Fantasy Football Mock Draft: 12-Team, Late Pick (2026)

In my latest 12-team PPR fantasy football mock draft, I tried my luck drafting from a later spot, landing on pick No. 8. The way the board fell, I pretty much implemented a Hero RB build by drafting one running back in the first five rounds. Let’s take a look.

Fantasy Football Mock Draft

With the eighth overall pick, let’s see how my team turned out.

Rounds 1-4

To see both Jonathan Taylor and Christian McCaffrey go before Amon-Ra St. Brown was a bit shocking, especially in a PPR format. I’m all in on the Lions’ offense in 2026. St. Brown has averaged 117/1,393/11 over the last three seasons.

I nearly clicked Zay Flowers with my second pick, and probably should have because he is in line for a huge 2026, but I instead grabbed my first running back in Ashton Jeanty, who should benefit from an upgraded offensive line and an offense-minded head coach in Klint Kubiak. Never would I have thought I would be taking two Raiders in the first four rounds of a draft. Well, here we are…

Brock Bowers is hands down the fantasy TE1. With upgrades to the offensive line, quarterback and coaching staff, plus a little help at the wide receiver position, Bowers is in line for a monster year. During his rookie season, only Ja’Marr Chase and Amon-Ra St. Brown had more receptions.

My fourth pick came down to Emeka Egbuka, Garrett Wilson and Tee Higgins. Early this offseason, I was all about Garrett Wilson, but I’m not sure how I feel about Aaron Glenn and Geno Smith.

Tee Higgins is a stud and would have been totally fine taking him here, but Egbuka is in line for a Jaxon Smith-Njigba-type breakout season without Mike Evans in the picture.

Rounds 5-7

After scoring another WR1 in Christian Watson, I started building my running back room.

Quinshon Judkins is coming off an injury but was playing behind one of the worst offensive lines in the league. Despite that, he still finished with 827 rushing yards and seven touchdowns in 14 games. But under a new coaching staff and a revamped offensive line, Judkins has the potential to be a workhorse running back for the Cleveland Browns.

Jadarian Price is one of my favorite mid-round running back targets this season as he’s projected to open the year as Seattle’s No. 1 RB. Price was electric during his time at Notre Dame, averaging more than six yards per carry in each of his three seasons. He also forced missed tackles on a class-leading 26.9% of his touches while also leading his draft mates in explosive run rate (21%), showcasing how electric a runner he can and will be.

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Rounds 8-9

8.05: Jordyn Tyson (WR – NO)
9.08: Jordan Addison (WR – MIN)

Jordyn Tyson landed in one of the best fantasy situations of any rookie wide receiver. Kellen Moore has consistently orchestrated fast-paced, pass-friendly offenses that create plenty of opportunities for playmakers. If Tyson stays healthy, he has a legitimate chance to carve out a significant role early in the season

If Kevin O’Connell can revive another quarterback’s career, Jordan Addison and the rest of the Vikings’ passing attack could be in for a big season. Much of Minnesota’s offensive struggles last season can be attributed to the coaching staff trying to tailor the offense to J.J. McCarthy‘s strengths. That experiment ultimately didn’t work, which is why Kyler Murray is now under center.

The success of this offense will hinge on Murray’s ability to push the ball downfield efficiently. If O’Connell can unlock the version of Murray we’ve seen in the past, Addison has tremendous upside as a weekly FLEX option with legitimate WR2 potential.

Rounds 10-12

Alvin Kamara and Tank Bigsby are two of the higher-profile handcuffs entering the season. If anything happens to Saquon Barkley or Travis Etienne Jr., these two become instant league-winners.

Brock Purdy only played in nine games, but he finished 2025 averaging 20.8 fantasy points per game, a higher number than Jalen Hurts, Caleb Williams, Trevor Lawrence and Dak Prescott, all of whom were drafted ahead of Purdy.

Purdy’s last 17 regular-season games resulted in a 68.6% completion rate, 4,190 yards and 31 touchdowns. Not bad for an 11th-round quarterback.