Completing mock drafts are an integral part of my fantasy preparation every season. But rather than waiting in a lobby and having people drop out of a mock two rounds into it, the FantasyPros Mock Draft Simulator makes the whole process easier. It uses expert rankings to pick players and allows the user to customize their draft settings, including changing the number of players at each position, the number of teams in the league, and your draft position. Using the simulator, I’ll be doing a series this month going through several mock drafts from different draft positions. For this first one, I am picking first overall in a 12-team standard league.
A lot of fantasy players would jump at the chance to pick in the first slot because it guarantees that they can select the player they want. Getting Todd Gurley is great and all, but it’s a long wait between that pick and the last selection in the second round. Here’s how my draft shook out, along with pick-by-pick explanations.
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Rounds 1 & 2: Todd Gurley (RB – LAR) and Christian McCaffrey (RB – CAR)
Gurley at No. 1 overall was a no-brainer for me. He’s going to get consistent touches and doesn’t have the contract/injury concerns of Le’Veon Bell and David Johnson. By the time I could pick again, all of the top-tier wide receivers were gone, and I knew I was sitting on back-to-back picks. So I pulled the trigger on McCaffrey here to round out my starting running backs. Jerick McKinnon was the consensus pick here using ADP, but I’ve been vocal about my desire to stay away from him. McCaffrey is going to catch a ton of balls, and I think he has double-digit total touchdown potential.
Rounds 3 & 4: Mike Evans (WR – TB) and Alshon Jeffery (WR – PHI)
I turned around and grabbed Evans with my next pick, who I think should finish the season as a top-10 fantasy receiver. He only scored five touchdowns last year, but he has shown he can finish in the double-digits in the past. He has also shown great chemistry with Ryan Fitzpatrick in the past, so Jameis Winston’s suspension doesn’t scare me. Jeffrey at the end of the fourth round seemed like a steal to me, considering Josh Gordon (who has significant questions surrounding him) and Allen Robinson (new head coach, second-year quarterback, and injury questions) went before him.
Rounds 5 & 6: Golden Tate (WR – DET) and Mark Ingram (RB – NO)
I grabbed Tate to round out my receiving corps after taking Jeffrey. He’s been targeted at least 120 times every year he’s been in Detroit and has surpassed 1,000 yards three out of his four years there. He’s not going to win me any games single-handedly, but he’s also reliable for eight or nine points a week.
I felt good taking Ingram here as well despite his suspension since I knew I already had McCaffrey and Gurley. Once Ingram comes back, he has a clear-cut role in the Saints’ offense. Getting the guy who finished last year sixth among all running backs in fantasy scoring in the sixth round seems like a solid bet to me.
Rounds 7 & 8: Cam Newton (QB – CAR) and Jamison Crowder (WR – WAS)
I certainly could have waited on a quarterback, but I frankly just wasn’t thrilled about my other options at this point. Newton is nothing if not reliable, and pairing him with McCaffrey could often score me double points on passing touchdowns. I’m also high on Crowder working with Alex Smith this season. The Washington Post is already reporting that the two of them are building up a strong rapport in camp, and Crowder’s elusiveness should partner well with Smith’s propensity to throw shorter passes.
Rounds 9 & 10: Trey Burton (TE – CHI) and Kenny Golladay (WR – DET)
Honestly, I wasn’t super thrilled with this Burton pick. I was hoping Jordan Reed would fall to me here so I could take another, safer tight end immediately after. But alas. Burton certainly has a lot of talent, but I don’t know what to expect from the Bears’ offense with a new coaching staff and a bevy of new wide receivers. Golladay is another high-upside pick for me. Since I already have the sure-handed Tate, I figured I was safe to pick his teammate in Golladay who has the upside to become the Lions No. 1 receiver on the outside.
Rounds 11 & 12: Rex Burkhead (RB – NE) and George Kittle (TE – SF)
Burkhead is nothing more than a bench player for me as the season begins. I don’t see him lighting the world on fire, but I also wouldn’t be kicking myself if I was forced to use him as a flex during a bye week or due to injuries to my starters. He’ll be heavily involved on third downs in New England this year, with Sony Michel carrying the load on earlier downs. Kittle is a safer tight end pick to me than Burton, but doesn’t have the upside of Burton. With Kittle, I could see him becoming a 40-yard-per-game guy that you’re hoping to get a touchdown out of if you have to use him.
Rounds 13 & 14: Jimmy Garoppolo (QB – SF) and Eagles D
If Garoppolo lights the world on fire, he could be a good trade target for someone else in this league who suffers a significant QB injury or waited too long to draft one. Newton isn’t known for having to miss that much time, so I don’t foresee having to use Garoppolo much outside of Newton’s bye week, but he at least has a high ceiling as a backup fantasy QB.
Some might say that this is too early to take a defense, but I just wasn’t thrilled with my other options in Round 14. I was already pretty confident in my running back depth, and I didn’t see a need for a sixth receiver at this point in the draft. I at least knew I was getting the best “player” at the position here.
Rounds 15 & 16: Chris Ivory (RB – BUF) and Robbie Gould (K – SF)
Ivory to me is the perfect Round 15 pick. If I end up cutting him in Week 5 to pick up someone else, it won’t kill me. But if something happens to LeSean McCoy this offseason (whether it be injury or suspension from his pending domestic violence investigation), Ivory has a clear path to being the starting back in Buffalo. No matter who the starting quarterback is for the Bills in Week 1, I don’t see them wanting to throw the ball a ton. Ivory is 30 years old now, but he hasn’t been the featured back on a team in many years, so the wear and tear isn’t too bad. Oh yeah, I took a kicker.
Mock draft vs. experts with our free Draft Simulator
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Jon Munshaw is a correspondent at FantasyPros. For more from Jon, check out his archive and follow him @jon_munshaw.
