Late-round fantasy football targets and dart throws can come in all sizes and archetypes, as evidenced by the following four players with Underdog average draft positions (ADP) after 150. A third-year quarterback, a veteran tight end, a veteran running back on a new team and a speedy rookie wide receiver are entirely different types of players. Yet, they all fall under the umbrella of desirable late-round targets and dart throws. Here are a few of my favorite fantasy football late-round draft picks to target in best ball formats.
- Best Ball Rankings
- Best Ball Consensus ADP
- 2025 Best Ball Fantasy Football Draft Kit
- Free Fantasy Football Mock Draft Simulator
Late-Round Fantasy Football Dart Throws
Bryce Young (QB – CAR): 155.8 ADP/QB23
Bryce Young’s sophomore campaign got off to a nightmarish start, resulting in a benching for Andy Dalton. The Red Rifle started from Week 3 through Week 7 for the Panthers, and Young was re-inserted as the starter from Week 8 through the remainder of the season. The soft reset via a benching seems to have turned things around for Young.
Young was Pro Football Focus’s (PFF’s) sixth-ranked passer among 37 quarterbacks with at least 150 dropbacks from Week 8 through Week 18. Young was also first in big-time throw rate (7.6 BTT%) during that period. He flashed intriguing ability to close out the year, and his real-life production translated to useful fantasy production, too. Young was the QB15 in fantasy points per game (18.6) among quarterbacks who started more than one game from Week 8 through Week 18.
According to the data suite at Fantasy Points, Young had the following stats during that 10-game period (the Panthers had their bye in Week 11).
- 210.4 passing yards per game
- 9.2-yard average depth of target (aDOT)
- 5.84 adjusted net yards per attempt (ANY/A)
- 15 passing touchdowns
- Six interceptions
- 5.9 sack%
- 37 rush attempts
- 22.3 rushing yards per game
- 6.03 yards per carry
- Five rushing touchdowns
Obviously, excluding the beginning of Young’s 2024 season is cherry picking. Still, according to StatHead, six second-year quarterbacks had at least 200 passing yards per game, 5.75 adjusted net yards per attempt, a 6.0 sack% or lower and 20 rushing yards per game since 2015. For those who didn’t click the link to the table, Lamar Jackson, Kyler Murray, Jalen Hurts, Carson Wentz, Mitchell Trubisky and Marcus Mariota were the six quarterbacks. It’s a mixed bag, but it provides reasons for optimism about Young’s fantasy outlook in 2025, and the club’s usage of their first-round pick in this year’s NFL Draft on big-bodied wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan is another reason to believe Young can build on his late-season momentum this season.
Hunter Henry (TE – NE): 168.1 ADP/TE21
Drake Maye led New England’s quarterbacks in snaps in Week 6 through Week 7 and Week 9 through Week 17. In that 10-game stretch, Hunter Henry led the team in target share (18.1%), first-read rate (21.1%), receptions (45) and receiving yards per game (44.9). He also had 0.21 targets per route run, a team-high four end-zone targets and two receiving touchdowns. As a result, the data suite at Fantasy Points credited Henry with 10.5 expected half-PPR points per game in the 10 games in which Maye played the most snaps at quarterback for the Patriots.
The Patriots signed Stefon Diggs in free agency, but didn’t spend a draft pick on a wide receiver until picking Kyle Williams in the third round. New England selected speedy running back TreVeyon Henderson in the second round, and he has pass-catching chops. Nevertheless, Henry should still have a prominent role in New England’s pass-catching hierarchy, and he already has rapport with Maye. Henry doesn’t have a game-changing ceiling, barring a flukey touchdown output, but he’s undervalued. Gamers who believe Maye will take a step forward in his sophomore campaign should invest in his top weapon from his rookie season.
Dont’e Thornton (WR – LV): 192.2 ADP/WR78
Dont’e Thornton is a breath of fresh air to close out this piece as a relative-athletic-score freak show rookie wide receiver.
Dont’e Thornton was drafted in round 4 pick 108 in the 2025 draft class. He scored a 9.85 #RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 59 out of 3816 WR from 1987 to 2025. https://t.co/JUbR6XnBQB pic.twitter.com/L8pK2PXrsM
– RAS.football (@MathBomb) April 26, 2025
Thornton has elite size and speed, and he’s a vastly different archetype of pass-catcher than Las Vegas’s other weapons. Thornton played in what Yahoo analyst Matt Harmon frequently refers to as a “Mickey Mouse” offense, but Thornton’s speed was actualized in chunk gains at Tennessee. Among 170 FBS wide receivers in this year’s NFL Draft class with at least 30 targets in 2024, Thornton was first in yards per reception (25.5), ninth in average depth of target (16.5), third in yards per route run (3.72), first in yards after the catch per reception (10.7) and tied for 25th in PFF’s receiving grade. Again, Thornton’s speed and athleticism resulted in big plays in his final collegiate season.
His ability to stretch the field meshes well with Geno Smith‘s ability to spin it deep. The following table has Smith’s deep passing numbers in the previous three seasons via PFF’s data.
Thornton is unlikely to have a high enough target volume to consistently contribute in managed leagues. However, his vertical usage makes him an attractive pick for gamers who’ve selected some steady Eddies at wide receiver and could use some volatile spiked-week potential at the position at the end of their drafts.
Subscribe: YouTube | Spotify | Apple Podcasts | iHeart | Castbox | Amazon Music | Podcast Addict | TuneIn
Josh Shepardson is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Josh, check out his archive and follow him @BChad50.
