Later-Round Draft Gems - Fantasy Football Value Picks and Lotto Tickets

August 31, 2025

Dave's top seven late-round fliers and lottery tickets for 2025 fantasy football leagues. His cheap value picks with upside, including Jalen Coker and more.

With many leagues’ annual fantasy football draft quickly approaching, managers must leave no stone unturned during their preparation. Any edge you can gain over the competition could be the difference in winning your league.

One way gamers can turn their team into a powerhouse is by making the most of their late-round picks. Many drafters don’t give these picks much thought, but that’s a potentially fatal mistake. There are always late-round gems available in drafts, so don’t be like the rest of your league mates and make sure you use your last few picks to target undervalued players with upside. If you don’t have the time to do this on your own, don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.

Today, we will use ESPN ADP (average draft position) data to evaluate several players going outside of the top 150 picks who carry more upside than most drafters think. Make sure you’re following RotoBaller on X and download the RotoBaller app for all your fantasy football needs. Here are seven late-round fliers to select in your 2025 fantasy football draft.

Trey Benson, RB, Arizona Cardinals

ADP: 154.8 Overall

Benson’s 2024 rookie season was flat-out terrible. He ran for just 291 rushing yards on 63 attempts and scored one rushing touchdown. As a result, Benson was firmly stuck behind James Conner for the entire season.

As Benson heads into his sophomore campaign, there is some hope he can improve upon his poor rookie year. For starters, Arizona declined to add any major competition to the running back room this offseason. That is significant because this past draft class was loaded with running back talent. So Arizona declining to draft a back, or add any other major additions in free agency, speaks to their thoughts on Benson.

For whatever it's worth, Conner and starting quarterback Kyler Murray seem to think 2025 will be a big year for Benson.

Cardinals QB Kyler Murray is expecting a breakout season from second-year RB Trey Benson in 2025. pic.twitter.com/A3gnyjObzm

— Tyler Drake (@Tdrake4sports) August 10, 2025

“He’s gonna play a lot this year.”

Cardinals RB James Conner is expecting big things from Trey Benson. pic.twitter.com/6227zTyFIh

— Tyler Drake (@Tdrake4sports) August 3, 2025

We'll have to see if that comes to fruition, but these are noteworthy quotes nonetheless.

There’s also the possibility that Conner experiences age-related decline, as 2025 will be his age-30 season. If that’s the case or Conner’s body breaks down following a career-high 283-touch season in 2024, then Benson will be a borderline RB1 play. He’s a good draft and hold candidate to see how Arizona’s offense shakes out to begin the season.

Trevor Lawrence, QB, Jacksonville Jaguars

ESPN ADP: 163 Overall

Lawrence missed seven games in 2024 due to several injuries. When he was on the field, he wasn’t particularly helpful to managers. He only threw 11 touchdown passes against seven interceptions and finished the season as the QB26 in points per game.

While that was disappointing, there is hope Lawrence can finally reach his ceiling this year. Jacksonville hired former Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Liam Coen to be its new head coach. Coen helped guide Buccaneers’ quarterback Baker Mayfield to a career year in 2024.

If Coen can work his magic on Lawrence, then the former first overall pick will be a screaming value in drafts. Even if we just see marginal improvements from Lawrence, that will be enough to put him in the QB1 conversation.

Luckily, Lawrence has two fantastic receivers to work with this year in the form of sophomore Brian Thomas Jr. and rookie Travis Hunter. All of this makes Lawrence one of the better options available to gamers who deploy a late-round quarterback draft strategy.

Christian Kirk, WR, Houston Texans

ESPN ADP: 166.2 Overall

Kirk joins Houston after spending the last three years playing for the division rival Jacksonville Jaguars. Unfortunately, his final season with Jacksonville was a forgettable one as Kirk played in just eight games and only posted a 27-379-1 line.

He now joins a Texans team that is in desperate need of wide receiver production behind Nico Collins. Stefon Diggs left in free agency, and Tank Dell is recovering from a significant knee injury. That prompted the team to add Kirk, and he will begin the season as one of the starting wide receivers. We should see Kirk function in the slot receiver/underneath role that Diggs occupied last year before getting hurt. That should mean good things for Kirk's fantasy outlook.

He will have to contend with Collins for targets and has talented rookies Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel nipping at his heels. However, Kirk’s experience will give him the edge over the youngsters, and with C.J. Stroud at quarterback, there is plenty of room for two fantasy-relevant receivers to emerge from this offense.

