Underdog Postseason Best Ball Tournament Picks: Lions, Chargers, Rams & More

As we head toward the start of the postseason, the best ball scene is once again heating up. Underdog has playoff tournaments ready to go and drafts that will stay open until just before kickoff on the first game.

Both the Gauntlet ($25 entry and $2 million prize pool) and the Mitten ($5 entry and $500,000 prize pool) are running drafts as we speak.

Matt LaMarca did a fantastic breakdown of how to approach the Underdog playoff best ball events from a strategic perspective yesterday. So today I’m going to dive into specific player and teams to target and offer a few more specific ways to approach these drafts.

One thing is for sure, with some of these contests attracting over 100,000 entrants, it will be smart to think outside the box so you do not just draft with the crowd every time.

Before we start, a quick reminder about format. The lineup for Underdog’s playoff best ball contests is as follows:

QB
RB
WR/TE
WR/TE
Flex
5 bench spots

Additionally, the playoff best ball events have four rounds:

Round 1 – Wild Card Round
Round 2 – Divisional Playoff
Round 3 – Conference Championships
Round 4 – Super Bowl

Each contest will have different round-by-round requirements, but you’ll need a high finish (or to win your group) to advance to the next round. To sum things up, we need upside and to take some chances while also building smartly from a playoff bracket perspective.

Here are some of my favorite targets, starting with two ways to stack the No. 1-seeded teams.

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Underdog Best Ball Tournament Picks: Playoff Best Ball Stacks

Lions + Chargers

As LaMarca noted in his best ball playoff primer, both of the No. 1 seeds have great shots of advancing into the Super Bowl, and I’ve included the current betting odds table from his article to exemplify that fact.

While the Lions will be on a bye for Week 1, you can still stack them on your bench and draft around them with your starting spots. This decreases your chances of winning Round 1, but your odds of winning in the future rounds go up significantly with Lions players in your pocket.

And if I’m targeting the Lions, I love taking them with the idea of stacking the Chargers for Round 1 alongside them. Los Angeles is a 3-point favorite in the Wild Card Round against the Texans and will be playing in a dome. If they advance, they’ll take on the Chiefs in Round 2.

Since we’re targeting the Lions with our stack, we won’t have room for Chiefs and are far better off drafting against them in that scenario. If the Chargers do manage to knock off the Chiefs, all of the teams who drafted Mahomes, Kelce, et al. will instantly become useless and we’ll gain huge leverage on the field.

The Chargers are also an ideal target because they have familiarity with the Chiefs (divisional rival) and have a QB in Justin Herbert who will be easy to grab in the lower rounds.

Building contrarian stacks with Herbert likely will be easier as well. Ladd McConkey is a must, but names like Will Dissley and DJ Chark can really set us apart if we’re loading up on Chargers. And they can be had easily at the end of most drafts.

As for how to play the Lions, it’s a bit of a pick your poison scenario. You could certainly differentiate by avoiding Amon Ra St. Brown for Sam LaPorta, whose TE designation will likely make him a lessor drafted play for people chasing Lions.

However, I also like the idea of going after a Kalif Raymond or Tim Patrick late, both of whom could deliver big days on one or two targets and shift the balance in the final couple of rounds, where you’re likely to be up against hundreds of lineups.

Chiefs + Rams

If I’m targeting Chiefs stacks on my bench for Round 1, then I love the idea of stacking them with the Rams.

If Sean McVay's crew can beat the Vikings, they will play their first two games in a dome and will be up against the Lions in the Divisional Round. That means Rams stacks won’t just have the chance to return some huge value, but they’ll also provide massive leverage vs. the drafters who went heavy on Detroit.

The Rams have a very condensed offense, so it will be harder to grab their top players like Puka Nucau and Kyren Williams. However, the Chiefs are also not likely going to be as popular as some of the Lions' big stars in many drafts, which will make them easier and cheaper to stack.

Skipping the traditional Mahomes/Kelce stack for Mahomes/Worthy or Mahomes/Brown can also help us save draft capital that we can spend on Rams. The Chiefs have been running a time share at RB with Kareem Hunt and Isiah Pacheco, and while Pacheco is the younger more explosive back, Hunt has been reliable in the red zone for KC this season and could easily outperform over the short term.

