This mock draft will be one of the more in-depth drafts I have done in recent memory. Each pick will be a first hand selection by me using my own draft strategies. I will explain my picks and thought process as I go through the draft. I want to try to give my readers ideas on specific strategies and how to draft from each slot. This will be based on a ten team standard league with the starting positions as follows: QB, RB, RB, WR, WR, WR, TE, RB/WR, DEF, K. Be sure to keep an eye on each team's draft position and how it can alter pre-draft schemes. 
 

After two rounds here is how the pairings by position work out:
Team 1: RB, WR
Team 2: RB, QB
Team 3: RB, WR
Team 4: QB, RB
Team 5: WR, RB
Team 6: QB, TE
Team 7: RB, WR
Team 8: QB, RB
Team 9: WR, RB
Team 10: RB, WR
 
I'm not a big fan of taking Gronkowski within the first two rounds this year but pairing him with Brady seemed to make sense. 
 
I like to take at least one Running Back in the first two rounds if at all possible. If you go back to my Draft Guide you will see that the first two tiers of running backs are all taken within the first 16 picks in this Mock Draft. In fact, I have 8 running backs going in the first 16 picks (8 RB, 4 WR, 3 QB, 1 TE). 
 
Of all the pairs the most explosive would have to be the McCoy/Wallace duo although I think the team with Calvin Johnson and Marshawn Lynch will be just as viable. 6 of the 10 teams have a WR, RB combo. With the way things shaped up I think my dream pairing for the first two rounds would be Maurice Jones-Drew and Ryan Mathews. If that was the case I would wait on a QB until the later rounds (Cutler, Roethlisberger, Romo and/or Rivers come to mind). If you think about it, in a one QB league, you can get a top 10 passer later in the draft because most people won't draft their backup QB until the final few rounds. 
 
As fun as it would be to plan things out, your first two round will be the outline for the rest of your draft. In a sense you have to let the elite players fall into your lap and then plan your draft strategy as you go. Be prepared to make adjustments keeping in mind the NFL is shifting into a pass happy league (as stated in Lists #3 and #4 in my preseason article "10 Lists of 10").
 
Entering the 3rd, 4th and 5th rounds teams should look to balance out their rosters. I'm never happy when 3 of my first 4 picks are from the same position (unless a solid RB falls to me). 
 

Here is how the team's shape up after 5 Rounds:
 
Team 1: Foster, R. White, Charles, S. Smith and Vick. (2 RB, 2 WR, 1 QB)
Team 2: Rice, Stafford, A.J. Green, Nelson and Peterson. (2 RB, 2 WR, 1 QB)
Team 3: McCoy, Wallace, Nicks, Helu and E. Manning. (2 RB, 2 WR, 1 QB)
Team 4: Rodgers, McFadden, Cruz, Gore and Dez Bryant. (2 RB, 2 WR, 1 QB)
Team 5: Calvin Johnson, Lynch, S. Jackson, V. Jackson and P. Manning. (2 RB, 2 WR, 1 QB)
Team 6: Brady, Gronkowski, Murray, Bradshaw and Lloyd. (2 RB, 1 WR, 1 QB, 1 TE)
Team 7: Jones-Drew, Jennings, Graham, Marshall and Romo. (1 RB, 2 WR, 1 QB, 1 TE)
Team 8: Brees, Mathews, J. Jones, T. Richardson and Colsten. (2 RB, 2 WR, 1 QB)
Team 9: Andre Johnson, Forte, F. Jackson, Welker and Rivers. (2 RB, 2 WR, 1 QB)
Team 10: Chris Johnson, Fitzgerald, Turner, Newton and Sproles. (3 RB, 1 WR, 1 QB)
 
As you can see I like to have balance after the first 50 players are selected. The only teams that do not have two WR, two RB and one QB are the teams that drafted Gronkowski, Graham and Team 10 who went RB heavy taking Sproles as a safety net to Michael Turner. I'm not opposed to drafting the two Tight Ends, I just refuse to overpay for them. My Full Tight End Projections.
 
In Round 4 I had Team 3 select Roy Helu. For me, it was between Helu and Adrian Peterson. I didn't want to reach for Peterson because his injury risk is more of a concern to me than Helu's job security. If Helu is named the starter in Washington, and it looks like he will be, he could have a solid year under Mike Shannahan's one-cut-and-go scheme that produced multiple 1,000 yard rushers when he was the Head Coach in Denver. My Full Running Back Projections.
 
