Fantasy Football Mock Draft: Jonathan Taylor, Travis Kelce, Diontae Johnson, Patrick Mahomes

The NFL Draft is around the corner but fantasy football mock draft season is year-round if you love the game of fantasy football. A mock draft lets you build more knowledge on the player base, learn the movement in average draft position (ADP) and allows you to practice different roster constructions. And be sure to practice for your league using our free mock draft simulator. Here’s my full pick-by-pick overview of my latest fantasy football mock draft. Below we dive into a few notable picks.

12-Team PPR Mock Draft (Late Pick)

Pick 1.12 – Jonathan Taylor (RB – IND)

We are going old school to start our draft and hammering running backs. We had a chance at Detroit’s Jahmyr Gibbs but decided on Jonathan Taylor instead. Why? Both teams have strong offensive capabilities and great offensive coordinators are leading the way. However, the run-pass option (RPO) offense led by Taylor and Anthony Richardson was enough to lean toward the Colts’ running back, as this will have defensive coordinators throwing fits trying to stop this offense.

From Weeks 7 to 18, Taylor handled over 21 carries and produced 99.4 yards per game. If I have ever seen one, he is a workhorse back, and we lucked into drafting him at the end of the first round.

Pick – 3.12 Travis Kelce (TE – KC)

Travis Kelce was not his dominant self in 2023 but can still provide positional value now that he drops into the end of the third round. Kelce had a rough regular season, but his postseason was spectacular as he produced 32 receptions, 355 yards and three touchdowns in four games. With the signing of Marquise Brown, the defense will have to focus less on Travis Kelce, allowing Patrick Mahomes to have more opportunities with his favorite weapon.

Pick – 4.01 Patrick Mahomes (QB – KC)

Speaking of Patrick Mahomes, we complete a Kansas City Chiefs stack here. Patrick Mahomes is the best quarterback in the league. Depending on Rashee Rice‘s legal issues, this may be the best overall core around him in 2024. Even if Patrick Mahomes lined up with three lawn chairs at the wide receiver position, I would still trust in his MVP-level production showing up in fantasy football.

Pick – 7.12 Diontae Johnson (WR – CAR)

New town, same old Diontae Johnson. Johnson is a PPR machine and the Carolina Panthers desperately need someone who can separate from defenders and keep the chains moving. He is Carolina’s first, second and maybe even third option on every passing play. Johnson should receive hyper-focused target opportunities; you need that on your fantasy team.