Fantasy Football 2021: Latest Mock Draft Strategy and Funny Team Names

With the 2021 NFL season less than a week away and with rosters trimmed to 53 players, fantasy managers have a much better idea of how to navigate their drafts.

Waiting until the end of the preseason is always advisable in fantasy because significant changes can and will happen. The New England Patriots, for example, have named rookie quarterback Mac Jones the Week 1 starter while parting with 2020 starter Cam Newton.

With a more traditional pocket passer in Jones at quarterback, New England's pass-catchers should get a boost in draft stock moving forward.

Here, we'll examine the updated point-per-reception (PPR) rankings, a two-round PPR mock and some draft tips to carry into your selection event. We'll also dive into some funny team names based on this year's Week 1 starting quarterbacks—since we now know (mostly) who they're going to be.

Let's dig in!

Quarterback

1. Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs

2. Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills

3. Kyler Murray, Arizona Cardinals

4. Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks

5. Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens

6. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers

7. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys

8. Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers

9. Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams

10. Tom Brady, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

       

Running Back

1. Christian McCaffrey, Carolina Panthers

2. Dalvin Cook, Minnesota Vikings

3. Alvin Kamara, New Orleans Saints

4. Derrick Henry, Tennessee Titans

5. Ezekiel Elliott, Dallas Cowboys 

6. Aaron Jones, Green Bay Packers

7. Austin Ekeler, Los Angeles Chargers

8. Jonathan Taylor, Indianapolis Colts

8. Ezekiel Elliott, Dallas Cowboys 

9. Nick Chubb, Cleveland Browns

10. Joe Mixon, Cincinnati Bengals

10. Najee Harris, Pittsburgh Steelers

       

Wide Receiver

1. Davante Adams, Green Bay Packers

2. Stefon Diggs, Buffalo Bills

3. Tyreek Hill, Kansas City Chiefs

4. DeAndre Hopkins, Arizona Cardinals

5. Keenan Allen, Los Angeles Chargers

6. Calvin Ridley, Atlanta Falcons

7. Justin Jefferson, Minnesota Vikings

8. Allen Robinson II, Chicago Bears

9. DK Metcalf, Seattle Seahawks

10. A.J. Brown, Tennessee Titans

       

Tight End

1. Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs

2. Darren Waller, Las Vegas Raiders

3. George Kittle, San Francisco 49ers

4. T.J. Hockenson, Detroit Lions

5. Dallas Goedert, Philadelphia Eagles

6. Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons

7. Noah Fant, Denver Broncos

8. Robert Tonyan, Green Bay Packers

9. Logan Thomas, Washington Football Team

10. Mark Andrews, Baltimore Ravens. 

Round 1

1. Christian McCaffrey, RB, Carolina Panthers

2. Dalvin Cook, RB, Minnesota Vikings

3. Alvin Kamara, RB, New Orleans Saints

4. Derrick Henry, RB, Tennessee Titans

5. Davante Adams, WR, Green Bay Packers

6. Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Dallas Cowboys

7. Aaron Jones, RB, Green Bay Packers

8. Austin Ekeler, RB, Los Angeles Chargers

9. Saquon Barkley, RB, New York Giants

10. Tyreek Hill, WR, Kansas City Chiefs

11. Jonathan Taylor, RB, Indianapolis Colts

12. Nick Chubb, RB, Cleveland Browns

                     

Round 2

1. Travis Kelce, TE, Kansas City Chiefs

2. Antonio Gibson, RB, Washington Football Team

3. Stefon Diggs, WR, Buffalo Bills

4. Calvin Ridley, WR, Atlanta Falcons

5. Najee Harris, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers

6. DeAndre Hopkins, WR, Arizona Cardinals

7. DK Metcalf, WR, Seattle Seahawks

8. Patrick Mahomes, QB, Kansas City Chiefs

9. Joe Mixon, RB, Cincinnati Bengals

10. Darren Waller, TE, Las Vegas Raiders

11. A.J. Brown, WR, Tennessee Titans

12. Justin Jefferson, WR, Minnesota Vikings

Nailing the early rounds of your fantasy draft is important. Players taken in the first three or four rounds are generally going to form the core of your fantasy team, and you should be looking for consistency here.

With a few exceptions, you'll want to target running backs and No. 1 wide receivers. These are the players who are going to see a heavy workload weekly and who are only going to come out of your starting lineup during the bye week.

Backs should take precedence, especially those who have PPR value. A workhorse runner like Nick Chubb or Derrick Henry is still worth a first-round pick because of their workload and their floor. However, neither player is particularly active in the passing game—Henry had 19 receptions in 2020, while Chubb had 16—but neither is going to disappoint when healthy.

