The NFL preseason has wrapped up, and just like the players on the field, the key to any successful season is preparation.
The same can be said for fantasy football. Whether you have the first overall pick or the last of the first round, having a sense of who will be available in each round is key.
I’ve done mock drafts throughout the summer, offering scenarios and feedback for each position, starting with the No. 1 pick. The point of these mocks is to prepare for the unexpected.
The mock drafts will follow your typical roster construction: quarterback, two running backs, two wide receivers, tight end, a flex (running back, wide receiver or tight end) defense, kicker and seven bench spots. It is a 16-round snake draft in a half-point-per-reception (half-PPR) league.
If you read my draft guide, you know I’m not a fan of drafting kickers and defense if it’s not necessary. I’d rather add a few running backs that could end up being a starter in the event of an injury. However, for the sake of this exercise, I will round out each draft by doing so. Remember, do not draft either before your final two picks!
Most important of all, be creative with your mock drafts. Do not take the same players in every mock. Your favorite sleeper is probably someone else’s too.
The draft is just the start of the season. If you’re drafting early, work the waiver wire to your advantage if any major injuries arise. If you’re a fantasy nerd like me, turn on notifications from your favorite NFL insider for breaking news around the league. But the draft is where you build the foundation of your roster, and the goal is to have as deep a roster as possible.
Unlike most of my mock drafts this summer in which I used the various fantasy platforms to construct a roster, this is the result of an actual 10-team draft I took part in this past weekend. I had the sixth pick in this draft and kept A.J. Brown in the second round. Let’s dive deeper into this draft, where I am the defending champion.
(See also: No. 1 pick, No. 2 pick, No. 3 pick, No. 4 pick, No. 5 pick, No. 6 pick, Superflex, No. 7 pick, No. 8 pick, No. 9 pick, No. 10 pick, No. 11 pick)
Here is my roster:
Round 1, Pick 6: Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR, Detroit Lions
Round 2, Pick 5: A.J. Brown, WR, Philadelphia Eagles
Round 3, Pick 6: Davante Adams, WR, Las Vegas Raiders
Round 4, Pick 5: Lamar Jackson, QB, Baltimore Ravens
Round 5, Pick 6: Evan Engram, TE, Jacksonville Jaguars
Round 6, Pick 5: Aaron Jones, RB, Minnesota Vikings
Round 7, Pick 6: Rashee Rice, WR, Kansas City Chiefs
Round 8, Pick 5: Javonte Williams, RB, Denver Broncos
Round 9, Pick 6: Diontae Johnson, WR, Carolina Panthers
Round 10, Pick 5: Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Dallas Cowboys
Round 11, Pick 6: Jonathan Brooks, RB, Carolina Panthers
Round 12, Pick 5: Jayden Daniels, QB, Washington Commanders
Round 13, Pick 6: Joshua Palmer, WR, Los Angeles Chargers
Round 14, Pick 5: Zach Charbonnet, RB, Seattle Seahawks
Round 15, Pick 6: Philadelphia Eagles D/ST
Round 16, Pick 5: Cameron Dicker, K, Los Angeles Chargers
Observations:
This draft has had the same owners for more than a decade so I knew the running backs would fly off the board quickly. Even with that said, I am still in a bit of shock how early and often they were gone. There is no denying that I have the best trio of receivers with Amon-Ra St. Brown, A.J. Brown and Davante Adams. I have the first two in my top 10 overall and Adams not too far behind at No. 15. I am set at receiver and that is not including the others I drafted who I am high on.
Josh Allen, Jalen Hurts and Patrick Mahomes were selected at the turn of the fourth round, and knowing this league, the run on quarterbacks was coming fast. I took great pleasure drafting Lamar Jackson in this Baltimore-based league and hearing the moans from the rest of the league. Three more quarterbacks were selected in the fifth round, meaning just like that, the top seven quarterbacks were off the board.
After the quarterbacks started flying, tight ends were next. Once Travis Kelce was drafted in the fourth, Mark Andrews, Trey McBride and Sam LaPorta were quick to follow. Fortunately for me, I landed the tight end I like most at his current ADP in Evan Engram, who was targeted a whopping 143 times last season, 12th-most in the NFL. No other tight end had more than 127 targets. Doug Pederson loves his tight ends. We saw that in Philadelphia with Zach Ertz and again last season with Engram.
That is five rounds without a running back, but Engram’s 143 targets would have been fourth best on this receiver-dominant team. Zero RB did well for me in this league last season and I struck gold with Rachaad White in this range. This year, I am relying on Aaron Jones and Javonte Williams to be the cornerstones of my running back group. When healthy, Jones is as dependable as they come, and he has something to prove on his one-year deal. Williams is another year removed from his knee injury and I like his upside in Sean Payton’s offense.
If you have been following along with my mock drafts, Rashee Rice, Diontae Johnson and Josh Palmer have been regulars on my team. All three are the top receiver for their team, making them WR3 plays at worst. I have no worries about any injuries at receiver. I have all the ammunition needed for any deals.
Running back, on the other hand, is more of a crapshoot. Jonathan Brooks should miss the first month of the season, but he reminds me of White a year ago in the same offense. Plus, I can stash him on injured reserve until he is back healthy. Ezekiel Elliott was once a fantasy star for the Dallas Cowboys, and the team did little other than bring back Elliott at the position. Zach Charbonnet is one of the top handcuffs in fantasy, as he would instantly become a must-start player if something were to happen to Kenneth Walker.
My favorite pick in this entire draft was getting Jayden Daniels in the 12th round. Daniels will smash his current ADP, and injuries decimated the quarterback position last year. Having the two best rushing quarterbacks in the NFL makes me feel extremely confident about my QB situation. The only downside to having both Jackson and Daniels on my team is they share the same bye week, but that is not until Week 14 and a lot could happen by the time we get there. I have insurance for Jackson or trade bait later in the season.
This team is loaded at receiver and quarterback, but we will have to work the waiver wire early and often to make up for the deficiencies at running back. The key will be to find this year’s Kyren Williams and letting the inevitable injuries provide some options at running back. It’s a lot harder to find elite receivers during the regular season than serviceable running backs. Williams was the star from a year ago, but Chuba Hubbard, Jerome Ford and Zack Moss were all formidable RB2s when needed.
What do you think of this roster? Let’s discuss on Twitter @JoeSerp.
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Photo Credit: Kenya Allen/PressBox