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Fantasy Football Mock Draft 3.0

This fantasy football mock draft starts off with two running backs before pivoting to a volume attack on the wide receiver position.
Fantasy Football Mock Draft

The start of the NFL season is roughly one month away, which means fantasy football players need to start performing mock draft after mock draft if they want to win their respective leagues. This mock draft has every pick listed, with my selections bolded.

Note: This fantasy football mock draft was performed on Sleeper using one-quarterback, PPR settings.

Fantasy Football Profiles

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2023 Fantasy Football Mock Draft 3.0

First Round

1.01 – Justin Jefferson
1.02 – Christian McCaffrey
1.03 – Austin Ekeler
1.04 – Travis Kelce
1.05 – Ja’Marr Chase
1.06 – Bijan Robinson
1.07 – Tyreek Hill
1.08 – Saquon Barkley
1.09 – Stefon Diggs
1.10 – Cooper Kupp
1.11 – A.J. Brown
1.12 – Jonathan Taylor 

Bijan Robinson is an auto-pick for me in the middle of every fantasy football mock draft. The first-round pick is the RB2 in my running back rankings and for good reason. The Texas product was an elite prospect, dominating in just about every metric and putting him in the same elite category as Ezekiel Elliott and Saquon Barkley. He also received top-10 draft capital and landed in a run-obsessed offense that just turned a rookie Tyler Allgeier into a 1,000-yard rusher. Ultimately, the sky is the limit here, and Robinson could easily turn into a league-winning force.

Second Round

2.01 – Patrick Mahomes
2.02 – CeeDee Lamb
2.03 – Nick Chubb
2.04 – Davante Adams
2.05 – Amon-Ra St. Brown
2.06 – Derrick Henry
2.07 – Josh Jacobs
2.08 – Garrett Wilson
2.09 – Josh Allen
2.10 – Jaylen Waddle
2.11 – Jalen Hurts
2.12 – Tony Pollard

Far and away the riskiest pick in this fantasy football mock draft, Josh Jacobs has the chance to be an absolute steal in the second round. However, he could also be the biggest bust of the season a la 2018 Le’Veon Bell. At the end of the day, Jacobs has 10.1 million reasons to rejoin the Raiders, and even if he holds out, Josh McDaniels will eventually blink and up his one-year offer once this team starts losing. McDaniels will not survive another losing season, so if he has to hand out more money to try and save his job, he will.

Third Round

3.01 – Chris Olave
3.02 – Mark Andrews
3.03 – Rhamondre Stevenson
3.04 – Tee Higgins
3.05 – DeVonta Smith
3.06 – D.K. Metcalf
3.07 – Breece Hall
3.08 – Najee Harris
3.09 – Travis Etienne
3.10 – Lamar Jackson
3.11 – Jahmyr Gibbs
3.12 – Deebo Samuel

D.K. Metcalf is an absolute freak of nature that should be in for a great season. Nobody questions Metcalf’s talent, and his situation should allow for yet another strong campaign. Geno Smith looked the part of a starting quarterback last year, and the presence of first-round pick Jaxon Smith-Njigba should only make the offense better. At this point in time, we know that targets are earned and that elite players like Metcalf don’t lose work to newcomers. So, with that in mind, the trio of Metcalf, Smith-Njigba, and Tyler Lockett should create one of the better offenses in the league, which means more scoring opportunities.

Fourth Round

4.01 – Keenan Allen
4.02 – Joe Burrow
4.03 – Kenneth Walker
4.04 – Alvin Kamara
4.05 – Joe Mixon
4.06 – Clavin Ridley
4.07 – Amari Cooper
4.08 – D.J. Moore
4.09 – Aaron Jones
4.10 – George Kittle
4.11 – J.K. Dobbins
4.12 – T.J. Hockenson

One of the most perennially-overlooked wide receivers in the game, Amari Cooper is coming off a top-10 finish and could easily eclipse that performance in 2023. Assuming he can knock off the rust, Deshaun Watson is a great quarterback that can provide plenty of accurate targets, and Cooper should naturally improve during his second year in Cleveland. While he might not be the flashiest name in this fantasy football mock draft, he should be one of the more reliable ones.

