The first week of July may feel early, but before you know it your fantasy football drafts will be here. You will soon be building what you hope is a team that can earn you a title. The prep, mock drafts included, start now.
Every Friday for the next 10 weeks I’ll be releasing a new mock draft from a different slot. I’ll be focusing on standard leagues. If you’re looking for mock drafts for PPR leagues, Colin has the hookup. Throughout this series, I’ll not only draft from different slots but try to employ different strategies. I aim to give you a diverse view of how your teams could look by taking different approaches at different starting slots.
Picking 10th Overall in Standard Leagues
This mock simulates a 10-team, 1 quarterback, Points Per Reception league. The hypothetical roster consists of 2 wide receivers, 2 running backs, 1 tight end, and 1 Flex position along with seven bench slots. The kicker and D/ST picks will be excluded. I’ll make my way back through the mock draft in reverse order over the next ten weeks.
ROUND ONE
1.01- Christian McCaffrey SF – RB
1.02- CeeDee Lamb DAL – WR
1.03- Ja’Marr Chase CIN – WR
1.04- Tyreek Hill MIA – WR
1.05- Justin Jefferson MIN – WR
1.06- Bijan Robinson ATL – RB
1.07- Breece Hall NYJ – RB
1.08- Amon-Ra St. Brown DET – WR
1.09- A.J. Brown PHI – WR
1.10- Jonathan Taylor IND – RB
MY PICK: Jonathan Taylor
For a standard league, there was quite a WR-heavy first round. That benefits me in this mock draft as I come away with one of the better RBs to own in standard leagues. Taylor was slow out of the gate last season and dealt with injuries. He also played half a game with Anthony Richardson. Despite those hurdles, he finished fifth in PPG among RBs in standard leagues. If you can come away with Taylor in round 1, you’re landing an RB who will be his team’s unquestioned bell cow in what should be an improved offense. He is exactly the kind of pick you want in round 1, especially if he comes at the end of the round. My next selection was a bell cow for many years, but I’m not 100% convinced he will be again in a new setting.
ROUND TWO
2.01- Derrick Henry BAL – RB
2.02- Puka Nacua LAR – WR
2.03- Saquon Barkley PHI – RB
2.04- Garrett Wilson NYJ – WR
2.05- Isiah Pacheco KC – RB
2.06- Marvin Harrison Jr. ARI – WR
2.07- Jahmyr Gibbs DET – RB
2.08- Kyren Williams LAR – RB
2.09- Deebo Samuel Sr. SF – WR
2.010- Davante Adams LV – WR
MY PICK: Derrick Henry
Perpetual fantasy standard league no-brainer, Henry still should be an easy choice for many in round 1. Definitely, round 2 if he falls there like he did in this mock draft. Henry should lead the Ravens backfield and be their most talented back since the early J.K. Dobbins days. However, his biggest strength could be his biggest downfall. He’s an elite bruiser who should help open things up for reigning MVP Lamar Jackson. Henry has never played in an offense that has not revolved around him since his early days.
Furthermore, who’s to say Henry will be the bell cow in Baltimore? Justice Hill is still there and Keaton Mitchell could be an interesting X factor when he returns. Baltimore has traditionally shown they’re willing to spread the ball around out of the backfield. Henry might not necessarily be the Bell of the ball. That said, he’s still Derrick Henry. The Ravens will still run the ball, a ton. He and Taylor make a consistent, reliable 1-2 punch at the top of my roster.
ROUND THREE
3.01- Travis Etienne Jr. JAC – RB
3.02- Josh Allen BUF – QB
3.03- Nico Collins HOU – WR
3.04- Mike Evans TB – WR
3.05- Chris Olave NO – WR
3.06- Brandon Aiyuk SF – WR
3.07- Sam LaPorta DET – TE
3.08- De’Von Achane MIA – RB
3.09- Rachaad White TB – RB
3.10- DJ Moore CHI – WR
MY PICK: DJ Moore
DJ Moore feels underrated to me this year. Last season he finished top-15 in receptions, yards, and touchdowns. He did that while catching passes from Justin Fields. Now he gets to do that with Caleb Williams. Detractors will point to the improved Bears offense making Moore less of a focal point.
The addition of Keenan Allen will certainly stand out, but he has an injury history. I think Rome Odunze is a legitimate threat to Moore’s target share, certainly more than Allen. Still, I think there is enough football to go around. In standard leagues, the deep ball receivers hold more value than the underneath possession receivers. No matter who else is on the field, Moore should play that role as the top target in Chicago. Moore could finish as a top 10 WR with Caleb Williams’s elite arm talent. A pick like that I’ll gladly grab at the end of Round 3. The same can be said for my next selection.
