2017 Fantasy Football PPR Mock Draft

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In almost everything related to Fantasy sports, we here at F6P like to sharpen up for a coming season. So we stay on top of the news and decide on having a mock draft. Our mock draft was a very early one and some important NFL news caught us by surprise late in the draft. I'll get to that in a second, but first, let's look at what the form of the draft was:

(PPR) QB - RB1 - RB2 - WR1- WR2 - WR3 - TE - FLEX - K - DST - 6 BENCH

We completed this draft late on June 8 before reports came down concerning Eric Decker and Jeremy Maclin. There were other things that happened in the news which may have changed our approach, but those two players and others in their fantasy orbit became significant.

So I just wanted to qualify our mock draft with that in mind, because it probably would have turned out somewhat differently if we were able to factor those recent events in the NFL when we started. I'll discuss this further as we move along.

FantasyPros highlights value picks, steals and reaches with color codes as you can see above. You can analyze your own mock drafts using these excellent tools. You can customize your analysis in various ways such as I did here.

I will use the ADPs and ECRs from FantasyPros for analysis.

The participants in drafting order are:

1 A.J. Applegarth
2 Dennis Sosic
3 Tyler Gettmann
4 Alex Hamrick
5 Chris Wright
6 Jonathan Chan
7 Tyler Thompson
8 Richard Savill
9 Kevin Huo
10 Michael Trivisonno
11 Keenan Keeling
12 Joe Bond

2017 Fantasy Football PPR Mock Draft

Round 1

The biggest reach here was Todd Gurley (ADP 20), who by sheer need of an offense surrounding him with the Rams remains a risky choice for me.

When rounding the turn in a draft, there is a certain overlap with the first and second rounds, so I can reserve criticism of Hilton or Howard taken here. Besides, both these players are safe enough to open with.

The first three off the board were running backs. This is in stark contrast to 2016 when Antonio, Julio and OBJ almost automatically became the first three off the draft board. The running backs have struck back holding the top three spots and six in total here. McCoy and Freeman could have easily tipped the balance. Rob Gronkowski is no longer a factor of the opening rounds.

Round 2

The second round more or less went through without any surprises. All the players undrafted and taken outside the normal range were close to the border. I think Fournette could have easily come off the board in the second round, but I wouldn't think it essential.

Although Jeffery may stick out as a slight outlier, he's a fair choice on the turn. Gronkowski passed by everyone and it probably has a lot to do with his season-long reliability.

Doug Baldwin has ADP 24, but no one seemed interested in taking him early. I think there is a subtle apprehension toward the Seahawks passing offense and the way they approach a season in differing phases.

Round 3

FantasyPros flagged Marshawn Lynch as a reach because his ECR is 46. I still like the pick. Lynch has one of the best fantasy situations coming into 2017 for running backs.

Joe Mixon is an interesting selection by Chris Wright and a calculated reach because of the stale Cincinnati backfield. Jeremy Hill and Gio Bernard just haven't been a strong tandem. Taking a slight gamble on Mixon could pay dividends. Tyler Thompson got the value pick, Doug Baldwin, seven spots beyond his ADP.

Our first quarterback comes off the board in the third round. People are fearlessly drafting Aaron Rodgers (ADP 28, ECR 38) early after another season (his 4th time) as number one fantasy quarterback.

Round 4

Tyreek Hill shows a reach flag, but the ECR and the ADP levels have not quite caught up with the news of the Jeremy Maclin departure from Kansas City. It makes the Hill pick by Dennis Sosic look very sound in light of that.

The Dalvin Cook pick is a daring one and especially when several other running backs like Spencer Ware, Eddie Lacy, Ameer Abdullah, Tevin Coleman are all on the board. One thing about mocks, you can be gutsy. However, I can still see the point of it. The Minnesota backfield is pretty much in the Vikings manifest for Cook to excel with Latavius Murray recently coming off surgery.

Stefon Diggs has a reach flag, but I wouldn't say he's that far off to deserve a pink stripe. Joe Bond scooped Thomas and Alex Hamrick snagged Crowell for the value picks of this round.

Round 5

Jameis Winston (ADP 96) was the biggest reach here at 58. It's a preference over Cam Newton and Russell Wilson - which is something of a surprise. I am fully behind a Cam Newton comeback season in 2017. It is interesting to note that Derek Carr is coming off the board well ahead of his ECR of 96.

Corey Davis (ADP 74, ECR  86), the rookie hopeful in Tennessee,  is picked up by Alex Hamrick, probably seeing that he'll be off the board by the time he returns. It's still a deepish reach, but having a passion for upstarts is something I'm not immune to either.

Chris Wright takes Corey Coleman (ADP 89, ECR 90) boldly off the board at position 52. This is a very long reach of 37 places. Seven or eight  better receivers could be taken here and Coleman may have still been there after the turn. I think Chris would probably want this one back.

