Fantasy Football 2016: 2-Round Mock Draft and Top Team Names

As odd as it might sound, it's time for mock drafts in the world of fantasy football.

Mock drafts, those pertaining to an incoming rookie class, serve an all-encompassing role, one helping fans get familiar with each team's needs, prospect values and how a board might fall a certain way.

In the fantasy realm these mocks serve a similar purpose, helping owners get a wide-reaching look at positional value and an offseason-spanning update concerning a player and team's outlook.

Here's a two-round mock in a 12-person standard league as the preseason gets underway:

Pick	Player	Position	Team
Round 1
1.01	Antonio Brown	WR	PIT
1.02	Odell Beckham Jr.	WR	NYG
1.03	Todd Gurley	RB	LA
1.04	Julio Jones	WR	ATL
1.05	Adrian Peterson	RB	MIN
1.06	DeAndre Hopkins	WR	HOU
1.07	Ezekiel Elliott	RB	DAL
1.08	A.J. Green	WR	CIN
1.09	Rob Gronkowski	TE	NE
1.10	Le'Veon Bell	RB	PIT
1.11	Dez Bryant	WR	DAL
1.12	David Johnson	RB	ARI
Round 2
2.01	Jamaal Charles	RB	KC
2.02	Devonta Freeman	RB	ATL
2.03	Allen Robinson	WR	JAC
2.04	Lamar Miller	RB	HOU
2.05	Jordy Nelson	WR	GB
2.06	Alshon Jeffery	WR	CHI
2.07	Doug Martin	RB	TB
2.08	Brandon Marshall	WR	NYJ
2.09	LeSean McCoy	RB	BUF
2.10	Cam Newton	QB	CAR
2.11	Mark Ingram	RB	NO
2.12	Mike Evans	WR	TB

As usual, running backs provide the most value. Call it a simple risk-factor situation dictating positional value.

For example, Antonio Brown of the Pittsburgh Steelers might have been the top-scoring wideout last year with 243 points. Odell Beckham Jr. of the New York Giants might have been in the top five, too. But if either of the quarterbacks getting them the ball went down, well, good night.

Adrian Peterson of the Minnesota Vikings, on the other hand, took north of 300 carries and totaled 217 fantasy points, and it didn't much matter what happened under center behind him.

It's simply a must-follow rule. The NFL continues to transition to a more committee-based approach at running back, but when owners have a stab at a Peterson, Todd Gurley or Jamaal Charles, it's hard to justify many players coming off the board before them.

The only exception to the running back-wideout law over the first two rounds is New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski. But that's what happens when one of the best to ever do it at his position scores 26 points more than any other tight end and only a total of eight players at the spot scored more than 100 points last year.

Top Team Names

Whoa Whoa Whoa Fitzmagic

The above name is probably something along the lines of what the New York Jets are singing right now with quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick back under contract. 

Fitzpatrick is one incredibly smart draft pick in almost any draft this year after finishing as the 12th scorer at the position last year. It's pretty easy to gloss over the fact he had the best year of his career, tossing 31 touchdowns and totaling 272 fantasy points while hitting 12 or more points in 14 games.

So it goes when a quarterback can drop back and hit Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker, two guys who happen to be pretty good value picks at wideout themselves.

Owners shouldn't get fooled by Fitzpatrick's holdout this summer. He's back and now has a full year of experience under his belt with New York. Anyone banking on him or simply the Jets in general have a solid name choice here.

Demaryius Targaryen

That one really rolls off the tongue, doesn't it? 

For those out of the loop, this is a Game of Thrones reference. Demaryius Thomas of the Denver Broncos seems to have a name that fits right within the universe, though he's a more down-to-Earth sort of guy owners have come to know and trust from a fantasy standpoint.

Anyone worried about Thomas' production this season should relax. That, or understand Thomas will have quite a bit of value on the board. Last year he was still a top-13 wideout despite playing with a struggling Peyton Manning with a dose of Brock Osweiler mixed in for good measure.

So while it might seem easy to panic because Thomas will have Mark Sanchez under center, the reality is he can make it work with pretty much anyone at quarterback so long as the system keeps giving him boatloads of targets, most of which come behind the line of scrimmage on high-percentage throws and let him do the job of getting upfield.

Jaamal About That Action...

...Boss.

All right, this is more about the retired Marshawn Lynch, but an ode to honoring one of the recent greats and mashing it with an ode to one of the current greats—the aforementioned Charles—makes for a terrific name.

Charles has seen a bit of a fall from grace in the eyes of the fantasy realm after he tore his ACL last year and only appeared in five games. But the early returns were good, with him going for 15, 14, 25 and 14 points in the four full games before the injury.

With knee injuries not being what they used to be and Charles being a do-it-all back in a run-first offense, the Kansas City Chiefs superstar looks like one of the best sleepers of the early rounds, provided owners can muster up the bravery needed to look past last year's hiccup. 

Charles, indeed, will get plenty of action at a workhorse rate, whether it's on the ground or through the air.

Team Name	Based on...
Le’Veon a Prayer	Le'Veon Bell
Julio Think You Are?	Julio Jones
WD-Forte	Matt Forte
San Francisco 4th & 9ers	...The San Francisco 49ers
Runs Like a Gurley	Todd Gurley

All scoring info courtesy of ESPN standard leagues, as is points-against info and ownership stats. Statistics courtesy of ESPN.com. Average draft position (ADP) courtesy of Fantasy Football Calculator.