Whew! This was quite the weekend, wasn’t it? The NFL Draft took us all for some twists and turns. How did your favorite rookies fare? Who increased in value? Who plummeted? On with our staff’s Rapid Reaction Rookie Mock draft!
1.01 — Breece Hall (Iowa State)
RB, New York Jets (Round 2, Pick 36)
5’11” 217
Dan Toomey @DanT_NFL
This pick has been “locked-in” for months, but now we can finally make it official. The best running back in this class lands with Gang Green and is an easy pick at the top of any rookie draft, regardless of format. Michael Carter will be relegated to a backup role. The Jets are investing heavily in this team, and the results will be exciting to see on the field this fall.
1.02 — Garrett Wilson (Ohio State)
WR, New York Jets (Round 1, Pick 10)
6’0″ 183
Keith Ensminger @TheSmingDynasty
Are two New York Jets being taken at the top of a dynasty rookie draft? Crazy times! Regardless, yes, Garrett Wilson is solidified as my 1.02 now that the dust has settled. Great college production, great measurables, and an offense potentially set to explode. The two concerns are simply can Zach Wilson take a step forward, and what will the split with Elijah Moore be?
1.03 — Drake London (USC)
WR, Atlanta Falcons (Round 1, Pick 8)
6’4″ 213
Justin Hulsey @FF_Hulsey
The final pieces of the puzzle for Drake London were draft capital and landing spot. Going eighth overall to Atlanta cements him as my WR1. He and Kyle Pitts should take pressure off each other nicely. The Falcons made upgrades to their offense with the additions of Ridder and Allgeier as well. London has WR2 upside out of the gates in what could be a high-volume rookie season for him. There are understandable concerns at quarterback but getting Ridder in the third leaves the door open for a 2023 signal-caller if needed. London is that sweet spot where analytical profile, film grade, and draft capital meet.
1.04 — Kenneth Walker, Jr. (Michigan State)
RB, Seattle Seahawks (Round 2, Pick 41)
5’9″ 211
Josh Adkins @DynastyOasis
Positional scarcity pushes Walker above the crop of Round 1 WRs. Despite a couple of good day-2 RB landing spots, this remains a two RB class. Pass-catching concerns remain for the former Spartan and Demon Deacon runner. However, with Drew Lock capping offensive firepower and Pete Carroll’s determination to get back to a run-first mentality, few landing spots are more prepared to hide a lackluster pass-catching profile. The Seahawks added talented left and right tackles with picks on each side of Walker, further confirming Seattle’s grindhouse intentions for the immediate future. There aren’t enough red flags to pass on the last rookie RB with top-12 upside.
1.05 — Treylon Burks (Arkansas)
WR, Tennessee Titans (Round 1, Pick 18)
6’2″ 225
Corey Easterday @CoreyEasterday
In the wake of trading away A.J. Brown, Tennessee drafted the WR in this class, who has often drawn that exact comparison. As our team has covered extensively in the pre-draft evaluation process, Treylon Burks is an absolute stud athlete who possesses the necessary skills to contribute right away, develop into a dominant force, and become a nightmare for opposing defenses. Woods and Burks should complement each other nicely. It will be interesting to see how the QB situation plays out over time with the Titans drafting Malik Willis to develop behind Tannehill. Like every prospect, Burks has his areas for improvement, but when he puts it all together – watch out. Clear top 5 pick in your Rookie Draft.
1.06 — Jameson Williams (Alabama)
WR, Detroit Lions (Round 1, Pick 12)
6’1″ 179
Matt Cooper @Devy2DynastyFR
Jameson Williams was my pre-draft WR2 and remained there for me despite what I view as a less-than-ideal landing spot. My view is the other WRs in the same tier didn’t get amazing landing spots either, and the ones who did are just too far below Jameson from a talent standpoint for me to bump them above him.
I’m not concerned about the ACL, and seeing Detroit trade up 20 spots to get him at 12th overall tells me that NFL teams aren’t either. Williams has the best speed in the class, but he’s more than that. He’s a great route runner. I think he has the highest upside in the class, and I’m happy to get him here in the back half of the first. So, here’s to hoping that Detroit gets him a QB who can push the ball down the field sooner rather than later.
