Welcome to The Fantasy Football Universe Rookie Mock Draft 5.0. This mock draft was Superflex and tight-end premium. It was a 12-team draft and went four rounds for 48 rookie picks. The number after the team signifies that players have risen or fallen in ADP since our last superflex mock draft. We will have a post-round recap as well as a winner and loser after each round, with the exception of the final round which is dart-throwing territory.
The draft featured Aaron St. Denis drafting 1st, SC Romero drafting 8th, Jesse Moeller drafting 9th, and Jeremy Shulman drafting 10th.
Draftboard via Sleeper.com
Round 1
Embed from Getty Images1.01- Caleb Williams, QB (USC) EVEN
1.02- Drake Maye, QB (UNC) +3
1.03- Malik Nabers, WR (LSU) EVEN
1.04- Marvin Harrison Jr, WR (Ohio State) -2
1.05- Brock Bowers, TE (Georgia) +1
1.06- Jayden Daniels, QB (LSU) -2
1.07- Brian Thomas Jr, WR (LSU) +4
1.08- Rome Odunze, WR (Washington) -1
1.09- JJ McCarthy, QB (Michigan) –1
1.10- Troy Franklin, WR (Oregon) -1
1.11- Bo Nix, QB (Oregon) –1
1.12- Trey Benson, RB (Florida St) +5
Round 1 Recap
No surprises on the top-10 picks, but big surprises in the order. We did have two auto-drafters who are largely responsible for slightly skewing the ADP. Drake Maye going second overall is significantly higher than usual, and while Malik Nabers as the third pick is his ADP, it’s not normally with both Marvin Harrison jr and Jayden Daniels on the board.
I have no clue why Marvin Harrison Jr fell this far, nor do I understand Daniels falling so far. Again, let’s attribute this to some auto-draft picks that are sure to be a rare occurrence. The first three picks should be Williams, Harrison Jr, and Daniels, don’t trust this ADP for your own leagues.
The early chaos accounts for the majority of the late first-round picks falling one spot, in conjunction with Brian Thomas Jr rising four spots. Thomas Jr was not an auto-pick and was just a manager who was insanely high on him. This too is unlikely to be the norm.
For the first time, we see a running back sneak into the first round. Trey Benson is either my RB1 or RB2 depending on the day of the week, but seeing him rise this far before any combined data is available is interesting.
Round 1 Winners & Losers
The best pick of Round 1 was Marvin Harrison Jr. This is going to be a short explanation. Two auto-picks allowed Marvin Harrison Jr to fall to fourth overall. If that happens to you, pick up your gift, say thank you, and go home.
The worst pick of Round 1 was Drake Maye. Selecting the likely QB3 on the board with the QB2 and WR1 still on the board will also not require a lengthy explanation. Let’s assume no one is this insane and chalk it up to a computer pick.
Round 2
Embed from Getty Images2.01- Keon Coleman, WR (Florida St) -1
2.02- Xavier Worthy, WR (Texas) EVEN
2.03- Will Shipley, RB (Clemson) +14
2.04- Blake Corum, RB (Michigan) -3
2.05- Adonai Mitchell, WR (Texas) EVEN
2.06- Braelon Allen, RB (Wisconsin) +5
2.07- Jonathon Brooks, RB (Texas) +1
2.08- Michael Penix Jr, QB (Washington) +8
2.09- Bucky Irving, RB (Oregon) -3
2.10- Roman Wilson, WR (Michigan) +5
2.11- Ja’Tavion Sanders, TE (Texas) –8
2.12- Malachi Corley, WR (Western Kentucky) +11
Round 2 Recap
The second round is the running back heavy round. After seeing only one running back selected in round one, they fly off the board quickly here. This round sees five running backs go off the board with five more wide receivers.
The receivers selected are primarily the group we would call the second tier of wide receivers while the running backs are the group that closes out tier one of the running backs.
The lone quarterback selected in the round was Michael Penix Jr, almost a full round after the last quarterback selected. This should accurately demonstrate the gap in quarterbacks at this point in the draft.
Round 2 Winners & Losers
The best pick of Round 2 was Bucky Irving. Irving was the final running back selected for the top tier and therefore is the best pick in the round. All six of these backs are likely to be similar in value, so whoever is the last one selected is the best value, it’s as simple as that.
The worst pick of Round 2 was Will Shipley. This pick was terrible. Shipley was selected by the same computer drafter who selected Malik Nabers over Marvin Harrison Jr and Jayden Daniels. Two rounds, two terrible computer picks. Let’s hope this will serve as a lesson of what not to do in a rookie draft.
Round 3
Embed from Getty Images3.01- Ladd McConkey, WR (Georgia) -6
3.02- Audric Estime RB (Notre Dame) +6
3.03- Joe Milton, QB (Tennessee) Undrafted
3.04- Jordan Travis, QB (Florida State) Undrafted
3.05- Ja’Lynn Polk, WR (Washington) -7
3.06- Devontez Walker, WR (UNC) Undrafted
3.07- Spencer Rattler, QB (South Carolina) Undrafted
3.08- Marshawn Lloyd, RB (USC) -11
3.09- Ricky Pearsall, WR (Florida) Undrafted
3.10- Ray Davis, RB (Kentucky) EVEN
3.11- Jacob Cowing, WR (Arizona) Undrafted
3.12- Dallin Holker, TE (Colorado State) Undrafted
Round 3 Recap
Round 3 is the usual dart-throwing time, but in this case, the odd picks earlier in the draft have allowed a few enticing options to fall into the third round. We also see a few perplexing quarterback selections that make the options even better later in the round. This mock draft seems to be ripe with gifts for the managers who were smart enough to take advantage of them.
None of the receivers selected in this range are considered sure things, but this round is full of potentially solid options. Add in the second-tier of running backs and it may be time to start stockpilling third-round rookie picks, if you haven’t already.
Once again, the name of the game here is capitalizing on bad picks and good value. As other managers make mistakes, make sure you have the capital needed to take advantage. This is a prime example of why it’s always a prime strategy to acquire a third-round pick as a throw-in to all trades.
Round 3 Winners & Losers
The best pick of Round 3 was Ladd McConkey. A few mock drafts ago Ladd McConkey was going at the end of the first round. Nothing has changed since then and yet he now falls into the third round. It’s another prime case of scooping up the value that falls to you.
The worst pick of Round 3 was Jordan Travis/Joe Milton. With all the excellent value picks left on the board at running back and wide receiver, it’s mind-boggling that anyone would waste a pick on a quarterback they could have had in the next round. Neither of these quarterbacks is likely to go anywhere near the third round, so use your picks on better options than this.
Round 4
Embed from Getty Images4.01- Ben Sinnott, TE (Washington) -4
4.02- Jaylen Wright, RB (Tennessee) +6
4.03- AJ Barner, TE (Michigan) Undrafted
4.04- Johnny Wilson, WR (Florida State) Undrafted
4.05- Jermaine Burton, WR (Alabama) -16
4.06- Cade Stover, TE (Ohio State) Undrafted
4.07- Theo Johnson, TE (Penn State) Undrafted
4.08- Brenden Rice, WR (USC) -13
4.09- Jalen McMillan, WR (Washington) -15
4.10- Dylan Laube, RB (New Hampshire) Undrafted
4.11- Xavier Legette, WR (South Carolina) -11
4.12- Sam Hartman, QB (Notre Dame) Undrafted
This draft was held on Sunday, February 24/2024 at 2:00 PM EST. If you would like to watch the entire draft live, check it out on The Fantasy Football Universe YouTube channel. Don’t forget to Like & Subscribe!
