Fantasy football mock draft series: August takeaways

A mock draft review from a recent August gathering of professionals.

The fantasy football mock draft review for August is here, and we get a great comparison to July, with 11 of the 12 drafters being the same in each one.

We previously analyzed May and June with a different team of participants. For privacy of the upcoming publication that will include this draft, all team names and participants have been omitted.

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Before getting into my individual picks, here are a few positional observations from this traditional 12-team, PPR draft.

  • Like in the June and July drafts, Patrick Mahomes was a third-round pick. He went 31st last month and 33rd in this draft. Mahomes and Josh Allen were the only two quarterbacks to go in the first four rounds in consecutive months, although we witnessed a pair of QBs come off the board in the first three picks of Round 5 of August’s draft. Eleven passers went in the first 100 picks last month. This time around, 10 QBs were chosen.
  • Nine of the Round 1 choices were running backs in both July and August. The position represented 14 of the first 24 chosen players — also the same as July. Among the first 100 picks, 38 running backs came off the board, down two from last month.
  • Wide receiver claimed 43 of the first 100 selections, also two fewer from July. Once again, among the 24 choices in Rounds 2 and 3, half went to the position.
  • Eight tight ends were chosen in the first 100 picks (Irv Smith Jr. was No. 101), and only two of them came off the board in the first 36 selections — a jump of seven spots for George Kittle (37th) in this draft.

Below is a snapshot of the first 10 rounds broken down by number of positional picks from both the July and August drafts, including the change by round and overall.

June draft results Au draft results Change +/-
Rnd QB RB WR TE Rnd QB RB WR TE QB RB WR TE
1 0 9 2 1 1 0 9 2 1 0 0 0 0
2 0 5 6 1 2 0 5 6 1 0 0 0 0
3 1 5 6 0 3 1 4 7 0 0 -1 1 0
4 1 5 5 1 4 1 2 7 2 0 -3 2 1
5 2 2 8 0 5 2 6 4 0 0 4 -4 0
6 2 3 3 4 6 1 5 4 2 -1 2 1 -2
7 2 7 3 0 7 4 2 5 1 2 -5 2 1
8 2 3 6 1 8 1 4 5 2 -1 1 -1 1
9 3 4 4 1 9 1 4 5 2 -2 0 1 1
10 1 0 8 3 10 1 4 7 0 0 4 -1 -3
Total 14 43 51 12 Total 12 45 52 11 -2 2 1 -1

As you can see, the first two rounds were identical for positional distribution. The third round mostly was the same, but once we made our way into Round 4, running backs took a hit. It didn’t last long, though, with four more backs going in the fifth than the July version. Overall, the positional variation was negligible. Quarterbacks regressed slightly in favor of running backs — really nothing of consequence to glean on the whole. It suggests you can wait a little longer on QBs, if nothing else.

