Examining Fantasy Football 2025 Expert Mock Drafts After Preseason Week 3

The NFL preseason has ended, and initial 53-player rosters have been set. This makes the upcoming week the perfect window in which to conduct fantasy football drafts.

While injuries are always a risk, that risk should be minimal with exhibition games over. Fantasy managers also have a much better idea of how rosters are going to look than they did even a few days ago.

On Wednesday, for example, the Carolina Panthers traded Adam Thielen to the Minnesota Vikings.

With the fantasy landscape clearer than ever, now's a great time to dive into some expert mocks from around the web and examine what they can tell us about the coming season.

12-Team, PPR

AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez

Christian McCaffrey

Round 1

1. Ja'Marr Chase, WR, Cincinnati Bengals
2. Bijan Robinson, RB, Atlanta Falcons
3. Saquon Barkley, RB, Philadelphia Eagles
4. Justin Jefferson, WR, Minnesota Vikings
5. Jahmyr Gibbs, RB, Detroit Lions
6. CeeDee Lamb, WR, Dallas Cowboys
7. Derrick Henry, RB, Baltimore Ravens
8. Puka Nacua, WR, Los Angeles Rams
9. Ashton Jeanty, RB, Las Vegas Raiders
10. Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR, Detroit Lions
11. Christian McCaffrey, RB, San Francisco 49ers
12. Nico Collins, WR, Houston Texans

Round 2

1. Drake London, WR, Atlanta Falcons
2. Malik Nabers, WR, New York Giants
3. Lamar Jackson, QB, Baltimore Ravens
4. Brian Thomas Jr., WR, Jacksonville Jaguars
5. Jonathan Taylor, RB, Indianapolis Colts
6. A.J. Brown, WR, Philadelphia Eagles
7. De'Von Achane, RB, Miami Dolphins
8. Brock Bowers, TE, Las Vegas Raiders
9. Josh Jacobs, RB, Green Bay Packers
10. Josh Allen, QB, Buffalo Bills
11. Bucky Irving, RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
12. Chase Brown, RB, Cincinnati Bengals

This 12-team, point-per-reception (PPR) draft involved a number of analysts, fantasy experts and celebrities and was published by Sports Illustrated's Michael Fabiano.

Cincinnati Bengals receiver Ja'Marr Chase has been trending as the No. 1 overall pick all summer, especially in PPR leagues, and we see that trend continue here. Another trend we see is high-volume running backs going higher than some of the elite receivers.

This shouldn't be a surprising development. There are a lot of legitimate No. 1 receivers around the league. There aren't that many true every-down running backs. Even in PPR, elite backs like Bijan Robinson, Saquon Barkley and Jahmyr Gibbs should be valued highly.

We even see Christian McCaffrey going in Round 1 here, which is a mild surprise given his 2023 workload and last year's injuries. Managers banking on a bounce-back season should target new San Francisco 49ers running back Brian Robinson Jr. as a handcuff.

The most surprising aspect of Round 2 here is the presence of a quarterback in the top half. Lamar Jackson is an elite fantasy producer, but seeing him go this highly in any league is unexpected. It does lead to a great fantasy tip to remember: Don't be afraid to pursue "your guys" aggressively.

10-Team, PPR

AP Photo

Round 1

1. Ja'Marr Chase, WR, Cincinnati Bengals
2. Bijan Robinson, RB, Atlanta Falcons
3. Jahmyr Gibbs, RB, Detroit Lions
4. Justin Jefferson, WR, Minnesota Vikings
5. Ashton Jeanty, RB, Las Vegas Raiders
6. Christian McCaffrey, RB, San Francisco 49ers
7. Saquon Barkley, RB, Philadelphia Eagles
8. CeeDee Lamb, WR, Dallas Cowboys
9. Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR, Detroit Lions
10. Malik Nabers, WR, New York Giants

