball Draft Strategy From Pick 10: Week 8 Bye Week Blues

When starting any fantasy football draft from a late position, there tends to be a narrow range of starting options. Once your first two players are rostered, a drafter can begin to make plans on how he wants to develop his roster if he is in tune with the player flow at that site.

My second venture into a DraftKings BestBall event (I mean, I can win second place as well – another million) landed me in the 10th draft slot. The back end of the draft offers many excellent choices. My goal was to draft two wide receivers or pair Ashton Jeanty with the best available wideout.

1.10 Ashton Jeanty (RB), Las Vegas Raiders

I view him as a do-or-die player. I expect him to be an excellent investment with a workhorse opportunity, but I’m not chasing his handcuff at any point in the draft. I have him as my breakout running back of the year, requiring him to deliver stats supporting a top-three fantasy draft selection in 2026.

2.3 Brian Thomas (WR), Jacksonville Jaguars

This is the first draft that I was able to pair Jeanty with Brian Thomas, and I was thrilled to see Team 11 and 12 select Drake London and Derrick Henry in front of him.

Once I have Thomas enfold, I start thinking about a Jaguars secondary wide receiver stack. My next thought is I’d like to take a run at Jayden Daniels, Terry McLaurin, and Deebo Samuel, which would be very executable if the Commanders’ quarterback slides to me in the third round.

3.10 Marvin Harrison (WR), Arizona Cardinals

Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. (18) against the New England Patriots at State Farm Stadium. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Team 8 decided to double up at quarterback (Josh Allen and Jayden Daniels), dashing my Washington QB/WR stack idea before it was even started. This drafter also picked up Patrick Mahomes in the seventh round.

By drafting Harrison, I expect him to score more touchdowns, and his catches and receiving yards should have natural growth this year. I also wanted to develop a yellow brick road roster (wide receiver heaving team).

4.3 Davante Adams (WR), Los Angeles Rams

I love the start of my team. I have a foundation RB1, with three talented wide receivers who have a chance to score 10 or more touchdowns. The Rams featured their wide receivers more than any other team in 2024, and they project to have the same offensive structure this season.

My next draft thought is: Can I stack Harrison with Kyler Murray? As soon as I click on my roster to view the bye weeks, I see a train wreck coming in Week 8. All of my first four picks are off that week. Now, I want to add Travis Hunter and Trevor Lawrence, bringing my plan to 30% of my roster having the same bye. Targeting Murray would force me to draft a third quarterback.

5.10 Breece Hall (RB), New York Jets

Based on DraftKings’ ADPs, I expect to select D’Andre Swift in the fifth round. This group of drafters pushed up the wide receivers (6) over the first nine picks in the fifth round, allowing Hall to slide well past his expected draft value. He brings a pass-catching foundation skill set that helps his consistency floor. Best of all, he has bye Week 9.

6.3 Travis Hunter (WR), Jacksonville Jaguars

A plan is a plan, so screw bye Week 8 – Hunter is my breakout player of the year, and he fits my initial draft plan. His talent is immense, and the Jaguars should give him plenty of chances this year.

7.10 Keon Coleman (WR), Buffalo Bills

I felt I was almost forced to add another wide receiver to help build some decent options to fill the void in my lineup for Week 8. Coleman has become a target for me over the past week, highlighted by him being my sleeper of the year.

8.3 Michael Pittman (WR), Indianapolis Colts

I was all set to take my first flier on Jordan Addison, as my wide receiver structure would be able to absorb his missed three games, and he has a bye in Week 6. My next top wide receiver on the board was Cooper Kupp, but he had the dreaded bye in Week 8. Pittman brings a high floor profile, and he should be an excellent value based on his ADP.

At this point in the draft, I’ve put myself behind the draft curve at quarterback, running back, and tight end. Team 8 drafting three quarterbacks most likely forced a quarterback run in the ninth round (six selected). In addition, if I don’t draft two tight ends over the next five rounds, I’ll be chasing the backend of that position for the remainder of the draft.

9.10 Travis Etienne (RB), Jacksonville Jaguars

At this point in the draft, I have to take the best available running back who I have a chance to handcuff. Etienne was a top-three back a couple of years ago, and Shawn Childs had high hopes for him when he came into the NFL. On the positive side, he was part of my best fantasy day in the DFS market ($250,000).

For the record, I would have taken Kyler Murray if he had been available to me.

10.3 Trevor Lawrence (QB), Jacksonville Jaguars

I painted myself in a corner at quarterback, which wasn’t helped by the draft flow. Ideally, Lawrence should have been my QB2, but my quest to solve my bye Week 8 issue at wide receiver led me to having a much weaker structure at quarterback. On the positive side, I have a potential explosive stack.

