The Roto Arcade Fantasy Football Mock, RDs 5-6
When Mr. Irrelevant, Justice Cunningham, had his name called Saturday, the fantasy football mock season officially got underway. To kick off Yahoo!'s festivities, we'll mock two rounds per day Tuesday-Friday (12-teams, PPR scoring, w/one FLEX) to help you get educated on which players will be valued/undervalued when the bulk of the draft season begins in August. Please declare a winner and/or express your general disdain for our 'stupidity' in the comments section below.
ROUND 5
Marques Colston, WR, New Orleans Saints (PK49, WR18) - This fantasy roster will pair Colston with Drew Brees, which usually works well. Marques has delivered three straight 80-catch, 1,000-yard seasons. Vincent Jackson and Jordy Nelson were under consideration here, too; the goal was simply to get someone from their tier. – Behrens 1
Tom Brady, QB, New England Patriots (PK50, QB6) - I'd intended to wait on quarterback with this team, but, well ... c'mon. Someone needed to take Brady, just to maintain the integrity of the mock. I realize his tight ends are dinged and his wideouts are new, but I'd still be shocked if we didn't get another 4,400-plus yards and 30 TDs from Tom, with very few negative plays. – Behrens 2
Jordy Nelson, WR, Green Bay Packers (PK51, WR19) – Be it a hamstring, ankle, knee or foot injury, Nelson never quite seemed to reach 100 percent in '12, but he still managed 7 TD in 11 games, and Greg Jennings' exit just means a bigger piece of the ample passing pie in Green Bay.
– Brandon 1
Vincent Jackson, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (PK52, WR20) – I'm typically the most bearish Vincent Jackson guy in the room, but he's hard to ignore when he's still on the board outside the top 50 picks. V-Jax was the 9th-most targeted WR in his first season in Tampa, and between Weeks 2-16, he was the No. 7 fantasy WR in PPR leagues. – Brandon 2
Ryan Mathews, RB, San Diego Chargers (PK53, RB24) - This deep down the running back list, you're simply looking at theoretical upside. Or maybe I'm dreaming of a mock-trade with Mathews-sympathizer Evans. – Scott 1
Peyton Manning, QB, Denver Broncos (PK54, QB7) - This can't be a surprising pick, as my franchises keep stockpiling Denver receivers. Once Manning got his sea-legs under him last year, he was without question a First Tier quarterback. I often play the waiting game with QBs, but I'm fine to swoop in now and grab someone who could easily pace the position in 2013. – Scott 2
Le'Veon Bell, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers (PK55, RB25) – If you put a '77 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme in neutral and pushed it down a steep hill that would resemble the running style of Bell. He's not blazing fast or flashy. He's simply a pulverizing, an old school workhorse with plus hands and superb blocking skills who Todd Haley believes is a three-down back. It would be no shock if he recorded 1,300 total yards and 8-10 TDs this fall. – Brad 1
Matthew Stafford, QB, Detroit Lions (PK56, QB8) – I know what you're thinking. The Noise suffers from several mental deficiencies. Stafford over Matty Ice? The Lion's 2012 was best characterized as 'fluky.' He established a new NFL record for pass attempts, but found the end-zone only 20 times. Tied to the game's finest target (Calvin Johnson), adding Reggie Bush and immersed in a pass-first system, he should return close to his 2011 production level (FF: 4,750 yards, 35-40 TDs). – Brad 2
Mike Wallace, WR, Miami Dolphins (PK57, WR21) – I don't love the fact he's switching systems and downgrading QBs, but Wallace has a career yards-per-catch mark of 17.2 and has scored 26 touchdowns over the past three seasons. With so few alternatives in Miami, he should set a career high in targets in 2013. – Dalton 1
Eric Decker, WR, Denver Broncos (PK58, WR22) – Will lose some looks this season with the Wes Welker addition, but Decker led the NFL with 26 red-zone targets last season, so his 13 touchdowns were no fluke. He also had 85 catches. Not bad in a PPR format late in the 5th round. – Dalton 2
Vick Ballard, RB, Indianapolis Colts (PK59, WR23) – He should get bulk of the carries in Indy. Unfortunately, Ballard didn't do much with his opportunities last season. The Colts didn't aggressively pursue a replacement, though Donald Brown still may be better. All feature backs who last this long should come with flea collars. – Salfino 1
