Defenses and Kickers in Best Ball: Do They Matter and How Should You Draft Them?
Many best ball formats — particularly large tournament formats — do not include DST and kickers. If your format excludes these positions, focus entirely on the skill position strategies in the rest of the best ball library. For formats that do include them, the approach is fundamentally different from redraft.
DST and Kicker Quick Reference
| Position | Redraft approach | Best ball approach | When to draft |
|---|---|---|---|
| Defense (DST) | Stream weekly for best matchup; drop after game | Cannot stream; draft for consistency, not matchup upside | Final 2–3 rounds after core skill positions are filled |
| Kicker | Stream weekly; drop after game | Cannot stream; target kickers on high-scoring offenses with consistent attempt volume | Last 1–2 rounds; one kicker is enough — the second roster spot is always better used on a skill position |
| Two-defense strategy | N/A | Theoretically reduces variance but sacrifices late-round skill position ceiling | Generally not optimal — skill position upside in those rounds outweighs defensive floor gain |
| Format without DST/K | N/A | Ignore this article — all draft picks go to skill positions; ceiling potential increases because no defensive drag on scoring | — |
Defenses in Best Ball
The streaming problem: In redraft, the optimal defense strategy is to stream — pick up the best matchup each week, drop them the following week. Best ball eliminates streaming entirely. The defense you draft is the defense you have for all 17 weeks.
What to target in a best ball defense:
- High sack rate: defenses that generate pressure consistently regardless of opponent create more reliable scoring
- Strong secondary: defenses that generate turnovers through the secondary tend to be less opponent-dependent than those that rely on blitzing
- Competitive team: defenses on teams that frequently lose are often in prevent mode — allowing dink-and-dunk plays to run out the clock — which limits their scoring opportunities
The best best ball defenses are on teams that are competitive but not dominant. They generate defensive touchdowns and turnovers while facing opponents who have incentive to attack.
Kickers in Best Ball
What makes a best ball kicker valuable: Kickers on teams with high-scoring offenses that reach field goal range frequently, a philosophy of attempting long field goals rather than punting, and a stable starting situation produce more reliable best ball scoring. The best kickers are effectively attached to the best offenses.
Draft approach: Target a kicker in the last 1–2 rounds. If a top-5 kicker falls further than expected — managers often ignore the position — take him. Otherwise, draft any serviceable kicker in the final round and focus earlier picks entirely on skill positions.
The difference between the top kicker and the 12th kicker over a full best ball season is often smaller than it appears in-season. High kicker variance means the gap narrows over 17 weeks.
Formats Without DST and Kickers
Large best ball tournaments typically exclude DST and kickers entirely. These formats:
- Have more skill position variety — no DST/K roster spots mean you draft more WRs, RBs, and TEs
- Offer higher ceiling potential — without defensive and kicker points dragging on scoring, the best weeks come entirely from explosive skill position production
- Enable more focused analysis — evaluating only NFL offensive skill positions makes pre-draft research more concentrated
If your best ball format excludes these positions, direct all preparation toward skill position analysis.
For how kicker and DST strategy fits into the full best ball draft picture, see: Best Ball Fantasy Football Draft Strategy: How to Build a Winning Roster. For the tournament best ball format where these positions are most commonly excluded, see: Best Ball Tournaments: How Large-Field Best Ball Competitions Work.