While most rookie drafts take place in the spring or summer, it is still a good exercise to look at how values have changed over the course of a few months. It is especially interesting this year as fantasy owners have had very little information to work from this summer and have had to make more assumptions than ever based on speculation. So whether you still have a rookie draft coming up or you are just looking to see how rookie values might have shifted, here is a rookie only dynasty mock draft as we head toward the start of the 2020 season.
Complete early mock drafts using our free draft simulator 
1.06 J.K. Dobbins (RB – BAL)
Drawing the sixth slot in this mock draft had me worried at first as I think there is a clear top-5 in rookie drafts this season, in non-Superflex leagues. Fortunately for me, in this mock, Jerry Jeudy going at 1.04 bumped one of those top-tier players to me at pick number six, which made the selection of J.K. Dobbins an easy one for me in Round 1.
Yes, I’d expect Dobbins to come out of the gate a little slower in 2020 compared to the other RBs at the top of the board, but from a dynasty perspective, he has a ton of upside now that he is paired with Lamar Jackson in Baltimore. Don’t get me wrong, Jeudy is a high-end talent and worthy of a mid-first round rookie selection, but the uncertainty at the QB position in Denver moves him outside that top-5 for me. With Mark Ingram entering his age 30 season, and his contract situation making it easy for the Ravens to move on after 2020, I expect Dobbins to be an RB1 this time next season.
2.06 Brandon Aiyuk (WR – SF)
Some surprising picks came off the board before this selection at 2.06, which left me with a few decent options in the middle of Round 2. Even with changing opinions as to the potential order you would take these young receivers in, something that hasn’t change is the fact that there is a lot of depth at the WR position. With that, there are three options I considered with this selection: Laviska Shenault, Bryan Edwards, and Aiyuk.
Edwards has been leading the field in training camp hype so far this summer and has seen his value take a jump from being a Round 3 or late Round 2 selection, to moving closer to the beginning of the second round. However, I still gave the edge to Aiyuk here at the 2.06. Aiyuk of course was taken by the 49ers in the first round after they passed on both Jerry Jeudy and CeeDee Lamb at pick 14. And whether you believe it not, after the draft Head Coach Kyle Shanahan did state that Aiyuk was their top WR in the class.
Now, with offseason injuries to Deebo Samuel and Jalen Hurd, the 49ers are currently pretty thin at the position. So while I like Aiyuk’s long-term appeal in a Shanahan lead offense, I also think he’ll get forced into some early playing time in 2020.
3.06 Van Jefferson (WR – LAR)
By Round 3 in rookie drafts, you’re looking at flyers to tack onto the end of your bench and see if they pop. In this year’s rookie class, while the RB position is deep at the top, there aren’t too many interesting names that usually make it this far into the draft. So with this selection, I went with second-round WR Van Jefferson who was drafted by Los Angeles with the 57th pick of this year’s NFL Draft.
Jefferson is an older prospect, having already turned 24 this summer, but we’ve seen the Rams plug players like this into their offense right out of the gate – i.e. Cooper Kupp just a few years ago. Another reason that Jefferson is an interesting player here is that the Rams WR situation is a bit up in the air after 2020. As of today, both Cooper Kupp and current WR3 Josh Reynolds are playing on expiring contracts in 2020. Now, it’s probably likely that Kupp is resigned based on this career production so far, but if the Rams like what they see from Jefferson, there’s potential that he could be the number two option in this offense this time next year.
4.06 Joe Reed (WR – LAC)
Well, if you thought Round 3 was a dart throw, get ready for Round 4. So with my final selection, I went with Chargers WR Joe Reed. There weren’t a ton of other interesting options here in the final round, but Reed is a player who I think could be on the field right away. In 2019 with Virginia Reed won the Jet Award which is awarded to the nation’s top returner which could help him show what he’s capable of as a playmaker early on. And while the Chargers WR group looks set at the top in 2020 with Keenan Allen and Mike Williams, Allen’s contract is expiring after this season, which could open up opportunities for Reed on offense.
Complete early mock drafts using our free draft simulator
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Kyle August is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Kyle, check out his archive and follow him @kyleFFfellas.