Round-by-round picks

# Pick Player Tm Pos Drafter # Pick Player Tm Pos Drafter
1 1.1 Christian McCaffrey CAR RB Team 1 97 9.1 Jaylen Waddle MIA WR Team 1
2 1.2 Dalvin Cook MIN RB Team 2 98 9.2 DeVante Parker MIA WR Team 2
3 1.3 Ezekiel Elliott DAL RB Team 3 99 9.3 Nyheim Hines IND RB Team 3
4 1.4 Derrick Henry TEN RB Team 4 100 9.4 Antonio Brown TB WR Team 4
5 1.5 Alvin Kamara NO RB Team 5 101 9.5 Irv Smith Jr. MIN TE Team 5
6 1.6 Saquon Barkley NYG RB Team 6 102 9.6 Gus Edwards BAL RB Team 6
7 1.7 Aaron Jones GB RB Team 7 103 9.7 Ronald Jones II TB RB Team 7
8 1.8 Travis Kelce KC TE Team 8 104 9.8 AJ Dillon GB RB Team 8
9 1.9 Jonathan Taylor IND RB Team 9 105 9.9 Dallas Goedert PHI TE Team 9
10 1.10 Austin Ekeler LAC RB Team 10 106 9.10 Curtis Samuel WAS WR Team 10
11 1.11 Davante Adams GB WR Team 11 107 9.11 Jarvis Landry CLE WR Team 11
12 1.12 Tyreek Hill KC WR Team 12 108 9.12 Matt Ryan ATL QB Team 12
13 2.1 Stefon Diggs BUF WR Team 12 109 10.1 Jamaal Williams DET RB Team 12
14 2.2 Joe Mixon CIN RB Team 11 110 10.2 Tony Pollard DAL RB Team 11
15 2.3 Nick Chubb CLE RB Team 10 111 10.3 Will Fuller MIA WR Team 10
16 2.4 Antonio Gibson WAS RB Team 9 112 10.4 Darnell Mooney CHI WR Team 9
17 2.5 Najee Harris PIT RB Team 8 113 10.5 Jalen Hurts PHI QB Team 8
18 2.6 D.K. Metcalf SEA WR Team 7 114 10.6 Marquise Brown BAL WR Team 7
19 2.7 DeAndre Hopkins ARI WR Team 6 115 10.7 Corey Davis NYJ WR Team 6
20 2.8 Calvin Ridley ATL WR Team 5 116 10.8 Phillip Lindsay HOU RB Team 5
21 2.9 Clyde Edwards-Helaire KC RB Team 4 117 10.9 Laviska Shenault Jr. JAX WR Team 4
22 2.10 Darren Waller LV TE Team 3 118 10.10 Marvin Jones JAX WR Team 3
23 2.11 A.J. Brown TEN WR Team 2 119 10.11 Sterling Shepard NYG WR Team 2
24 2.12 Justin Jefferson MIN WR Team 1 120 10.12 David Johnson HOU RB Team 1
25 3.1 J.K. Dobbins BAL RB Team 1 121 11.1 Henry Ruggs III LV WR Team 1
26 3.2 Chris Carson SEA RB Team 2 122 11.2 Tevin Coleman NYJ RB Team 2
27 3.3 Miles Sanders PHI RB Team 3 123 11.3 Mike Williams LAC WR Team 3
28 3.4 Keenan Allen LAC WR Team 4 124 11.4 Kenyan Drake LV RB Team 4
29 3.5 Chris Godwin TB WR Team 5 125 11.5 Ryan Tannehill TEN QB Team 5
30 3.6 Terry McLaurin WAS WR Team 6 126 11.6 Chuba Hubbard CAR RB Team 6
31 3.7 Mike Evans TB WR Team 7 127 11.7 Cole Beasley BUF WR Team 7
32 3.8 CeeDee Lamb DAL WR Team 8 128 11.8 Elijah Moore NYJ WR Team 8
33 3.9 Patrick Mahomes KC QB Team 9 129 11.9 Tyler Higbee LAR TE Team 9
34 3.10 Allen Robinson CHI WR Team 10 130 11.10 J.D. McKissic WAS RB Team 10
35 3.11 Robert Woods LAR WR Team 11 131 11.11 Mecole Hardman KC WR Team 11
36 3.12 David Montgomery CHI RB Team 12 132 11.12 Joe Burrow CIN QB Team 12
37 4.1 George Kittle SF TE Team 12 133 12.1 Mike Gesicki MIA TE Team 12
38 4.2 Amari Cooper DAL WR Team 11 134 12.2 Trey Lance SF QB Team 11
39 4.3 Cooper Kupp LAR WR Team 10 135 12.3 Hunter Henry NE TE Team 10
40 4.4 Brandon Aiyuk SF WR Team 9 136 12.4 Kirk Cousins MIN QB Team 9
41 4.5 Tyler Lockett SEA WR Team 8 137 12.5 Justin Fields CHI QB Team 8
42 4.6 Josh Jacobs LV RB Team 7 138 12.6 Russell Gage ATL WR Team 7
43 4.7 Julio Jones TEN WR Team 6 139 12.7 Nelson Agholor NE WR Team 6
44 4.8 Josh Allen BUF QB Team 5 140 12.8 Los Angeles Rams LAR Def/ST Team 5
45 4.9 T.J. Hockenson DET TE Team 4 141 12.9 Trevor Lawrence JAX QB Team 4
46 4.10 Courtland Sutton DEN WR Team 3 142 12.10 T Y Hilton IND WR Team 3
47 4.11 D’Andre Swift DET RB Team 2 143 12.11 Latavius Murray NO RB Team 2
48 4.12 D.J. Moore CAR WR Team 1 144 12.12 Tua Tagovailoa MIA QB Team 1
49 5.1 Kyler Murray ARI QB Team 1 145 13.1 Evan Engram NYG TE Team 1
50 5.2 Kenny Golladay NYG WR Team 2 146 13.2 Jonnu Smith NE TE Team 2
51 5.3 Dak Prescott DAL QB Team 3 147 13.3 Derek Carr LV QB Team 3
52 5.4 Diontae Johnson PIT WR Team 4 148 13.4 Alexander Mattison MIN RB Team 4
53 5.5 Darrell Henderson LAR RB Team 5 149 13.5 Tre’Quan Smith NO WR Team 5
54 5.6 Chase Edmonds ARI RB Team 6 150 13.6 Tampa Bay Buccaneers TB Def/ST Team 6
55 5.7 Myles Gaskin MIA RB Team 7 151 13.7 Jared Cook LAC TE Team 7
56 5.8 Adam Thielen MIN WR Team 8 152 13.8 James White NE RB Team 8
57 5.9 Tee Higgins CIN WR Team 9 153 13.9 Christian Kirk ARI WR Team 9
58 5.10 Mike Davis ATL RB Team 10 154 13.10 Washington FB Team WAS Def/ST Team 10
59 5.11 Kareem Hunt CLE RB Team 11 155 13.11 Rashaad Penny SEA RB Team 11
60 5.12 Travis Etienne JAX RB Team 12 156 13.12 Justin Tucker BAL K Team 12
61 6.1 Javonte Williams DEN RB Team 12 157 14.1 Pittsburgh Steelers PIT Def/ST Team 12
62 6.2 Kyle Pitts ATL TE Team 11 158 14.2 Baltimore Ravens BAL Def/ST Team 11
63 6.3 Mark Andrews BAL TE Team 10 159 14.3 Ben Roethlisberger PIT QB Team 10
64 6.4 JuJu Smith-Schuster PIT WR Team 9 160 14.4 Boston Scott PHI RB Team 9
65 6.5 Chase Claypool PIT WR Team 8 161 14.5 Damien Williams CHI RB Team 8
66 6.6 Michael Thomas NO WR Team 7 162 14.6 Anthony Firkser TEN TE Team 7
67 6.7 James Robinson JAX RB Team 6 163 14.7 Harrison Butker KC K Team 6
68 6.8 Odell Beckham Jr. CLE WR Team 5 164 14.8 Jalen Reagor PHI WR Team 5
69 6.9 Trey Sermon SF RB Team 4 165 14.9 Javian Hawkins ATL RB Team 4
70 6.10 Damien Harris NE RB Team 3 166 14.10 Gerald Everett SEA TE Team 3
71 6.11 Russell Wilson SEA QB Team 2 167 14.11 Devontae Booker NYG RB Team 2
72 6.12 Michael Carter NYJ RB Team 1 168 14.12 San Francisco 49ers SF Def/ST Team 1
73 7.1 Deebo Samuel SF WR Team 1 169 15.1 Amon-Ra St. Brown DET WR Team 1
74 7.2 Noah Fant DEN TE Team 2 170 15.2 Tyler Bass BUF K Team 2
75 7.3 Brandin Cooks HOU WR Team 3 171 15.3 New England Patriots NE Def/ST Team 3
76 7.4 Ja’Marr Chase CIN WR Team 4 172 15.4 Buffalo Bills BUF Def/ST Team 4
77 7.5 Jerry Jeudy DEN WR Team 5 173 15.5 Adam Trautman NO TE Team 5
78 7.6 Aaron Rodgers GB QB Team 6 174 15.6 Emmanuel Sanders BUF WR Team 6
79 7.7 Lamar Jackson BAL QB Team 7 175 15.7 Younghoe Koo ATL K Team 7
80 7.8 Raheem Mostert SF RB Team 8 176 15.8 Indianapolis Colts IND Def/ST Team 8
81 7.9 Melvin Gordon DEN RB Team 9 177 15.9 Jason Sanders MIA K Team 9
82 7.10 Justin Herbert LAC QB Team 10 178 15.10 Ryan Succop TB K Team 10
83 7.11 Tom Brady TB QB Team 11 179 15.11 Sammy Watkins BAL WR Team 11
84 7.12 D.J. Chark JAX WR Team 12 180 15.12 Rhamondre Stevenson NE RB Team 12
85 8.1 DeVonta Smith PHI WR Team 12 181 16.1 Rondale Moore ARI WR Team 12
86 8.2 Zack Moss BUF RB Team 11 182 16.2 Greg Zuerlein DAL K Team 11
87 8.3 Robby Anderson CAR WR Team 10 183 16.3 Austin Hooper CLE TE Team 10
88 8.4 Michael Pittman Jr. IND WR Team 9 184 16.4 Kansas City Chiefs KC Def/ST Team 9
89 8.5 Tyler Boyd CIN WR Team 8 185 16.5 Matt Prater ARI K Team 8
90 8.6 Leonard Fournette TB RB Team 7 186 16.6 Miami Dolphins MIA Def/ST Team 7
91 8.7 Robert Tonyan GB TE Team 6 187 16.7 Deshaun Watson HOU QB Team 6
92 8.8 Devin Singletary BUF RB Team 5 188 16.8 Rodrigo Blankenship IND K Team 5
93 8.9 Matthew Stafford LAR QB Team 4 189 16.9 Daniel Carlson LV K Team 4
94 8.10 James Conner ARI RB Team 3 190 16.10 Joey Slye CAR K Team 3
95 8.11 Michael Gallup DAL WR Team 2 191 16.11 Denver Broncos DEN Def/ST Team 2
96 8.12 Logan Thomas WAS TE Team 1 192 16.12 Mason Crosby GB K Team 1

