The Late-Round Podcast

JJ and Rich kick off the show discussing the wild and constantly-changing quarterback landscape on DraftKings before Late-Round Fantasy Football's COO, David Kitchen, joins the show. Kitchen discusses the evolution of the best ball game, his love for elite tight ends, game selection, and so much more.   Order the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

The fantasy football season-long market is getting smarter, and rookie evaluations have shifted as a result. On Episode 1000, JJ looks at whether or not you should be changing the way you draft first-year players in your season-long leagues given the increased intelligence of the market.   Order the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

Jakob Sanderson of the Dynasty Points Podcast, ADP Chasing, and his substack, Thinking About Thinking, joins the show to talk a whole lot of game theory with JJ. The two chat about the running back dead zone, market inefficiencies, wide receiver archetypes to fade, and so much more.   Order the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

JJ and Rich talk through JJ's exposure thus far in the DraftKings $15M Millionaire tourney before Tom Strachan of FantasyPros and the Fantasy Sanctuary joins the show. JJ and Tom discuss optimal lineup construction, drafting three quarterbacks and three tight ends, cheap stacks, and so much more.    Order the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

Fantasy football gamers have been introduced to the running back dead zone through the years, and while generalizing that area of the draft can be confusing, it's still a very real thing. But there's a place in your drafts where tight ends have horrible hit rates, too. JJ talks all about it on Episode 999.   Order the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

JJ's away on vacation this week, but the show must go on. On this week's episode of Becoming a Best Ball Bro, you'll hear some of the best answers from the brilliant guests that have been on the show so far this year. The show will return to its regularly-scheduled programming next week.

Is Ashton Jeanty being drafted at his ceiling? Are the Dolphins bound to fail this year? Is the running back dead zone...dead? JJ answers those questions -- and more -- on this week's mailbag episode.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

JJ and Rich discuss the changing quarterback landscape over on DraftKings before JJ is joined by Establish the Run's Mike Leone. Mike talks through how he shifts his best ball strategy on a full PPR platform like DraftKings, drafting elite tight ends, the best place to select quarterbacks, and so much more.    Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

Establish the Run's John Daigle returns to Late-Round Perspectives to talk about the optimal draft strategy for 2025 fantasy football drafts, late-round quarterbacks to target, the running back dead zone, and so much more.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

JJ and Rich talk about some ADP risers and fallers before Tyler (@Emo__Cowboy) joins the show. JJ and Tyler chat about the quarterback landscape on DraftKings, drafting like you're right, favorite stacks, and so much more.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

Should we be concerned about RJ Harvey's 2025 outlook now that JK Dobbins is in Denver? How should we approach the Kansas City offense this season? Is Brock Bowers overrated? JJ answers those questions -- and more -- on this week's mailbag episode.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

JJ and Rich discuss the late rounds of DraftKings best ball drafts before Liam Murphy joins the show. Liam answers many of JJ's burning questions surrounding quarterback strategy, lineup uniqueness, and so much more.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

JJ has done average draft position analysis for years, leading to discoveries like "ambiguous backfields." On Episode 996, he digs into a new average draft position topic, focusing, once again, on those middle-round backs.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

Graham Barfield of Fantasy Points joins JJ to go on a trip down memory lane, talk about his process with Yards Created, get into this year's rookie running back class, and more.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

JJ and Rich open up the episode and chat a bit about best ball quarterbacks before successful DFS and best ball player Neil Orfield joins the show. Neil and JJ dig into DraftKings best ball settings, the running back landscape, elite tight ends, and so much more.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

Jayden Daniels, Caleb Williams, Bo Nix, Drake Maye, JJ McCarthy, and Michael Penix are all entering their second seasons with a lot of potential. On Episode 995, JJ shares why the majority of them have a great shot of exceeding fantasy football expectations in 2025.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

Is Jonathan Taylor overvalued in fantasy football this year? We know that high touchdown rates regress, but is it advantageous to draft quarterbacks coming off of seasons with low touchdown rates? Is the Bears offense being hyped up too much? JJ answers those questions -- and more -- on this week's mailbag episode.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

JJ and Rich kick off the show by talking about some of the things they're noticing in early DraftKings best ball drafts. Pat Kerrane of Legendary Upside then joins JJ to chat about roster construction on DK, transitioning to a full PPR platform, how to properly stack, and so much more.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

Passing touchdowns are going to influence fantasy football scoring quite a bit, and, unfortunately, they can be relatively volatile year-over-year. On Episode 993, JJ talks through just how unpredictable touchdowns are, and he explains whether you should avoid quarterbacks coming off of seasons with really high touchdown rates. Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

Rich Dotson of Dynasty Nerds joins JJ to talk about the thing dynasty managers get wrong most frequently, the 2025 rookie class, trade calculators, dynasty strategy, and so much more.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

JJ talks through some of the most interesting things he noticed when building out projections for the 2025 fantasy football season.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

JJ and Rich are back for another season of Becoming a Best Ball Bro, this time with a focus on DraftKings best ball. The two talk about the uniqueness of the DraftKings format before JJ reveals some of his early targets and avoids on the platform.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

JJ opens up this week's mailbag episode with some big announcements before digging into the George Pickens trade, RJ Harvey's upside in Denver this year, the importance of draft capital for wide receivers, and more.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide or preorder the Late-Round Draft Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

JJ made a controversial dynasty trade a couple of weeks ago, and it's sparked a lot of discussion online. On Episode 990, JJ discusses the trade, but, more importantly, he digs into why the reaction is part of a larger fantasy football problem.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

Jeff Bell of Footballguys drops by to talk about rookie draft strategy, some of his favorite targets and avoids in those drafts, veterans who now find themselves atop their backfield depth charts, and so much more.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

JJ takes a look at the top end of his post-draft rookie rankings, explaining where he sees tier drops in drafts this year. There's one player in his fifth tier that may surprise you.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

JJ brings back an episode from last year, where he analyzes the importance of not reaching for quarterbacks who lack mobility in fantasy football.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

The NFL Draft is one of the rare events of the year where we get to witness every team make some sort of decision. And we can use that to our advantage in fantasy football. On Episode 988, JJ digs into some of the more interesting front-office moments of the draft that can help us in our rookie drafts.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

With this being such a strong running back class, should we expect teams to wait on the position in the draft? Which players will be rising and falling in post-draft rookie drafts? Is Dallas actually an ideal landing spot for a running back? JJ answers those questions -- and more -- on this week's mailbag episode.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

The NFL Draft begins this week, so JJ is bringing you his thoughts on how Round 1 of fantasy football rookie drafts should go before things start. On Episode 986, you'll hear nuggets of information about TreVeyon Henderson, Travis Hunter, Luther Burden, and more.

Matt Kelley, the owner of PlayerProfiler and FastDraft, sits down with JJ for a marathon pre-draft Late-Round Perspectives episode. The two talk about Kelley's history in the fantasy football space, how the running back class will shape fantasy football, rookie draft strategy, wide receiver prospects, and so much more.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

The Late-Round Podcast has covered this year's quarterback and running back classes over the last couple of weeks, and now it's time to take a look at the wide receivers. JJ is joined by Yahoo and Reception Perception's Matt Harmon to discuss everything you need to know about this year's solid group.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

On this week's mailbag episode, JJ talks about the impact other analysts have on his evaluation process, why Ashton Jeanty's lack of testing isn't problematic, how to properly utilize player comps, and more.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

This year's NFL Draft running back class is looking really, really good. On Episode 983, JJ sits down and talks to FastDraft's Jagger May all about it. Is Omarion Hampton the clear-cut RB2? Does one of the Ohio State backs stand out? You'll get those answers -- and more -- in the episode.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

Matt Waldman is the creator of the Rookie Scouting Portfolio, and he's been a Footballguys senior staff writer for over 15 years. He joins Late-Round Perspectives -- for a second time -- to dig deep into this 2025 rookie class. You'll hear takes on Quinshon Judkins, Omarion Hampton, Luther Burden, Waldman's favorite sleepers, and so much more.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

JJ sits down with FanDuel's Jim Sannes to preview this year's quarterback class. Is Cam Ward the obvious QB1? Should Shedeur Sanders go in the top-five? Which quarterback does Sannes' model adore? You get those answers -- and more -- on Episode 982.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

This week's mailbag episode is filled with rookie talk. JJ first explains his thoughts on third- and fourth-round rookie picks after sharing the truth about Day 3 picks earlier in the week. You'll then hear answers about this year's running back class, JJ's favorite late-round rookie picks, and more.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

It's easy to get excited about your favorite NFL Draft sleeper, but if he's not backed by much draft capital, should you be concerned? On Episode 980, JJ looks into this, as he dives into some interesting numbers about Day 3 draft picks.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

Fantasy Life's Thor Nystrom joins the show to talk all things NFL Draft. Thor discusses his evaluation process, his thoughts on the NFL Combine, this running back class, Matthew Golden's profile, and so much more.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

The NFL's free agency period began last week, and there are a ton of players on new teams. JJ talks about a ton of those guys -- Najee Harris, Davante Adams, Cooper Kupp, and more -- on Episode 979.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

Najee Harris is now a Charger, leaving Jaylen Warren a potentially bigger workload in Pittsburgh. Who should we prefer in fantasy football? Is Quinshon Judkins' doomed due to his lack of receiving profile? If this running back class is so strong, why are rookie rankings placing so many wide receivers above running backs? JJ talks about those questions -- and more -- on this week's mailbag episode.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.

Mock drafts are usually looked at as just entertainment, but what if they could help you out in fantasy football? What if the data was actually predictive? JJ takes a look at that topic on Episode 977.   Order the Late-Round Prospect Guide on LateRound.com, and make sure to sign up for the free newsletter.