ROUND FOUR
4.01- Travis Kelce KC – TE
4.02- Josh Jacobs GB – RB
4.03- Jalen Hurts PHI – QB
4.04- DK Metcalf SEA – WR
4.05- Lamar Jackson BAL – QB
4.06- Mark Andrews BAL – TE
4.07- James Cook BUF – RB
4.08- Joe Mixon HOU – RB
4.09- Kenneth Walker III SEA – RB
4.10- Drake London ATL – WR
MY PICK: Travis Kelce
Yes, I made this mock draft selection, not my Fiance. I’m the bigger Swiftie anyway. Kelce is coming off a down season but not a bad season. He may have left a bitter taste in people’s mouths after having a season that did not justify his first-round selection. He still finished top-three in points for TEs, behind LaPorta and Kittle. So why am I taking Kelce over them? I have faith, and you should too.
Kelce isn’t young. He’s turning 35 this season and while his best days are behind him, Kelce’s game hasn’t been built on elite athletic ability. His route running and chemistry with Mahomes are what makes him great. He was battling an ankle injury all last season. How many games did he miss all season? Two total, one if you don’t count the final game of the year. So Kelce with a bad ankle missed minimal time, but still put up some decent numbers in an offense designed to force Mahomes to throw to anyone else. Let’s see what he can do in a healthy season with Hollywood Brown and Xavier Worthy drawing some attention from the defense.
ROUND FIVE
5.01- Alvin Kamara NO – RB
5.02- Aaron Jones MIN – RB
5.03- Trey McBride ARI – TE
5.03- David Montgomery DET – RB
5.04- James Conner ARI – RB
5.06- Jaylen Waddle MIA – WR
5.07- Patrick Mahomes II KC – QB
5.08- Michael Pittman IND – WR
5.09- Najee Harris PIT – RB
5.10- Amari Cooper CLE – WR 5.10
MY PICK: Amari Cooper
This one was hard. I am trying to figure out which receiver I want to pair across from DJ Moore in my WR slot, and I knew I was only taking one of the three I had my eye on. More on that in a few.
I settled on Amari Cooper for a few reasons. He’s reliable, a growing theme on my team. Cooper can be trusted in most matchups and consistently gets the ball. Plus I think we all forget Cooper isn’t that old. He just turned 30 a few weeks ago. He’s also returning to an offense where he finished top-10 in yards with the same QB, head coach, and system. For your fifth player off the board, Cooper is a rock-solid addition. Be it a mock draft or a real draft.
ROUND SIX
6.01- C.J. Stroud HOU – QB
6.02- Anthony Richardson IND – QB
6.03- Rhamondre Stevenson NE – RB
6.04- Raheem Mostert MIA – RB
6.05- Javonte Williams DEN – RB
6.06- Joe Burrow CIN – QB
6.07- Dak Prescott DAL – QB
6.08- Zamir White LV – RB
6.09- Tony PollardTEN – RB
6.10- Dalton Kincaid BUF – TE
MY PICK: C.J. Stroud
My favorite selection in this mock draft. It felt like a square peg sliding perfectly into a square hole. Stroud was a stud last season and had a near MVP year. Now, in his second year, he gets additions of Joe Mixon and Stefon Diggs. Absolute perfect pick. I wouldn’t call Stroud a steal but this is the sweet spot to land a QB who could finish as a top-5 player in his position, if not better. Look at the players who came off the board after Stroud. Richardson, Burrow, Dak. All QBs fall under that same category. If I miss on Stroud I’m likely settling for a couple of QBs late in the draft hoping to strike gold on one of them. Stroud gives me a set-and-forget QB who should contend for MVP once again.
ROUND SEVEN
7.01- Stefon Diggs HOU – WR
7.02- D’Andre Swift CHI – RB
7.03- Kyler Murray ARI – QB
7.04- DeVonta Smith PHI – WR
7.05- Zack Moss CIN – RB
7.06- Gus Edwards LAC – RB
7.07- Brian Robinson Jr. WAS – RB
7.08- Jonathon Brooks CAR – RB
7.09- Jaylen Warren PIT – RB
7.10- Cooper Kupp LAR – WR
MY PICK: Cooper Kupp
As luck would have it, one of the three WRs I was considering in round five falls to me in round seven. Kupp is coming off a down season, nobody will deny that. He was hurt and hasn’t lived up to the same level of WR he was when he set the single-season reception record. I think there is a chance he will bounce back.
As I mentioned before not only was he hurt last season but he was hurt early in the year. Does that change Puka Nakua’s chemistry with Stafford if the injury comes later in the year? Does a healthy Kupp begin to reclaim some of the target share he lost to Nakua? I think we will see Kupp closer to the form we saw before last season, and while he might not ever finish as WR1 again, he makes a great pick to be a rotational flex player. Especially once my next selection gets going.
