Mock Draft!

By: Josh Frey-Sam

It’s never too early to mock draft.

There’s no better way to familiarize yourself with this year’s crop and get a feel for how things are going to shake out.

Starting pretty standard this year: 12 teams, half-PPR with a standard roster.

I ripped a randomizer, which gave me No. 8, and after my first go-around, I have to say, I don’t mind picking from the eighth slot.

You can see my draft, and below that will be my thought process for each pick.

1.08 Puka Nacua: This was about as no-brainer as it gets. Puka Nacua somehow falls to me, and that’s where his slide ends.

2.5 Omarion Hampton: An absolute dream start. Omarion Hampton is an early My Guy candidate for this year. I love what he could be behind a healthy Chargers offensive line, in this Mike McDaniel run scheme.

3.8 Rashee Rice: Had a chance to grab another My Guy candidate here in Luther Burden or a target-hog in Garrett Wilson. Tough decision, but I went with Rashee Rice, as, jail-time aside, he remains firmly in the WR1 conversation. I crossed my fingers that Burden would fall to me.

4.5 Colston Loveland: Burden went with the next pick, and while I could still go WR with Ladd McConkey — who I believe is the last of the WR1 tiered players right now — I opted for the potential positional advantage by nabbing Colston Loveland. All signs point to Loveland being elite this season, and I need to have pieces of this Bears’ offence.

5.8 David Montgomery: If you haven’t mock drafted yet, one thing you’re going to notice is just how quickly the RBs get gross. That’s not to say there won’t be good ones to get in mid-late rounds, but I can assure you that you won’t feel good while drafting many of them. In need of an RB2, I went with Montgomery, who has a clear runway to a workhorse role in the Texans’ offence. I like this offence, which should equate to solid opportunity on the goal line for Monty.

6.5: Rome Odunze: And we’re back to Chicago. Listen, I’m all in on Luther Burden this year, but Odunze in the 6th — or even the 7th — is a value too great to pass up. He was on a rocketship before suffering his foot injury last season, and to have him as a flex option feels fantastic.

7.8: Caleb Williams: I’m not one to normally draft QBs in the first eight rounds — I believe there are too many quality options late in drafts every year. However, there are always exceptions to the rule — this one being that I have two pieces of Chicago’s passing attack. Give me the quarterback for the double-stack.

8.5: Jadarian Price: This is the last name before it starts to get downright nasty at the position. Eighth round price tag for a 1st round draft pick who figures to have a fantastic opportunity to take command of the Hawks’ backfield? Yes, please. Frankly, this might be the only pick that I regret — I think the right selection here is Parker Washington. Keep an eye on the Jags’ WRs this off-season, btw. BTJ, Jakobi Meyers and Washington all went within 13 picks of each other, in that order.

9.8: Quentin Johnston: I’ve liked everything coming out of Chargers OTAs about QJ. Mike McDaniel loves him, and it looks like he is going to have a significant role in this offence. Coming off consecutive seasons of 80+ catches, 700+ yards and 8 touchdowns? Yeah, I will take him in what should be a prolfiic offence.

13.8 Matthew Goldon: Let’s skip ahead to the last important pick of this draft. I’ve been on the Golden train for a long time now, and it’s not stopping. This needs to be your target, especially if his ADP remains in the 13th round. This kid has too much talent, and too much opportunity to be going damn-near undrafted.

Thanks for reading and, as always, have a great day.

Josh