Fifth Round

5.01 – Dameon Pierce
5.02 – Miles Sanders
5.03 – DeAndre Hopkins
5.04 – Drake London
5.05 – Justin Fields
5.06 – Kyle Pitts
5.07 – Jerry Jeudy
5.08 – Justin Herbert
5.09 – Trevor Lawrence
5.10 – Terry McLaurin
5.11 – Christian Watson
5.12 – Chris Godwin

Last year, Kyle Pitts was the TE22 in terms of points per game. However, a deeper dive shows that most of these issues were caused by a clearly washed-up Marcus Mariota. Pitts finished the season ranked first in target rate, second in target share, first in air yards share, and fifth in expected fantasy points per game. Desmond Ridder doesn’t need to be a superstar to turn Kyle Pitts into an elite tight end, he just needs to be somewhat accurate.

Sixth Round

6.01 – Dallas Goedert
6.02 – Cam Akers
6.03 – Michael Pittman
6.04 – Alexander Mattison
6.05 – D’Andre Swift
6.06 – Darren Waller
6.07 – Brandon Aiyuk
6.08 – James Conner
6.09 – Javonte Williams
6.10 – Marquise Brown
6.11 – Isiah Pacheco
6.12 – Diontae Johnson

Brandon Aiyuk is going to be this year’s breakout wideout. As explained in my wide receiver rankings, Deebo Samuel’s reputation is mostly powered by one elite season. Aiyuk has been the better player for the better part of two seasons, and he should be in for his best year yet now that he finally has a reliable quarterback. Aiyuk has WR1 potential and is an absolute steal in the sixth round of this fantasy football mock draft.

Seventh Round

7.01 – Dalvin Cook
7.02 – Rachaad White
7.03 – Tyler Lockett
7.04 – Jahan Dotson
7.05 – Mike Williams
7.06 – Mike Evans
7.07 – Jaxon Smith-Njigba
7.08 – Christian Kirk
7.09 – George Pickens
7.10 – Pat Freiermuth
7.11 – David Montgomery
7.12 – Jordan Addison

Baker Mayfield and Kyle Trask and both significant downgrades from Tom Brady, but the fantasy football community is overreacting to this shift in talent. Mike Evans is still great, and he proved throughout his career that he can put up amazing results even with subpar quarterback play. Don’t overthink this one.

Eighth Round

8.01 – James Cook
8.02 – Evan Engram
8.03 – Antonio Gibson
8.04 – Treylon Burks
8.05 – Brian Robinson
8.06 – Dak Prescott
8.07 – Quentin Johnston
8.08 – Kadarius Toney
8.09 – Michael Thomas
8.10 – Deshaun Watson
8.11 – Brandin Cooks
8.12 – Tua Tagovailoa

Back in the day, rookie wide receivers generally needed a year or two to adjust to NFL life before they could reliably contribute to fantasy football. That is no longer the case, as guys like Justin Jefferson, Ja’Marr Chase, Jaylen Waddle, and countless others have hit the ground running. Quentin Johnston is reportedly tearing up training camp and is a great high-upside selection in this fantasy football mock draft.

Ninth Round

9.01 – Juju Smith-Schuster
9.02 – A.J. Dillon
9.03 – Gabe Davis
9.04 – Anthony Richardson
9.05 – Jamaal Williams
9.06 – Rashaad Penny
9.07 – David Njoku
9.08 – Aaron Rodgers
9.09 – Khalil Herbert
9.10 – Zay Flowers
9.11 – Samaje Perine
9.12 – Zach Charbonnet

D’Andre Swift still has the higher average draft position, but all of the available metrics suggest that Rashaad Penny is the better running back. Yes, injuries are a serious risk, but Penny will be effective for however long he’s actually on the field. Sharing a backfield with Jalen Hurts and running behind the Philadelphia Eagles offensive line is basically a cheat code for running back production, so even if you only get five good weeks of production, that’s still a valuable investment late in this fantasy football mock draft.

10th Round

10.01 – Odell Beckham
10.02 – Allen Lazard
10.03 – Dalton Schultz
10.04 – Kirk Cousins
10.05 – Elijah Moore
10.06 – Jameson Williams
10.07 – De’Von Achane
10.08 – Dalton Kincaid
10.09 – Courtland Sutton
10.10 – Chigoziem Okonkwo
10.11 – Damien Harris
10.12 – Geno Smith

The Miami Dolphins are not the favorites to sign Dalvin Cook, which means the team is likely comfortable with their current running back room. While Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson are both fine veterans, De’Von Achane is the one with significant upside. The rookie is one of the fastest players in the league, and the biggest knock on his profile was his 188-pound weight. However, his small mass was largely due to his track career. Now that he can focus on football full-time, he’s already up into the 190’s. If he can maintain this weight, he could turn into a three-down player and dominate fantasy football.