Results by position

Pos rank Pick Player Tm Pos Drafter Pos rank Pick Player Tm Pos Drafter
1 3.9 Patrick Mahomes KC QB Team 9 1 1.11 Davante Adams GB WR Team 11
2 4.8 Josh Allen BUF QB Team 5 2 1.12 Tyreek Hill KC WR Team 12
3 5.1 Kyler Murray ARI QB Team 1 3 2.1 Stefon Diggs BUF WR Team 12
4 5.3 Dak Prescott DAL QB Team 3 4 2.6 D.K. Metcalf SEA WR Team 7
5 6.11 Russell Wilson SEA QB Team 2 5 2.7 DeAndre Hopkins ARI WR Team 6
6 7.6 Aaron Rodgers GB QB Team 6 6 2.8 Calvin Ridley ATL WR Team 5
7 7.7 Lamar Jackson BAL QB Team 7 7 2.11 A.J. Brown TEN WR Team 2
8 7.10 Justin Herbert LAC QB Team 10 8 2.12 Justin Jefferson MIN WR Team 1
9 7.11 Tom Brady TB QB Team 11 9 3.4 Keenan Allen LAC WR Team 4
10 8.9 Matthew Stafford LAR QB Team 4 10 3.5 Chris Godwin TB WR Team 5
11 9.12 Matt Ryan ATL QB Team 12 11 3.6 Terry McLaurin WAS WR Team 6
12 10.5 Jalen Hurts PHI QB Team 8 12 3.7 Mike Evans TB WR Team 7
13 11.5 Ryan Tannehill TEN QB Team 5 13 3.8 CeeDee Lamb DAL WR Team 8
14 11.12 Joe Burrow CIN QB Team 12 14 3.10 Allen Robinson CHI WR Team 10
15 12.2 Trey Lance SF QB Team 11 15 3.11 Robert Woods LAR WR Team 11
16 12.4 Kirk Cousins MIN QB Team 9 16 4.2 Amari Cooper DAL WR Team 11
17 12.5 Justin Fields CHI QB Team 8 17 4.3 Cooper Kupp LAR WR Team 10
18 12.9 Trevor Lawrence JAX QB Team 4 18 4.4 Brandon Aiyuk SF WR Team 9
19 12.12 Tua Tagovailoa MIA QB Team 1 19 4.5 Tyler Lockett SEA WR Team 8
20 13.3 Derek Carr LV QB Team 3 20 4.7 Julio Jones TEN WR Team 6
21 14.3 Ben Roethlisberger PIT QB Team 10 21 4.10 Courtland Sutton DEN WR Team 3
22 16.7 Deshaun Watson HOU QB Team 6 22 4.12 D.J. Moore CAR WR Team 1
1 1.1 Christian McCaffrey CAR RB Team 1 23 5.2 Kenny Golladay NYG WR Team 2
2 1.2 Dalvin Cook MIN RB Team 2 24 5.4 Diontae Johnson PIT WR Team 4
3 1.3 Ezekiel Elliott DAL RB Team 3 25 5.8 Adam Thielen MIN WR Team 8
4 1.4 Derrick Henry TEN RB Team 4 26 5.9 Tee Higgins CIN WR Team 9
5 1.5 Alvin Kamara NO RB Team 5 27 6.4 JuJu Smith-Schuster PIT WR Team 9
6 1.6 Saquon Barkley NYG RB Team 6 28 6.5 Chase Claypool PIT WR Team 8
7 1.7 Aaron Jones GB RB Team 7 29 6.6 Michael Thomas NO WR Team 7
8 1.9 Jonathan Taylor IND RB Team 9 30 6.8 Odell Beckham Jr. CLE WR Team 5
9 1.10 Austin Ekeler LAC RB Team 10 31 7.1 Deebo Samuel SF WR Team 1
10 2.2 Joe Mixon CIN RB Team 11 32 7.3 Brandin Cooks HOU WR Team 3
11 2.3 Nick Chubb CLE RB Team 10 33 7.4 Ja’Marr Chase CIN WR Team 4
12 2.4 Antonio Gibson WAS RB Team 9 34 7.5 Jerry Jeudy DEN WR Team 5
13 2.5 Najee Harris PIT RB Team 8 35 7.12 D.J. Chark JAX WR Team 12
14 2.9 Clyde Edwards-Helaire KC RB Team 4 36 8.1 DeVonta Smith PHI WR Team 12
15 3.1 J.K. Dobbins BAL RB Team 1 37 8.3 Robby Anderson CAR WR Team 10
16 3.2 Chris Carson SEA RB Team 2 38 8.4 Michael Pittman Jr. IND WR Team 9
17 3.3 Miles Sanders PHI RB Team 3 39 8.5 Tyler Boyd CIN WR Team 8
18 3.12 David Montgomery CHI RB Team 12 40 8.11 Michael Gallup DAL WR Team 2
19 4.6 Josh Jacobs LV RB Team 7 41 9.1 Jaylen Waddle MIA WR Team 1
20 4.11 D’Andre Swift DET RB Team 2 42 9.2 DeVante Parker MIA WR Team 2
21 5.5 Darrell Henderson LAR RB Team 5 43 9.4 Antonio Brown TB WR Team 4
22 5.6 Chase Edmonds ARI RB Team 6 44 9.10 Curtis Samuel WAS WR Team 10
23 5.7 Myles Gaskin MIA RB Team 7 45 9.11 Jarvis Landry CLE WR Team 11
24 5.10 Mike Davis ATL RB Team 10 46 10.3 Will Fuller MIA WR Team 10
25 5.11 Kareem Hunt CLE RB Team 11 47 10.4 Darnell Mooney CHI WR Team 9
26 5.12 Travis Etienne JAX RB Team 12 48 10.6 Marquise Brown BAL WR Team 7
27 6.1 Javonte Williams DEN RB Team 12 49 10.7 Corey Davis NYJ WR Team 6
28 6.7 James Robinson JAX RB Team 6 50 10.9 Laviska Shenault Jr. JAX WR Team 4
29 6.9 Trey Sermon SF RB Team 4 51 10.10 Marvin Jones JAX WR Team 3
30 6.10 Damien Harris NE RB Team 3 52 10.11 Sterling Shepard NYG WR Team 2
31 6.12 Michael Carter NYJ RB Team 1 53 11.1 Henry Ruggs III LV WR Team 1
32 7.8 Raheem Mostert SF RB Team 8 54 11.3 Mike Williams LAC WR Team 3
33 7.9 Melvin Gordon DEN RB Team 9 55 11.7 Cole Beasley BUF WR Team 7
34 8.2 Zack Moss BUF RB Team 11 56 11.8 Elijah Moore NYJ WR Team 8
35 8.6 Leonard Fournette TB RB Team 7 57 11.11 Mecole Hardman KC WR Team 11
36 8.8 Devin Singletary BUF RB Team 5 58 12.6 Russell Gage ATL WR Team 7
37 8.10 James Conner ARI RB Team 3 59 12.7 Nelson Agholor NE WR Team 6
38 9.3 Nyheim Hines IND RB Team 3 60 12.10 T Y Hilton IND WR Team 3
39 9.6 Gus Edwards BAL RB Team 6 61 13.5 Tre’Quan Smith NO WR Team 5
40 9.7 Ronald Jones II TB RB Team 7 62 13.9 Christian Kirk ARI WR Team 9
41 9.8 AJ Dillon GB RB Team 8 63 14.8 Jalen Reagor PHI WR Team 5
42 10.1 Jamaal Williams DET RB Team 12 64 15.1 Amon-Ra St. Brown DET WR Team 1
43 10.2 Tony Pollard DAL RB Team 11 65 15.6 Emmanuel Sanders BUF WR Team 6
44 10.8 Phillip Lindsay HOU RB Team 5 66 15.11 Sammy Watkins BAL WR Team 11
45 10.12 David Johnson HOU RB Team 1 67 16.1 Rondale Moore ARI WR Team 12
46 11.2 Tevin Coleman NYJ RB Team 2 1 13.12 Justin Tucker BAL K Team 12
47 11.4 Kenyan Drake LV RB Team 4 2 14.7 Harrison Butker KC K Team 6
48 11.6 Chuba Hubbard CAR RB Team 6 3 15.2 Tyler Bass BUF K Team 2
49 11.10 J.D. McKissic WAS RB Team 10 4 15.7 Younghoe Koo ATL K Team 7
50 12.11 Latavius Murray NO RB Team 2 5 15.9 Jason Sanders MIA K Team 9
51 13.4 Alexander Mattison MIN RB Team 4 6 15.10 Ryan Succop TB K Team 10
52 13.8 James White NE RB Team 8 7 16.2 Greg Zuerlein DAL K Team 11
53 13.11 Rashaad Penny SEA RB Team 11 8 16.5 Matt Prater ARI K Team 8
54 14.4 Boston Scott PHI RB Team 9 9 16.8 Rodrigo Blankenship IND K Team 5
55 14.5 Damien Williams CHI RB Team 8 10 16.9 Daniel Carlson LV K Team 4
56 14.9 Javian Hawkins ATL RB Team 4 11 16.10 Joey Slye CAR K Team 3
57 14.11 Devontae Booker NYG RB Team 2 12 16.12 Mason Crosby GB K Team 1
58 15.12 Rhamondre Stevenson NE RB Team 12 1 12.8 Los Angeles Rams LAR Def/ST Team 5
1 1.8 Travis Kelce KC TE Team 8 2 13.6 Tampa Bay Buccaneers TB Def/ST Team 6
2 2.10 Darren Waller LV TE Team 3 3 13.10 Washington FB Team WAS Def/ST Team 10
3 4.1 George Kittle SF TE Team 12 4 14.1 Pittsburgh Steelers PIT Def/ST Team 12
4 4.9 T.J. Hockenson DET TE Team 4 5 14.2 Baltimore Ravens BAL Def/ST Team 11
5 6.2 Kyle Pitts ATL TE Team 11 6 14.12 San Francisco 49ers SF Def/ST Team 1
6 6.3 Mark Andrews BAL TE Team 10 7 15.3 New England Patriots NE Def/ST Team 3
7 7.2 Noah Fant DEN TE Team 2 8 15.4 Buffalo Bills BUF Def/ST Team 4
8 8.7 Robert Tonyan GB TE Team 6 9 15.8 Indianapolis Colts IND Def/ST Team 8
9 8.12 Logan Thomas WAS TE Team 1 10 16.4 Kansas City Chiefs KC Def/ST Team 9
10 9.5 Irv Smith Jr. MIN TE Team 5 11 16.6 Miami Dolphins MIA Def/ST Team 7
11 9.9 Dallas Goedert PHI TE Team 9 12 16.11 Denver Broncos DEN Def/ST Team 2
12 11.9 Tyler Higbee LAR TE Team 9
13 12.1 Mike Gesicki MIA TE Team 12
14 12.3 Hunter Henry NE TE Team 10
15 13.1 Evan Engram NYG TE Team 1
16 13.2 Jonnu Smith NE TE Team 2
17 13.7 Jared Cook LAC TE Team 7
18 14.6 Anthony Firkser TEN TE Team 7
19 14.10 Gerald Everett SEA TE Team 3
20 15.5 Adam Trautman NO TE Team 5
21 16.3 Austin Hooper CLE TE Team 10