Rob Gronkowski, TE, New England Patriots (PK60, WR24) – Gronkowski By August this will seem either very smart or very dumb. Reports are that Gronkowski will be back to full health by then, in which case, as we all know, he's arguably the top TE in fantasy football. – Salfino 2
ROUND 6
Tavon Austin, WR, St. Louis Rams (PK61, WR25) – I hate rookie receivers, but Austin is playing a position that defies categorization. There will still be a learning curve, but I expect solid volume in the air and on the ground. Remember, Austiin RUSHED for 344 versus Oklahoma last year. – Salfino 2
Andrew Luck, QB, Indianapolis Colts (PK62, QB9) – If this was a live league, I would have passed on a QB here and taken James Jones. But I felt obligated to draft Luck where he belongs relative to Stafford and Peyton given the incredible passing volume in Indy and great room for efficiency growth, too. – Salfino 1
Greg Jennings, WR, Minnesota Vikings (PK63, WR26) – I'm actually a bit skeptical of Jennings leaving Aaron Rodgers, but he should be the clear No. 1 option in Minnesota, and Percy Harvin racked up a ton of targets in the system when lining up at flanker (where Jennings will) before getting injured. If not for the PPR format, I might have gambled on Chris Ivory here. – Dalton 2
Pierre Garcon, WR, Washington Redskins (PK64, WR27) – If Garcon and RG3 were both fully healthy, I'd rank the former as a top-10 WR easy. As is, Garcon fell to the 6th round, at which point his upside is worth the risk. The fact he elected to not undergo surgery on his foot and is already admitting he may have to play through pain this season isn't ideal, that much I'll concede. – Dalton 1
Danario Alexander, WR, San Diego Chargers (PK65, WR28) – Stolen off waivers by the Chargers, DX was also quite the free agent sensation in all leagues last year. His 14.5 fantasy points per game in PPR formats ranked just inside the WR top-20. He is constructed from fragile materials, but his WR2 upside is worth the risk at this juncture. – Brad 1
Antonio Brown, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers (PK66, WR29) – Most counted on the wideout to take a step forward last season, but, unfortunately, he trended the opposite direction. Big Ben's three-game absence and a porous Steelers O-line cramped Brown's style. However, PIT's revamped front combined with Mike Wallace's departure could finally unlock the target's full potential. A 80-1100-7 projection isn't cockamamie. – Brad 2
BenJarvus Green-Ellis, RB, Cincinnati Bengals (PK67, RB26) – He's a plodder, a straight-line runner, and maybe a two-down back in the near future with Bernard around. The PPR format is not favorable to the Law Firm, obviously. But now that we're 67 picks into this dance, a boring floor player starts to look worthwhile. – Scott 2
Stevie Johnson, WR, Buffalo Bills (PK68, WR30) – Sure, he's a mercurial type and the touchdown upside is limited. But he's also caught 79, 76 and 82 passes the last three years - those guys don't last forever. – Scott 1
Chris Ivory, RB, New York Jets (PK69, RB27) – I suspect that Mike Goodson is also going to get a healthy share of the Jets' backfield load, but Ivory should be the platoon chairman, and his high-motor style should bring a nice return on this late Round 6 investment. – Brandon 2
Cecil Shorts, WR, Jacksonville Jaguars (PK70, WR31) – From Weeks 7-16, he was one of the most consistently productive receivers in the fantasy game, and he was top 8 in PPR scoring among WR in that span. And he'll start the '13 season as the clear go-to guy with Justin Blackmon on suspension for four games. – Brandon 1
Jason Witten, TE, Dallas Cowboys (PK71, TE4) – Yup, the youth movement continues for this team. Witten just set the single-season record for catches by a tight end, he led his position in receiving yards, and his quarterback loves him like a kitten. Floor is incredibly safe, high. – Behrens 2
Steve Smith, WR, Carolina Panthers (PK72, WR32) – Seriously, when did I become the guru who has to take all the old-but-great players, just so the mock doesn't look ridiculous? Smith is coming off a 73-catch, 1,174-yard season, finishing strong. – Behrens 1
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