For Team 8 I had a hard decision to make in Round 5 between Colsten and Austin (both slight injury risks) but I went with Colsten because that team had drafted Brees in the first round. Sometimes pairing a QB with his WR can be beneficial, especially against a weak defense.
 
According to my First Mock Draft, Round 5 had a lot of Quarterbacks get drafted. The same held true in this expanded Mock. 
 
For the next few rounds I will have the teams that took some slight risks earlier (Peterson, Helu, Nicks, etc.) err on the side of caution. For the teams that have a solid foundation, with little injury risks, I will go after the high risk, high reward players with the potential to break out. The next 3 rounds are key to the make up of your team. 
 

 
Meachem is a steal (#1 WR for the Chargers). He was just another pass catcher in the Saints offense but for Phillip Rivers and the Chargers, Meacham offers high upside on a team that lacks an outside threat. My Full Wide Receiver Projections.
 
Best is another steal, if not for concussion concerns he may be concerned a top 15 Running Back despite an ADP in the 70's. 
 
Denarius Moore may be a steal as well. He offers speed comparable to Mike Wallace and a second year (first training camp) with Carson Palmer should help their chemistry. Although it is Oakland, and they won't have a potent offense, I'm expecting Moore to be the deep threat. Here's your first mid round home run hitter. 
 
For Team 8 I wanted to reach for a WR (Garcon) but I decided to stay away and attempt to get another WR a round or two later. I decided to go with the best available player on the board Ben Tate. If Foster's injury past comes into play Tate's presence on that roster may be huge.
 
For Team 7 I took Toby Gerhart. Two reasons led me to this pick: if Peterson isn't ready to go Week 1, Gerhart will get the start and if MJD holds out I would be counting on Gerhart to be my #2 Running Back. Team 7 will have to draft a sleeper Running Back later on in the draft to play it safe.
 
In Round 8 I took my first backup Quarterbacks. Cutler behind Mike Vick (injury concern) and Roethlisberger behind Peyton Manning (unknown health issues). I think Cutler and Big Ben could put up top 10 passing numbers. My Full QB Projections.
 
Also in Round 8 I went after my first Defense. Team 2 did not have a Tight End but with Fred Davis and Jason Witten going in the two previous picks, I did not want to reach a round ahead for Tony Gonzalez. I had a few players in mind at this point: Cutler, RG3, Pierre Garcon, Anquan Boldin or a defense. I decided to take the D.
 

Take note of how Team 5 is the only team without a TE, Tony Gonzalez is available but since nobody else will target him he may stay on the board a few rounds longer than normal. This is risky strategy when dealing with Quarterbacks, and even the other skill players, because nothing will excite a fantasy owner more than owning two top ten Quarterbacks but not all owners will draft a second TE, if they do it won't be until the last two rounds or so.
 

Team 5 finally got their TE in the 12th Round.
 
Daniel Thomas went to Team 7 handcuffing Reggie Bush who was selected way back in the 6th Round.
 
Some would say that I reached for Antonio Brown but I think a lot of owners will look for him about the same time Justin Blackmon comes off the board. It's the old "Hot Shot Rookie vs. Sneaky Veteran" scenario. I really like Brown this year.
 

The Seattle Defense going in the 13th Round is a bit of a steal. A weak division with a great home crowd may have the Seahawks D produce top ten fantasy production. My Full Defense Projections.
 
I think Mike Goodson is a good backup to have. Remember the numbers Michael Bush put up when McFadden went down, that role now belongs to Goodson.
 
The next three rounds covered back up Defenses, deep sleepers and Kickers. This is the part of the draft where Tim Tebow will most likely be taken. I did not select him in this mock but I do believe he will get multiple starts at QB this year for the Jets.
 

 
 
Thanks for checking out my second mock draft. You can check out my first mock here (mostly based on ADP). I hope this will help you out in your drafts this year, it took me over 12 hours to complete this but I had fun writing it all out and running through some strategies. If you have any questions find me on Twitter.
 
 
Alex Wiesner
July 16th, 2012
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