Jameison Crowder (ADP 64) is flagged as a slight reach, but I like the pick. No harm done. None at all.

Round 6

Larry Fitzgerald (ADP 50) took a while to finally land a roster spot. FantasyPros flags him as a solid steal and I agree. Tyler Thompson did not let him get away.

Although Cam Newton and Devante Parker get highlighted by FantasyPros as slight reaches, I consider them okay here. However, I consider Spencer Ware a value pick at this stage and deserving of a green ribbon.

There is a lot of talk about Kareem Hunt, but we should all know by now how Andy Reid treats his rookies. Slowly. Rarely does Reid push the boat out with newcomers. One only has to look at the progress of Travis Kelce to see that. Spencer Ware remains a fine choice and best handcuffed with Hunt in any case.

Rounds 7 and 8

The slight reaches FantasyPros flagged are not severe, but a few of the deeper ones are questionable.

Doug Martin is starting the season on suspension, so I sort of expect him to get the deep pink. In reality, I would consider him only a slight reach in light pink at this stage in the draft.

Of the three steals in round 7, I like Bilal Powell the best. A nice grab by Kevin Huo there.

Although Ameer Abdullah racks up a value pick for Alex Hamrick in round 7, I myself might have considered taking Kareem Hunt to cuff with Spencer Ware in a real draft.

Samaje Perrine has a large disparity between ECR and ADP. His ADP is 19 places better than the rank consensus. The confidence in Robert Kelley is obviously just not there with the public. However, it's still looking like a committee in Washington. Chris Thompson chokes the value of both to low ceilings.

Josh Doctson (ADP 127) was the deepest reach of both rounds taken at position 92. With Jamison Crowder and Terrelle Pryor, not forgetting Jordan Reed, it's quite a stretch of expectation for Doctson in the Washington offense. The reach of Breshad Perriman just looks worse after the Ravens signed Jeremy Maclin.

Rounds 9 and 10

As we began to get into the later rounds, there came less interest in securing the "conventional" pick. As with all mocks, there is the temptation to be adventurous.

Although these aren't likely the choices of real drafting, the players coming off the board give some insight into the players of fantasy interest of 2017.

Eric Decker is highlighted as a value pick, but as of writing, he remains without a team. Jeremy Maclin signed with the Ravens making him another nice pickup for Tyler Thompson. I'll consider Maclin 'light green' in view of the recent news.

As for some of the reaches, the deepest one goes to Will Fuller (ADP 174) drafted at position 107. However, the most interesting one is Joe Williams (ADP 148) drafted here at 110. I consider it good reach at this juncture in the draft and a worthwhile player to take on spec. With Carlos Hyde losing fantasy ground, there is a strong possibility the Joe Williams can take over. The only issue is the weak offense that the 49ers need to develop.

Rounds 11 through 13

The late rounds had the usual fills you'd expect. Some of the stuff FantasyPros flagged up as reaches are actually decent choices. For instance, Thomas Rawls in the 12th round cannot be discounted as a possible player with higher value. It is true that he is on the outs in Seattle, but Eddie Lacy was never reliable for steady health and production in Green Bay.

Gio Bernard counts as a steal here, but I would never draft him for the simple reason of health and the transitioning nature of the Cincinnati backfield. News just came out that his ACL recovery may delay his return to the field with a possibility of the PUP list.

I like the JJ Nelson pick as a good reach. Receivers in the Arizona pack are all good players and sound investments.

Will Kenny Britt find success in Cleveland? It's very possible. He is marked as a steal here and I agree. A nice prospect to put on your bench in a later round.

Jamaal Williams is next up in the Green Bay backfield and almost essential to cuff with Ty Montgomery. On his own as a potential workhorse isn't bad either. Deeper leagues should also keep an eye on Aaron Jones. It's very important to read the news about what Aaron Rodgers says about these guys. Rodgers is a real stickler for execution of blocking assignments.

Finally, Zay Jones. Marked as a slight reach, I still think AJ Applegarth got a possible nugget here. I've never liked Sammy Watkins and his ever-present injury bugs. Zay Jones is right in line for a good role whether he is number one or not. Good investment.

Rounds 14 through 16

Probably the biggest steal of all in these final rounds is Quincy Enunwa. The departure of Eric Decker saw to that. Enunwa automatically becomes the Jets number one receiver. He won't go this late in mock drafts after this. If only the Jets had a consistent quarterback...

Coby Fleener could be in for a fine season now that he's settled into the Saints offense. A very nice scoop for round 14.

The rest here aren't much more than bench fills.

Summary

I think everyone did their best to simulate a real draft. Most of us here are in the F6P league later this summer, so it's understandable that nobody wants to show their cards too much, myself included. It was a long draft covering 17 days starting in late May. I hope this early mock draft gives you some idea of the kind of prospects to keep in mind for your real draft. Fantasy is like the weather, so this is a long range forecast and much will change by August.