Fantasy Football 2018: 4-Round Mock Draft, Top Keeper Players and Team Names

If Stefon was a fantasy football fan, he'd probably say that this summer's hottest fantasy article is the one you'll find below.

This article has it all. A four-round mock draft using my top-40 rankings (in parentheses next to each pick) to inform the selections. A section with advice on how to select your keepers. A list of brilliant fantasy team names (aka suggestions about as funny as a dad joke).

You don't want to miss it.

Mock Draft Round 1

1. Team 1: Todd Gurley, RB, Los Angeles Rams (1)

2. Team 2: Le'Veon Bell, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers (2)

3. Team 3: David Johnson, RB, Arizona Cardinals (3)

4. Team 4: Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Dallas Cowboys (4)

5. Team 5: Saquon Barkley, RB, New York Giants (5)

6. Team 6: Antonio Brown, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers (6)

7. Team 7: Alvin Kamara, RB, New Orleans Saints (7)

8. Team 8: Leonard Fournette, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars (8)

9. Team 9: Odell Beckham Jr., WR, New York Giants

10. Team 10: DeAndre Hopkins, WR, Houston Texans (9)

Round 2

11. Team 10: Melvin Gordon, RB, Los Angeles Rams (12)

12. Team 9: Kareem Hunt, RB, Kansas City Chiefs (13)

13. Team 8: Julio Jones, WR, Atlanta Falcons (11)

14. Team 7: Keenan Allen, WR, Los Angeles Chargers (14)

15. Team 6: Jordan Howard, RB, Chicago Bears (18)

16. Team 5: A.J. Green, WR, Cincinnati Bengals (15)

17. Team 4: Davante Adams, WR, Green Bay Packers (16)

18. Team 3: Michael Thomas, WR, New Orleans Saints (17)

19. Team 2: T.Y. Hilton, WR, Indianapolis Colts (19)

20. Team 1: Mike Evans, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (20)

Round 3

21. Team 1: Dalvin Cook, RB, Minnesota Vikings (21)

22. Team 2: Devonta Freeman, RB, Atlanta Falcons (22)

23. Team 3: Rob Gronkowski, TE, New England Patriots (23)

24. Team 4: Amari Cooper, WR, Oakland Raiders (24)

25. Team 5: Adam Thielen, WR, Minnesota Vikings (25)

26. Team 6: Larry Fitzgerald, WR, Arizona Cardinals (26)

27. Team 7: Tyreek Hill, WR, Kansas City Chiefs (27)

28. Team 8: LeSean McCoy, RB, Buffalo Bills (28)

29. Team 9: Travis Kelce, TE, Kansas City Chiefs (29)

30. Team 10: Joe Mixon, RB, Cincinnati Bengals (30)

Round 4

31. Team 10: Aaron Rodgers, QB, Green Bay Packers (31)

32. Team 9: Doug Baldwin, WR, Seattle Seahawks (34)

33. Team 8: Tom Brady, QB, New England Patriots (32)

34. Team 7: Zach Ertz, TE, Philadelphia Eagles (33)

35. Team 6: Jerick McKinnon, RB, San Francisco 49ers (35)

36. Team 5: Christian McCaffrey, RB, Carolina Panthers (36)

37. Team 4: Derrick Henry, RB, Tennessee Titans (37)

38. Team 3: Stefon Diggs, WR, Minnesota Vikings (38)

39. Team 2: Jay Ajayi, RB, Philadelphia Eagles (39)

40. Team 1: Russell Wilson, QB, Seattle Seahawks (40)

Keeper Advice

Tony Dejak/Associated Press

How you approach your keepers really depends on the league rules you use. In standard formats, where players simply keep three players with their first three picks, you generally just want to keep the three players highest on whatever rankings you use (like, for instance, the rankings on the top 40 players I provided above).

Perhaps there are some exceptions. If, for instance, you have to choose between a veteran player like Larry Fitzgerald and a younger player like Christian McCaffrey, I'd choose the latter. Why? Because while Fitzgerald might retire after the 2018 season, McCaffrey could be a keeper for your team for many seasons to come. 

Try to hold onto your top young guns, in other words.

In other formats, players can be kept with the draft pick where they were selected. For instance, in one of my leagues last year, I snagged Tyreek Hill in the seventh round. That means this year, I'll be able to keep him for a seventh-round pick, a fantastic value. 

Whereas in standard keeper leagues you want to prioritize keeping your best values, in other keeper formats your priority should be holding onto your best values. Here's a list of players you likely drafted in the later rounds or even picked up on waivers last year potentially worthy of a keeper selection:

• Josh Gordon, WR, Cleveland Browns
• Dalvin Cook, RB, Minnesota Vikings
• Kareem Hunt, RB, Kansas City Chiefs
• Alvin Kamara, RB, New Orleans Saints
• Evan Engram, TE, New York Giants
• Adam Thielen, WR, Minnesota Vikings
• Stefon Diggs, WR, Minnesota Vikings
• Deshaun Watson, QB, Houston Texans
• Derrick Henry, RB, Tennessee Titans
• Chris Hogan, WR, New England Patriots
• Jerick McKinnon, RB, San Francisco 49ers
• Kenyan Drake, RB, Miami Dolphins
• Alex Collins, RB, Baltimore Ravens

Obviously, you have to balance value with impact. Would I keep, say, Alex Collins over Ezekiel Elliott? Of course not. Elliott's production should vastly outweigh any value I might get from keeping Collins with a late-round pick. 

But in many cases, keeping those great values allows you to use your early-round picks on the top available players. You can really stack a team if you play your keeper cards correctly.

Team Names

Here are some fantasy team name ideas, based on this year's rookie class:

• Hey Darnold!
• Every Rosen Has Its Thorn
• Baker's Dozen
• Saquon is the Loneliest Number
• Roquan Headlight
• How McGlinchey Stole Christmas
• Independence Vea
• All I Do Is Wynn
• From Hurst to First
• Romy and Michel's High School Reunion
• The Curious Case of Courtland Sutton
• Get Down with the Gesicki

And of course, may the fantasy points be with you!