Fantasy Football 2021: 3-Round Mock Draft and Suggestions for Team Names

This is the final Sunday of 2021 that won't feature NFL action.

Not only that, but this is one of the final days for fantasy football leagues to hold drafts. The 2021 season begins with Thursday's matchup between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Dallas Cowboys. At that point, fantasy rosters will need to be set.

For many leagues, that's already the case, and managers are trying to decide the optimal lineup for Week 1. But if you are in a league that hasn't held its draft, you may still be looking for some advice.

Here are suggestions for team names, a three-round mock, courtesy of the FantasyPros simulator, and some first-round analysis.

Team Name Suggestions

Zach Bolinger/Associated Press

Home Sweet Mahomes

Run CMC

Hot Chubb Time Machine

Lights, Kamara, Action

Mr. Rodgers' Neighborhood

Cobra Kyler

Hurts So Good

Dak to the Future

Can't Stop the Thielen

Fantasy Football Team

Fresh Prince of Helaire

Jake Fromm State Farm

Fant Touch This

Pop Lockett Drop It

Catalina Wine Mixon

3-Round Mock Draft

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Round 1

1. Christian McCaffrey, RB, Carolina Panthers

2. Dalvin Cook, RB, Minnesota Vikings

3. Derrick Henry, RB, Tennessee Titans

4. Alvin Kamara, RB, New Orleans Saints

5. Aaron Jones, RB, Green Bay Packers

6. Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Dallas Cowboys

7. Davante Adams, WR, Green Bay Packers

8. Travis Kelce, TE, Kansas City Chiefs

9. Stefon Diggs, WR, Buffalo Bills

10. Austin Ekeler, RB, Los Angeles Chargers

11. Tyreek Hill, WR, Kansas City Chiefs

12. Saquon Barkley, RB, New York Giants

Round 2

13. Nick Chubb, RB, Cleveland Browns

14. Jonathan Taylor, RB, Indianapolis Colts

15. Joe Mixon, RB, Cincinnati Bengals

16. DeAndre Hopkins, WR, Arizona Cardinals

17. Najee Harris, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers

18. Calvin Ridley, WR, Atlanta Falcons

19. Antonio Gibson, RB, Washington Football Team

20. A.J. Brown, WR, Tennessee Titans

21. DK Metcalf, WR, Seattle Seahawks

22. Clyde Edwards-Helaire, RB, Kansas City Chiefs

23. Patrick Mahomes, QB, Kansas City Chiefs

24. Justin Jefferson, WR, Minnesota Vikings

Round 3

25. Darren Waller, TE, Las Vegas Raiders

26. George Kittle, TE, San Francisco 49ers

27. Josh Allen, QB, Buffalo Bills

28. Keenan Allen, WR, Los Angeles Chargers

29. David Montgomery, RB, Chicago Bears

30. Allen Robinson II, WR, Chicago Bears

31. CeeDee Lamb, WR, Dallas Cowboys

32. Terry McLaurin, WR, Washington Football Team

33. Chris Godwin, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

34. James Robinson, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars

35. Chris Carson, RB, Seattle Seahawks

36. Mike Evans, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

1st-Round Breakdown

David Richard/Associated Press

In this mock draft, six running backs were selected with the first six picks. It's not an unusual run to start things off, as the top four backs are in a tier of their own and the position is arguably the most important to stack up on early considering there's less depth than there is at others.

But there are some things to note regarding the running backs were drafted following the quartet of Christian McCaffrey, Dalvin Cook, Derrick Henry and Alvin Kamara.

Aaron Jones came off the board at No. 5, which is a bit higher than he typically tends to get selected. His average draft position in points-per-reception leagues is the No. 7 overall pick, per Fantasy Football Calculator.

Yet in this mock, Jones was selected ahead of Ezekiel Elliott and Davante Adams, who have higher ADPs.

It may be an atypical move, but it wouldn't necessarily be a bad one. Jones plays in a high-powered Green Bay Packers offense that is sure to put up plenty of points and yards with quarterback Aaron Rodgers at the helm and Adams anchoring the receiving corps.

Jones' fantasy value is largely dependent on how frequently he can get into the end zone. In 2019, he scored 19 total touchdowns in 16 games. That number came down in 2020, when he had 11 total touchdowns in 14 games.

Still, Jones is going to accumulate the yardage to remain a strong fantasy option. But hewill need a big touchdown number to justify using the No. 5 pick on him.

In some drafts, Saquon Barkley is among the running backs under consideration as early as No. 5. However, there's a big swing in where he tends to get drafted. In this mock, he fell to the last pick of Round 1. His ADP in PPR leagues is also the final pick of the first round, per Fantasy Football Calculator.

While it seems like Barkley is trending toward being ready to play Week 1 for the New York Giants after missing nearly all of last season with a torn ACL, there are still some concerns because he wasn't too active throughout training camp and the preseason. And he may be eased into regular-season action.

"My sense is that Barkley will be in the lineup for the opener but won't have a full workload," The Athletic's Dan Duggan wrote Friday. "The Giants will likely bring Barkley along slowly in his return from a torn ACL."

If that's the case, it may be smarter to use first-round picks on other running backs, ones who are safer and should easily live up to their projections.

However, unless you are taking one of few elite wide receivers (such as Adams, Tyreek Hill or Stefon Diggs) or tight end Travis Kelce with a late-Round 1 pick, the best move is to add a top running back with your first selection.