Dual-threat backs like Christian McCaffrey, Dalvin Cook and Alvin Kamara should be at the top of your list in PPR formats, however.

Wide receivers also carry more value in PPR formats, and a handful are worthy of first-round picks. Think target-dominant pass-catchers like Davante Adams, Tyreek Hill and DeAndre Hopkins.

While rookies like Pittsburgh Steelers running back Najee Harris and Miami Dolphins wideout Jaylen Waddle are tempting, managers must know that there is risk involved in drafting them early. Rookies can be undervalued on draft day—Justin Jefferson finished with 1,400 receiving yards as a rookie last year—but they're also completely unproven.

Las Vegas Raiders receiver Henry Ruggs III, for example, was the first receiver taken in 2020 and only finished with 452 receiving yards and two touchdowns.

This doesn't mean you should avoid rookies entirely in the early rounds, but you should have a plan. Pairing a risk-reward player with a high-floor option is a good start.

The exceptions in the early rounds are your elite tight ends—Travis Kelce, Darren Waller and George Kittle—and quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

Mahomes' floor—he passed for at least 200 yards and a touchdown in every single start last season—places him in a quarterback class of his own. There's a wide second-tier of quarterbacks, though, so there's little reason to grab a Josh Allen or Lamar Jackson too early.

Kelce, Waller and Kittle, meanwhile, serve as de facto No. 1 receivers in their respective offenses and should be valued as such.

Ideally, though, you should try to come away from the first four rounds with at least two running backs and one wideout.

Once you have the bulk of your starting lineup set, it's time to focus on bench players—and with your last couple of selections, kickers and defense/special teams units.

In the later rounds, it can be smart to add handcuffs for your top players. If drafting Cook, for example, you might want to grab Minnesota Vikings backup Alexander Mattison. Cook has missed at least two games every single season.

This is also where you want to target sleepers who can either replace a middling starter/flex player or provide late-season trade value.

Paying attention to the preseason can help in this area. Patriots rookie runner Rhamondre Stevenson, for example, looks like a player who could emerge as the primary back at some point in 2021. He was nothing short of special in exhibition play. According to Next Gen Stats, Stevenson led all running backs in yards over expected (+111) with double the number of any other player.

Yet Stevenson only has an average draft position (ADP) of 153rd overall, according to FantasyPros.

Knowing the changing situations can also help uncover sleepers. As previously mentioned, the emergence of Jones as New England's starting quarterback should boost players like Hunter Henry, Jakobi Meyers and Nelson Agholor.

We're likely to see more of a traditional Josh McDaniels offense in New England with Jones under center instead of Newton.

"He plays like a vet," cornerback J.C. Jackson said of Jones, per Chris Mason of MassLive. "The way he reads defenses, the way he steps up in the pocket, delivers the ball, he’s improved since the first time I saw him."

Try to find some synergy in the latter rounds, grabbing handcuffs, players with upside or specific bye-week options. Allowing autodraft to take over after the first few rounds is rarely a recipe for fantasy success.

• Kyler on the Loose (Kyler Murray)
• Mattural Born Killers (Matt Ryan)
• Lamar Wars (Lamar Jackson)
• Stop Joshin' Me (Josh Allen)
• Hey Darnold (Sam Darnold)
• Andyman, Andyman, Andyman (Andy Dalton)
• You Mad, Burrow? (Joe Burrow)
• Mayfield of Dreams (Baker Mayfield)
• Return of the Dak (Dak Prescott)
• Don't Go Chasing Bridgewater's Fall (Teddy Bridgewater)
• Goff Topic (Jared Goff)
• Aaron Raid (Aaron Rodgers)
• Kneel Before Tyrod (Tyrod Taylor)
• Came and Wentz (Carson Wentz)
• Lawrence and Order (Trevor Lawrence)
• What's Up, Mahomes? (Patrick Mahomes)
• Derek of the Edmund Fitzgerald (Derek Carr)
• Justin Credible (Justin Herbert)
• Chiefs of Stafford (Matthew Stafford)
• Tua and a Half Men (Tua Tagovailoa)
• Kirk, You Have the Bridge (Kirk Cousins)
• Mac Daddies (Mac Jones)
• Winston and Lose Some (Jameis Winston)
• Game of Jones (Daniel Jones)
• Zach Attack (Zach Wilson)
• Hurts Doughnut (Jalen Hurts)
• Boethlisbergers With Cheese (Ben Roethlisberger)
• Jimmy G, I Guess You're Starting (Jimmy Garoppolo)
• Russell Will, Son (Russell Wilson)
• TB Determined (Tom Brady)
• Tannehill to Climb (Ryan Tannehill)
• Fitzmagic (Ryan Ryan Fitzpatrick)