2019 10-Round Fantasy Football Expert Mock Draft, Part III: Mahomes makes his debut
With the NFL draft in the rearview mirror and fantasy football draft season in full effect, it’s time for our Yahoo experts to get in on the action. We recently held a 12-team, 10-round, 0.5 PPR mock to get things started. We’ll reveal two rounds in each story. Without further ado, here’s Rounds 5 and 6.
ROUND 5: First QB off the board
Pick 49: Allen Robinson, CHI, WR23 — Second time around in Chicago, knows his way around now, good time to buy. Was Chicago's best offensive player in the playoff loss to Philly. (Scott Pianowski 1)
Pick 50: Calvin Ridley, ATL, WR24 — The touchdown rate has to go down, but it's unlikely to crater. I love young players with experience; Ridley has already been around the block, and he's tied to a plus QB in Matt Ryan. (Pianowski 2)
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Pick 51: Tyler Boyd, CIN, WR25 — With A.J. Green on the field last year, he collected a 49-620-5 line. Over 16 games that's 98 catches. He's woefully underrated. (Brad Evans 1)
Pick 52: Robby Anderson, NYJ, WR26 — His 20-312-4 detonation made him a fantasy playoff hero in Weeks 14-16 last year. If he remains in sync with Sam Darnold, a top-20 repeat from 2017 is very possible. (Evans 2)
Pick 53: Mike Williams, LAC, WR27 — With Tyrell Williams gone from LA and Keenan Allen averaging just 8.7 YPT for the second straight season, Williams figures to work as the Chargers’ primary downfield receiver. His TDs will regress (duh), but an uptick in looks make it all okay. (Liz Loza 1)
Pick 54: Lamar Miller, HOU, RB24 — Gross. I know. But given the RBs available and the ones on my roster, Miller offers the safest floor so I reached for stability. Also, see my life. (Loza 2)
Pick 55: Phillip Lindsay, DEN, RB25 — Let's just skip to the part where I've got Lindsay and Chris Carson, while Evans takes Royce Freeman and Rashaad Penny. (I actually kinda like Freeman, but Lindsay was spectacular as a rookie and he's a full-go in camp, coming back from the wrist injury.) (Andy Behrens 1)
Pick 56: Patrick Mahomes, KC, QB1 — No one around here is gonna suggest another 5,000-yard, 50-TD season is on the horizon. But Mahomes can regress a fair amount and still comfortably lead all QBs in fantasy scoring, again. The Hill news clearly boosts his projection. I'll take any positional edge I can get. (Behrens 2)
Pick 57: O.J. Howard, TB, TE4 — We've officially reached a gross portion of the RB landscape. Don't love any WR value here so pivoting to an obvious breakout TE. (Matt Harmon 1)
Pick 58: Sony Michel, NE, RB26 — I've warmed to Michel a little since the OTA scare and like exposing myself to his upside after drafting a deep WR corps. (Harmon 2)
Pick 59: Alshon Jeffery, PHI, WR28 — I like waiting on WRs because of their availability at this point of the draft, with Jeffery a fine option in a big mid-tier that will differ greatly among drafters. (Dalton Del Don 1)
Pick 60: Cooper Kupp, LAR, WR29 — He’s discounted a bit here while returning from knee surgery and as his team’s WR3, but Kupp finished top-10 in yards per route run last season, and I’m fading Todd Gurley this year. (DDD 2)
ROUND 6: Running back drying up quickly
Pick 61: Rashaad Penny, SEA, RB27 — This team could’ve used a WR more on paper, but Penny could be a league-winner. Chris Carson’s due to regress and is an injury risk. (DDD 1)
Pick 62: Darrell Henderson, LAR, RB28 — Speaking of possible league-winners, there isn’t a better target in Round 6 than Henderson, who could go nuts if/when Gurley goes down. Get Malcolm Brown late too. (DDD 2)
Pick 63: Hunter Henry, LAC, TE5 — In case you can't tell, you have to pay up for the young, athletic, potential-breakout TEs this year. Henry is in a prime position to inhale volume. (Harmon 1)
Pick 64: Chris Carson, SEA, RB29 — I still view Carson as the back to own in Seattle and love taking a back with 250-plus touch-potential here. (Harmon 2)
Pick 65: Tevin Coleman, SF, RB30 — Well, drat. This team wanted Carson. But hey, it still lands a potential workhorse at a bargain price. (Behrens 1)
Pick 66: Tarik Cohen, CHI, RB31 — Cohen is a thrilling player in an ascending offense, coming off an 1,169-yard season. He gets a value boost in any sort of PPR format. (Behrens 2)
Pick 67: Christian Kirk, ARI, WR30 — Proving his effectiveness on the outside, Kirk's role and opportunities grew as his rookie season progressed. In an up-tempo offense and with a more accurate QB, his usage and ability to convert figures to balloon. (Loza 1)
Pick 68: Royce Freeman, DEN, RB32 — I have James White higher in my rankings, but couldn't skip the chance to snipe Evans in such an epic way. (Loza 2)
Pick 69: James White, NE, RB33 — This is a gift. We know exactly what White's role is within NE's crowded backfield: Pass-catcher extraordinaire. He won't duplicate last year's TD output, but 70+ catches is a given. (Evans 1)
Pick 70: Latavius Murray, NO, RB34 — Saints don't want Kamara touching it 20 times per game, which paves the way for the vet to log nine to 11 touches per game. Murray, in one of the most proven offenses in the league, is a sneaky seven-to-nine TD candidate. (Evans 2)
Pick 71: Evan Engram, NYG, TE6 — Being tied to these QBs, okay, that's gross. But Engram moves like a wideout and is often asked to play as a wideout — none of this hand-on-the-ground, blocking stuff. He has an outstanding chance to lead this team in receiving. (Once again, Brad broke my heart, draining the best of the RB queue. Yahoo Noise is becoming a problem.) (Pianowski 1)
Pick 72: Jarvis Landry, CLE, WR31 — He's an Ibanez All-Star now, a boring value veteran. Wasn't always used right last year, but I expect Kitchens and Monken to figure it out now. Landry's *worst* catch output in five years is 81 grabs; obvious PPR royalty. (Pianowski 2)
Part IV of our mock will reveal results of Round 7-8
Follow the Yahoo fantasy football crew on Twitter: Brad Evans, Liz Loza, Andy Behrens, Scott Pianowski, Matt Harmon, and Dalton Del Don