My team

1:04) RB Derrick Henry, Tennessee Titans: At No. 4, I was fully expecting to take Ezekiel Elliott, so King Henry was a pleasant surprise. He will see a significant statistical decline from last year’s ridiculous numbers, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t fully worthy of the No. 4 selection. It is, though, a reason why I went deeper at RB than usual in a draft of this size.

2:09) RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Kansas City Chiefs: CEH was a darling last year and didn’t quite get it clicking as most had hoped to see. In 2021, with another year of learning and a more practical offseason program to aid his maturation, Edwards-Helaire has low-end RB1 upside. Nice value here, if I do say so myself.

3:04) WR Keenan Allen, Los Angeles Chargers: Basically a lock to near 100 receptions, Allen is a PPR powerhouse and should once again thrive. Quarterback Justin Herbert has benefited from more time to polish his skills and knowledge of the game, making his top receiver a safe buy as my lead guy.

4:09) TE T.J. Hockenson, Detroit Lions: While Hockenson may have been a touch on the early side here, I wasn’t enamored with any of the options at wide receiver and was already off to a strong start at RB. I pivoted in a way not normal to my drafting preferences and chose the tight end — effectively Detroit’s No. 1 receiver — and decided to punt on the position the rest of the way.

5:04) WR Diontae Johnson, Pittsburgh Steelers: Landing Hock a round ago actually worked out pretty well. Johnson is an ascending talent in an offense that should keep him plenty busy underneath. He rarely will see double-teams, and I strongly believe we didn’t see his ceiling last year.

6:09) RB Trey Sermon, San Francisco 49ers: There is no running back I rather gamble on in 2021 drafts than the rookie. I’m not convinced Raheem Mostert will be even the “1a” of the backfield, and his durability concerns could make Sermon as close to a workhorse as possible in a Kyle Shanahan offense.

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7:04) WR Ja’Marr Chase, Cincinnati Bengals: I’ve been lukewarm on Chase’s draft placement much of the offseason, so this choice was a slight gamble on his chemistry with Joe Burrow. I have stability with Allen as my WR1 and a player whose weekly returns may wildly fluctuate with Johnson as my second. Chase could bring that “wow” factor to my receiving corps, although it means wideout depth must remain a focus over the next few rounds.

8:09) QB Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams: The weaponry and system are in place for Stafford to be dominant. Even though Round 8 may be a hair on the early side for my usual QB-drafting tastes, I wasn’t going to miss out on him after nine other QBs had been chosen.

9:04) WR Antonio Brown, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Still not terribly satisfied with my receivers and seeing a reasonable number of remaining RB4 targets on the board, AB is an intriguing risk-reward option. There’s clearly a chemistry between he and Tom Brady, and the veteran receiver was on pace for 90 grabs a year ago after having to come in cold from a lengthy layoff. I tend to prefer him in best-ball formats, but Brown would be a strong starter if something were to happen to Mike Evans or Chris Godwin.

10:09) WR Laviska Shenault Jr., Jacksonville Jaguars: Shenault was debated when I took Brown in the last round, so even though I still felt the need to add running back depth, the calculated decision to wait on the position brought the second-year Jaguar onto my roster. I’m not crazy about DJ Chark Jr.’s durability at this point, and we saw enough from the versatile Shenault as a rookie to expect a notable leap in Year 2.

11:04) RB Kenyan Drake, Las Vegas Raiders: I was expecting one of Drake, Chuba Hubbard, J.D. McKissic and Latavius Murray to be available for me. All of them were waiting for me. While McKissic was ranked the highest on my board, Drake’s situation appealed more to me based on my roster composition. If (when?) Josh Jacobs gets hurt, I have a proven back in a run-heavy system getting thrust into a starting role. I love McKissic’s receiving chops, though he’s not going to be much more than that if Antonio Gibson were to miss time.

12:09) QB Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars: Tua Tagovailoa and Ben Roethlisberger were the other targets here. It really was a coin flip between Big Ben and Lawrence, though. I feel pretty good about betting Lawrence will safely finish inside the top 15, which is probably Roethlisberger’s ceiling.

13:04) RB Alexander Mattison, Minnesota Vikings: Even though I didn’t draft Dalvin Cook, seeing Mattison here this late made me excited about my RB5 — not something that usually happens in a competitive draft. All it takes is one significant injury to Minnesota’s workhorse and I have a weekly RB2 or better ready for deployment.

14:09) RB Javian Hawkins, Atlanta Falcons: Just as the July mock draft saw me take Hawkins, yet again I couldn’t pass on his upside in PPR. This time, I snagged him two rounds later and as my RB6 instead of fifth. Hawkins has enjoyed a productive offseason and will be in the mix.

Fantasy football mock draft series: July takeaways

A mock draft review from a recent July gathering of professionals.

Here we are in late July with another fantasy football mock draft review. Feel free to compare and contrast the previous two — May and June — to see what has changed. The July draft involved a different group of participants from those two, so I’ve decided not to directly compare them but rather give thoughts on the picks and some rationale for my selections.

Before getting into my individual picks, here are a few positional observations from this 12-team, PPR draft.

  • Like in the June draft, Patrick Mahomes was a third-round pick (31st) overall. He and Josh Allen were the only two quarterbacks to go in the first four rounds. Eleven QBs were chosen in the first 100 picks.
  • Nine of the Round 1 choices were running backs. The position represented 14 of the first 24 chosen players. Among the first 100 picks, 40 running backs came off the board.
  • Wide receiver claimed 41 of the first 100 selections, splitting nearly even with 20 receivers in the first 50 spots. Among the 24 choices in Rounds 2 and 3, half went to the position.
  • Eight tight ends were chosen in the first 100 picks, and only two of them came off the board in the first 42 selections.

Below is a snapshot of the first 10 rounds broken down by number of positional picks from both the June and July drafts, including the change by round and overall. As mentioned, these drafts included different participants, so it may not be an entirely fair comparison. Note: This draft took place right before Cam Akers was injured.

