We held this 12-team, 0.5 PPR mock draft on Thursday afternoon. By Thursday night, the Rams traded Brandin Cooks to the Texans, which might have altered some of the results.
For example, Cooks was drafted in Round 11 here, and he was the No. 52 receiver off the board. I would have taken him sooner, likely in Round 7, and I'll probably have Cooks ranked around No. 40 at receiver after the NFL Draft when the rookies are included in our rankings.
Will Fuller (Round 6) and Kenny Stills (Round 8) were both drafted ahead of Cooks, and they lose value with this trade. Cooks and Fuller should be drafted in a similar range -- I have them ranked back-to-back, with Cooks ahead -- and Stills is now just a late-round pick.
Fuller could still be the best receiver for the Texans, but we know he's an injury risk after missing 20 games in the past three seasons. And Stills should be No. 3 on the depth chart behind Cooks and Fuller, but don't forget about him in case the other two guys battle injuries again.
Deshaun Watson was drafted in Round 7 here as the No. 6 quarterback off the board, and he's a winner with the addition of Cooks. Even though Cooks seems like damaged goods after his disappointing 2019 -- career lows in catches (42), yards (583) and touchdowns (two) in just 14 games because of his fifth known concussion -- he's still an upgrade for Watson's receiving corps.
Watson lost Fantasy value when the Texans traded DeAndre Hopkins to Arizona in the David Johnson trade, and I dropped him outside of my top-five quarterbacks. But getting a proven commodity in Cooks, if he can stay healthy, gives Watson the chance to be one of the top-tier Fantasy quarterbacks again, and I moved back up to No. 4.
Of the Rams players, Cooper Kupp was drafted in Round 3 as the No. 15 receiver off the board, and he'll likely stay in that range with Cooks gone. I like Kupp as a top-12 receiver in all leagues.
Robert Woods was drafted in Round 4 as the No. 22 receiver off the board, and he should improve a couple of spots following the Cooks trade. I like Woods as a top-20 receiver, with his value higher in any PPR format.
And Tyler Higbee also benefits with Cooks gone. He was the No. 8 tight end drafted in Round 8, but I like him as the No. 7 tight end now following this trade, behind only Travis Kelce, George Kittle, Zach Ertz, Mark Andrews, Darren Waller and Hunter Henry.
Jared Goff wasn't drafted here, and he remains a No. 2 Fantasy quarterback in all leagues on Draft Day. He doesn't lose much with Cooks gone, and we could see Josh Reynolds benefit with an increased role. Reynolds is worth drafting with a late-round pick in all formats as a sleeper, although he didn't get drafted here.
In this league, all touchdowns are worth six points, and we award one point for every 10 yards rushing and receiving and one point for every 25 yards passing. We also award 0.5 points for every reception. We feature a starting lineup of QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, TE, FLEX (RB/WR/TE), K and DST. There also are six reserve spots for a 16-round draft.
Our draft order is as follows:
1. Adam Aizer, Podcast Host
2. Dave Richard, Senior Fantasy Writer
3. Meron Berkson, CBS Sports HQ Producer
4. Jack Capotorto, CBS Sports HQ Producer
5. R.J. White, NFL Editor
6. Heath Cummings, Senior Fantasy Writer
7. Will Brinson, Senior NFL Writer
8. Ben Schragger, Podcast Producer
9. Andrew Baumhor, CBS Sports HQ Producer
10. Tommy Tran, CBS Sports HQ Host
11. Ben Gretch, Fantasy Editor
12. Jamey Eisenberg, Senior Fantasy Writer
| Round 1 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Pos | Team | Player |
| 1 | Thomas Shafer | |
| 2 | Jamey Eisenberg | |
| Thomas Shafer | ||
|---|---|---|
| Rd | Pk | Player |
| 1 | 1 | |
| Jamey Eisenberg | ||
| Rd | Pk | Player |
| 1 | 2 | |
Which players are poised for breakouts, which sleepers do you need to jump on, and which busts should you avoid at all costs in your Fantasy football league? Visit SportsLine now to get early rankings, plus see which WR is going to come out of nowhere to crack the top 10, all from the model that out-performed experts big time last season.
