Fantasy football mock draft for 14-team PPR league in 2023 NFL season

While most fantasy football leagues tend to consist of 10 or 12 teams, 14-team leagues are starting to gain popularity and have become more common. Some may feel 14 teams is too many but the format does reward managers who correctly identify value picks and sleepers more than 10-team or 12-team leagues. Here’s a look at one mock draft in a 14-team PPR league.

2023 Fantasy football mock draft review: 14-team PPR

Strategy

With PPR leagues, receivers and running backs who act as receivers get a boost. The goal should generally be to load up on these types of players. With 14 teams, you should probably come away with one player at each position after the first two rounds barring special circumstances (which happened here). I had the sixth overall selection in this mock draft, which is in a good range for a snake draft.

Best picks

Aaron Jones (34th overall) - The touchdown numbers are dreadful but the overall efficiency has become somewhat underrated. Jones has scored just six rushing touchdowns in 32 games over the last two seasons, but he averaged 5.0 yards per carry and topped 50 receptions in each campaign. After skipping out on a running back in the first two rounds, grabbing Jones in Round 3 was a steal.

Travis Kelce (6th overall) - Even though he plays tight end, Kelce is effectively a WR1 and was the special circumstance here. He’s topped 100 receptions three times in the last five seasons, and topped 90 in the other two seasons. Durability might be a concern given his workload but he’s once again set to command a majority of the touches in one of the best offenses in the league.

Terry McLaurin (62nd overall) - Chris Godwin went one pick earlier and would’ve been my choice over McLaurin, but I’m surprised he fell to this spot. McLaurin has averaged 128 targets in his last three seasons and topped 1,000 receiving yards in each campaign. Even with unproven quarterbacks, this receiver tends to perform.

Matthew Stafford (163rd overall) - I missed out on stacking Patrick Mahomes with Kelce in the second round, so I decided to wait on a quarterback. I could’ve taken Stafford in the 11th round but took a chance and was able to snag him in the 12th. He’s healthy according to all the reports coming out of Rams camp, and he’s playing in an offensive system which got some great results. He’s a candidate to bounce back this season.

Worst picks

AJ Dillon (90th overall) - This was a reach and I took Dillon to have some insurance for Jones. The fourth-year running back is set to get solid work and could be a viable flex option in a pinch, but I should’ve probably gone with a different backfield to diversify my options.

Drake London (79th overall) - I think London is a phenomenal player but his quarterback situation is one of the worst in the league. Trevor Lawrence and Tyler Lockett were both available in this spot, and either of them would’ve likely been better choices with hindsight. I had decided to wait on a quarterback, and London’s target share should be higher than Lockett’s. Still, this pick might haunt me at the end of the season.

Final thoughts

In 14-team leagues, you’re going to need a few breaks here and there. Miles Sanders and Stafford are good candidates to bounce back from underwhelming 2022 seasons, so I’m hoping that works in my favor. JuJu Smith-Schuster is in a new spot as well, and I’m hoping he can return to the form he showed in his early Steelers years.

Kenneth Gainwell continues to be available late in drafts, and he could be the Eagles RB1. I might use him as a flex even with PPR favoring receivers. McLaurin should be solid but there’s always the chance him and London eventually cannot overcome their quarterback play. I may have to pivot off those guys later in the year and land a player with a more bonafide quarterback.

I wasn’t able to create a stack in this league, which I usually try to accomplish in some capacity. Stacking can be an excellent weapon in leagues with more teams but it does come with more risk. Unless there’s a clear-cut stack I couldn’t pass up on (Mahomes-Kelce, Burrow-Chase, Allen-Diggs), I tried to go with the right value play.

Full mock draft results

QB - Matthew Stafford (163rd overall)

RB1 - Aaron Jones (34th overall)

RB2 - Miles Sanders (51st overall)

WR1 - Jaylen Waddle (23rd overall)

WR2 - Terry McLaurin (62nd overall)

TE - Travis Kelce (6th overall)

FLEX - Drake London (79th overall)

D/ST - Bengals (202nd overall)

K - Riley Patterson (219th overall)

Bench

RB AJ Dillon (90th overall)

WR JuJu Smith-Schuster (107th overall)

RB Kenneth Gainwell (118th overall)

WR Michael Gallup (135th overall)

WR Tyler Boyd (146th overall)

WR Zay Jones (174th overall)

RB Tank Bigsby (191st overall)