ROUND EIGHT
8.01- Nick Chubb CLE – RB
8.02- Malik Nabers NYG – WR
8.03- Austin Ekeler WAS – RB
8.04- Tee Higgins CIN – WR
8.05- Tank Dell HOU – WR
8.06- Tyjae Spears TEN – RB
8.07- Zay Flowers BAL – WR
8.08- Christian Kirk JAC – WR
8.09- Terry McLaurin WAS – WR
8.10- Devin Singletary NYG – RB
MY PICK: Nick Chubb
If Nick Chubb is going to be available this late in drafts, you can expect to see him in many of my mocks. Let’s look at the upside here. You walk away with someone who is playing like a top-3 fantasy RB once he gets back in the flow of things. Even if it takes him a few weeks to reach that point, he’s a great asset when the bye weeks roll around or trade bait when someone inevitably loses an RB to injury mid-season. Putting optimism aside, Chubb completely returning to form is far from a guarantee.
While Chubb’s injury was very early last year, happening in week two, it was gruesome and required two surgeries. He is currently running on land and has no timetable. When he does return, he’s likely to be in a timeshare. It’s a risk, but one I can afford to take having come away with Taylor and Henry with my first two picks. If he busts I’m not relying on him. However, if he booms, he could be a league-winning selection.
ROUND NINE
9.01- Keenan Allen CHI – WR
9.02- Ezekiel Elliott DAL – RB
9.03- Jerome Ford CLE – RB
9.04- Calvin Ridley TEN – WR
9.05- Trey Benson ARI – RB
9.06- George Pickens PIT – WR
9.07- Jayden Reed GB – WR
9.08- Chris Godwin TB – WR
9.09- Rashee Rice KC – WR
9.10- Hollywood Brown KC – WR
My Pick: Hollywood Brown
Ironically, Colin and I had the same thinking, in the same round. We both come away with Hollywood Brown, who could end up being Mahomes’s new favorite target. Mahomes far and away lifts all talent around him. With the exception of Tyreek Hill, most pass catchers vastly overperform with Mahomes throwing them the ball. Brown however comes in with more talent than any of the Chiefs WRs last year.
The real threat to Brown’s production in my eyes isn’t Rashee Rice, it’s Xavier Worthy and his record-setting speed. If Worthy becomes the second go-to receiver after Kelce, is there enough of a target share left where Brown is relevant? Or will he be a guessing game all season where you hope you stream him on a week he catches a deep ball? We’re in round 9 where you want to take a shot at a pick that might end up winning you your league.
ROUND 10
10.01- Diontae Johnson CAR – WR
10.02- Chase Brown CIN – RB
10.03- DeAndre Hopkins TEN – WR
10.04- Blake Corum LAR – RB
10.05- Jordan Addison MIN – WR
10.06- Zach Charbonnet SEA – RB
10.07- Jameson WilliamsDET – WR
10.08- Chuba Hubbard CAR – RB
10.09- Christian Watson GB – WR
10.10- Kendre Miller NO – RB 10.10
MY PICK: Diontae Johnson
Diontae Johnson is an example of me learning my lesson from last year. I completely overlooked Adam Thielen who became a great pickup late in drafts across all formats. Sometimes fantasy football comes down to volume and that’s what Johnson should see a ton of in Carolina this year. He is by and far the most talented weapon in an offense that is severely lacking in talent. If all goes perfectly, he could see a boost to his production similar to DJ Moore did when he became the focal point of the Bear’s offense. It’s not unreasonable to think Johnson could find himself in the top 10-15 WR range.
STARTING LINEUP
QB – C.J. Stroud
RB – Jonathan Taylor, Derrick Henry
WR – D.J. Moore, Amari Cooper
TE – Travis Kelce
FLEX – Cooper Kupp
Bench: Nick Chubb, Hollywood Brown, Diontae Johnson, George Kittle. (11.10), Brian Thomas Jr. (12.01), Caleb Williams (13.10), Ty Chandler (14.01)
Final Take
It’s early. If you’re drafting this early I have questions. While some are judgemental about why you’re drafting so early, others are about players who I don’t feel comfortable taking. I felt like I avoided many of those questions, especially early.
Identifying and streaming the right players can help you win a week. If you want to win a season, you need to find guys you can play nearly every week. Looking back, I think I did that here. Taylor, Henry, Moore, Kelce, and Stroud are all set and forget. Cooper is close. Above all, there are a few question marks for my flex spot but I made four straight picks that I think could end up being steals. They don’t all need to be hits. For a first mock draft, it’ll be hard to top this team.
Where did Sean go wrong in this mock draft? Let him know in the comments below and then make sure to check out our 2024 Fantasy Football Draft Kit for more great rankings and analysis.