The Rams also have big-play options like DeMarcus Robinson and Tutu Atwell you could slide in on your last picks to ensure you are differentiated for the final round, should things break your way.

Underdog Best Ball Tournament Picks: Differentiators and Leverage Plays

QBs:

Justin Herbert

I mentioned Herbert already, but he’s one of my overall favorite GPP plays among the mid-tier QBs. He’s not as consistent as Allen or Jackson from a prduction standpoint, but his rushing upside has taken a huge leap this season, and his last two games produced 24.4 and 28.0 fantasy points.

He’s also capable of making any throw on the field:

Safety stays tight + corner doesn't sink enough = deeeeeeeppppp hole shot from Justin Herbert pic.twitter.com/mbtnjJ7KAm
— Nate Tice (@Nate_Tice) January 7, 2025

Overall, the Chargers will have a decent shot at knocking off the Chiefs if they get into Round 2. Herbert’s upside, coupled with him being able to potentially knock out the Chiefs players before they can get going, makes him a great leverage play.

Obviously, if you’re paying up for Allen or Jackson, you’re not taking Herbert (at that point you’re building around Bills or Ravens), but if you do go the double QB route then Herbert would be one of my favorite late-round picks.

Matthew Stafford

I think the Rams are undervalued as a whole going into these playoffs. While Stafford doesn't have the rushing upside of a Hurts, he’ll be playing his first two games in a dome (assuming he wins the first one) and is attached to two high-end WRs in Puka Nucau and Cooper Kupp.

Much like Herbert, he’s a great leverage play vs. Lions players, as he’ll have a shot at knocking them out in Round 2, a feat he nearly accomplished last season.

RBs:

Austin Ekeler

I’m not huge on the Commanders' chances of getting far in these playoffs, but with such a limited number of teams, we have to consider everyone.

Ekeler made it back on the field last week after a long injury layoff. He only handled five touches, but I can’t see the Commanders not deploying him in Round 1, especially as a receiver — he caught 35 passes in just 12 games this season.

Austin Ekeler stays on his feet and picks up the @Commanders 1st down!

📺: #WASvsTB on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/pcwpEg28YQ
— NFL (@NFL) September 8, 2024

I doubt many people will be considering Ekeler, even in later rounds, so if you are building out a Commanders stack, he’s a great later round pick to use to differentiate and potentially create some gaps between yourself and the other Commanders lineups.

WRs:

Xavier Worthy

Worthy really picked up steam late in the season. The rookie posted target shares of 31%, 27% and 22% in his last three games and went for 60+ yards and a TD in each of his last two.

I don’t think the market has quite accepted Worthy as a high-end target earner, so you can still get him cheaper than you would most teams' top targets. Either way, my first priority on building out any Mahomes stacks would be getting Worthy and then worrying about who else to add after him.

Nelson Agholor

It’s crazy to think about, but the Ravens may actually be relying on Agholor somewhat heavily if they make it deep into these playoffs.

Zay Flowers was injured in the final game of the season. He should make it back at some point, but nothing is guaranteed on that front and the chance for a reinjury is always out there. After Flowers, there is oft-injured Rashod Bateman and then a group of players who have far less experience than Agholor.

Either way, I expect Agholor to get snaps, and his reps could go up significantly if Flowers can’t make it back to full health. Not many people will even be thinking about him as an option, so if he does become a significant contributor you’ll have some massive leverage over other Ravens stacks in the later rounds.

TEs:

Tucker Kraft

I see Kraft as a decent leverage play if you’re avoiding Eagles players. While the season didn’t end well for Green Bay, the Packers can beat anyone on a given day. And with Christian Watson out, I expect the bigger Kraft to potentially see a bump in target share vs. this physical secondary.

He’s a very risky play, but if the Packers go on a run, he’ll have a shot at being their leading receiver in these playoffs.

Will Dissly

Despite being somewhat of an underwhelming pass-catching TE, Dissly has delivered some big games in this Chargers passing scheme. They’ll also be heading into the postseason somewhat banged up at WR, as WR3 Josh Palmer may not be ready to go for the first round or beyond.

You don’t need to draft TEs in this format but Dissly has enough upside to consider adding as a differentiator to your Chargers stacks.