2018 Fantasy Football Mock Draft: Strategy and Cheatsheet for Opening Rounds

With the NFL having reached the midpoint of the 2018 preseason schedule, it's the perfect time for a fantasy football cramming session.

We're here to help cover the basics. For instance, waiting on a quarterback makes sense. As comfortable as you think you'd feel with Tom Brady or Aaron Rodgers under center, there were eight 4,000-yard passers last season. Patience is a virtue in the fantasy passing realm.

We'll delve into other tips and strategies below after laying out a four-round, 12-team mock draft using standard scoring courtesy of FantasyPros.com.

Mock Draft

Round 1

Team 1: Todd Gurley, RB, Los Angeles Rams

Team 2: Le'Veon Bell, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers

Team 3: Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Dallas Cowboys

Team 4: David Johnson, RB, Arizona Cardinals

Team 5: Alvin Kamara, RB, New Orleans Saints

Team 6: Saquon Barkley, RB, New York Giants

Team 7: Antonio Brown, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers

Team 8: Leonard Fournette, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars

Team 9: Kareem Hunt, RB, Kansas City Chiefs

Team 10: Julio Jones, WR, Atlanta Falcons

Team 11: DeAndre Hopkins, WR, Houston Texans

Team 12: Odell Beckham Jr., WR, New York Giants

Round 2

Team 12: Melvin Gordon, RB, Los Angeles Chargers

Team 11: Dalvin Cook, RB, Minnesota Vikings

Team 10: Michael Thomas, WR, New Orleans Saints

Team 9: Christian McCaffrey, RB, Carolina Panthers

Team 8: Devonta Freeman, RB, Atlanta Falcons

Team 7: Davante Adams, WR, Green Bay Packers

Team 6: Jordan Howard, RB, Chicago Bears

Team 5: Keenan Allen, WR, Los Angeles Chargers

Team 4: A.J. Green, WR, Cincinnati Bengals

Team 3: Rob Gronkowski, TE, New England Patriots

Team 2: LeSean McCoy, RB, Buffalo Bills

Team 1: Mike Evans, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Round 3

Team 1: Joe Mixon, RB, Cincinnati Bengals

Team 2: Adam Thielen, WR, Minnesota Vikings

Team 3: T.Y. Hilton, WR, Indianapolis Colts

Team 4: Tyreek Hill, WR, Kansas City Chiefs

Team 5: Jerick McKinnon, RB, San Francisco 49ers

Team 6: Stefon Diggs, WR, Minnesota Vikings

Team 7: Travis Kelce, TE, Kansas City Chiefs

Team 8: Aaron Rodgers, QB, Green Bay Packers

Team 9: Tom Brady, QB, New England Patriots

Team 10: Kenyan Drake, RB, Miami Dolphins

Team 11: Amari Cooper, WR, Oakland Raiders

Team 12: Doug Baldwin, WR, Seattle Seahawks

Round 4

Team 12: Larry Fitzgerald, WR, Arizona Cardinals

Team 11: Brandin Cooks, WR, Los Angeles Rams

Team 10: Derrick Henry, RB, Tennessee Titans

Team 9: Zach Ertz, TE, Philadelphia Eagles

Team 8: JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers

Team 7: Jay Ajayi, RB, Philadelphia Eagles

Team 6: Deshaun Watson, QB, Houston Texans

Team 5: Jarvis Landry, WR, Cleveland Browns

Team 4: Marvin Jones, WR, Detroit Lions

Team 3: Allen Robinson, WR, Chicago Bears

Team 2: Demaryius Thomas, WR, Denver Broncos

Team 1: Golden Tate, WR, Detroit Lions

Know the Lay of the Land

Bruce Kluckhohn/Associated Press

This will sound obvious, but only because it's true—the better your awareness, the better chance you'll have of success.

For starters, that means know the specifics of your league. Do players get a full point, half point or no extra bonus per reception? Which positions are eligible to use at the flex spot? Will you start one quarterback or two?

Also, does your league have any quirks like big-play bonuses? Maybe there's a boost for a 10- or 25-yard rush/reception or a longer completion. I joined one league last minute last season, didn't have time to review scoring before the draft and subsequently overlooked the importance of rostering home run-hitters. My season-long stats matched up with most, but the lack of big-play boosts proved a fatal flaw.

It's also critical to freshen up on the offseason roster changes. Kirk Cousins, for instance, is more appealing in Minnesota than Washington. Both Adam Thielen (1,276 yards) and Stefon Diggs (849 yards) outgained Cousins' top target last season, Jamison Crowder (789). A healthy Dalvin Cook also gives Cousins a more dynamic running back than he had in the District.

The 49ers are paying Jerick McKinnon to be a top-shelf back. Expect his workload to reflect that. Similarly, the Giants are all-in on No. 2 pick, $31 million man Saquon Barkley. They'll be looking for significant early returns on that investment.

Read the Draft Room

Mike Roemer/Associated Press

Part of the fun of drafting is the unpredictability of human owners. Unless everyone else is autodrafting—in which case, find a new league asap—this won't be as simple as the selection order mirroring the predraft rankings.

You must remain fluid enough to adapt on the fly.

An early run on quarterbacks might spur others to do the same. But being the savvy drafter that you are, maybe you'll see an opportunity to pounce on a market inefficiency.

Let's say Rodgers (3.06 average draft position) and Brady (5.03) both go in the second round. Rather than use a panic pick on someone like Deshaun Watson (4.04) or Russell Wilson (5.11), maybe you can snatch a slipping Jordan Howard, Michael Thomas or Davante Adams, then get someone like Cousins (7.11), Matthew Stafford (8.12) or Philip Rivers (9.08) later than normal, because other owners are done QB shopping.

This is where it helps to know sleepers.

Patrick Mahomes has both speed and a rocket arm. He could be a fantasy stud if the Chiefs let him loose. Marquise Goodwin should be the deep-ball favorite of Jimmy Garoppolo. D.J. Chark is a 6'4" burner on a Jacksonville receiving group figuring out how to replace Allen Robinson and Allen Hurns. Chark could be an interesting late-round flier.

Breakout Candidates

Mark Zaleski/Associated Press

Marcus Mariota was the second overall pick in 2015, so there doesn't seem to be much risk in naming him a breakout candidate.

But he's falling to the 11th round of 12-team drafts (11.06 ADP), so suffice to say not everyone's on board with the idea of a major leap being imminent.

That said, there are plenty of reasons to feel the dual threat is trending up. He's produced as both a passer (26 touchdowns in 2016) and rusher (five scores last season) before, so it's not like this is a blind gamble. He'll also benefit from new offensive coordinator Matt LaFleur (who helped spur Jared Goff's 2017 breakout) and the more dynamic running back tandem of Derrick Henry and Dion Lewis.

Speaking of Lewis, it's hard to imagine there are 60 better fantasy options, but that's how the draft board is shaking out so far (6.01). The 27-year-old totaled nine touchdowns between rushing (six) and receiving (three) last season and contributed 1,100 yards from scrimmage. The Titans didn't give him $20 million to watch Henry dominate the touches.

Out wide, Kelvin Benjamin offers more upside than drafters seem to think (9.01). Someone needs to catch passes in Buffalo, and he's a safer bet than sophomore Zay Jones or third-year receiver Corey Coleman, who have just 83 career catches between them.

Statistics used courtesy of Pro-Football-Reference.com. Average draft position (ADP) obtained via Fantasy Football Calculator.