Throw in the fact that Houston's ground game could struggle behind Nick Chubb and a poor offensive line, and Kirk could emerge as a quality WR3 in PPR leagues. If you go with a Robust RB build, Kirk is a great receiver to target in the later rounds of your draft.

Luther Burden III, WR, Chicago Bears

ESPN ADP: 167.3 Overall

Burden was selected by Chicago in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft. He is a talented player with the ball in his hands, but concerns about his route-running and effort caused him to slip into Round 2.

What makes Burden an intriguing sleeper is the role he could play in Chicago’s offense. New Bears head coach Ben Johnson helped Amon-Ra St. Brown become a star during his time with the Detroit Lions. Johnson did so by using St. Brown as a power slot receiver in Detroit’s offense.

Burden fits the power slot mold perfectly and would be an ideal fit for this role in Chicago’s offense. He is stuck behind fellow receivers D.J. Moore and Rome Odunze on the depth chart to begin the year. However, if Burden plays well on limited touches early in the season, his role could grow as the year progresses. He might even finish the season as Chicago’s WR1.

Bhayshul Tuten, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars

ESPN ADP: 168.7 Overall

Tuten is a popular sleeper this year, and for good reason. He was an underrated prospect in the 2025 NFL Draft and possesses a rare combination of power and speed.

BHAYSHUL TUTEN DID NOT GIVE UP ON THE PLAY 😤

He powers his way in for the TD

Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/sQ5iIMUSLh

— NFL (@NFL) August 10, 2025

Bhayshul Tuten is a box checker ✅

➖4.32 40-yard dash (100th percentile)
➖118.3 Speed Score (98th)
➖133.9 Burst Score (97th)
➖38.3% Dominator Rating (90th)
➖6.4 yards per carry (84th)
➖24 Bench Press (82nd)

Is he worth an early 2nd round pick in rookie drafts?🤔 pic.twitter.com/A20UiVoBya

— PlayerProfiler (@rotounderworld) May 6, 2025

Jacksonville took Tuten at the top of the fourth round, and it seems the new regime may have big plans for him.

James Gladstone presented Bhayshul Tuten's name as a priority target on Day 3 during his two interviews with the Jaguars to become their GM pic.twitter.com/08PYmloWYU

— Josh Norris (@JoshNorris) April 26, 2025

If head coach Liam Coen can improve Jacksonville’s rushing game similar to the way he improved Tampa Bay’s in 2024, then figuring out who to target from this backfield might be the key to winning your league.

Tuten needs to clean up some areas of his game before he sees consistent playing time. If he does, he could easily emerge as Jacksonville’s lead back. Tuten is a bit raw, but he possesses skills the other two Jaguars running backs simply don’t have. If Tuten hits, he has the upside to win you a championship trophy.

Will Shipley, RB, Philadelphia Eagles

ESPN ADP: 168.8 Overall

Shipley seems to have locked down the RB2 role for the Eagles. Considering that Saquon Barkley is Philadelphia’s clear bell cow back, that might not sound like a super valuable role for fantasy football purposes.

However, Barkley is coming off an absurd 482 touches last year and does have a history of injuries dating back to his days with the New York Giants. If Barkley’s heavy 2024 workload catches up to him and causes him to miss time, Shipley will be a hot waiver wire commodity.

Get ahead of things now and snag Shipley with one of your last few picks.

Will Shipley takes off for 57 yards!

📺: #WASvsPHI on FOX
📱: Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/Lj5OBe3vAM

— NFL (@NFL) January 26, 2025

Jalen Coker, WR, Carolina Panthers

ESPN ADP: Undrafted

Update - Coker has been placed on the injured reserve due to a quadriceps injury and will miss at least the first four games of the regular season. As a result, he is only worth targeting in formats that have IR spots.

An undrafted free agent out of Holy Cross, Coker had a surprisingly good rookie season for the Panthers in 2024. In just 11 games, Coker posted a 32-478-2 line and looked the part as a legitimate NFL receiver.

What a catch!
📺:CBS pic.twitter.com/OHno2U3157

— Carolina Panthers (@Panthers) October 27, 2024

Coker has drawn consistent praise from the Carolina coaching staff this offseason, and there’s a good chance he emerges as the team’s WR2 behind Tetairoa McMillan. If quarterback Bryce Young’s end-of-season momentum carries over into 2025, then Coker is a sneaky second-year breakout candidate.

Take him with one of your final two picks, and see what happens. If Coker hits, then you found a diamond in the rough. If he doesn’t, just kick him back to waivers. There’s no downside at this cost.

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