ESPN Mock Draft: CeeDee Lamb Takes No. 1 Spot

It’s never too early to get prepared to win your fantasy football league, and that’s exactly what we’ll be aiming to do today. Through the  app on 4for4, I’ve run a 12-team ESPN mock draft to get a broad idea of player values and what types of macro-level strategies we can see forming ahead of the NFL season. 

Today we’ll be using ESPN-specific scoring settings, with a single quarterback and PPR scoring. The full 2024 fantasy football mock draft board will be inserted at the end of the article, showcasing the likes of Atlanta Falcons RB Bijan Robinson, Los Angeles Rams WR Cooper Kupp, and Dallas Cowboys𝓡 WR CeeDee Lamb helping control the beginning of this 🌊0.5 PPR draft. 

We will begin incorporating both PK and D/ST in this mock to give a good idea🌊 of what a full-fledged team will look like in PPR Mock Drafts.

Fantasy Football Rankings

Roster Se💃ttings: 1QB, 2RB, 3WR, 1 TE, 1 FLEX, 1 D/ST, 1K, and 6 Bench Spots

*Check out the full !

(Expand picture in New Tab for best visual)

ESPN Mock Draft: Rounds 1-4

Biggest Reach: , RB, Indianapolis Colts (Round 1, Pick 8)

Taylor missed the first few games due to an ankle injury ♏(and subsequent surgery) from꧟ the 2022 season and didn’t play 50%+ of the snaps until Week 7.

From that point on, he had the third-highest per-game average (16.8) at his position, even though he missed three games due to a thumb injury later in the season. He missed six games in 2022, but played 15 and 17 games in his first two seasons. In 2021, he was the overall RB1, outscoring the RB2 (𓆏Austin Ekeler) by 60 poi꧂nts.

Taylor should have a productive 2024, thಞough there are a couple of areas of concern. Anthony Richardson only targeted his running backs on 10 of his 72 pass attempts (13.9%) and in the two full games that Richardson played, he saw three carries inside the opponents’ five-yard line while Indy running backs saw five carries. It’s obviously a small sample size, and Taylor’s availability may change the ratio, but Richardson’s 38% goal-line𝓀 carry rate is pretty high. (For reference, Jalen Hurts had a 47% goal-line carry rate last season.) Taylor is a fantasy RB1, but perhaps lacks the receiving and touchdown upside of the backs being drafted ahead of him.

Biggest Fall: , WR, San Francisco 49ers (Round 4, Pick 11)

Brandon Aiyuk was highly-efficient again in 2023, turning the 29th-most targets into the 1♔2th-most fantasy points. He was the fantasy WR15 in 2022, so he has a recent history of consistent low-end WR1/high-end WR2-type numbers.

Aiyuk got the very rare “all green” chart from Matt Harmon at Reception Perception meaning that he’s one of the “truly elite” receivers (Harmon’s words) in the 🐈league. Even if his usage isn’t as high as we’d like, he enjoys good quarterback play and highly-efficient play-calling. The only issue is his contract situation, which is dicey at best.

The good news is that his WR15 ADP is fair ev﷽en if he were to land with another team, since his targets would l🍌ikely increase by 20-30% or more.

ESPN Mock Draft: Rounds 5-8

Takeaways

The quarterback position has been 𒁏pushed way up boards compared to in years past. In Standard and Half-PPR fantasy football leagues, a majority of the top 12 options go in this range, and are practically done with by the double-digit rounds. A huge departure from recent history. Josh Allen kicks things off all the way♓ back in Round 3, and the 12 teams typically have all of their QBs by the time we get out of these middle rounds. 

The 2024 NFL season will have to be incredibly top-heavy for all of these options to hit. Once we’re talking in the range of 1-2 fantasy points per game separating whole tiers of players, we may want to zig into the RBs and WRs while other fantasy managers fight during a run of QBs. 

ESPN Mock Draft: Rounds 9-11

Biggest Reach: , RB, Cleveland Browns (Round 9, Pick 2)

I’ve said it before–Nick Chubb is one of the b💧est pure runners in the league. 🔴He had two tears–one to his MCL and another to his ACL–in Week 2 of last season and needed two separate surgeries to repair them.

