Fantasy Football: First Mock Draft of 2018
The Fantasy Footballers sat down for their first mock draft for the 2018 season on the March 22nd podcast. Mock drafts are so useful to test different strategies and get a sense of what players trend up or down the draft board leading up to the season.
To get the full experience you can access the full draft results and check out the entire episode here. Read up on a handful of Tips and Tricks to Mock Draft Like a Champ.
12 teams, .5PPR
1 QB, 2RB, 2WR, TE, 1 RB/WR, DST, K, 5 Bench
Round 1, Pick 4
David Johnson, RB
Was there really a doubt? With Todd Gurley selected first overall, LeVeon Bell second, and Antonio Brown third the Ballers debated whether to start with a WR or RB. Jason noted that elite RBs score more than elite WRs, which basically made it a coin flip between Ezekiel Elliott and David Johnson. The rest is history.
Other players considered: Ezekiel Elliott, Odell Beckham Jr
Round 2, Pick 9
Christian McCaffrey, RB
As early as the second round, roster construction begins to be a question. We’re already looking at combinations. Would Odell Beckham Jr. and Christian McCaffrey make a better pairing than David Johnson and one of the available WRs that include Adam Thielen? Ultimately the guys decided to pair David Johnson with McCaffrey who quietly finished as the 13th RB in .5PPR scoring last year.
Other players considered: Adam Thielen, Tyreek Hill
Round 3, Pick 4
T.Y. Hilton
Gronk would have been in play, but he was scooped up right before this pick. This is the part of the draft where some people start to consider the top options at QB, but this is still to early to consider a QB with the options available at RB and especially WR. The Ballers weren’t quite hooked on a Thielen with the ceiling Hilton offers.
Other players considered: Adam Thielen, Doug Baldwin, Stefon Diggs
Round 4, Pick 9
Demaryius Thomas, WR
There is always one and maybe two picks during a draft that are crucial pivot points that dictate the flow of the rest of the draft. This was one of the more debated picks because there were a number of very good options available at the RB and WR position. The Ballers would have loved to snag Jerick McKinnon, Carlos Hyde or Joe Mixon, but opted to go with Demaryius Thomas knowing he wouldn’t be available in the next round while one of those three RBs should be after the short turn.
Other players considered: Jerick McKinnon, Carlos Hyde, Joe Mixon, Golden Tate, Jarvis Landry
Dustin Bradford/Getty Images Sport
Round 5, Pick 4
Lamar Miller, RB
You can probably guess what happened to the three RBs that were hopefully going to be available for this pick. It was a tough break to the degree that Andy and Mike wanted nothing to do with this pick. Jason was left with the unenviable task of choosing between some marred options.
Other players considered: Alex Collins, Devin Funchess
Round 6, Pick 9
Pierre Garcon, WR
This is the point of the draft where bench spots are starting to be filled. Garcon is another solid experienced WR.
Other players considered: D’Onta Foreman, Corey Davis, Robby Anderson, Rex Burkhead, Will Fuller
Round 7, Pick 4
Greg Olsen, TE
There are concerns over Olsen’s surgically repaired foot. The lack of additions on the offensive side of the ball suggests Olsen should have no problem returning TE1 value if he remains healthy in 2018.
Other players considered: Rex Burkhead
Round 8, Pick 9
Chris Hogan, WR
Injury derailed his 2017 season, but Hogan when on a 4-week heater where he accumulated 5 TDs. QBs options are whittling down, but at this point, every other team has a QB.
Other players considered: Marshawn Lynch, D’Onta Foreman, Philip Rivers, Jameis Winston
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Round 9, Pick 4
Tarik Cohen, RB
Cohen has huge .5PPR upside in Matt Nagy’s Chicago offense.
Other players considered: Marshawn Lynch
Round 10, Pick 9
Isaiah Crowell, RB
Crowell has had success in Cleveland and should see plenty of opportunity in New York.
Other players considered: Kenny Stills, T Montgomery
Round 11, Pick 4
Philip Rivers, QB
The Ballers finally took a QB with their 11th pick.
Other players considered: Jameis Winston
Round 12, Pick 9
Danny Amendola, WR
The guys discussed taking guys like Amendola late that you’ll know what to do with them very early in the season. If they break out, great you can throw them into the flex. If they aren’t an obvious part of the gameplan, you can drop them and move on.
Other players considered: LeGarrette Blount,C.J. Prosise, Corey Clement
Rounds 13 and 14
Denver Defense and PK Mason Crosby
Summary
This team mixed elite RBs with solid WRs. Missing on one of those RBs in the fourth round was a killer in retrospect. The Ballers agreed that they would have felt a lot better about the team with Joe Mixon or Jerick McKinnon especially given some of the high-upside RBs available later in the draft including the lesser-known rookie RBs. Drafting Kenny Stills in the 10th round instead of Isaiah Crowell would have also given the team another solid WR. Jason choose Marshawn Lynch as a big-name player he would be avoiding in drafts. Sure enough, Lynch was considered but passed up on in the eighth and ninth rounds. That’s why mock drafts are such powerful tools leading up to the real drafts.