2009 Fantasy Football Mock Draft: Round 1 PPR League

For all you PPR fantasy football fans out there, Bruno Boys’ Jimbo recently conducted a one-man, 12-team PPR mock draft. Outside of the league rewarding one point-per-reception the rest of the scoring settings are standard format. Below is round one. Stay tuned for round two next week…

1.01: RB Maurice Jones-Drew (JAX) – Last season Jones-Drew finished second in the league at the running back position in receptions with 62 and third in targets with 76, and that was when Fred Taylor was still in the picture. Now that he is without a doubt the main man in the backfield for the Jacksonville Jaguars, MJD should see all kinds of carries and receptions in 2009.

1.02: RB Matt Forte (CHI) – He was his team’s leading receiver, and led all RBs with 63 receptions. Matt Forte was a one-man show last year in Chicago. Having a better QB should only help him produce more.

1.03: RB Adrian Peterson (MIN) – Despite not being much of a threat as a receiving RB, you can’t rank AP all that low in a PPR league since he very well may break 2,000 yards rushing. Don’t worry about him not having Brett Favre; it doesn’t hurt his value and you still should draft him within the top three picks of a Points-Per-Reception league.

1.04: RB Steven Jackson (STL) – When he’s healthy, Steven Jackson is an absolute beast. The St. Louis Rams want to focus their offense around him, so look for Jackson to see many targets in addition to flirting with 300 carries—if he can stay healthy all season.

1.05: WR Larry Fitzgerald (ARI) – Arguably the best receiver in the league last year, Larry Fitzgerald racked up 12 touchdowns and, as long as Kurt Warner is under center, there’s no reason why Fitz won’t keep that momentum going. 

1.06: RB Michael Turner (ATL) – Don’t expect the exact same numbers this year from Michael Turner, but he is still a very important piece of the Atlanta Falcons high-powered offense. He’s definitely a first-round pick in all formats, as his touchdown total will make up for the lack of receptions.

1.07: WR Andre Johnson (HOU) – This man led the league in receptions (115) and yards (1,575) last year. He is the cornerstone of the Houston Texans’ offense and should see similar numbers in 2009. Don’t let Matt Schaub’s health concerns worry you about taking Johnson.

1.08: RB Chris Johnson (TEN) – Although Chris Johnson has Lendale White as a handcuff, the second-year back should see more action this year now that he has a year under his belt. Also, Lendale White couldn’t catch a pass if he had glue on his gloves. When the Tennessee Titans are looking to pass out of the backfield, it will go to Johnson.

1.09: RB LaDainian Tomlinson (SD) – In a standard scoring league, I don’t like LT as a first-round pick, but I think he is one in a PPR league. You can’t deny the fact that he led the league in targets last year with 78.

1.10: WR Randy Moss (NE) – Even without Tom Brady, defenses couldn’t shut down Randy Moss, who notched 1,008 yards and 11 touchdowns. Now, just think about what this guy can do with Brady back.

1.11: QB Tom Brady (NE) – Even considering what Drew Brees did last year, I wouldn’t disagree if you chose Tom Brady over him. The New England Patriots have a tremendous passing attack, and without a surefire running game, Brady should be slinging it downfield all day long.

1.12: RB Frank Gore (SF) – Similar to my prediction for Steven Jackson, the San Francisco 49ers want their offensive production to revolve around Frank Gore, who hauled in 43 receptions for 373 yards and two touchdowns last year. Also, like Jackson, Gore needs to stay healthy in order to be a top-notch fantasy stud.

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