Round 2

1. Brock Bowers, TE, Las Vegas Raiders
2. Jonathan Taylor, RB, Indianapolis Colts
3. Derrick Henry, RB, Baltimore Ravens
4. Nico Collins, WR, Houston Texans
5. Puka Nacua, WR, Los Angeles Rams
6. Drake London, WR, Atlanta Falcons
7. De'Von Achane, RB, Miami Dolphins
8. Trey McBride, TE, Arizona Cardinals
9. Brian Thomas Jr. WR, Jacksonville Jaguars
10. Bucky Irving, RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

This 10-team, PPR draft involved a panel of ESPN analysts, experts and insiders. Once again, we see Chase going first overall, followed by Robinson.

The biggest surprise in this mock is that Las Vegas Raiders tight end Brock Bowers was the first selection in Round 2. That's high, even for a player who logged 112 receptions, 1,194 yards and five touchdowns as a rookie last year.

Bowers is awesome, but managers should be wary of taking him with what would be, in a larger league, a first-round selection. This is because his situation has changed fairly dramatically.

Las Vegas has a new quarterback in Geno Smith, which could aid Bowers' production. It also has new players in Ashton Jeanty, Jack Bech, Dont'e Thornton Jr. and Amari Cooper who could take targets away from the tight end.

Passing on players like Jonathan Taylor and Nico Collins to get Bowers is risky—especially since the gap between Bowers and Trey McBride isn't that great, if one exists at all this season.

12-Team, Half-PPR

AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill

Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb

Round 1

1. Ja'Marr Chase, WR, Cincinnati Bengals
2. CeeDee Lamb, WR, Dallas Cowboys
3. Justin Jefferson, WR, Minnesota Vikings
4. Bijan Robinson, RB, Atlanta Falcons
5. Saquon Barkley, RB, Philadelphia Eagles
6. Jahmyr Gibbs, RB, Detroit Lions
7. Christian McCaffrey, RB, San Francisco 49ers
8. Puka Nacua, WR, Los Angeles Rams
9. De'Von Achane, RB, Miami Dolphins
10. Ashton Jeanty, RB, Las Vegas Raiders
11. Brian Thomas Jr., WR, Jacksonville Jaguars
12. Malik Nabers, WR, New York Giants

Round 2

1. Nico Collins, WR, Houston Texans
2. Drake London, WR, Atlanta Falcons
3. Brock Bowers, TE, Las Vegas Raiders
4. Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR, Detroit Lions
5. Ladd McConkey, WR, Los Angeles Chargers
6. A.J. Brown, WR, Philadelphia Eagles
7. Bucky Irving, RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
8. Derrick Henry, RB, Baltimore Ravens
9. Rashee Rice, WR, Kansas City Chiefs
10. Tyreek Hill, WR, Miami Dolphins
11. Josh Jacobs, RB, Green Bay Packers
12. Jonathan Taylor, RB, Indianapolis Colts

This 12-team, half-PPR league comes from a pool of fantasy experts and was compiled by Justin Boone of Yahoo Sports.

While half-PPR formats place a bit more emphasis on yards and touchdowns than full-PPR leagues, they're closer to PPR than standard leagues. This is why it's not surprising to see Chase, CeeDee Lamb and Justin Jefferson come off the board before any of the running backs.

Again, we see Bowers go off the board early in Round 2. That seems even higher when McBride and George Kittle go more than a full round after Bowers—as they did in this draft.

Otherwise, this draft falls pretty much in line with most of the drafts and mocks I've seen over the past few weeks. The biggest thing to note here might be the presence of Rashee Rice in the second round. This draft was conducted before Wednesday's announcement that Rice will face a six-game suspension to open the season.

This doesn't mean that the Kansas City Chiefs wideout won't come back and be a league-winner. However, Round 2 is awfully early to go drafting a player who will miss a third of the season.

This should serve as a reminder that waiting until as close to Week 1 as possible is ideal when fantasy drafting.