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June draft results July draft results Change +/-
Rnd QB RB WR TE Rnd QB RB WR TE QB RB WR TE
1 0 9 2 1 1 0 9 2 1 0 0 0 0
2 0 6 5 1 2 0 5 6 1 0 -1 1 0
3 1 3 7 1 3 1 5 6 0 0 2 -1 -1
4 0 4 7 1 4 1 5 5 1 1 1 -2 0
5 1 6 5 0 5 2 2 8 0 1 -4 3 0
6 1 2 7 2 6 2 3 3 4 1 1 -4 2
7 2 2 7 1 7 2 7 3 0 0 5 -4 -1
8 2 5 4 1 8 2 3 6 1 0 -2 2 0
9 2 4 5 1 9 3 4 4 1 1 0 -1 0
10 0 8 4 0 10 1 0 8 3 1 -8 4 3
Total 9 49 53 9 Total 14 43 51 12 5 -6 -2 3

Round-by-round picks

Pick Rnd Player Tm Pos Pos rnk Pick Rnd Player Tm Pos Pos rnk
1 1.1 Christian McCaffrey CAR RB RB1 101 9.5 Tyler Boyd CIN WR WR42
2 1.2 Dalvin Cook MIN RB RB2 102 9.6 Nyheim Hines IND RB RB41
3 1.3 Alvin Kamara NO RB RB3 103 9.7 Dallas Goedert PHI TE TE9
4 1.4 Saquon Barkley NYG RB RB4 104 9.8 Joe Burrow CIN QB QB12
5 1.5 Derrick Henry TEN RB RB5 105 9.9 J.D. McKissic WAS RB RB42
6 1.6 Ezekiel Elliott DAL RB RB6 106 9.1 Jalen Hurts PHI QB QB13
7 1.7 Jonathan Taylor IND RB RB7 107 9.11 Tony Pollard DAL RB RB43
8 1.8 Travis Kelce KC TE TE1 108 9.12 Will Fuller MIA WR WR43
9 1.9 Nick Chubb CLE RB RB8 109 10.1 Jaylen Waddle MIA WR WR44
10 1.1 Tyreek Hill KC WR WR1 110 10.2 Tyler Higbee LAR TE TE10
11 1.11 Davante Adams GB WR WR2 111 10.3 Marquise Brown BAL WR WR45
12 1.12 Aaron Jones GB RB RB9 112 10.4 Henry Ruggs III LV WR WR46
13 2.1 Cam Akers LAR RB RB10 113 10.5 Matt Ryan ATL QB QB14
14 2.2 Joe Mixon CIN RB RB11 114 10.6 Laviska Shenault Jr. JAX WR WR47
15 2.3 Antonio Gibson WAS RB RB12 115 10.7 Antonio Brown TB WR WR48
16 2.4 DeAndre Hopkins ARI WR WR3 116 10.8 Robert Tonyan GB TE TE11
17 2.5 Najee Harris PIT RB RB13 117 10.9 Michael Gallup DAL WR WR49
18 2.6 Stefon Diggs BUF WR WR4 118 10.1 Mike Williams LAC WR WR50
19 2.7 Calvin Ridley ATL WR WR5 119 10.11 Hunter Henry NE TE TE12
20 2.8 Austin Ekeler LAC RB RB14 120 10.12 Corey Davis NYJ WR WR51
21 2.9 A.J. Brown TEN WR WR6 121 11.1 Chuba Hubbard CAR RB RB44
22 2.1 D.K. Metcalf SEA WR WR7 122 11.2 Denzel Mims NYJ WR WR52
23 2.11 Justin Jefferson MIN WR WR8 123 11.3 T Y Hilton IND WR WR53
24 2.12 Darren Waller LV TE TE2 124 11.4 Kenyan Drake LV RB RB45
25 3.1 Terry McLaurin WAS WR WR9 125 11.5 Cole Beasley BUF WR WR54
26 3.2 Josh Jacobs LV RB RB15 126 11.6 Trevor Lawrence JAX QB QB15
27 3.3 Clyde Edwards-Helaire KC RB RB16 127 11.7 Marvin Jones JAX WR WR55
28 3.4 Chris Carson SEA RB RB17 128 11.8 Phillip Lindsay HOU RB RB46
29 3.5 Michael Thomas NO WR WR10 129 11.9 Russell Gage ATL WR WR56
30 3.6 Keenan Allen LAC WR WR11 130 11.1 Jamaal Williams DET RB RB47
31 3.7 Patrick Mahomes KC QB QB1 131 11.11 AJ Dillon GB RB RB48
32 3.8 Allen Robinson CHI WR WR12 132 11.12 Tevin Coleman NYJ RB RB49
33 3.9 David Montgomery CHI RB RB18 133 12.1 Darnell Mooney CHI WR WR57
34 3.1 D’Andre Swift DET RB RB19 134 12.2 Mecole Hardman KC WR WR58
35 3.11 Robert Woods LAR WR WR13 135 12.3 Elijah Moore NYJ WR WR59
36 3.12 Mike Evans TB WR WR14 136 12.4 Javian Hawkins ATL RB RB50
37 4.1 J.K. Dobbins BAL RB RB20 137 12.5 Giovani Bernard TB RB RB51
38 4.2 CeeDee Lamb DAL WR WR15 138 12.6 Mike Gesicki MIA TE TE13
39 4.3 Miles Sanders PHI RB RB21 139 12.7 Pittsburgh Steelers PIT Def/ST DT1
40 4.4 Julio Jones TEN WR WR16 140 12.8 Zach Ertz PHI TE TE14
41 4.5 Mike Davis ATL RB RB22 141 12.9 Rob Gronkowski TB TE TE15
42 4.6 Chris Godwin TB WR WR17 142 12.1 Irv Smith Jr. MIN TE TE16
43 4.7 George Kittle SF TE TE3 143 12.11 Marlon Mack IND RB RB52
44 4.8 Myles Gaskin MIA RB RB23 144 12.12 Kirk Cousins MIN QB QB16
45 4.9 Josh Allen BUF QB QB2 145 13.1 Los Angeles Rams LAR Def/ST DT2
46 4.1 Kenny Golladay NYG WR WR18 146 13.2 Emmanuel Sanders BUF WR WR60
47 4.11 Cooper Kupp LAR WR WR19 147 13.3 Carson Wentz IND QB QB17
48 4.12 Chase Edmonds ARI RB RB24 148 13.4 Latavius Murray NO RB RB53
49 5.1 Adam Thielen MIN WR WR20 149 13.5 Nelson Agholor NE WR WR61
50 5.2 James Robinson JAX RB RB25 150 13.6 Jakobi Meyers NE WR WR62
51 5.3 Kyler Murray ARI QB QB3 151 13.7 Baker Mayfield CLE QB QB18
52 5.4 Brandon Aiyuk SF WR WR21 152 13.8 Tyrell Williams DET WR WR63
53 5.5 Lamar Jackson BAL QB QB4 153 13.9 Jared Cook LAC TE TE17
54 5.6 Kareem Hunt CLE RB RB26 154 13.1 Evan Engram NYG TE TE18
55 5.7 Amari Cooper DAL WR WR22 155 13.11 Alexander Mattison MIN RB RB54
56 5.8 Courtland Sutton DEN WR WR23 156 13.12 Darrell Henderson LAR RB RB55
57 5.9 Tyler Lockett SEA WR WR24 157 14.1 Salvon Ahmed MIA RB RB56
58 5.1 Diontae Johnson PIT WR WR25 158 14.2 Washington FB Team WAS Def/ST DT3
59 5.11 Odell Beckham Jr. CLE WR WR26 159 14.3 Jalen Reagor PHI WR WR64
60 5.12 D.J. Moore CAR WR WR27 160 14.4 Jameis Winston NO QB QB19
61 6.1 Kyle Pitts ATL TE TE4 161 14.5 Adam Trautman NO TE TE19
62 6.2 Dak Prescott DAL QB QB5 162 14.6 Baltimore Ravens BAL Def/ST DT4
63 6.3 T.J. Hockenson DET TE TE5 163 14.7 Justin Tucker BAL K PK1
64 6.4 Mark Andrews BAL TE TE6 164 14.8 Tua Tagovailoa MIA QB QB20
65 6.5 JuJu Smith-Schuster PIT WR WR28 165 14.9 Joshua Kelley LAC RB RB57
66 6.6 Travis Etienne JAX RB RB27 166 14.1 Tampa Bay Buccaneers TB Def/ST DT5
67 6.7 Justin Herbert LAC QB QB6 167 14.11 Cleveland Browns CLE Def/ST DT6
68 6.8 Raheem Mostert SF RB RB28 168 14.12 Anthony Firkser TEN TE TE20
69 6.9 Noah Fant DEN TE TE7 169 15.1 Harrison Butker KC K PK2
70 6.1 Damien Harris NE RB RB29 170 15.2 Rodrigo Blankenship IND K PK3
71 6.11 Tee Higgins CIN WR WR29 171 15.3 Tyler Bass BUF K PK4
72 6.12 Ja’Marr Chase CIN WR WR30 172 15.4 Younghoe Koo ATL K PK5
73 7.1 Russell Wilson SEA QB QB7 173 15.5 Greg Zuerlein DAL K PK6
74 7.2 Javonte Williams DEN RB RB30 174 15.6 James White NE RB RB58
75 7.3 D.J. Chark JAX WR WR31 175 15.7 Tre’Quan Smith NO WR WR65
76 7.4 Chase Claypool PIT WR WR32 176 15.8 New England Patriots NE Def/ST DT7
77 7.5 David Johnson HOU RB RB31 177 15.9 Indianapolis Colts IND Def/ST DT8
78 7.6 Michael Carter NYJ RB RB32 178 15.1 Miami Dolphins MIA Def/ST DT9
79 7.7 Melvin Gordon DEN RB RB33 179 15.11 Ryan Succop TB K PK7
80 7.8 James Conner ARI RB RB34 180 15.12 Buffalo Bills BUF Def/ST DT10
81 7.9 Trey Sermon SF RB RB35 181 16.1 Wil Lutz NO K PK8
82 7.1 Jerry Jeudy DEN WR WR33 182 16.2 Daniel Jones NYG QB QB21
83 7.11 Zack Moss BUF RB RB36 183 16.3 Daniel Carlson LV K PK9
84 7.12 Ryan Tannehill TEN QB QB8 184 16.4 Jason Sanders MIA K PK10
85 8.1 Deebo Samuel SF WR WR34 185 16.5 Joey Slye CAR K PK11
86 8.2 Ronald Jones II TB RB RB37 186 16.6 Matt Gay LAR K PK12
87 8.3 DeVonta Smith PHI WR WR35 187 16.7 Cole Kmet CHI TE TE21
88 8.4 Matthew Stafford LAR QB QB9 188 16.8 San Francisco 49ers SF Def/ST DT11
89 8.5 Robby Anderson CAR WR WR36 189 16.9 Denver Broncos DEN Def/ST DT12
90 8.6 Leonard Fournette TB RB RB38 190 16.1 Breshad Perriman DET WR WR66
91 8.7 Brandin Cooks HOU WR WR37 191 16.11 Austin Hooper CLE TE TE22
92 8.8 DeVante Parker MIA WR WR38 192 16.12 Tarik Cohen CHI RB RB59
93 8.9 Michael Pittman Jr. IND WR WR39
94 8.1 Logan Thomas WAS TE TE8
95 8.11 Aaron Rodgers GB QB QB10
96 8.12 Devin Singletary BUF RB RB39
97 9.1 Jarvis Landry CLE WR WR40
98 9.2 Tom Brady TB QB QB11
99 9.3 Gus Edwards BAL RB RB40
100 9.4 Curtis Samuel WAS WR WR41