11th Round

11.01 – Jerick McKinnon
11.02 – Jakobi Meyers
11.03 – Rashod Bateman
11.04 – Adam Thielen
11.05 – Daniel Jones
11.06 – Jared Goff
11.07 – Rashee Rice
11.08 – Elijah Mitchell
11.09 – Cole Kmet
11.10 – Skyy Moore
11.11 – Tyler Allgeier
11.12 – Darnell Mooney

We’re now deep into the fantasy football mock draft, which means it’s time to address the quarterback position. With no great values in the early rounds, I decided it was best to take a player that might not win me any weeks, but he certainly won’t lose any, either. Jared Goff has found his home in Detroit and should be in for another reliable season. Blessed with a great offensive mind in Ben Johnson and surrounded by impressive talents in Amon-Ra St. Brown, T.J. Hockenson, Jahmyr Gibbs, and (hopefully) Jameson Williams, Goff should finish the year as a mid- to low-end QB1.

12th Round

12.01 – Greg Dulcich
12.02 – Tyler Boyd
12.03 – Devin Singletary
12.04 – Rondale Moore
12.05 – Tyler Higbee
12.06 – Russell Wilson
12.07 – D’Onta Foreman
12.08 – Sam LaPorta
12.09 – Kendre Miller
12.10 – Bryce Young
12.11 – Jonathan Mingo
12.12 – Gerald Everett

The Chicago Bears finally have some reliable weapons on offense, but this will remain a run-first team. With that in mind, D’Onta Foreman should be in for a decent season. Chicago has no proven running backs on their roster, and Foreman established himself as an above-average early-down runner over the past two seasons. While he lacks elite upside, he should be a fine flex play to cover bye weeks.

13th Round

13.01 – Tank Bigsby
13.02 – Nico Collins
13.03 – Ezekiel Elliott
13.04 – Raheem Mostert
13.05 – Roschon Johnson
13.06 – Kyler Murray
13.07 – Jaylen Warren
13.08 – Jalin Hyatt
13.09 – Zay Jones
13.10 – Romeo Doubs
13.11 – Jordan Love
13.12 – Derek Carr

Jared Goff sets the floor for the quarterback position in this fantasy football mock draft, but Kyler Murray sets the ceiling. This is a pick for down the road, as Murray will almost assuredly need some time to fully recover from his 2022 ACL injury. However, once he’s up and running, there aren’t many players that can produce like he can in fantasy football. Ideally, Murray will come back to form late in the season, but even if he can’t, there isn’t much risk in the 13th round of this fantasy football mock draft.

14th Round

14.01 – Jeff Wilson
14.02 – Michael Mayer
14.03 – Chase Brown
14.04 – Dawson Knox
14.05 – Irv Smith
14.06 – Clyde Edwards-Helaire
14.07 – Tyjae Spears
14.08 – Jerome Ford
14.09 – Juwan Johnson
14.10 – Leonard Fournette
14.11 – D.J. Chark
14.12 – Michael Gallup

Derrick Henry is the textbook definition of an outlier, as a player of his age should not be able to handle his workload. However, despite all evidence to the contrary, he is a human being, and eventually, his age and all those hits will get to him. If that happens in 2023, rookie Tyjae Spears will have a clear path to a starting role, and that upside alone justified a late-round selection in this fantasy football mock draft.

15th Round

15.01 – K.J. Osborn
15.02 – C.J. Stroud
15.03 – Chuba Hubbard
15.04 – Zamir White
15.05 – Kareem Hunt
15.06 – Gus Edwards
15.07 – Cordarrelle Patterson
15.08 – Alec Pierce
15.09 – Kenneth Gainwell
15.10 – Brock Purdy
15.11 – Rashid Shaheed
15.12 – Deuce Vaughn

Gus Edwards closes out the final pick in this fantasy football mock draft. J.K. Dobbins is still not practicing, which means that if the season started today, Edwards would be one of the NFL’s 32 starting running backs. The former undrafted free agent has proven he can be effective behind Baltimore’s offensive line and is clearly worth a flex play. Even if and when Dobbins returns, Baltimore likes to rotate their running backs, so Edwards should have some standalone value.

Main Photo: Dale Zanine – USA Today Sports

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