Dynasty Startup Mock Draft: PPR League (2022 Fantasy Football)

From the moment the last petal fell from the Bengals’ rose in Super Bowl LVI, dynasty managers began gnashing their teeth for startup season. New leagues formed from the ether, with the involved parties communicating only in feral grunts and hyperlinks from Sleeper and MFL. Winter Sundays rang hollow. There would be many more frigid days before spring’s arrival brought Easter baskets and the NFL Draft, where most dynasty leagues rise from hibernation to allocate newly-selected rookies.

Startup drafts are addictive. They alter one’s brain chemistry to depend on the act of sculpting a roster from raw granite. Dynasty junkies breathlessly tap the cheese button, ignoring any tingle of monetary and chronological debts they will inevitably incur. Must keep drafting. Much like a Great White Shark must continue to swim to survive, the fantasy football fiend is compelled to scrape the 25th-round algae in search of the next breakout sleeper.

As a renowned “yes man,” I have all but given up on declining invitations to dynasty startups. Where most are setting healthy boundaries or pleading with Twitter to quit inviting them (to save them from themselves), I have been entirely unscrupulous. Should you share my lack of fortitude to disappoint the community at large by eschewing a 1QB PPR dynasty startup, I implore you to seek guidance from this draft. The chemical that accelerates our dependency is called “victory.” You play to win the game, and there aren’t many rats in the study with a more morbid case of cheese-related obesity.

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Round 1

The first round of a startup is all about scooping your cornerstone pieces for the next two or three seasons. Most of these players will ebb and flow in different directions throughout the offseason. I find it tantalizing to have a pick in the top three, where the true generational talents also have youth on their side. Some of these guys are proven commodities, but with injury and/or age blemishes that can whittle away at their ADP. Since I don’t believe in the term “injury-prone,” I will always draft with the highest-possible points-per-game (PPG) value. Don’t let fear prevent you from selecting the best players. In your particular draft, a few top-tier players will likely slip too far. I say pounce on points!

Round 2

Here’s where I lose a lot of the folks who like to hunker down and cling to the consensus. Get. Your. Guys. Highly productive running backs will inevitably slip into the second round. Again, I’m considering PPG over the next two to three seasons. Deebo Samuel is the trendy riser this offseason, which is well-earned. I do, however, worry about his share of the pie changing drastically from Jimmy Garoppolo (QB – SF) to Trey Lance (QB – SF). The best receiving tight ends are a mighty weapon, even without premium scoring. As you can see, I am completely smitten with Jaylen Waddle and Diontae Johnson, “reaching” for them well before their ADP.

Round 3

3.01- Saquon Barkley (RB – NYG)
3.02- Rookie Pick (1.01)
3.03- Joe Mixon (RB – CIN)
3.04- Antonio Gibson (RB – WAS)
3.05- Rookie Pick (1.02)
3.06- Nick Chubb (RB – CLE)
3.07- JK Dobbins (RB – BAL)
3.08- George Kittle (TE – SF)
3.09- Rookie Pick (1.03)
3.10- Cam Akers (RB – LAR)
3.11- Ezekiel Elliott (RB – DAL)
3.12- Rookie Pick (1.04)

I see the third round as a great opportunity to solidify the running back position with established veterans with big shares of their offense. If your team already has a couple of veteran players, this is a great chance to snag an early rookie pick to lock down one of the stud running backs or wide receivers in the 2022 class. The four taken in this particular draft would have been Breece Hall (WR), Treylon Burks (WR), Garrett Wilson (WR), and Drake London (WR). Startups have a lot of nuances. Managers can go a million different directions. It is important to build a dynasty squad that isn’t too young or too old. Pay attention to correlating and complimenting players.

Round 4

As much as it truly pains me to go after the quarterback position so early, dynasty offers a great deal of difference from redraft at the position. If you are locking up the quarterback position this early in a single QB league, make sure you have a pronounced tier break between the elite and all the rest. The rookie picks in the fourth on this occasion were slated for running backs Isaiah Spiller (RB) and Kenneth Walker III (RB), who figure to be difference makers from the jump should they land with a team with needs at the position. Surprise! Tee Higgins is the second-best receiver in Cincy, but plenty productive (and young) enough to surpass some other great receivers with red flags attached to them. Aaron Jones and David Montgomery have top-tier upside for their ADP, with the latter still only 24 years old.

Round 5

Here come the rest of the top-tier quarterbacks, as well as some really promising receivers. Those two rookie picks are slated for Jameson Williams (WR) and David Bell (WR), each of whom has a buzzing hive of supporters of them becoming the top receiver in the 2022 class. Elijah Moore is a truly special player, but his value is hindered by his being tied to mercurial quarterback Zach Wilson (QB – NYJ). We see a long quarterback drought after Burrow.

Round 6

Having a tiered rankings system, whether yours or sourced elsewhere, is an essential pre-draft weapon. This sixth round started breaking down into lower tiers at each position, but with players who still have tons of upside. Rookie picks always hold more value before there is a player’s name next to them, so have a plan in mind for who you intend to pick there and assess whether that player is more valuable than the available veterans.

Round 7

The tiered system also enables you to easily identify good values who slip in the draft later than expected. Veteran wide receivers might be perceived as “too old” or “depreciating” when, in reality, they will be highly productive relative to their ADP for at least a couple more years. Allen Robinson is going much later in drafts now than he will once he signs with another team, so scoop him up! Jalen Hurts ends the quarterback drought here, but he’s an intriguing player for dynasty. We don’t quite know his staying power as a starter, despite his worth as a fantasy scorer.

Round 8

There is a stark difference in how to value dynasty quarterbacks between 1QB and Superflex or 2QB formats. I find it pointless to roster more than two in 1QB leagues like this one. The unproven dual-threat guys like Lance and Fields, who are rapidly stashed in Superflex, tumble into deeper waters here. Rodgers would be a great starter, but for his lingering threat of retirement. As we move through the middle rounds, there is still a bounty of players with the potential to rise to the top of their respective positions in 2022 and beyond.

Round 9

9.01- Mike Williams (WR – LAC)
9.02- Rookie Pick (2.02)
9.03- Trevor Lawrence (QB – JAC)
9.04- Pat Freiermuth (TE – PIT)
9.05- Darnell Mooney (WR – CHI)
9.06- Adam Thielen (WR – MIN)
9.07- Rookie Pick (2.03)
9.08- Robert Woods (WR – LAR)
9.09- Courtland Sutton (WR – DEN)
9.10- Rookie Pick (2.04)
9.11- Damien Harris (RB – NE)
9.12- Rookie Pick (2.05)

The rookie picks start flying off the board as the pool of desirable veterans dries up. Even in what some consider to be a weaker 2022 class of skill players, there are plenty of rookies with exciting fantasy potential. This particular draft started going off the rails at this point, with a lot of picks that were based more on roster construction than who might be the best player available.

Round 10

10.01- Rookie Pick (2.06)
10.02- Rookie Pick (2.07)
10.03- James Conner (RB – ARI)
10.04- Kenneth Gainwell (RB – PHI
10.05- Rookie Pick (2.08)
10.06- Rookie Pick (2.09)
10.07- Rookie Pick (2.10)
10.08- Brandin Cooks (WR – HOU)
10.09- James Robinson (RB – JAC)
10.10- Rhamondre Stevenson (RB – NE)
10.11- Russell Wilson (QB – SEA)
10.12- Rookie Pick (2.11)

Half of the 10th round saw rookie picks come off the board. Some of that can be attributed to the perceived fall off in talent toward the back half of rookie drafts this season. It can also be said that hazy situations for certain running backs are causing them to freefall in startup drafts. Whether by injury, committees, or changing teams, running backs are extremely tough to value if you are drafting this time of year. Wilson coming in as QB12 and the last of the starters in this draft was a bit surprising, but there are others in this range that come later and have weekly starting potential.

Round 11

11.01- Chase Edmonds (RB – AR)
11.02- Dalton Schultz (TE – DAL)
11.03- Matthew Stafford (QB – LAR)
11.04- Rookie Pick (3.01)
11.05- Cordarrelle Patterson (RB,WR – ATL)
11.06- Michael Gallup (WR – DAL)
11.07- Kadarius Toney (WR – NYG)
11.08- Gabriel Davis (WR – BUF)
11.09- JuJu Smith-Schuster (WR – PIT)
11.10- Rookie Pick (3.02)
11.11- Mac Jones (QB – NE)
11.12- Deshaun Watson (QB – TEX)

In the latter third of this relatively shallow draft, we start to see some really nice value picks like Schultz, Davis, and Watson (eligibility permitting). The rookie faucet is still dripping, albeit not as profusely at this stage. Some managers are starting to take their stabs at under-appreciated players they deem to be good values.

Round 12

12.01- Rookie Pick (3.03)
12.02- Julio Jones (WR – TEN)
12.03- Rookie Pick (3.04)
12.04- Zach Ertz (TE – ARI)
12.05- Rookie Pick (3.05)
12.06- Tyler Boyd (WR – CIN)
12.07- Devin Singletary (RB – BUF)
12.08- Ronald Jones II (RB – TB)
12.09- Melvin Gordon III (RB – DEN)
12.10- Kenny Golladay (WR – NYG)
12.11- Rashaad Penny (RB – SEA)
12.12- Rookie Pick (3.06)

This round actually made me chuckle. It seemed like the managers realized there were only a couple rounds left and started taking shots on great players from yesteryear. Old or diminishing, but not dead was the mantra here. Later running backs are a smattering of players who are either less-revered than before or only beloved by a smattering of fantasy players.

Round 13

The hives of certain players grew to a roaring din in the 13th. I still have plenty of hope for young Laviska Shenault, but he fell much too far in this draft. Teams also prioritized more of their QB2 position in this round, which for some teams is their QB1B. Team 12 protected their Dalvin Cook investment with his supposed handcuff, Mattison.

Round 14

14.01- Rookie Pick (3.08)
14.02- Rookie Pick (3.09)
14.03- DJ Chark Jr. (WR – JAC)
14.04- Nico Collins (WR – HOU)
14.05- Rookie Pick (3.10)
14.06- Rookie Pick (3.11)
14.07- Derek Carr (QB – LV)
14.08- Rookie Pick (3.12)
14.09- Van Jefferson Jr. (WR – LAR)
14.10- Darrell Henderson Jr. (RB – LAR)
14.11- Christian Kirk (WR – ARI)
14.12-Marquez Callaway (WR – NO)

The rest of the rookie picks came in hot and heavy over the final round. Were this to be a deeper league with more roster spots, it is common to see the rookie drafts reach four to five rounds. Most dynasty leagues I am involved in have at least 20 roster spots and four-round rookie drafts, but this was a fun one for the beginner dynasty managers to get their feet wet. There was still a lot of meat left on the bone that went undrafted here, but that was definitely due to the size of the rosters. No matter the parameters, the key to playing dynasty fantasy football is fluidity. Values change with every rumor whispered into the wind. The bottom line is still the amount of fantasy points you score each week. It is easier to forget that in the winter than at any other time of year. I wish you the best of luck, because you still need plenty of that in this game too.

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