Fantasy Football 2024: 1st-Round Mock Draft Tips and Latest Consensus Rankings

The 2024 NFL season kicks off in less than two weeks.

Fantasy football managers are up against the clock to get their draft strategies ironed out.

Hopefully, you've been utilizing mock drafts all along to get real-time results on whatever roster experiments you wanted to run. If not, we'll help steer you the right direction by laying out a four-round mock draft using FantasyPros' mock draft simulator before offering some tips on how to handle the opening round while mock-drafting. Then, we'll close with the latest consensus expert rankings courtesy of FantasyPros.

4-Round, 10-Team PPR Mock Draft

Fred Kfoury III/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

FOXBOROUGH, MA - AUGUST 13: Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley (26) carries during joint training camp between the New England Patriots and the Philadelphia Eagles on August 13, 2024, at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Fred Kfoury III/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Round 1

1. Christian McCaffrey, RB, SF

2. CeeDee Lamb, WR, DAL

3. Tyreek Hill, WR, MIA

4. Justin Jefferson, WR, MIN

5. Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR, DET

6. Ja'Marr Chase, WR, CIN

7. Breece Hall, WR, NYJ

8. Bijan Robinson, RB, ATL

9. A.J. Brown, WR, PHI

10. Saquon Barkley, RB, PHI

Round 2

11. Jonathan Taylor, RB, IND

12. Garrett Wilson, WR, NYJ

13. Puka Nacua, WR, LAR

14. Jahmyr Gibbs, RB, DET

15. Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, ARI

16. Drake London, WR, ATL

17. Kyren Williams, RB, LAR

18. Deebo Samuel Sr., WR, SF

19. Davante Adams, WR, LV

20. Chris Olave, WR, NO

Round 3

21. Josh Allen, QB, BUF

22. Travis Etienne Jr., RB, JAX

23. Patrick Mahomes, QB, KC

24. Derrick Henry, RB, BAL

25. Travis Kelce, TE, KC

26. Trey McBride, TE, ARI

27. Isiah Pacheco, RB, KC

28. Michael Pittman Jr., WR, IND

29. Sam LaPorta, TE, DET

30. James Cook, RB, BUF

Round 4

31. Jalen Hurts, QB, PHI

32. De'Von Achane, RB, MIA

33. Joe Mixon, RB, HOU

34. Brandon Aiyuk, WR, SF

35. Rachaad White, RB, TB

36. Jaylen Waddle, WR, MIA

37. Josh Jacobs, RB, GB

38. Alvin Kamara, RB, NO

39. Mike Evans, WR, TB

40. Cooper Kupp, WR, LAR

Tips for 1st-Round Selections

Jeff Dean/Getty Images

CINCINNATI, OHIO - DECEMBER 16: Ja’Marr Chase #1 of the Cincinnati Bengals reacts after making a reception in the first quarter of the game against the Minnesota Vikings at Paycor Stadium on December 16, 2023 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Jeff Dean/Getty Images)

Don't stray too far from average draft positions.

While mock drafts are a time to experiment, you still want to stay within the realm of reality. So, if you're spending a top-10 pick on someone who usually doesn't go inside of the top 50, then you're distorting the data to a point that it can no longer be trusted.

Remember, you should be attempting things you maybe wouldn't do in your actual draft, but you've always been curious about what could happen if you did. So, don't do anything you simply couldn't envision anyone else doing in an actual draft.

Start with different positions in different mocks.

Mock drafts are only valuable if you learn something from doing them. If you follow the same draft order time and again, the learning process runs dry pretty quickly.

Since the top of the draft board is fairly fluid—Christian McCaffrey is locked in at No. 1, but nothing else is cemented—you should take advantage of that fluidity and allow yourself to venture different directions in different mocks. Take a top-shelf wide receiver in one, then grab a high-end running back in the next. If you're a deep-league drafter, it might even make sense to start with a quarterback sometimes.

Keep track of your tiers.

Numerical rankings have given way to tiered systems as the preferred measure for many fantasy football managers. If you've taken a tiered approach with your personal rankings, then you want to pay attention to where your various tiers are starting and stopping.

And, yes, chances are you'll progress through multiple tiers within the first round. McCaffrey has a tier to himself, but you could then have tiers of elite receivers (CeeDee Lamb, Tyreek Hill, Justin Jefferson, Ja'Marr Chase and Amon-Ra St. Brown) and running backs (Breece Hall and BIjan Robinson) before getting to the next tier of playmakers (A.J. Brown, Saquon Barkley, Jonathan Taylor, Garrett Wilson, Puka Nacua and Jahmyr Gibbs).

Regardless of your specific tier setup, just be mindful of how they're moving during your draft.

Consensus Fantasy Rankings

Jason Mowry/Getty Images

CINCINNATI, OHIO - AUGUST 22: Quarterback Anthony Richardson #5 of the Indianapolis Colts looks to pass the ball during the first quarter of the preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paycor Stadium on August 22, 2024 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Mowry/Getty Images)

Quarterback

1. Josh Allen, BUF

2. Jalen Hurts, PHI

3. Patrick Mahomes, KC

4. Lamar Jackson, BAL

5. Anthony Richardson, IND

6. C.J. Stroud, HOU

7. Kyler Murray, ARI

8. Joe Burrow, CIN

9. Dak Prescott, DAL

10. Jordan Love, GB

Running back

1. Christian McCaffrey, SF

2. Breece Hall, NYJ

3. Bijan Robinson, ATL

4. Jonathan Taylor, IND

5. Derrick Henry, BAL

6. Jahmyr Gibbs, DET

7. Saquon Barkley, PHI

8. Kyren Williams, LAR

9. Travis Etienne Jr., JAX

10. Isiah Pacheco, KC

Wide receiver

1. CeeDee Lamb, DAL

2. Tyreek Hill, MIA

3. Ja'Marr Chase, CIN

4. Justin Jefferson, MIN

5. Amon-Ra St. Brown, DET

6. A.J. Brown, PHI

7. Garrett Wilson, NYJ

8. Puka Nacua, LAR

9. Deebo Samuel Sr., SF

10. Mike Evans, TB

Tight end

1. Sam LaPorta, DET

2. Travis Kelce, KC

3. Mark Andrews, BAL

4. Trey McBride, ARI

5. George Kittle, SF

6. Kyle Pitts, ATL

7. Dalton Kincaid, BUF

8. Jake Ferguson, DAL

9. David Njoku, CLE

10. Evan Engram, JAX