Fantasy Football Mock Draft: Justin Jefferson A Value At 1.09?
Chris Allen recaps the Fantasy Life staff's mock draft for the 2026 draft magazine.
The 2026 Fantasy Life magazine will hit shelves before we know it, and, as always, it includes a 12-person fantasy football mock draft entirely made up of our staff. This year's had no shortage of drama, and Chris is going to break it down ...
“[Josh] doesn’t know it yet, but his last pick just sent us into a lifelong feud. Some real Scorpion vs Sub Zero type stuff…” – Jake
“Fwiw, I hate my team. Glad we aren't playing this out. The pause thing screwed me for two picks.” – Matthew
“Good.” – Cooterdoodle
No doubt you’ve been a part of similar banter in mock drafts before. And the vibes are no different for us here at Fantasy Life. On the one end, we get trash talk to our friends as they have “connection issues” leading them to auto a player they didn’t want or some other excuse. But on the flip side, we can learn how to navigate building a roster and how drafts are unfolding for the upcoming season.
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Breaking Down The 12-Team Fantasy Football Mock Draft
The First Round
There were no shockers in the first 12 picks. The crew stayed within ADP to cap off the first round. However, sitting at the 1.09, I’ve got to say, the available options had more questions to them than I remember.
- 1.09 (Me) – Justin Jefferson
- 1.10 (Matthew) – Jonathan Taylor
- 1.11 (Joe) – Drake London
- 1.12 (Ian) – Rashee Rice
(Editor's Note: Do you understand how bullshit it is to have to draft between Matthew Berry and Ian Hartitz? Fantasy football is fun, they say ...) - Joe
First off, three of the four players are newcomers to the Top 12. Well, it’s been a couple of years since Jonathan Taylor was a first-rounder, but you know what I mean. But look past the names. Their situations don’t scream first-round locks.
Justin Jefferson and Drake London will be catching passes from new QBs. Rashee Rice has yet to play a full season, and Patrick Mahomes’ Week 1 availability isn’t for certain. And the chances of Taylor and the Colts recapturing their two-month stretch of multi-touchdown games feel slim. To be clear, I can’t fault the guys for who they selected, but if you wind up with a late slot, plan to build around a lackluster open.
Biggest Surprises of the Fantasy Football Mock Draft
QB is deep! I know we say this every year. But when Patrick Mahomes, our consensus-ranked QB13, didn’t go off the board until the 11th round, it might be true this time. Bo Nix, last year’s QB7 (and our QB15 for this season), lasted until the 13th. If you favor the late-round QB strategy, 2026 might be your turn to shine.
Get your WRs early! By the end of Round 6, we had drafted 33 receivers. That’s almost half of the early rounds. 10 landed on a roster in the fifth round alone. Here’s another way to look at it. Matthew snagged Carnell Tate at 57th overall. Our rankers have him at 70th. Don’t wait to draft your pass catchers.
OK, I Want a Mulligan
So, here’s where mock drafts earn their due credit. There’s nothing on the line! We can test ADPs and builds without consequences. All so when our pride (wallet) is on the line, we can make the right decisions. Anyway, if I had a time machine, I’d go back to the fifth round of the draft.
- Actual Pick: Emeka Egbuka
- Replacement Pick: Literally any RB available (lowkey joking)
Quick recap: I had Justin Jefferson, Nico Collins, Tee Higgins and Travis Etienne already.
I’ve preached this throughout my draft pieces, but you should try to keep track of your squad’s strengths and weaknesses after each pick. And my approach is simple. Before I was on the clock at 57th overall, I had three WRs and just one RB. To add more context, my RB1 came in the fourth round. Using last year’s results as a proxy, we can do some quick math on the opportunity cost of waiting to draft a rusher.
- RBs with Round 1-2 ADP (2025 only): 18.3 PPR PPG
- RBs with Round 5-6 ADP: 9.2
My receivers were top-24 options at their position. I had holes at every other spot. Adding Egbuka was more of a luxury pick. Meanwhile, one of Bhayshul Tuten (Hartitz), D’Andre Swift (Metz), or Chuba Hubbard (Matthew) would’ve shored up my RB stable. Or, I could’ve paired Joe Burrow with Higgins (and leaned into the homer bit). In either case, constant review of your roster will help avoid similar mistakes when the stakes are greater than smack talk amongst co-workers.
The New Guys
The lack of star (I don’t want to use the ‘g’ word here, but you know what I mean) talent in this year’s class has kept many of the ADPs in check. Landing spots haven’t added much hype either. But a brave few bit the bullet and added a rookie (or two, in Jake’s case) to their team.
Jeremiyah Love (Taken By: Jake, Pick: 20 overall)
I’ve heard the “Love is this year’s Jeanty” takes since the Cardinals turned in the card. And while I do think the comparison is directionally accurate, it lacks nuance.
- (2025) Run-Block Win Rate Rank: 15th (ARI), 22nd (LV)
- Adj. Yards Before Contact Rank: 17th, 30th
Arizona already had a better blocking unit, and they made upgrades over the offseason, including using a Day 2 selection on a Guard. Dwain has Love projected for the seventh-most targets of any RB, making him his RB13. Jake took the Notre Dame product at RB9. A slight reach, sure. But a universe does exist where talent overcomes situation.
