Fantasy Football Mock Draft: Brandon Aiyuk, Calvin Ridley, Josh Downs (2024)

Rookie drafts are all the rage right now, but why not immerse ourselves in a good old-fashioned PPR redraft fantasy football mock draft romp? After all, we can take rookies there, too, right?

For this fantasy football mock draft exercise, I picked from the fourth spot, with the rosters consisting of 1 QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, 1 TE, 1 FLEX, 1 K, 1 D/ST and five bench spots. It’s never too early to start your draft prep, so take advantage of all the tools at FantasyPros, including the FREE fantasy football mock draft simulator.

Here are all of my picks and reasoning from my recent fantasy football mock draft. Below we dive into a few notable fantasy football mock draft picks.

Fantasy Football Mock Draft: Picks & Results

Let’s dive into our latest fantasy football mock draft for a 12-team, PPR league with an early pick.

2.09: Brandon Aiyuk (WR – SF)

I almost went Derrick Henry here, but I’m an uber-Brandon Aiyuk fanboy this year. Some still underestimate exactly what he is to the 49ers’ offense, but Aiyuk has risen to a legit WR1. His efficiency is off the charts (3.18 yards per route run), and his volume is also there, with a 25% target share. Trade rumors have been swirling, but I’ll take him with no regrets in this spot on any team. It hurt letting Henry go, but there were enough quality RBs left that I figured one would fall to me in round No. 3.

6.09: Calvin Ridley (WR – TEN)

All eyes were on Calvin Ridley after his year ban from the game, and he… kind of came through?? There were a lot of encouraging signs for Ridley in Jacksonville, as he finished eighth in air yards and third in red zone targets. That said, Ridley’s efficiency was horrible last season; he averaged 7.5 yards per target and 1.60 yards per route run. Still, the Alabama product was rewarded with a huge deal to go to Tennessee, and it seems like a major shift in offensive scheme is coming there with the strong-armed Will Levis at the helm.

10.9: Josh Downs (WR – IND)

It’s time to fill out my depth since I don’t need my defense or kicker yet, and backup QBs and TEs aren’t the proper build path, either. Josh Downs is my WR5 on this squad, which is fine because his TD rate will not be an upside play in any league. Downs has volume enough to be a viable FLEX or bye-week filler, as he had the third-highest rate of slot snaps in the NFL last year.