2021 RotoUnderworld Pre-Draft Seasonal League Mock Draft

by Joshua Kellem · Draft Strategy

Over the last month, we conducted our first RotoUnderworld Redraft Mock Draft of the season. And this is a good page to bookmark and juxtapose with our post-NFL Draft mock that will release next month. None of PlayerProfiler’s advanced stats and metrics today, just a good old fashioned mock recap.

We had 14 teams, PPR scoring, and we drafted 15 rounds. Starting lineups consist of 1 QB, 2 RBs, 2 WRs, 1 TE, 1 Flex (RB/WR/TE), a defense, and a kicker.

Check Out the Team-By-Team Results Below

RotoUnderworld Pre-Draft Redraft Mock Results

<Not pictured: Rounds 14 and 15 (typically defense and kicker rounds)>

This will help you see where we like some of the second-year backs, as well as players we’re down on in fantasy football this season. That said, I did not have Jonathan Taylor going at 1.03 on the bingo card. If Taylor is your guy though, you have no other option because he’s obviously not going to be there in the late second round. Cam Akers and D’Andre Swift went in the first 10 picks as well. That won’t be eye-popping by August.

My Team 

I’d take the team I drafted from the 1.09 into battle in a real league in any format. I went Aaron Jones, Austin Ekeler, Darren Waller, and Keenan Allen with my first four picks. Fantasy football’s WR6 last season on a points-per-game basis going in the fourth round is more valuable than copping Ja Morant’s NFT back in January. If the Cardinals don’t draft a back with their first two picks in the NFL Draft – they don’t pick again until the fifth round – then Chase Edmonds in the fifth round screams league-winner. Of course, I stacked Allen with Justin Herbert. Then, I drafted the LA offense’s auxiliary pieces in Big Mike Williams and Jared Cook for good measure. My weakness is WR2, but a rotation of Will Fuller, Chase Claypool, Cole Beasley, and Williams will do the trick to start the season. In a real league, I’d be waiting to pony up my FAAB dollars to land a sturdy WR2 option.

I took a flier on Demarcus Robinson in the 13th round. He has a path to becoming the Kansas City’s No. 2 receiver with Sammy Watkins walking in free agency and Mecole Hardman not living up to expectations thus far. It’s a no-risk, all-upside play. Mike Davis and Tyler Higbee round out my roster. Why Higbee when I have Waller? Well, Jones, Ekeler, Waller, Allen, and Herbert aren’t leaving my starting lineup. So on a weekly basis, I’m plugging holes at WR2 and Flex. I have Edmonds, who may end up a weekly starter, but the combination of him, Davis, and Higbee will rotate in my Flex spot.

Basically, after a certain point in the draft, I targeted players that could give me a handful of startable weeks. Fantasy is a week-to-week game, as Matthew Berry says. I’m higher on Higbee than most, but I believe he can crack the top 5 at his position and is worth starting in the Flex. Basically, I was comfortable starting Higbee at TE if Waller didn’t fall to me in the third round. I wasn’t going to not draft Higbee because Waller fell. Draft the best values regardless of position requirements, but especially if you’ve filled out your starting lineup. If you aren’t high on Higbee, insert your favorite breakout TE here, and the same logic applies.

Enough about my team. FantasyTopGun and RayRayMarz did significant damage from their respective draft slots as well. Johns259’s Zero RB team would make Denny Carter proud. Nick Tabs, Jay Dozier and Neil Dutton were savvy drafters out of their respective 12, 13, and 14 slots. Personally, I just don’t like relying on rookies in my starting lineup at this juncture of the offseason. Of course, I may eat those words after this week.

Our draft order is as follows:

  1. Theo Gremminger – TheOGFantasy [1.01]
  2. Joshua Benjamin – FantasyTopGun [1.02]
  3. Daniel Turner – EaglesDanFF [1.03]
  4. Mike Valverde – MichaelVal [1.04]
  5. Cody Carpentier – CarpentierNFL [1.05]
  6. Christopher LeMeilleur – ThisTimeAround [1.06]
  7. Andrew Quinn – QuinnSTL [1.07]
  8. Will Barrett – WillnTacos [1.08]
  9. Joshua Kellem – JoshKellem [1.09]
  10. Ray Ray Marz – RayRayMarz [1.10]
  11. Rob Johnson – Johns259 [1.11]
  12. Nick Tabs – NTabs [1.12]
  13. Jay Dozier – DogBowlChaos [1.13]
  14. Neil Dutton – Dutts13 [1.14]

Theo Gremminger’s Team:

Joshua Benjamin’s Team:

Favorite Pick: Getting Blake Jarwin late was the best way to get value for TE after the top-tier run happened. It allowed me to gamble on mid-tier RBs in the mid-rounds.