Jordyn Tyson (Taken By: Kendall, Pick: 50 overall)
Honestly, the more surprising part is that Kendall took Jordyn Tyson (consensus WR31) ahead of Carnell Tate (WR30). But then again, after looking at the Saints’ depth chart over the back half of the year, I get the flip in ADP.
- (From Weeks 10-18) Devaughn Vele: 11.1% (target rate), 1.61 (YPRR)
- Kevin Austin: 8.4%, 0.97
- Mason Tipton: 5.7%, 0.47
- Dante Pettis: 4.2%, 1.63
Tyler Shough had Chris Olave and a bunch of role players to power New Orleans’ passing game. Even if we should expect contributions from Alvin Kamara, Travis Etienne and Juwan Johnson, the Saints’ taking Tyson eighth overall is the signal we need to see him as a potential WR1 this year.
Carnell Tate (Taken By: Matthew, 58 overall)
First off, shout out to our GOAT, Ian Hartitz, for turning his dream of having an Ohio State WR go to the Titans into reality.
There’s just one issue for Carnell Tate: his QB. Cam Ward came into an even worse situation last season with less around him. However, he showed signs of improvement down the stretch.
- EPA per Dropback: -0.18 (Weeks 1-9), -0.02 (Weeks 10-17)
- CPOE: -5.6%, -0.1%
- Pressure-to-Sack Rate: 29.7%, 17.0%
Admittedly, he’s no Joe Burrow or any of the other first-overall QBs drafted over the last few years. But after Tennessee made acquisitions not just for their line but at the skill positions, the likelihood of Ward taking another step forward, benefiting Tate, seems all the more likely.
There’s Always Value in the Banana Stand
Jayden Reed (Taken By: Freedman, Pick: 102 overall)
Dwain even gave Freedman a hat tip (a hair tip?) for this one. Regardless, if there were ever a year to bet on the Packers’ interior WR to expand his role, it’d be in 2026.
- 2023: 64% (Route Rate), 2% (Route Rate w/ 2 TEs)
- 2024: 73%, 3%
- 2025: 58%, 1%
Reed being absent when Green Bay added more TEs to their personnel packages has been a thorn in the side of fantasy managers since he joined the team. To make the situation all the more frustrating, he’s been one of their best pass catchers! Christian Watson is the only other WR to have more than 2.0 YPRR in back-to-back seasons over the last five years. The one Packers’ pass catcher ahead of Reed in YAC per reception? Tucker Kraft. If Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks leaving Wisconsin frees up more routes for Reed, drafters like Freedman will have plenty to smile about in the middle rounds.
Jonathon Brooks (Taken By: Jorge, Pick: 124 overall)
Jorge tried to sneak this one by me. But after watching Rico Dowdle overtake the Panthers’ backfield last year, I wish I had taken the same bet on Jonathon Brooks returning to form after missing 2025.
- Rushing Attempts: 66% (Dowdle), 32% (Hubbard)
- Target Share: 13%, 8%
- Goal-line Rate: 83%, 20%
Remember, we didn’t see Dowdle take off until Week 5. But afterward, our Utilization Report highlighted how quickly he had displaced Chuba Hubbard in the areas most conducive to fantasy scoring. And with Brooks having the superior receiving skills, the third-year RB has the chance to slide into a lucrative role at a palatable price in drafts.
Dak Prescott (Taken By: Gene, Pick: 144 overall)
Yes, pocket passers can be hard to bank on as every-week starters. But Dwain has Dak Prescott as the QB9 in his projections. He finished as the QB5 last year. And Gene let the Cowboy fall to him at QB14. That’s my bad. Anyway, over Prescott’s last two full seasons, we’re yet to see him be anything less than a QB1 in opportunity or efficiency.
- 2025: 10th (Dropback Rank), 11th (i10 Passing Rank), 6th (EPA per Dropback Rank)
- 2023: 6th, 13th, 2nd
Sure, the George Pickens drama will (likely) be a distraction. But Prescott’s been able to make it work with CeeDee Lamb and anyone else with a star on their helmet, which has kept him in the top-12 discussion.
And the Winner Is…
I mean, c’mon. We do this in our leagues. Somebody HAS to win the draft. But then the season reminds us why building a team is only part of the process. Anyway, I’ve got to hand it to my friend in life, Jorge, for putting together a formidable squad from the four spot.
- QB: Jayden Daniels
- RBs: Saquon Barkley, Omarion Hampton
- WRs: Puka Nacua, Jaylen Waddle, Alec Pierce, DK Metcalf, Brian Thomas (FLEX)
- TE: Dalton Kincaid
Quick aside: Hampton in a Mike McDaniel-designed run game is going to feed families.
Even though he waited three rounds to take another receiver, Jorge hit on the right archetypes to fill out his starters. Each has paths to being the top target earners on their respective teams. And as I mentioned earlier, he took a swing on Jonathon Brooks as depth to his RB room. It’s as solid a draft as they come and an approach I’ll look to replicate as we get further into the offseason.
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