Results by position

Pick Rnd Player Tm Pos Pos rnk Pick Rnd Player Tm Pos Pos rnk
31 3.7 Patrick Mahomes KC QB QB1 10 1.1 Tyreek Hill KC WR WR1
45 4.9 Josh Allen BUF QB QB2 11 1.11 Davante Adams GB WR WR2
51 5.3 Kyler Murray ARI QB QB3 16 2.4 DeAndre Hopkins ARI WR WR3
53 5.5 Lamar Jackson BAL QB QB4 18 2.6 Stefon Diggs BUF WR WR4
62 6.2 Dak Prescott DAL QB QB5 19 2.7 Calvin Ridley ATL WR WR5
67 6.7 Justin Herbert LAC QB QB6 21 2.9 A.J. Brown TEN WR WR6
73 7.1 Russell Wilson SEA QB QB7 22 2.1 D.K. Metcalf SEA WR WR7
84 7.12 Ryan Tannehill TEN QB QB8 23 2.11 Justin Jefferson MIN WR WR8
88 8.4 Matthew Stafford LAR QB QB9 25 3.1 Terry McLaurin WAS WR WR9
95 8.11 Aaron Rodgers GB QB QB10 29 3.5 Michael Thomas NO WR WR10
98 9.2 Tom Brady TB QB QB11 30 3.6 Keenan Allen LAC WR WR11
104 9.8 Joe Burrow CIN QB QB12 32 3.8 Allen Robinson CHI WR WR12
106 9.1 Jalen Hurts PHI QB QB13 35 3.11 Robert Woods LAR WR WR13
113 10.5 Matt Ryan ATL QB QB14 36 3.12 Mike Evans TB WR WR14
126 11.6 Trevor Lawrence JAX QB QB15 38 4.2 CeeDee Lamb DAL WR WR15
144 12.12 Kirk Cousins MIN QB QB16 40 4.4 Julio Jones TEN WR WR16
147 13.3 Carson Wentz IND QB QB17 42 4.6 Chris Godwin TB WR WR17
151 13.7 Baker Mayfield CLE QB QB18 46 4.1 Kenny Golladay NYG WR WR18
160 14.4 Jameis Winston NO QB QB19 47 4.11 Cooper Kupp LAR WR WR19
164 14.8 Tua Tagovailoa MIA QB QB20 49 5.1 Adam Thielen MIN WR WR20
182 16.2 Daniel Jones NYG QB QB21 52 5.4 Brandon Aiyuk SF WR WR21
1 1.1 Christian McCaffrey CAR RB RB1 55 5.7 Amari Cooper DAL WR WR22
2 1.2 Dalvin Cook MIN RB RB2 56 5.8 Courtland Sutton DEN WR WR23
3 1.3 Alvin Kamara NO RB RB3 57 5.9 Tyler Lockett SEA WR WR24
4 1.4 Saquon Barkley NYG RB RB4 58 5.1 Diontae Johnson PIT WR WR25
5 1.5 Derrick Henry TEN RB RB5 59 5.11 Odell Beckham Jr. CLE WR WR26
6 1.6 Ezekiel Elliott DAL RB RB6 60 5.12 D.J. Moore CAR WR WR27
7 1.7 Jonathan Taylor IND RB RB7 65 6.5 JuJu Smith-Schuster PIT WR WR28
9 1.9 Nick Chubb CLE RB RB8 71 6.11 Tee Higgins CIN WR WR29
12 1.12 Aaron Jones GB RB RB9 72 6.12 Ja’Marr Chase CIN WR WR30
13 2.1 Cam Akers LAR RB RB10 75 7.3 D.J. Chark JAX WR WR31
14 2.2 Joe Mixon CIN RB RB11 76 7.4 Chase Claypool PIT WR WR32
15 2.3 Antonio Gibson WAS RB RB12 82 7.1 Jerry Jeudy DEN WR WR33
17 2.5 Najee Harris PIT RB RB13 85 8.1 Deebo Samuel SF WR WR34
20 2.8 Austin Ekeler LAC RB RB14 87 8.3 DeVonta Smith PHI WR WR35
26 3.2 Josh Jacobs LV RB RB15 89 8.5 Robby Anderson CAR WR WR36
27 3.3 Clyde Edwards-Helaire KC RB RB16 91 8.7 Brandin Cooks HOU WR WR37
28 3.4 Chris Carson SEA RB RB17 92 8.8 DeVante Parker MIA WR WR38
33 3.9 David Montgomery CHI RB RB18 93 8.9 Michael Pittman Jr. IND WR WR39
34 3.1 D’Andre Swift DET RB RB19 97 9.1 Jarvis Landry CLE WR WR40
37 4.1 J.K. Dobbins BAL RB RB20 100 9.4 Curtis Samuel WAS WR WR41
39 4.3 Miles Sanders PHI RB RB21 101 9.5 Tyler Boyd CIN WR WR42
41 4.5 Mike Davis ATL RB RB22 108 9.12 Will Fuller MIA WR WR43
44 4.8 Myles Gaskin MIA RB RB23 109 10.1 Jaylen Waddle MIA WR WR44
48 4.12 Chase Edmonds ARI RB RB24 111 10.3 Marquise Brown BAL WR WR45
50 5.2 James Robinson JAX RB RB25 112 10.4 Henry Ruggs III LV WR WR46
54 5.6 Kareem Hunt CLE RB RB26 114 10.6 Laviska Shenault Jr. JAX WR WR47
66 6.6 Travis Etienne JAX RB RB27 115 10.7 Antonio Brown TB WR WR48
68 6.8 Raheem Mostert SF RB RB28 117 10.9 Michael Gallup DAL WR WR49
70 6.1 Damien Harris NE RB RB29 118 10.1 Mike Williams LAC WR WR50
74 7.2 Javonte Williams DEN RB RB30 120 10.12 Corey Davis NYJ WR WR51
77 7.5 David Johnson HOU RB RB31 122 11.2 Denzel Mims NYJ WR WR52
78 7.6 Michael Carter NYJ RB RB32 123 11.3 T Y Hilton IND WR WR53
79 7.7 Melvin Gordon DEN RB RB33 125 11.5 Cole Beasley BUF WR WR54
80 7.8 James Conner ARI RB RB34 127 11.7 Marvin Jones JAX WR WR55
81 7.9 Trey Sermon SF RB RB35 129 11.9 Russell Gage ATL WR WR56
83 7.11 Zack Moss BUF RB RB36 133 12.1 Darnell Mooney CHI WR WR57
86 8.2 Ronald Jones II TB RB RB37 134 12.2 Mecole Hardman KC WR WR58
90 8.6 Leonard Fournette TB RB RB38 135 12.3 Elijah Moore NYJ WR WR59
96 8.12 Devin Singletary BUF RB RB39 146 13.2 Emmanuel Sanders BUF WR WR60
99 9.3 Gus Edwards BAL RB RB40 149 13.5 Nelson Agholor NE WR WR61
102 9.6 Nyheim Hines IND RB RB41 150 13.6 Jakobi Meyers NE WR WR62
105 9.9 J.D. McKissic WAS RB RB42 152 13.8 Tyrell Williams DET WR WR63
