Football
Mock Draft Mayhem! Podcast Recap (Fantasy Football)
As we get further into summer and the start of football inches closer, it is essential to start getting the reps in for the coming fantasy draft season. There is no better way to get that practice than with a bit of mock draft mayhem fun.
Andy is the all-powerful mayhem controller this time, leaving Mike and Jason in a head-to-head battle for the draft. The mock draft used the following settings: 12 teams, full PPR, one QB, two WRs, two RBs, one TE, one FLEX, and four BENCH.
Mike started at the 1.07 and Jason at the 1.10 in the draft.
The mayhem powers include:
- One VETO – Andy can say no to a pick and force the other two Ballers into choosing someone else.
- One REPLACEMENT – Andy can say no to the player Jason or Mike chooses and instead make the pick for their team.
- One OPPONENT’S CHOICE – the other drafter gets to decide who will be on the other team.
As you begin practicing for your future drafts, check out the rankings and tools in the Ultimate Draft Kit. There are tons of resources and articles to read. It is perfect to pair with mock drafts to get you in shape for your fantasy draft.
Head here to listen to the episode, or check it out on YouTube below!
Round 1
Mike – Breece Hall || Jason – Jahmyr Gibbs
With WRs flying off the board early along with CMC, Mike saw the tier break between the WRs and adjusted to the top-tier RBs. Jason had a plan going in, and he thought it would be Puka Nacua, but in a full PPR draft, he felt like Jahmyr Gibbs‘s upside was too good to pass up. No mayhem in Round 1.
Round 2
Mike – De’von Achane || Jason – Kyren Williams
Marvin Harrison Jr. and some other WRs tempted Jason, but at the beginning of the second round, he felt like the draft cost was too high for the level of talent in that tier. So, he chose to go with an RB to make that area a position of strength for his team. Mike laid out his thoughts comparing Achane, with his high upside explosive type talent, with some of the other RB options that could be more stable weekly. Since it was a mock and he wanted to experiment with the type of build, Mike selected Achane to see how everything would turn out.
Round 3
Mike – Trey McBride || Jason – Cooper Kupp
After Mike’s pick in the second round, six more WRs went off the board. Andy questioned the choice of going with two RBs, and both Jason and Mike felt good about the value they had at the position, especially when they both would have liked to go with WRs in the third round. Mike wanted to go with Jaylen Waddle until Andy used his first mayhem on him, so Andy made his third-round pick. Andy used Mike’s rankings to find him a player he was excited about, and McBride is Mike’s TE 1. Jason almost took Cooper Kupp and doubled up on the Rams before realizing he didn’t want to do that. He was going to take Jaylen Waddle as well until mayhem came into play, with Andy making Jason’s third-round selection for him and making him take Cooper Kupp.
Round 4
Mike – DK Metcalf || Jason – Jalen Hurts
The third round was mayhem-filled, and Jaylen Waddle didn’t make it back for either Baller. Jason wanted to go after another WR, so he went after D.K. Metcalf, but another mayhem was used against him that forced him to pick again and take a different position. Jason pivoted to Jalen Hurts to grab a star for his QB position. Mike desperately needed a WR, having none on his team. He wrestled with taking a WR1 for a team in Metcalf or going after a WR2 like Devonta Smith or Tank Dell, who could be better but also are not the primary pass catcher for their teams. Ultimately, he chose to go for the upside of Metcalf, and for the first time in two rounds, mayhem didn’t interrupt the selection.
Round 5
Mike – Anthony Richardson || Jason – Tank Dell
Mike came back on the board and was ecstatic to see Tank Dell fall to him in the fifth round after considering him as an option in the fourth. Still, mayhem reared its ugly head again, and Jason was given the pick for Mike in this round, which allowed him to take the gamble on the currently left-hand-throwing Richardson, whose upside is massive but carries tons of risk. Meanwhile, Dell continued to fall, and Jason was able to scoop him up with no mayhem to break his heart.
Round 6
Mike – Christian Kirk || Jason – Rome Odunze
Andy quickly gave Jason’s sixth-round pick to Mike after using up the last mayhem for Jason, and since Mike had so much pain given to him in Round 5, he decided to let Jason take Odunze to help fill out his WR group. Mike desperately needed a WR, with just one through the first five rounds. He needed someone confident in delivering points for his team, and Kirk fits the bill.
Round 7
Mike – Zack Moss || Jason – Calvin Ridley
Mike still had a threat of mayhem in his mind as he wrestled with his choices in where he could help build depth. Jayden Reed was the player that Mike wanted, but Andy used his final mayhem to force Mike to choose a different position. While Mike needed depth at WR the most, Moss added protection for his RB group which wasn’t as devastating as it could have been. Jason, with no threat of mayhem, was finally able to build his team the way he wanted to repair the damage done. He went after the ceiling and value of Ridley in the seventh round to help develop some reliability for his WR core.
Round 8
Mike – Keon Coleman || Jason – Jonathon Brooks
Jason would have been fine with Brooks or Ladd McConkey at this pick, but when McConkey didn’t make it back to him, it made it simple to take the rookie RB that he has been high on all offseason. Mike continued stitching up his roster and decided to go to WR as he only had two. He could have gone safe with a reliable veteran in a PPR league, but he wanted to go after some upside with Josh Allen‘s hopeful number-one WR and took Coleman for his ceiling.
Round 9
Mike – Christian Watson || Jason – T.J. Hockenson
Mike has his onesie positions and can focus entirely on depth with his last few picks. After being high on Christian Watson‘s upside a round before, Mike was thrilled to add him in the ninth round. Jason lost out on Jake Ferguson, his ripcord last pick TE option, so instead, he decided to take the name that looks good in a mock draft with T.J. Hockenson.
Round 10
Mike – Jaxon Smith-Njigba || Jason – Tyjae Spears
Jason had to wrestle with who to take, whether to get depth for his RB core with Jonathon Brooks who will likely miss the beginning part of the season, or to get Jaxon Smith-Njigba for his high ceiling and value. He finally landed on Spears to help give him a solid option with depth in the RB room. Mike quickly scooped up Smith-Njigba when he made it past Jason.
Round 11
Mike – MarShawn Lloyd || Jason – Zach Charbonnet
Mike was hoping that Jerome Ford would drop to him with what looks to be a good beginning schedule and an opportunity while Nick Chubb works his way back from injury. Ford didn’t fall to him, so Mike pivoted to Lloyd, who has tremendous upside as a rookie. Especially if Josh Jacobs has truly lost a step, Mike could see Lloyd getting onto the field quickly for the Packers. Lloyd is also precisely who Jason would pick, but again, he had to pivot and take a shot on Charbonnet. While last year looked rough, this year brings new staff and offense, and Jason hopes Charbonnet rebounds into the player everyone loved coming out of college last year.