Our injury expert, Jeff Mueller, wrote, “What likely is not being reported is that there is a high probability that there was also capsular damage and secondary stabilizer damage, similar to what both JK Dobbins and Javonte Williams dealt with.” Mueller believes that the Browns are protecting themselves (by signing D’Onta Foreman) in case the 28-year-old is “never the same.” Chubb is currently the RB35 off the board and is going six spౠots ahead of his backfield partner, Jerome Ford.

The good news is that Chubb released a video of him squatting an enormous amount of weight. He’ll need to graduate to planting and cutting, but clearly the leg 🍌strength is back. In 2022, he finished as the fantasy RB6 after a 13-game RB10 finish the year before, so Chubb is a worthwhile gamble a🃏s an RB3 or RB4 in the ninth round due to his potential value in the back half of the season. If he’s practicing in camp, look out.

ESPN Mock Draft: Rounds 12-14

Takeaways

Depending on your particular league settings, you are either forced to leave your draft with a kicker and a defense, or you are not. I decided to enforce that rule in this draft to have a better idea of what a full team in a half-PR mock draft is going to look like. If your league forces you to leave the draft with both, I would prefer to select my D/ST and kicker in the final two rounds. Some of my favorite D/ST pick🧔s at cost so far have been the San Francisco 49ers, Los Angeles Chargers, New York Giants, Los Angeles Rams, and the Kansas City Chiefs. 

Biggest Fall: , TE, Patriots (Round 13, Pick 12)

In the first four weeks of the 2023 season, Hunter Henry cleared 50 yards three times and scored two touchdowns, though he didn’t catch another touchdown until Week 9 and didn’t cle🐭ar 5𝄹0 yards again until Week 15.

He finished as the TE15, catching 42 passes for 419 yards and six scores🔯 in 14 games. Re-signing with the Patriots probably wasn’t a best-case scenario for his fantasy value, though he should remain the team’s starter and could work his way into TE2 territory if the Patriots are able to get better quarterback play out of Drake Maye and/or Jacoby Brissett.

*Check 🐎out the full set of 4for4’s award-winning Rankings, customized for your .

(Expand picture in New Tab for best visual)

This is one of many PPR Mock Drafts for 2024, and we will be doing even more now that preseason action is well underway! We will have half-PPR mock drafts, 10-team mocks, and everything in between throughout the fantaℱsy draft season. 

Fantasy Football ESPN Mock Draft FAQs

PPR stands for one point per reception, which means that for every catch a player make🐲s in a game, they will be awarded a full point in addition to standard scoring points.

This scoring system is increasingly popular in fantasy footballཧ leagues, as it allows for a more balanced approach to drafting playe🌳rs. Mock drafts are a great way to practice drafting strategies and optimize your team before the real draft. The Fantasy Football PPR Mock Draft FAQs provides answers to commonly asked questions to guide fantasy football enthusiasts in their mock drafts and overall gameplay. 

What is a fantasy football mock draft?

A fantasy football mock draft🎃 is a simulation of an actual fantasy football draft, allowing participants to practice mock drafts in preparation for the real thing.

What is a PPR scoring format?

In a PPR scoring format, players receive a full point per reception in addition to their normal scoring points🔯.

What are the most important things to consider before participating in a fantasy football draft?

Before participating in a fantasy football draft, it is important to research the draft rankings, understand your league’s scoring system and rules, and monitor updates on NFL players and positional players.

What is the difference between a 12-team and 14-team fantasy football mock draft?

The difference between a 12-team and 14-team fantasy football mock draft is the number of teams participating in the d𒉰raft. A 12-team draft will require draft participants to select players from a pool of 144, while a 14-team draft will consist of 168 players.

What is the process for selecting players in a fantasy football draft?

In a fantasy football draft, each participant will take turns selecting players in each💧 round. The draft order is typically randomized before the start of𒆙 the draft with each participant selecting their preferred position for their draft slot.

What are some tips for drafting a successful fantasy football lineup?

Some tips for drafting a successful fantasy football lineup include moꦅnitoring updates on player performance and injuries, diversifying your lineup with a mix of players from different teams, and selecting players with favorable matchups.

What is the difference between a rookie and a veteran football player in fantasy football?

In fantasy football, a rookie is a player who has just entered the NFL and has not played any ⛄professional games while a veteran is an experienced player who has already participated in several seasons.

How often are fantasy football rankings updated?

Fantasy football rankings are typically updated daily by fantasy staff and analysts based on player perfoꦬrmance and changes in the NFL landscape.