Fantasy football mock drafts: A second standard 12-teamer

With training camps right around the corner, the mock draft season is in full swing. These are valuable experiences to see where and when players are coming off the board and I suggest partaking in as many as possible.

Here at PFF we just completed our second 12-team standard-scoring mock draft and there were some very interesting selections made by our staff of experts. Let’s take a look at the draft and some of the things that stood out most to me.

Round 1

Round 1 started off pretty much status quo with my selection of Johnson and Mike Castiglione following up with Le’Veon Bell (who Mike took No. 1 back in May). Then things got interesting, as just prior to this mock starting Adam Schefter of ESPN reported that he’d be “hesitant” to draft Ezekiel Elliott due to the NFL’s ongoing investigation. The Tylers (Loecher and Buecher) decided to pass on Elliott for the safer selections of Brown and Jones at wide receiver. That left Elliott on the board for Pat Thorman at 1.05 and that’s a nice pick as long as Eliiott doesn’t face a lengthy suspension. The rest of the round went pretty much by the book, and my favorite pick was Daniel Kelley snagging Michael Thomas at 1.12. The kid is in for a huge second season with Drew Brees.

Round 2

There were no big surprises in Round 2 as the big-name talent continues to come off the board. It was interesting to see how a couple of top-10 picks from 2016 — Todd Gurley and DeAndre Hopkins — fell to 2.05 and 2.12, respectively, after disappointing seasons. After six running backs came off the board in Round 1, only four were selected in this round. I was a bit surprised (and happy) that Leonard Fournette was passed over, as he currently boasts an average draft position of 20th overall.

Round 3

I thought this was a very interesting round — not so much for who was selected, as most of these players have third-round ADPs, but the order they went was a bit surprising. I was elated to start the round by selecting Fournette as I feel the Jaguars will lean heavily on the rookie to keep Blake Bortles from tossing another boat load of interceptions. We had our first quarterback selected, as Tyler Buecher went with Aaron Rodgers (3.04) and in a 6-point-for-passing-touchdowns format that’s a fine pick. Scott Barrett taking Isaiah Crowell ahead of Lamar Miller was a bit of a reach in my opinion. They did put up similar totals last season but I like Miller to improve on the five rushing scores he had in 2016. The selection of Travis Kelce at 3.05 by Pat Thorman is my favorite selection of the round outside of my getting Fournette at what I see as a real position of value in the third. Davante Adams at 3.12 by Daniel Kelley feels like a reach at this point as I don’t see him duplicating the 12 receiving scores he put up in 2016.

Rounds 4-6

Of the 36 picks in Rounds 4-6 there were 15 running backs selected, indicating that owners are looking to beef up the position in these middle rounds with the depth at wide receiver being deep. The most interesting to me is Tyler Buecher snagging Adrian Peterson at the 6.09 spot. If Peterson has one more kick at the can left in him then this is a great value pick.

Another sneaky good selection was made by Brandon Marianne Lee by selecting tight end Jimmy Graham at 6.05. In his second season with Seattle, Graham was more involved offensively and seemed to have developed a rapport with Russell Wilson finishing as the No. 2 fantasy tight end.

With the very next pick after Graham, Jeff Ratcliffe could have the steal of the draft by getting Giants running back Paul Perkins. If Perkins holds onto the starting gig then he is a great pick at 6.06 to outperform his draft position. On the flip side, I’m not feeling Tyler Buecher’s taking C.J. Anderson at 4.09 with the crowded Denver backfield. Anderson has failed to step up when given the starting job and if Jamaal Charles has anything left in the tank then Anderson’s value takes another hit.

We saw four more quarterbacks come off the board and they round out what is generally considered the top five in most rankings. I have no qualms with the rounds or draft position of any of these QBs as they will anchor their respective owners’ offenses. I do like that I was able to wait until the end of the sixth round to get Russell Wilson as he finished 2016 very strongly and should have another big year.

Rounds 7-10

I really like Michael Moore drafting Martellus Bennett with the 8.03 selection. Rodgers targeted the tight end position 103 times last season and will look Bennett’s way often, especially in the red zone. There were other tight end selections I thought were smart moves during this stretch such as Tyler Buecher getting Delanie Walker in the ninth round. Walker has seen over 100 targets in three straight seasons and caught a career-high seven touchdowns last year.

If Jamaal Charles manages to bounce back from injury, then Dan Schneier has a steal by getting him at the 9.11 position. That is a big if, but worth the risk at that selection. Brandon Marianne Lee had a couple of nice back-to-back selections of Cameron Meredith (9.08) and Adam Thielen (10.05). That’s a pair of young receivers with very nice upside.

As for moves I didn’t like, we need look no further than my selections. It was way too early for me to select a second quarterback with Cam Newton at 9.01 and Corey Coleman at 8.12 was also a reach. This was not a good stretch of drafting for yours truly.

Rounds 11-14

Some of my favorite picks in this stretch of the draft were made by Mike Castiglione. He grabbed Kevin White at the 11.02 spot and Marlon Mack at 12.11. Finally healthy, White has the chance to be the No. 1 wide receiver for the Bears with Alshon Jeffery having moved on. At some point the Colts will look to monitor Frank Gore’s touches and Mack will have a role in the offense right away I believe. At this point in the draft it’s all about getting players with the chance to outperform their draft spot and Mike nailed it.

Jeff Ratcliffe selected Matthew Stafford in the 12th round, further showing me the error of my ways in taking Newton way too early. That gives Jeff both Dak Prescott and Stafford at quarterback, which is a daunting duo. Daniel Kelley bolstered his roster at quarterback with a nice selection by taking Tyrod Taylor in the 12th round.

It’s tough to really criticize any selections this late as teams are just looking to fill out their depth charts and this is the time for reaching. Dan Glasgens selecting Giovani Bernard in the 13th round is an example of this. Bernard’s health and role in the offense are both questionable. The addition of Joe Mixon could see Bernard’s usage decrease and he is still recovering from a knee injury suffered last November.

Rounds 15-16

Let’s face it — the final two rounds of the draft are littered with defenses and kickers. It’s too early to really know which defenses will dominate and personally I’m a streaming defense proponent so won’t criticize any of those selections. Kickers? Kickers? Are we talking about kickers? Nope. That’s a matter of preference in my opinion and to each their own.

I did like the selection of Mohamed Sanu in the 15.06 spot by Scott Barrett. Getting the Falcons No. 2 wide receiver that late is a sneaky good move.