11.10 Kyle Pitts (TE), Atlanta Falcons

I desperately wanted J.J. McCarthy to slide to me in the 11th round. Once this group of drafts wiped out the top quarterback inventory, they moved on to the tight end position, as expected. I don’t have Pitts in many BestBall leagues this year, despite him falling into the upside TE2 category. He was sitting in the top two in the queue at his position when I was on the clock. The Falcons should get him more involved this year, with Darnell Mooney expected to miss some games.

12.3 Austin Ekeler (RB), Washington Commanders

The last viable quarterback for me to draft was Bryce Young, who was selected one pick before me. Dalton Kincaid was the clear drop-off at tight end. I still had a running back bye Week 8 issue (Jeanty and Etienne). I decided to wait on the quarterback position, with a plan of drafting two more. My pivot at tight end was now Pat Freiermuth.

Trey Bensen is my upside swing at running back this year, but he has a bye in Week 8. Austin Ekeler was the best play, and he still looks to be a free square based on his three-down ability. By rostering him, I wanted to target Chris Rodriguez later in the draft.

13.10 Bhayshul Tuten (RB), Jacksonville Jaguars

Since my last pick, three more quarterbacks have left the building, leaving me with the have-nots as my top choices. Team 8 drafted like a drunken sailor at the tight end position (five players), changing the dynamics of that position as well.

Tuten gave me another piece of Jacksonville’s backfield, but my seventh player with a vacation in Week 8. He brings plenty of upside, but the Jaguars have three running back horses to decide between.

14.3 Aaron Rodgers (QB), Pittsburgh Steelers

As bad as Rodgers looks to the fantasy market, he ranked 13th at quarterback last year while not playing up to his potential. I had to take him before his ADP based on team need. If I can draft Pat Freiermuth, I would have a mini Steelers’ passing stack, and I also know Roman Wilson is an easy add later in the draft in this format.

15.10 Daniel Jones (QB), Indianapolis Colts

My weakness at quarterback forced me to take a gamble on Jones, who may not have a job midseason. His ability to run helps his floor, and the Colts have four viable receiving options. By adding him, I’ll pair Jones with Michael Pittman.

16.3 Chris Rodriguez (RB), Washington Commanders

My deep sleeper of the year was set up to be drafted this round, but Rodriguez was sitting at the top of the running back queue. I wanted to secure him with my earlier addition of Austin Ekeler. Pat Freiermuth went off the board two picks before me, well ahead of his DraftKings’ ADP.

17.10 Dalton Schultz (TE), Houston Texans

Coming into this turn, I figured I needed to draft two tight ends. My first choice was Darren Waller (not a 2025 fantasy fan), as he fell into the best available category. He came off the board one pick before me. Schultz underperformed expectations last year, which was surprising considering some of the Texans’ wide receiver injuries should have led to more targets. He was a helpful second tight end with the Cowboys.

18.3 Roman Wilson (WR), Pittsburgh Steelers

Based on the remaining receiving options, Wilson was the only player I liked left in the player pool. I look forward to seeing how he develops this year. He missed all of his rookie season, putting him out of sight for most fantasy drafters. Wilson is a home run-hitting type of wide receiver.

19.10 Jalin Hyatt (WR), New York Giants

Hyatt has the talent to be a much more valuable fantasy asset, but he goes undrafted in most BestBall leagues. In the offseason, Hyatt worked on getting stronger, and he projects to have the second-highest ceiling at wide receiver on the Giants roster if allowed to prove himself.

20.3 Ben Sinnott (TE), Washington Commanders

For a drafter looking to be on an island at tight end, Sinnott could be that guy. The Commanders drafted him in the second round in 2024 after trending higher in his final season at Kansas State (49/676/6). Zach Ertz played great last season, but he’ll turn 35 in November. I was deciding between Sinnott and Harold Fannin (drafted one pick before me).

Week 8 Bye Week Blues

The last 12 rounds of this draft kept me on my toes. I’ve watched many teams draft wide receivers strong teams, but I haven’t paid close enough attention to see how they finish their rosters. Bye Week 8 would be easier to negotiate in a league with waiver moves. In this format, I didn’t feel comfortable taking a sub-100.00 fantasy point score, but that falls on my “draft on the fly” approach. Next time, I’ll be more aware of the pitfalls of six teams (DET, LV, LAR, ARI, SEA, and JAC) having the eighth week of the season off.