It’s that time of year when all of us fantasy football enthusiasts are doing mock draft after mock draft to put together a strategy for the upcoming season. This is especially true for those who play in high-stakes leagues such as those offered by FFPC. This year’s Main Event contest is open for business, and to get you ready, I did a complete, 20-round mock draft with the FFPC settings to see how it plays out. In addition to the Main Event, don’t miss out on the chance to win $1 million in the FantasyPros Championship at FFPC!
Naturally, I used the FantasyPros Mock Draft Simulator. If you want to try out your own mock draft, here are the key metrics you will need to use to do the same:
- 12-team full Point Per Reception (PPR) Scoring
- Start 1QB, 2RB, 2WR, 1TE, 2FLEX, 1K, 1DEF with 12 bench spots
- Scoring is 0.5 PPR TE premium, so you’ll need to set the TE positional value at high
While this mock draft was executed with the FFPC Main Event contest in mind, you can also apply this strategy to their Victory Points Cash contests.
It’s that time of year when all of us fantasy football enthusiasts are doing mock draft after mock draft to put together a strategy for the upcoming season. This is especially true for those who play in high-stakes leagues such as those offered by FFPC. This year’s Main Event contest is open for business, and to get you ready, I did a complete, 20-round mock draft with the FFPC settings to see how it plays out. In addition to the Main Event, don’t miss out on the chance to win $1 million in the FantasyPros Championship at FFPC!
Naturally, I used the FantasyPros Mock Draft Simulator. If you want to try out your own mock draft, here are the key metrics you will need to use to do the same:
- 12-team full Point Per Reception (PPR) Scoring
- Start 1QB, 2RB, 2WR, 1TE, 2FLEX, 1K, 1DEF with 12 bench spots
- Scoring is 0.5 PPR TE premium, so you’ll need to set the TE positional value at high
While this mock draft was executed with the FFPC Main Event contest in mind, you can also apply this strategy to their Victory Points Cash contests.
Create your FFPC account and take your shot at the $1,000,000 grand prize in the FantasyPros Championship 
2023 FFPC Mock Draft
With the season quickly approaching and fantasy football drafts everywhere ramping up, it’s time to get ready to get into a high-stakes frame of mind. The FFPC Main Event is the grandest of the tournaments offered in the world of high-stakes fantasy football, and to get ready, I decided to go away from my typical style of draft builds to see how things shook out. Here’s how it all played out, drafting from the 1.04 pick.
In past mock drafts for FFPC, I had been targeting Travis Kelce in the first round if I had a pick in the first half of the draft. However, I went with Hill in this build. Hill finished as the PPR WR2 last season despite QB Tua Tagovailoa missing significant time in concussion protocol. Most things have stayed the same with the Dolphins’ receiving corps outside of the loss of TE Mike Gesicki, and I expect Hill to replicate his 2022 performance.
I usually roll into Round 2 set at TE in this format, but since I couldn’t pass up Hill, I’m still void at the position. Given that I missed out on Kelce, I’m not in a rush to snag one here. Instead, as I usually do in drafts, I grabbed a high-end RB in Derrick Henry. While some are passing up the talented RB based on age concerns, I’m happy to have him anchor my fantasy football rushing attack.
Through two rounds, I’ve set my anchors at WR & RB. Surprisingly, I found Mark Andrews still sitting there at 3.04. In this TE premium format, this is an easy pick. While some have been fading Andrews because of the additions of Odell Beckham and rookie Zay Flowers, I believe that’s a big mistake. New Baltimore offensive coordinator Todd Monken was the architect of the explosive passing attack in Tampa Bay from 2016 through 2019 and is likely to bring the same heat to this Ravens offense.
I debated going after a QB to solidify the position before heading into this round. However, at this point in the draft, only Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen and Joe Burrow were off the board, so I decided to wait a few more rounds. It also helped that one of my favorite WRs was still available. With how he surged at the end of last season, finishing as the PPR WR3 over the final five weeks, and with both Tim Patrick and K.J. Hamler out for the season, I expect big things Jeudy in his fourth year.
Heading into Round 5, I’m feeling good having the WR position locked down along with an elite TE & a generational RB. While still not set at QB, I couldn’t pass up Johnson. While he finished as the PPR WR28 last season, it’s fair to note that it was with a combination of veteran journeyman Mitch Trubisky & rookie Kenny Pickett at the helm. I expect him to return to his previous form this season and land as a mid-tier WR2.