107 9.11 Tony Pollard DAL RB RB43 159 14.3 Jalen Reagor PHI WR WR64
121 11.1 Chuba Hubbard CAR RB RB44 175 15.7 Tre’Quan Smith NO WR WR65
124 11.4 Kenyan Drake LV RB RB45 190 16.1 Breshad Perriman DET WR WR66
128 11.8 Phillip Lindsay HOU RB RB46 163 14.7 Justin Tucker BAL PK PK1
130 11.1 Jamaal Williams DET RB RB47 169 15.1 Harrison Butker KC PK PK2
131 11.11 AJ Dillon GB RB RB48 170 15.2 Rodrigo Blankenship IND PK PK3
132 11.12 Tevin Coleman NYJ RB RB49 171 15.3 Tyler Bass BUF PK PK4
136 12.4 Javian Hawkins ATL RB RB50 172 15.4 Younghoe Koo ATL PK PK5
137 12.5 Giovani Bernard TB RB RB51 173 15.5 Greg Zuerlein DAL PK PK6
143 12.11 Marlon Mack IND RB RB52 179 15.11 Ryan Succop TB PK PK7
148 13.4 Latavius Murray NO RB RB53 181 16.1 Wil Lutz NO PK PK8
155 13.11 Alexander Mattison MIN RB RB54 183 16.3 Daniel Carlson LV PK PK9
156 13.12 Darrell Henderson LAR RB RB55 184 16.4 Jason Sanders MIA PK PK10
157 14.1 Salvon Ahmed MIA RB RB56 185 16.5 Joey Slye CAR PK PK11
165 14.9 Joshua Kelley LAC RB RB57 186 16.6 Matt Gay LAR PK PK12
174 15.6 James White NE RB RB58 139 12.7 Pittsburgh Steelers PIT D/ST DT1
192 16.12 Tarik Cohen CHI RB RB59 145 13.1 Los Angeles Rams LAR D/ST DT2
8 1.8 Travis Kelce KC TE TE1 158 14.2 Washington FB Team WAS D/ST DT3
24 2.12 Darren Waller LV TE TE2 162 14.6 Baltimore Ravens BAL D/ST DT4
43 4.7 George Kittle SF TE TE3 166 14.1 Tampa Bay Buccaneers TB D/ST DT5
61 6.1 Kyle Pitts ATL TE TE4 167 14.11 Cleveland Browns CLE D/ST DT6
63 6.3 T.J. Hockenson DET TE TE5 176 15.8 New England Patriots NE D/ST DT7
64 6.4 Mark Andrews BAL TE TE6 177 15.9 Indianapolis Colts IND D/ST DT8
69 6.9 Noah Fant DEN TE TE7 178 15.1 Miami Dolphins MIA D/ST DT9
94 8.1 Logan Thomas WAS TE TE8 180 15.12 Buffalo Bills BUF D/ST DT10
103 9.7 Dallas Goedert PHI TE TE9 188 16.8 San Francisco 49ers SF D/ST DT11
110 10.2 Tyler Higbee LAR TE TE10 189 16.9 Denver Broncos DEN D/ST DT12
116 10.8 Robert Tonyan GB TE TE11
119 10.11 Hunter Henry NE TE TE12
138 12.6 Mike Gesicki MIA TE TE13
140 12.8 Zach Ertz PHI TE TE14
141 12.9 Rob Gronkowski TB TE TE15
142 12.1 Irv Smith Jr. MIN TE TE16
153 13.9 Jared Cook LAC TE TE17
154 13.1 Evan Engram NYG TE TE18
161 14.5 Adam Trautman NO TE TE19
168 14.12 Anthony Firkser TEN TE TE20
187 16.7 Cole Kmet CHI TE TE21
191 16.11 Austin Hooper CLE TE TE22

My team

1:09) RB Nick Chubb, Cleveland Browns: I had hoped somehow Jonathan Taylor would fall to me, but that was wishful thinking. The selection of Chubb gives me a legitimate RB1 with double-digit TD potential in a run-heavy offense.

2:04) WR DeAndre Hopkins, Arizona Cardinals: There would have been an internal debate over Nuk and Washington RB Antonio Gibson in this spot, until the latter was taken a pick beforehand. Hopkins is arguably the safest WR1 in the game today, and his selection gives me two elite players to anchor the lineup.

3:09) RB David Montgomery, Chicago Bears: If I’m being candidate, Montgomery worries me to a degree. He will have more competition for touches this year, and I’m not keen on what may happen if Andy Dalton loses the starting job at some point to a rookie. Even still, I chose Monty for variety and because he should still shoulder the load. D’Andre Swift was a consideration here.

4:04) WR Julio Jones, Tennessee Titans: If healthy, Jones is a dynamic WR2 behind Hopkins. The selection of Baltimore RB J.K. Dobbins a few picks before made my decision much easier. The former Falcons star could put my team over the top.

5:09) WR Tyler Lockett, Seattle Seahawks: This selection would have been Courtland Sutton, but in classic fantasy fashion, he went one pick ahead of me. Lockett is a slightly safer choice anyway and still has upper-end WR2 potential as my third.

6:04) TE Mark Andrews, Baltimore Ravens: While tight ends usually are not my thing this early, Andrews is basically the WR1 of this offense and gives me a plug-n-play starter. T.J. Hockenson would have been the guy if he hadn’t gone the with the prior pick.

[lawrence-related id=459383]

7:09) RB Trey Sermon, San Francisco 49ers: There is no running back I rather gamble on in 2021 drafts than the rookie. I’m not convinced Raheem Mostert will be even the “1a” of the backfield, and his durability concerns could make Sermon as close to a workhorse as possible in a Kyle Shanahan offense.