1.07 — Chris Olave (Ohio State)
WR, New Orleans Saints (Round 1, Pick 11)
6’0″ 187
Jake Oliver @DarthDbacks
Olave will be a technician in the Saints’ offense. He’s walking into a clear WR2 role with an easy 100+ targets. With AK47 and MT coming back, Olave has great mentors and will be facing easier coverages. We know Jameis isn’t scared to throw the ball, and Olave will get free consistently. Don’t be surprised if he finishes year one as a WR2/3. Olave’s got speed, hands, and the best route-running in the draft. Getting a stud wideout this late is a great choice for your team. I can’t ever have enough talent on my dynasty squad.
1.08 — Skyy Moore (Western Michigan)
WR, Kansas City Chiefs (Round 2, Pick 54)
5’10” 195
Noah Wright @Noahrwright
Skyy Moore lands in a fantastic situation with the Chiefs. With the loss of Tyreek Hill this offseason, Moore will look to compete right away in year one. I was excited to perhaps get him in the early second round before the NFL draft, but those hopes have been crushed. I can see him going in the 1.06-1.09 zone, which is a little high for my liking. He is my WR5 now in this class. If he falls to the end of the 1st round of rookie drafts, I would be drafting him every time.
1.09 — Christian Watson (North Dakota State)
WR, Green Bay Packers (Round 2, Pick 34)
6’4″ 208
Woo Lee @WooLee_FFB
With the top 5 WRs off the board, Watson is a great pick at the 1.09. The Packers traded up to the 34th pick in this year’s draft to get Christian Watson. It’s also a big plus that he has Aaron Rodgers throwing him the ball with no competition at the WR position other than Allan Lazard. With the combination of draft capital, elite QB play, and lack of competition for targets, Watson is primed to have a strong rookie season.
1.10 — Jahan Dotson (Penn State)
WR, Washington Commanders (Round 1, Pick 16)
5’11” 178
Brandon Haye @hayeb3
I have been high on Dotson the whole time, and he was my WR5. Getting first-round draft capital was nice to see. Washington has needed to get a second option to Terry McLaurin, and I think they found it. Their second-leading receiver last year was J.D. McKissic, with 397 yards. Dotson is great in space and should be able to be plugged in right away. At 1.10, I was happy to get Dotson as the 8th WR off the board.
1.11 — George Pickens (Georgia)
WR, Pittsburgh Steelers (Round 2, Pick 52)
6’3″ 195
Jay Stein @_jasonstein
I’m not in love with the landing spot, but I took Pickens at 1.11. The Steelers have historically done a good job at finding good WRs through the draft, and I think Pickens can be one of those. Pickens had an outstanding freshman season, an adequate sophomore season, and then tore an ACL in the spring of 2021 but was able to rehab and play the last four games of Georgia’s national championship season.
The QB situation in Pittsburgh is a question mark with some combination of free agent acquisition Mitchell Trubisky and 2022 1st round draft pick Kenny Pickett probably splitting up the season. The problem is, I’m not sure if either of them is all that good. Also, the Steelers have some established WRs that Pickens will have to compete with for targets in the elite Diontae Johnson and Chase Claypool (the jury’s still out). It’s also possible, given the QB situation, that the Steelers rely on last year’s 1st round RB Najee Harris for the majority of the offense. All this to say, I think Pickens is probably good, but the situation is not great. I’ll take a chance on him with a late 1st round pick.
1.12 — Alec Pierce (Cincinnati)
WR, Indianapolis Colts (Round 2, Pick 53)
6’3″ 211
Dennis Bennett @Culture_Coach
Pierce is a great complement to Michael Pittman Jr., with great speed to lift the lid off the defense. His route tree needs to develop, but the things he does, he does well. Pierce should be the Colts WR2 and be a WR4/5 for fantasy in year 1.
That closes out Round 1 of the post-NFL Draft Superflex Rookie Mock draft. Keep your eyes peeled for the second round of the 1QB and Superflex mock drafts coming soon.
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