The key to any fantasy football season is preparation. 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’ll be doing mock drafts throughout the summer while offering scenarios and feedback for each position. The point of these mocks is to prepare for the unexpected.
The mock drafts will assume that 12 teams are in the league with the following 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 who could end up being a starter in the event of an injury. However, for the sake of this exercise, I’ll 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. Don’t take the same players in every mock. Your favorite sleeper is probably someone else’s too. I’m guilty of this myself — see Rashod Bateman — but I will try to go with different approaches in many of these mock drafts.
The draft is just the start of the season. If you are 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.
We have done a lot of mocks this summer, but a Superflex league is much different than your traditional settings because quarterbacks go a lot earlier. Similar to the 16-team mock, I will use a middle-round pick (sixth) for this draft. (See also: No. 1 pick – 3 RBs, No. 1 pick – 2 RBs/1 WR, No. 2 pick, No. 3 pick, No. 4 pick, No. 5 pick, No. 6 pick, No. 7 pick, No. 8 pick, No. 9 pick, No. 10 pick, 16-team league). We’ll mix in a 10-team and non-PPR draft before the start of the year.
Let’s get started with the latest mock draft of the 2022 season.
Here is my roster:
Round 1, Pick 6: Patrick Mahomes, QB, Kansas City Chiefs
Round 2, Pick 7: Stefon Diggs, WR, Buffalo Bills
Round 3, Pick 6: James Conner, RB, Arizona Cardinals
Round 4, Pick 7: Keenan Allen, WR, Los Angeles Chargers
Round 5, Pick 6: J.K. Dobbins, RB, Baltimore Ravens
Round 6, Pick 7: Derek Carr, QB, Las Vegas Raiders
Round 7, Pick 6: Chase Edmonds, RB, Miami Dolphins
Round 8, Pick 7: Kareem Hunt, RB, Cleveland Browns
Round 9, Pick 6: Rhamondre Stevenson, RB, New England Patriots
Round 10, Pick 7: Dallas Goedert, TE, Philadelphia Eagles
Round 11, Pick 6: Brian Robinson, RB, Washington Commanders
Round 12, Pick 7: Alexander Mattison, RB, Minnesota Vikings
Round 13, Pick 6: Corey Davis, WR, New York Jets
Round 14, Pick 7: Romeo Doubs, WR, Green Bay Packers
Round 15, Pick 6: New Orleans Saints DST
Round 16, Pick 7: Younghoe Koo, K, Atlanta Falcons
Observations:
Landing Patrick Mahomes with the No. 6 pick shocked me. Josh Allen and Justin Herbert went with the first two picks followed by Jonathan Taylor and Christian McCaffery. The surprising pick right ahead of mine was Derrick Henry. Mahomes might have a new receiving corps, but he remains one of the elite quarterbacks in the game. He has finished as QB1, QB6, QB2 and QB5 the last four seasons, and while the Cover 2 gave him some issues last season, Andy Reid has had all offseason to counter. Mahomes will be in the MVP conversation once he posts his usual numbers without Tyreek Hill and most of his receivers from last season.
The downfall of taking Mahomes early is I lose out on the opportunity to take one of the first-round running backs I’d normally select in the first 12 picks. Stefon Diggs was the highest player on my board in Round 2 and one of the few receivers I’m willing to take before drafting a running back. Diggs is the No. 1 receiver for one of the NFL’s best offenses and saw more end-zone targets (25) than any other wideout in the NFL. The emergence of Gabriel Davis down the stretch and in the playoffs only makes me like Diggs more as opposing teams will not be able to put all their attention on the former Maryland star.
Taking my first running back in the third round is new to me. James Conner has been featured quite a bit throughout these mocks as he is someone I trust in the third round. I have him as my 17th player overall, which is a lot higher than most fantasy experts have him ranked. He proved last season that he can put up huge numbers when given the lead-back carries, and there is little-to-no competition behind him.
Keenan Allen is perennially one of the top receivers in the game and has 100-plus receptions in four of the last five seasons. He saw the most targets for a Chargers team that has an MVP-caliber talent at quarterback. The only knock on Allen is that he’s never reached double-digit scores in his career, but there are few in the game who consistently post 100 grabs and more than 1,000 yards.
Having J.K. Dobbins as my second running back does have me a bit concerned, but as you can see, I was uber-aggressive with my backs in the upcoming rounds. The good news is Dobbins did not start the season on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list. The bad news is he’s unlikely to see a heavy workload early on. Dobbins might give fantasy owners fits to start the year, but if he stays healthy, he could be a difference maker in the second half of the season.
Derek Carr as my Superflex is my dream scenario. He’s coming off a career high in passing yards (4,804), which ranked second in the league, and now has Davante Adams in his arsenal of weapons. What has been holding him back from being an elite fantasy player is his lack of touchdowns. With Adams, Hunter Renfrow and Darren Waller as his top three receiving options, this is the year Carr vaults himself into a top-10 fantasy option.
I went with three straight picks at running back in the event Dobbins isn’t ready to be a starter out the gate. Chase Edmonds is a player I’ve been targeting more lately. All indications out of Miami are that he’ll be the top back. Kareem Hunt is another frequent target of mine. He has value even while splitting carries with Nick Chubb, but if he gets his wish to be traded, he moves up the board. Rhamondre Stevenson is another riser on my board. The rumblings out of New England indicate he will get third-down work in addition to splitting the early downs with Damien Harris.
Dallas Goedert is my TE6, so landing him in the 10th round is ideal. Once Zach Ertz was traded to Arizona, Goedert saw 27 percent of the targets for the Eagles. A.J. Brown will take away some of those targets but there is no reason to believe he won’t be a focal point of Philly’s offense.
My last four picks all offer upside you are looking for in the late rounds. Brian Robinson is looking like he might be a potential starter in D.C. Alexander Mattison vaults into top-10 territory if something were to happen to Dalvin Cook. My next two picks give me insurance in the event Diggs or Allen miss time. Corey Davis has probably been featured more in these mock drafts than anyone. I am enamored with his upside in these late rounds. Aaron Rodgers has publicly praised Romeo Doubs during training camp and if he becomes the next guy Rodgers turns into a No. 1 receiver, Doubs is an absolute steal in the 14th round.
Superflex leagues are a different beast and you need to plan accordingly. I love my quarterback duo with Mahomes and Carr. After a rough start with my running back situation, I made sure to make up for it by loading up with as many as possible. Diggs and Allen are elite as my top two receivers but if something were to happen to either one, I am relying on a 13th- or 14th-round pick to replace him. They have upside but are no guarantee to be stars. As I’ve said throughout mock draft season, the more running backs you load up on, the more ammunition you have to make a trade if need be.
What do you think of this roster? Let’s discuss on Twitter @JoeSerp.
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