Our Mock Draft Summer keeps rolling along, as 10 of your favorite Yahooligans did a Superflex mock draft Monday afternoon. The format requires nine starters: QB, RB, RB, WR, WR, TE, Superflex, PK, DST, where the Superflex spot can be filled by a quarterback, running back, receiver or tight end. We drafted 15 rounds in all.
A Superflex dance means we’re running a hybrid two-quarterback league. Quarterbacks score the most points, so every team will want to start two whenever possible. The Superflex tag is perfect for those who like the challenge of two-quarterback formats but want a backdoor option for any team that gets behind the QB count during the year.
Superflex leagues completely change the shape of the draft, of course. Seven of the first 10 picks were quarterbacks. Seven teams had two quarterbacks by the end of the fourth round.
Because the early roster construction is the key to this exercise, I analyzed how everyone attacked the first seven rounds, when most teams will be filling their starting field players. Let’s take a look around. I’m not going to grade on a curve, and I’m not going to cut myself any breaks, either.
1. Matt Harmon: QB, RB, WR, QB, RB, RB, WR
Matt’s draft went so perfectly, it makes me sick. Batting leadoff is a good thing in Superflex. Matt had his pick of the quarterback litter (he went with Jalen Hurts, one of three reasonable answers), landed an alpha back and wideout (Saquon Barkley, CeeDee Lamb), and still fell into Aaron Rodgers for his fourth pick. Matt didn’t fill the tight end slot with his core seven, but Pat Freiermuth at Pick 81 is fine.
This is an A Draft. Let’s just assume Matt would mess it up with mid-season mismanagement.
2. Dan Titus: QB, WR, QB, WR, RB, TE, WR
Dan did a lot of things I like, getting the safest quarterback in the world (Patrick Mahomes), a high-upside third-round QB (Anthony Richardson) and a deep receiver room. T.J. Hockenson in the sixth round is stealing. Dan did not proactively fill his running back slots, but in a 10-teamer, you can be patient there. Boring James Conner (Round 8) and whiff-of-upside Khalil Herbert (Round 9) make sense as his RB2 and RB3. And Joe Mixon (Round 5, Pick 42) has been a boring All-Star all summer. Dan’s wideouts are a little old, but I’d love a share of this roster.
3. Mo Castillo: WR, QB, QB, TE, RB, WR, RB
Mo took a modified rip at quarterback, with Daniel Jones in Round 2 and Deshaun Watson in Round 3. This allowed him to get a whack at perhaps the best WR/TE combination in the land, Justin Jefferson and Mark Andrews. Not all of Mo’s second-half picks were guys prominent on my sheet, but hey, it’s a game of opinions. Jordan Love (Round 8) is a perfect third quarterback for this format.
4. Collin Brennan: QB, RB, WR, WR, WR, WR, RB
Collin employed a strategy dear to my heart: he hammered the signature wideouts. But that strategy is better suited for the leagues that require three or four starters; his excess depth might not ideally fit this room. Lamar Jackson has MVP upside and I like Kenny Pickett’s breakout chances, but I’d fancy this roster more if it had a third quarterback. The Olave-Ridley-London run earns the Reception Perception seal of approval.
5. Jorge Martin: QB, RB, WR, QB, RB, WR, TE
A traditional positional grab, as Jorge filled all seven of his starters with the first seven picks. A very balanced roster and a good example of how drafting in the middle can allow you to be a value-gobbling Zen Master. I’d probably pass on the now-unfortunately-injured Terry McLaurin (Pick 56) as the similar Jahan Dotson goes about four rounds later, but if Kyle Pitts figures out that touchdown thing, this roster could dunk on the league.
6. Daniel Harris: QB, RB, QB, WR, WR, RB, TE
Another “fill the starters” focus, with the heavy tint at quarterback. You can do well waiting on the second back in this format, with Dameon Pierce lasting until Pick 55. George Kittle has some fleas and lots of ball competition, but at Pick 66, it’s all upside.
7. Trevor Lewis: WR, TE, QB, QB, RB, RB, WR
Travis Kelce at Pick 14? It’s all about that Superflex life, amigos. Ja’Marr Chase could easily be the 2024 magazine cover darling, and although Trevor waited until Round 3 to shop the quarterback market, I like that he grabbed them back to back, stacking Geno Smith with Tua Tagovailoa. Aaron Jones is a boring All-Star pick in the fifth round.
8. Dalton Del Don: QB, QB, RB, RB, WR, TE, WR
In a league where more receivers are required, I’d expect Dalton to focus there. But he recognizes we only need two wideouts, so he pounds the QB and RB queue. Justin Fields and Trevor Lawrence are both players on the escalator, and Tony Pollard’s upside is the moon. Dalton needs to get a little lucky at receiver, I suppose, which is why he collected six of them. If you don’t attack a position with early capital, take a swing at volume.
9. Jason Klabacha: RB, WR, WR, WR, RB, QB, RB
Can you punt the quarterback position in Superflex? I’d never try it in a deeper league, but in a format this shallow, I’m glad one team tried it. Jason took steady Brock Purdy at Pick 52 and intriguing Sam Howell at Pick 89, which might be an eyelash light. With this type of roster construction, I’d prefer to have a third QB option. But it is scary to see a roster stacked with Christian McCaffrey, Cooper Kupp and Garrett Wilson.
10. Scott Pianowski: QB, WR, RB, WR, RB, QB, RB
I asked for the 10th pick in this exercise, I guess so I could draft a team I’d hate in 15 minutes. Okay, hate is a strong word. There’s an All-Boring tint to the roster, with oldsters Tyreek Hill, Derrick Henry and Jared Goff locking down key spots. Justin Herbert has fun tools this year and Amon-Ra St. Brown is a Sun God headed for the moon. I decided to take sliding value grabs with Rhamondre Stevenson (Pick 51) and Kenneth Walker (Pick 70). Dallas Goedert is a steal at Pick 71, and at least I can feel good about pocket-pick Jahan Dotson (Round 10). But some other managers landed rosters I prefer.
Too Long, Didn’t Read
In Superflex formats, I want two starters I feel good to very good about, and probably three quarterbacks in all.
I’ll demand you get dominant wideouts in formats where three or more starters are required, but you can be more passive at this position when only two starting WRs are needed.
Running back has felt deep to me all year, in shallow, medium and even deeper leagues. The RB2/RB3 market might look underwhelming to you, but oh so many choices. I will consider an Anchor RB approach (get that one hero) for many teams, and I could go Zero RB in the right room. But if your format is low on the starter count, I don’t mind if you bully with two signature starters.
Almost any tight end strategy looks reasonable in the shallower leagues.
Did anyone ever tell you an odd number of rounds is mildly unfair to the guys at the end of the draft slotting? It is. Even numbers for the win.
Here are the team-by-team results of mock draft:
