Fantasy Football 2025 Funniest Team Names and Mock Draft Strategy at Key Spots

Kristopher KnoxAug 10, 2025

The first week of the 2025 NFL preseason is nearly complete, which means fantasy football managers should be one step closer to finalizing their draft boards.

Drafting isn't the only critical step in chasing a fantasy championship, but it's probably the most important. Managers must uncover value at all spots in the draft, and must certainly avoid busts at the top. Smart lineup decisions and good waiver-wire usage can help offset draft mistakes, but it's hard to make a bad initial roster competitive.

Running through a few mock drafts ahead of the real thing can help managers avoid critical missteps. Here, you'll find a two-round mock, along with some tips for getting the most out of your own mock drafts.

You'll also find some suggestions for team names to complement that winning 2025 roster.

2-Round PPR Mock Draft

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AP Photo/Jeff Dean

Bengals WR Ja'Marr Chase

Round 1

Ja'Marr Chase, WR, Cincinnati Bengals
Jahmyr Gibbs, RB, Detroit Lions
Bijan Robinson, RB, Atlanta Falcons
Justin Jefferson, WR, Minnesota Vikings
CeeDee Lamb, WR, Dallas Cowboys
Saquon Barkley, RB, Philadelphia Eagles
Puka Nacua, WR, Los Angeles Rams
Christian McCaffrey, RB, San Francisco 49ers
Nico Collins, WR, Houston Texans
Malik Nabers, WR, New York Giants
Brian Thomas Jr., WR, Jacksonville Jaguars
Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR, Detroit Lions

Round 2

Derrick Henry, RB, Baltimore Ravens
A.J. Brown, WR, Philadelphia Eagles
Ashton Jeanty, RB, Las Vegas Raiders
De'Von Achane, RB, Miami Dolphins
Drake London, WR, Atlanta Falcons
Josh Jacobs, RB, Green Bay Packers
Brock Bowers, TE, Las Vegas Raiders
Trey McBride, TE, Arizona Cardinals
Kyren Williams, RB, Los Angeles Rams
Bucky Irving, RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tee Higgins, WR, Cincinnati Bengals
Tyreek Hill, WR, Miami Dolphins

Mock Draft Strategies for Key Spots

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AP Photo/Terrance Williams

Ravens QB Lamar Jackson

The very first thing managers should do before conducting a mock draft is get familiar with their leagues' scoring and roster parameters. They'll need to approach point-per-reception (PPR) drafts differently than standard scoring drafts—and superflex leagues are a whole other matter entirely.

Managers can then use tools like FantasyPros' Mock Draft Simulator to replicate those parameters and make their mocks as realistic as possible.

The next step is to set an initial big board with multiple but well-defined tiers. Those can be personalized, but a good baseline is to have tiers for A.) elite, must-have players, B.) high-end starters, C.) low-level starters and D.) high-level backups. Ideally, you'll come away from a draft with 2-3 players from the first tier, 6-7 players from the first two tiers and only one or two players outside of these four.

It's fine to speculate on a sleeper late in drafts, but having too many boom-or-bust picks can become a real problem once bye weeks kick in.

Once managers have an idea of who they want to draft, it's time to employ different mock strategies to see what's likely to work in a live draft. Breaking the draft into key spots can help with this process.

The first key spot is Rounds 1 and 2, which is where managers should expect to land top-tier players. Rounds 3-5 make up the second key spot, where managers should hope to land second-tier players. The middle rounds—typically Rounds 6-12 in 16-round drafts—are where managers should look to fill out their starting lineups and land key backups. The last key spot is where managers should speculate on risk-reward players and add their kickers and defenses.

Managers can benefit from trying different strategies in the first two key spots to help formulate a plan for their live drafts. For example, trying to land top-tier RBs in the first two rounds could be a great approach if managers are consistently finding top-tier WRs in Round 3. If they're struggling to land even high-level receivers in Rounds 3 and 4, going heavy on pass-catchers to start the draft might be the right approach.

Regardless of the approach managers settle upon, they should strive to have at least three first-tier skill players—WR, RB and TE—and four skill players who are in the first or second tier by the end of Round 5. By the end of Round 5, managers should also hope to have at least one running back and one receiver.

There's no real reason to reach for a quarterback within the first two key spots, but if Josh Allen or Lamar Jackson are still available in Round 5, there's certainly nothing wrong with flipping the switch either. Just remember that good starting QBs can usually be found in the middle rounds, while high-end receivers and running backs usually won't.

The middle rounds are also a great place to try targeting promising rookies like Los Angeles Chargers receiver Tre Harris or Chicago Bears tight end Colston Loveland. Players expected to jump right into high-volume roles, like Las Vegas Raiders running back Ashton Jeanty, will go early. However, rookie sleepers can provide huge fantasy dividends—as Ladd McConkey did in 2024.

Managers can use the third key spot to get a feel for where this year's rookie sleepers are being valued.

It's acceptable to gamble a bit in the last key spot, and that's where managers can consider handcuffs for their top-tier starters. They can also target a top-tier defense before filling out that final bench spot, but there's little reason to target a kicker before the last round.