If you want a lure that looks like a baitfish falling naturally, the best matches are the ones with a realistic minnow profile and a controlled sink. Berkley Fishing Gulp!® Sinking Minnow is the most direct fit for a baitfish imitation through the water column. Bent Rod Fishing Ghost Minnow X Custom Soft Plastic Fishing Lures | Cold Water Finesse Baits is aimed at cold, clear, pressured fish with a natural forage look. Great Outdoors Shops 3.5” Bandit Swimbait – Natural-Action Paddletail | Baitlicious gives you a compact paddletail profile for a more subtle swimming fall. For a more finesse-style natural drop, Deps DEATHADDER STICK and Deps Deathadder Straight Tail Worm both offer a baitfish-like shimmy or horizontal fall that can trigger bites when fish want something understated.
Switch to a craw, tube, or more aggressive swimbait if fish are keyed on bottom forage, want a bigger meal, or are chasing faster-moving bait. If the bite is very shallow or explosive, a topwater baitfish-style lure will usually outfish a slow-falling soft bait. If fish are deep and suspended, the sinking minnow style is usually the better choice than a paddletail.