2024 Off-Season Mock Drafts: Single-Quarterback Rookie Mock
Here we go! We’ve finally got the series’ first complete four-round rookie mock draft. I had the 12th pick in this draft, and since I didn’t win a single championship last year, I won’t be picking 12th in any actual drafts this season, so this will be interesting. I recently put together my personal rookie rankings, but I am not particularly committed to them until after I see some Scouting Combine results and draft capital.
All that said, let’s take a look at how this mock draft played out.
Round One
I recently wrote an article where I covered several first rounds of recent mock drafts. If you’re looking for a more complete breakdown of my thoughts on round one, be sure to click the link to check it out. Regarding my selection, with the top seven wide receivers and Brock Bowers gone, I knew I would go with a running back at 1.12.
Trey Benson is my favorite heading into the combine, but he was already selected at 1.09, so I had to choose between Jonathan Brooks and Braelon Allen. I ended up going with Allen. Pre-combine, I’m really just throwing a dart, but I like the idea of the bigger-bodied Allen having at least a goal-line thumper role as soon as he enters the NFL.
Round Two
I mentioned potentially selecting Brooks at 1.12, and he went one pick later at 2.01. While round one felt relatively chalky, things started feeling a little shaky halfway through round two. As a non-devy, non-college football guy, I’m just now getting familiar with this rookie class, so while I knew all the names in this round, I’m not very comfortable deciding who is better than who at this point.
Xavier Worthy is undersized, but his speed should get him a bump on draft day. People seem to love Ladd McConkey. A trio of Michigan Wolverines went in this round, and as a Michigan fan, I can’t wait to see their landing spots. Depending on their draft capital, Blake Corum, Roman Wilson, and JJ McCarthy could all see a considerable bump over the next few months.
At 2.05, Bucky Irving seemed like a bit of a reach to me, and on the other hand, Xavier Legette seems like a tremendous value at 2.10. I rarely draft tight ends in rookie drafts, so Ja’Tavion Sanders would not have been an option for me at 2.11. With my pick to close out the round, I went with one of my favorite players in this class, Malachi Corley. I thought I got a steal with the 24th pick and would be thrilled to get him this late in real drafts.
Round Three
I’ll work from the back forward in round three and will start with my selection of Dylan Laube. A relatively unknown before the Senior Bowl, the University of New Hampshire product could be one of the unheralded sleepers in this class – especially in a PPR world. I’m not comparing him to the player, but he could have Danny Woodhead or Austin Ekeler upside with the right team. I fear he isn’t anywhere close to 3.12 when actual drafts roll around.
I discussed getting familiar with the 2024 class last round, and this round featured a couple of names that I still need to learn about. However, at 3.10, Devontez Walker is another one of my favorites in this class, and it’s criminal that he remained on the board this late. We’ll see what happens in the upcoming mocks, but I suspect this ADP for Walker will be an outlier.
We had a duo of quarterbacks in this round, and in single-QB leagues, this is where I prefer to throw my darts unless I’m totally screwed at the position and need to take a quarterback early. Michael Penix and Bo Nix might both be starters early in their careers, so we’ll see how their draft capital dictates how we react in our real drafts.
MarShawn Lloyd isn’t one of my favorites, but he’s got many fans in the football and fantasy communities. Given the constant need for running back depth, I was surprised to see him fall all the way to 3.06. Equally shocking was Ja’Lynn Polk at 3.05. I like Polk significantly more than the three wide receivers who preceded him, and I believe we’ll see Polk moving into the late second range shortly.
Regarding those three receivers ahead of Polk, Brendan Rice, Javon Baker, and Johnny Wilson should all fall six to eight spots. I have nothing against the trio; I simply prefer several other players to them at this point in the process. They could blow me away at the combine, and I could dramatically change my opinion of them.
Round Four
In my first edition of this 2024 series, I looked back at last year’s rookie class and how their ADP moved throughout the off-season process. Multiple players were initially fourth-rounders, who eventually skyrocketed up draft boards. A year ago, Michael Wilson, Sam LaPorta, Puka Nacua, Tank Dell, and Jayden Reed were all in this range. Could anyone in the 37-48 pick range see a massive upswing over the next 2-12 months?
At a quick glance, my candidates among the fourth-round picks would be Jaylen Wright, Ray Davis, Ricky Pearsall, Luke McCaffrey, and Jase McClellan. Please don’t get too excited; I have no incredible advanced knowledge or a crystal ball at my disposal. Those are the players I would feel good planting my flag on with late picks because I can see some upside. I can imagine a world where they all contribute as rookies and accumulate more fantasy points than several of the players going in the previous three rounds.
My pick to close out the draft was McClellan, who I’m surprised to see fall so low in drafts and has even gone undrafted in other mocks as well. Not all players from particular schools have the same success in the NFL, but we’ve had a decent track record of success from Alabama running backs. At this point in the draft, that’s as good of a reason as any to throw a dart on a player.
I hope you enjoyed this look at the first rookie mock I participated in, and more importantly, I hope you were able to take away a little knowledge to help prepare you for your upcoming rookie drafts. The few mocks I’ll be covering following the combine should feature some heavy movement, and in years past, those moves have typically been permanent, so keep an eye on the early risers and fallers, as they historically continued that trend throughout the draft process. Use that knowledge to gain an advantage over your league mates and start building towards your 2024 dynasty championships today!
- Final Rookie Report Card: Quarterbacks - January 11, 2025
- Dynasty Rookie Report Card: Michael Penix and Keon Coleman - January 4, 2025
- Dynasty Rookie Report Card: Drake Maye and Kimani Vidal - December 28, 2024