Round 6 finally brought me my QB. I had considered waiting for a few more rounds and going after someone in the Geno Smith or Daniel Jones tier. However, I couldn’t pass him up Lawrence when he fell to me.
Through six rounds, I’ve found an anchor player at every position, and it’s time to start drafting to fill out the remaining skill position starting slots. My current roster has one QB, two WRs, one elite TE and one elite RB. In Rounds 7 and 8, I filled out my RB room with Montgomery and Cook. While not the standalone bell cow, both backs have a direct path to enough volume to be my RB2 and a solid flex play every week, especially in this PPR format.
Now that I am feeling more confident about my backfield, I can pivot back to other positions and load my roster with undervalued studs. One of those studs is Flowers, who has been impressive in camp, and like Andrews, is in an explosive, high-powered offense in Baltimore.
Outside of kicker and team defense/special teams (D/ST), I’m locked and loaded with a formidable starting roster. These next 10 rounds are all about depth and chasing upside. I started that journey in Round 10 with Boyd. While he may be the WR3 on his team, the pass-heavy Cincinnati offensive attack should give Boyd a high floor as a back-end WR3. Similarly, I snagged Steelers RB Jaylen Warren, who has impressed in camp and could challenge Najee Harris for work.
I surprised myself in Round 12 and couldn’t pass up a chance to grab Jared Goff as my QB2. He is a player I have been high on all offseason, and if he takes off, he could be a more consistent option than Lawrence down the stretch.
A player I’ve been consistently targeting in drafts recently has been Commanders WR Curtis Samuel. In this draft, I grabbed him in Round 13. The potential for the entire Washington offense is exciting, and Samuel is a dynamic receiver with a lot of upside.
Another consistent target for me has been Hubbard. The second-year ball carrier showed flashes of his abilities when given more of a workload. While the Panthers Miles Sanders this offseason, I don’t expect him to hurt Hubbard enough that he isn’t a value in the 14th round of drafts.
This is the point in the draft where I like to get weird with it. With two FLEX spots, you can go after value without worrying as much about the position. As such, I grabbed my favorite later-round TE target in Mike Gesicki, who could creep into the top 12 TEs this season.
My next two picks have a high upside if given the opportunity. I grabbed Slayton with my 16th pick and then Spears. Slayton finds himself in the most confusing WR room in the league, but if he finds the favor of QB Daniel Jones, he could well outperform his ADP. And while sitting behind Henry in Tennessee isn’t ideal, Spears will likely carve out a role as the primary pass-catching back.
The Last 5 Rounds
The final five rounds of the draft are where I take a stab at some risky players with the potential to be value picks when the dust settles. With my next two picks in Rounds 18 and 19, I went with Bears WR Chase Claypool and Patriots WR Tyquan Thornton. While both were mostly fantasy irrelevant in 2022, each has an opportunity to get more involved in their respective teams’ offensive schemes.
In the 20th round, I couldn’t help myself. Detroit Lions rookie TE Sam LaPorta was still on the board, and he has been one of my favorite late-round targets at any position this offseason. He is likely to be the second receiving option for Goff in the Lions’ offense, at least until Jameson Williams returns from suspension. He could end up being the TE1 among this rookie class, and I couldn’t pass him up this late.
Rounds 21 and 22 were complete dart throw picks. I nabbed Giants WR Sterling Shepard first, hoping that he can carve out a role in a very crowded New York receiving room. And to round out my draft, I picked up the Colts rookie RB Evan Hull, who could be in for a good amount of work if Jonathan Taylor and the Indianapolis front office can’t find a way to play nice.
FFPC Mock Draft Recap | Grade: B
Breaking from my normal process of constructing a roster was a great experiment. I drafted a handful of players I haven’t been excited about previously, such as Montgomery, Boyd and Warren. Despite going off script, I really like my team, and the experts agree with my B grade. This is a team that could cash at the end of the season in your FFPC leagues.
Want more insight into my FFPC mock draft? Check out the full draft board, summary and analysis here.
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Nate Polvogt is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Nate, check out his archive and follow him @NatePolvogt.