8:04) QB Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams: The weaponry and system are in place for Stafford to be dominant. Even though Round 8 may be a hair on the early side for my tastes, I wasn’t going to miss out on him after eight other QBs had been chosen.

9:09) RB J.D. McKissic, Washington Football Team: After taking a chance on Sermon, it was time to practice what I’ve been preaching all offseason: McKissic is a steal, even with Curtis Samuel’s addition to the roster. Last year’s RB17 is going in the RB40+ range. Huge discount.

10:04) WR Henry Ruggs III, Las Vegas Raiders: Forget last year’s unmitigated disaster of a rookie campaign. There’s little concern when making a 10th-round investment while already having three strong wideouts rostered.

11:09) WR Russell Gage, Atlanta Falcons: A season after filling in admirably for an injured Julio Jones, Gage gets an opportunity to become the team’s No. 2. Strong PPR potential at a low-cost price tag. Late-rounders like Gage help win fantasy championships.

12:04) RB Javian Hawkins, Atlanta Falcons: Consecutive Dirty Birds may not be appealing to many drafters, yet I couldn’t pass on the upside of Hawkins in PPR. He may turn out to be nothing at all, which is perfectly fine in Round 12 as my RB5.

13:09) TE Jared Cook, Los Angeles Chargers: It is quite rare for me to draft two tight ends, especially after investing early in my first one. However, Cook’s reunion with new Bolts OC Joe Lombardi has my interest piqued. LA has all of the factors in place to make Cook a borderline starting option.

14:04) QB Jameis Winston, New Orleans Saints: The former Buccaneer vs. Daniel Jones was my decision here. Timing couldn’t have been much worse, since Michael Thomas surgery news broke shortly thereafter.

Fantasy football mock draft series: June takeaways

A mock draft review from mid-June gets compared to May’s picks.

As of mid-June, the frequency of fantasy football drafts is really increasing. Last month, I gave thoughts on an industry mock draft … let’s see how much has changed over the last 30 days or so.

Out of respect for the hosts of this draft, no reference will be made to its identity so the content remains fresh on their end, nor will the entire draft results be published here. The blurbs about my team below were provided to the draft host and will appear in a magazine as part of a larger evaluation of the draft.

Before getting into my individual picks, here are a few generalized observations from this 12-team, PPR draft.

  • In May’s draft, the first QB came off of the board in late Round 4 (Patrick Mahomes). This time around, Mahomes once again was the first passer, being selected more than a full round in advance. His ADP in more casual circles remains 11th overall, which is absurdly early.
  • Three fewer running backs were drafted in the first three rounds, with those picks being evenly spread among the other skill positions. This is mostly inconsequential, but it could suggest experienced gamers are becoming more comfortable waiting on the position now that we’ve had some distance from free agency and the NFL draft. It will be interesting to see if a trend develops in future drafts.
  • The two drafts varied ever so slightly from round to round on the basis of which positions were chosen and when. The only serious differences came from the running back and tight end positions. Four fewer players were selected at TE, and as many were added to the pool of rushers chosen in the first 120 selections.

Recurring themes from May’s drafting:

  • Selecting in the top six is a great situation this year. You’re bound to come away with a legit No. 1 running back. There’s enough depth at the position to either go with a pair in the opening two rounds or alternate between RB and WR in the first four rounds while still coming away with a strong nucleus.
  • Quarterback remains quite deep, with a viable starter being available into the 12th round or so. Tight end remains a little top-heavy, but it has filled out more so than the past couple of years. It really could be the deepest class for raw talent among recent drafts, but whether we reap the rewards will require gamers to take risks.

Here’s a snapshot of the first 10 rounds broken down by number of positional picks from both drafts, including the change by round and overall.

May draft results
June draft results
Change +/-
Rnd
QB
RB
WR
TE
Rnd
QB
RB
WR
TE
 

QB
RB
WR
TE
1
0
11
1
0
1
0
9
2
1
0
-2
1
1
2
0
5
6
1
2
0
6
5
1
0
1
-1
0
3
0
5
6
1
3
1
3
7
1
1
-2
1
0
4
1
2
8
1
4
0
4
7
1
-1
2
-1
0
5
1
5
6
0
5
1
6
5
0
0
1
-1
0
6
1
3
6
2
6
1
2
7
2
0
-1
1
0
7
1
5
4
2
7
2
2
7
1
1
-3
3
-1
8
5
0
5
2
8
2
5
4
1
-3
5
-1
-1
9
0
4
5
3
9
2
4
5
1
2
0
0
-2
10
1
5
5
1
10
0
8
4
0
-1
3
-1
-1
Total
10
45
52
13
Total
9
49
53
9
-1
4
1
-4

My team

1:01) RB Christian McCaffrey, Carolina Panthers: Truthfully, I’m quite nervous about drafting McCaffrey, but the only other consideration (Dalvin Cook) also has significant injury concerns. Fingers crossed, but a healthy season should justify this pick in PPR scoring.

2:12) RB D’Andre Swift, Detroit Lions: One of my top breakout candidates for 2021, Swift has a strong possibility to crack the top-12 rushers in PPR. I love the offensive philosophy and commitment to the ground game under this coaching regime.

3:01) WR Keenan Allen, Los Angeles Chargers: A full offseason between Allen and Justin Herbert should take this pitch-and-catch combo to a new level in this Sean Payton-derivative system. Herbert is no stranger to new coaches, and Allen is a PPR monster.

4:12) WR Julio Jones, Tennessee Titans: If healthy, my No. 2 receiver will threaten the top-10 at his position, even with A.J. Brown’s explosive ways garnering copious looks. Expect Tennessee to open up the aerial offense a great deal in 2021.

5:01) RB Trey Sermon, San Francisco 49ers: A reach, but I didn’t see him making it back to me. Sermon is my top rookie and drastically benefits from Jeff Wilson’s injury. Raheem Mostert was brittle last year, and Sermon ideally fits this system.

6:12) QB Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills: Earlier than I tend to take a QB, but Allen was a steal at this point of the draft. Game-changing consolation after I missed out on Kyler Murray, my top-ranked passer.

[lawrence-related id=458784]

7:01) WR Deebo Samuel, San Francisco 49ers: A risk-reward decision … love the talent and versatility, not crazy about the quarterback situation. I considered DeVante Parker, Dallas Goedert and Robby Anderson. If healthy, Samuel should be an adequate WR3 or better most weeks.

8:12) RB J.D. McKissic, Washington Football Team: No other player is as undervalued as McKissic. The talent has always been there, and he finally was given an earnest opportunity. He’ll continue to be a weekly PPR flex in this improved passing game.

9:01) WR Amon-Ra St. Brown, Detroit Lions: There’s serious risk given how early I chose the rookie. Yet, Detroit needs someone to step up, and St. Brown has drawn rave reviews in OTAs. He could corral nearly 75 passes in best-case scenario.

10:12) RB Chuba Hubbard, Carolina Panthers: Hubbard was a must-add draft target after choosing McCaffrey No. 1 overall. The rookie can step right into the lineup as a dual-threat back in case CMC is besieged by injuries yet again. Huge win.

11:01) TE Anthony Firkser, Tennessee Titans: The Julio Jones addition helps make Firkser this year’s Robert Tonyan. He has “TD-heavy breakout” written all over him. Julio is no stranger to injury, which would thrust Firkser into the No. 2 target role.

12:12) WR Jamison Crowder, New York Jets: Contract squabble settled, Crowder should be the most stable receiving weapon in this offense for PPR scoring. There’s zero downside here as my WR5.

13:01) TE Zach Ertz, Philadelphia Eagles: Ertz will wind up with a prominent role somewhere, and I suspect it will be Indianapolis. Even if Ertz remains an Eagle, he offers a reasonable insurance policy to my risky selection of Firkser.

14:12) WR Gabriel Davis, Buffalo Bills: He emerge as the WR2 alongside Stefon Diggs. Buffalo isn’t afraid to sling it, and Davis could prove to be a huge value with the well-seasoned Emmanuel Sanders and oft-injured Cole Beasley as his barriers.