2018 Fantasy Football Draft Prep: Picking No. 10 overall in a PPR draft gives you the best of both worlds
Disappointed you landed the No. 10 pick? Heath Cummings says it can work out beautifully.
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- Picking in PPR from: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12
- Picking in non-PPR from: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12
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Editor's note: Our latest non-PPR pick-by-pick series was done in June and is a three-man draft with Heath Cummings, Jamey Eisenberg and Dave Richard, with each one selecting four teams in this 12-team mock. The goal of this series is to show you positions to draft in these spots as much as the players selected, so take that into account when viewing each team.
So you landed the No. 10 pick in your PPR draft, and you're not thrilled. I'm not here to condolences but encouragement.
This year the back end of a PPR draft is not a curse but a blessing. There's a surplus of elite talent in this format because of how it elevates high-volume receivers, and I took one of them with my first pick when I took Odell Beckham. Unlike non-PPR, it also forces running backs down the pecking order, which meant Melvin Gordon was there with my second selection.
While I've been known to mock Gordon's efficiency, there's little doubt he'll be force-fed carries, and the team is talking about using him even more in the passing game. That's partially because Gordon has improved in that regard but also because the team lost Hunter Henry for the season and won't be able to be as reliant on the tight end in their offense.
Starting your team with Beckham and Gordon provides upside and balance, which became a theme with this team.
Here's the rest my team from No. 10 overall:
- 1.10 Odell Beckham, WR, NYG
- 2.3 Melvin Gordon, RB, LAC
- 3.10 Jarvis Landry, WR, CLE
- 4.3 Kenyan Drake, RB, MIA
- 5.10 Brandin Cooks, WR, LAR
- 6.3 Marlon Mack, RB, IND
- 7.10 Allen Hurns, WR, DAL
- 8.3 Kyle Rudolph, TE, MIN
- 9.10 Theo Riddick, RB, DET
- 10.3 Javorius Allen, RB, BAL
- 11.10 Andrew Luck, QB, IND
- 12.3 Patrick Mahomes, QB, KC
- 13.10 Stephen Gostkowski, K, NE
- 14.3 Lions DST
The balance and upside didn't stop after the first two picks. Landry has been a PPR star the past few years, and Drake was an absolute monster for a stretch in 2017. They both have risks (more on that below) but upside that far exceeds where I drafted them. Same goes for Cooks, who is once again on a new team, and we can only hope the Rams use him more effectively than they did Sammy Watkins. The next two picks may seem more boring, but I'm pretty excited about both.
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Both Mack and Hurns are in my breakout column for similar reasons. They have a wide open path to volume that far exceeds their ADP. Mack is the early favorite to be the lead back in Indianapolis. Assuming the Colts have Luck at full strength, that's a position that should at the very least be a weekly starter as your flex.
Hurns is the best receiver in Dallas, and should lead the team with more than 110 targets. Barring injury, it's hard to see how either gets into my starting lineup, but we all know by now you should expect injuries in Fantasy Football. The depth of this team may be the only thing I like more than the balance.
Favorite pick: Andrew Luck
Speaking of injuries, let's all hope Luck is finally past his. He has finally started progressing towards playing actual football, but he's still falling in drafts because of injury concerns. To land him in the 11th thrilled me because the depth and balance of this team allowed me to land Mahomes with my next pick. I know it's been a long time since we've seen Luck on a football field, but I don't have any reason to believe his upside is any lower than what it was when we last saw him.
Pick I might regret: Jarvis Landry
Jarvis Landry has caught more passes than anyone in football the past four years, and if he just keeps doing what he's done then regret is the last thing I'll feel about taking him in the third round. But there is some risk of the unknown here. He's in a new offense with Tyrod Taylor as his quarterback and Josh Gordon competing for targets. If he sees his target total drop considerably, he could absolutely bust, especially if he doesn't have the success in the red zone he did last year.
Player who could make or break my team: Kenyan Drake
In the final six weeks of 2017, Kenyan Drake was a highly efficient workhorse back. He averaged 20 touches per game and 4.6 yards per carry. He ranked No. 8 among running backs in this format. If we get that Kenyan Drake, this team is an absolute monster. But the Dolphins signed Frank Gore and drafted Kalen Ballage in the offseason. They've spoken glowingly of both. If Drake ends up in a two-down role and loses red zone touches to Gore, I'll be happy I built so much depth at running back in the second half of this draft.


















