NFL

Fantasy Football Mock Draft: Young Running Backs Rising

As OTAs progress toward training camp, we continue to gear up for peak drafting season. Which young runners went in the early rounds of our 12-team mock?

Mock draft season is like the preseason in the NFL. The trial runs don't really mean a whole lot, but they get you ready for the real thing.

Trends emerge and the players involved get to hone their craft in order to be at peak performance by the time game day rolls around. Mock drafts can be a powerful tool to decipher what kind of shape your roster takes given different starting positions in the draft order. From there, it's easier to plan for the future and take advantage of players that are going undervalued.

At this point in the offseason, there is a lot to be determined in terms of depth chart positioning and who is "in the best shape of his career". The hype trains have already started rolling, and Average Draft Positions (ADP) are sure to ebb and flow as we get more coach-speak and noteworthy comments. Nonetheless, we have a fairly good idea of what to expect this close to the beginning of training camp.

With camps set to open in fewer than seven weeks, our football staff recently completed a standard mock draft, which featured a full point-per-reception (PPR) setup, and hypothetical starting lineups with 1 quarterback, 2 running backs, 3 wide receivers, 1 tight end, and 1 flex spot (RB/WR/TE).

Here's how things played out.