Least Favorite Pick: Worst pick was taking Trevor Lawrence in the seventh round. Should’ve pounded WR with that pick and taken Tom Brady in a later round.

Daniel Turner’s Team:

Favorite Pick: Robert Woods in the fourth. After going RB-TE-RB, being able to get Rams top target Woods with a new QB is a steal in my opinion.

Least Favorite Pick: Odell Beckham. Following the Woods pick, I proceed to blow it with Tee Higgins still on the board. I would prefer Higgins with Joe Burrow returning from injury over Beckham.

Mike Valverde’s Team:

Cody Carpentier’s Team:

Christopher LeMeilleur’s Team:

Favorite Pick: Aaron Rodgers in the late sixth. I don’t typically take a QB this early, but given the run that was happening, to get last year’s QB2 as the eighth off the board felt like stealing.

Least Favorite Pick: I am typically fading Josh Jacobs anyway, but to get him right after the Raiders paid Kenyan Drake starter money is highly disappointing.

Andrew Quinn’s Team:

Favorite Pick: Jalen Hurts as my QB1 in the eighth round, as the 11th QB off the board. Philly seems like they are going to commit to him, and he showed his Konami Code ability last season. Pencil him in as a top 8 QB.

Least Favorite Pick: D.J. Chark at the 5.07. Seeing Tee Higgins go right after him hurt knowing that the Bengals will be throwing a lot, and Marvin Jones adds some competition for touches from a rookie QB in Jacksonville.

Will Barrett’s Team:

Joshua Kellem’s Team:

Ray Ray Marz’s Team:

Favorite Pick: Regardless of whoever is playing QB in Denver, Courtland Sutton in the late fifth as <checks notes> the WR31 will be the pick I hang my hat on in this draft when players like D.J. Chark, Odell Beckham, Ja’Marr Chase and Devonta Smith were selected before him.

Least Favorite Pick: I still don’t know what possessed me to select Le’Veon Bell when A.J. Dillon went 17 (!!!) picks later. I failed to catch myself in a rare moment of helmet scouting, and actually ended up passing on him twice. Would anyone be shocked if Bell were released before the season began?

Rob Johnson’s Team:

Favorite pick: Terry McLaurin in the fourth. The combination of Fitzmagic arriving in Washington and not playing through two high-ankle sprains will lead to better days for McLaurin, who still managed a 1,000-yard season in 2020. In his third year with the Football Team, I think this is the year he makes the jump to WR1, making him a steal in the fourth.

Least favorite pick: Noah Fant in the eighth. I’ve never been a Zero RB guy, but when the first 10 picks are running backs and two wide receivers with No. 1 fantasy WR potential are sitting there close to the turn, you can’t pass that up. I don’t like this pick because I missed out on Mike Davis, who could potentially be Atlanta’s lead RB, which would provide more value to my team than a good TE who will either be dealing with Drew Lock or Teddy Bridgewater under center.

Nick Tabs’ team:

Jay Dozier’s team:

Favorite Pick: Overall, I think I benefitted in this draft knowing how deeply buried some players were on Sleeper’s current rankings. So the Samuel brothers were good picks. I think Deebo was in the 200s and Curtis was in the 300s—and that sort of thing usually gets corrected before the majority of drafts. As far as just solid smart picks go, Justin Jefferson at 4.02 gives me a really good starting four.

Least Favorite pick: Notice I said really good starting four? That’s because my fifth was David Johnson. My RB2 is going to have a lot of eight-point weeks. But I got Zack Moss later, so he can also get me those eight points.

Neil Dutton’s team:

Favorite Pick: I was happy to get Adam Thielen and Amari Cooper back to back at 3.14 and 4.01. Cooper’s floor could be most other players’ ceiling this season, and snagging him where I did allowed me to set up the Cowboys stack with Dak Prescott a little later in the piece.

Least Favorite Pick: Looking back, I’m genuinely angry with myself for taking Mark Ingram at the 8.01. He looked washed last season, and now finds himself in a much worse situation than he had in Baltimore. Zack Moss would be the pick there if I could do-over this draft.