Fantasy Football Superflex Mock Draft: Start With Josh Allen, James Cook

A couple days ago, in the introduction of my piece on breakout candidates who won't break out, I threw under the bus my editor. (His name is Joe Metz, and his personal email is SucksAtFantasyFootball@gmail.com, probably.)

(Editor's Note: That's definitely not my email. Please don't message whatever poor soul has that address. Signed, Joe Metz.)

Now today I see I've been assigned a mock draft.

Curious. Most intriguing.

Whatever.

The joke's on Joe. Little does he know that I'm the kind of sicko who looks for any excuse to spend a Friday afternoon exploring our fantasy football mock draft simulator (the 2026 Draft Champion).

And it's not just any mock: It's a 12-team PPR superflex.

So thank you, Joe. From the bottom of my degenerate heart, thank you.

Some specifications:

Roster: 11 Starters (1 QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, 1 TE, 1 FL, 1 SF, 1 DST, 1 K), 5 Bench Spots
Draft Type: Snake
Draft Position: 1st (the randomizer gods be good)
Strategy: Balanced

Let's get into my quick breakdown!

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View full draft board here.

12-Team PPR Superflex 2026 Fantasy Football Mock Draft

1.01: Josh Allen | QB | Bills

I'm not giving away anything, but Josh Allen is the No. 1 QB in our Fantasy Life Rankings and our 2026 Player Projections.

And while I usually don't like spending up at QB, Allen is one of my 2026 fantasy favorites, especially in superflex, where the position is all the more important.

The dude has been a top-2 fantasy QB in every season since 2020, and he has taken 62%, 58%, and 58% of his fantasy investors to the playoffs in ESPN leagues over the past three years (as noted by Dwain McFarland in his excellent QB Tiers breakdown.

Last year he was the No. 1 QB with 23.2 fantasy points per game.

He's a more-than-worthy selection at 1.01 in superflex. In fact, he's really the only option.

2.12: James Cook | RB | Bills

At the turn of Rounds 2-3, I face something of a conundrum.

After the run on QBs, I don't like most of the available options at the position. And I also very much like several of the RBs, WRs and TEs on the board.

But if I bypass QB here, I'll likely hate even more the guys left on the scrap heap at the turn of Rounds 4-5.

But YOLO, amirite? I'm going with James Cook and stacking the Bills.

The apparent negative with Cook is that he has only 78 targets in his two full seasons with former OC and new HC Joe Brady as the playcaller, and that relative lack of pass-catching usage theoretically caps his ceiling.

But we know Cook can catch the ball. In 2023, he had 44-445-4 receiving on 54 targets, and over the past three seasons he has 7.5 yards per target. If you watch his 2025 highlights, you'll see a number of strong receiving plays.

Allen doesn't have an established No. 1 WR on the team, and now with Brady moving up to HC, he could choose to feature Cook more in the pass game.

And the positive is clear: Cook is an awesome player. Last year he led the league with 1,621 yards rushing in 17 games, and over the past two seasons he has 3,179 scrimmage yards and 32 all-purpose TDs in 33 games.

Over the past four years, the Bills have been No. 1 in the league in offensive EPA (0.134) and success rate (48.5%, per RBs Don't Matter), and I have them projected for the NFL's best offense once again this season.

If the No. 1 RB on the No. 1 offense is actually a good player, and if I can get him at the turn of Rounds 2-3, I'll be inclined to do it.

3.01: Amon-Ra St. Brown | WR | Lions

Since his 2022 breakout performance, Amon-Ra St. Brown is No. 1 in receptions (457), No. 2 in targets (623), No. 3 in receiving TDs (39) and No. 4 in receiving yards (5,340).

That's the blurb.

I'm just gonna take one of the best WRs in football and then pray to the pigskin gods that I get a QB I like well enough at the turn of Rounds 4-5.

Matthew Berry's Draft Day Manifesto

4.12: C.J. Stroud | QB | Texans

Let me check my 2026 fantasy fades to make sure that C.J. Stroud isn't on the list.

Checking … nope, not on the list.

I mean, he probably should be. I'm surprised he isn't: He was unfathomably bad in two playoff games last year (3.5 AY/A, 5 INTs, 5 fumbles), and that was after two seasons of disappointing play (7.0 AY/A). Long gone are the glory days of his 2023 OROY campaign (273.9 yards passing per game).

But at least Stroud is a starting QB who isn't likely to lose his job this year. At this point in a superflex, that's good enough.

5.01: Trey McBride | TE | Cardinals

OK, well, this is awkward … because Trey McBride actually IS one of my fantasy fades.

But let me explain!

The logic for the fade call is this: "He's the No. 1 TE on ESPN and Sleeper, and I think that's wrong, but if you can take him after Brock Bowers, then it's OK."

And that's the case here, so I love this pick, because McBride does have a real chance to finish the year as the No. 1 TE: Over the past two years he's No. 2 in the league in targets (316) and receptions (237) and No. 6 in receiving yards (2,385), and last season he leveled up his game with 11 TDs.

Honestly, I love how the board has fallen for me so far: Through Round 5, I have two QBs (one of whom is the undisputed No. 1), and then at each of the other skill positions I have a player with a real chance to finish No. 1.

Thank you, Joe. I have never felt so alive.

6.12: David Montgomery | RB | Texans

In superflex, it's almost impossible to have too many QBs, so I'm tempted to add to the position with Cam Ward or Bryce Young, but I also don't like the taste of vomit.

So instead I'll just double up on RB here in order to fortify the position before focusing on WR.

David Montgomery had a career-worst performance last season (908 yards, 8 TDs), and he'll be 29 years old by Week 1. Plus, he's on the Texans. Frankly, I don't love the idea of stacking him with Stroud.

But in his two prior campaigns, Montgomery was the league's best No. 2 RB for the Lions (2,248 yards, 25 TDs in 28 games), and now he has a shot to operate as a true No. 1 RB.

With decent efficiency last year (4.5 yards per carry, 6.6 yards per target), Montgomery probably still has enough juice to produce.

7.01: D'Andre Swift | RB | Bears

Like Cook, D'Andre Swift is another of my fantasy favorite RBs this year.

Maybe No. 2 RB Kyle Monangai will threaten his role in 2026, but Swift was the more efficient player last year (4.9 yards per carry vs. 4.6; 6.2 yards per target vs. 5.5), and he has 1,200+ scrimmage yards, 220+ carries and 40+ targets in each of the past three seasons.

Swift isn't a full-blown workhorse, but he's coming off a career-best 1,386-yard, 10-TD campaign and is still just 27 years old. Plus, there's a chance the Bears offense is still ascending with QB Caleb Williams and HC Ben Johnson.

I like the odds that Swift will outperform his ADP for a fourth straight campaign.

I'll be curious to see how WR shakes out over the next two rounds, but right now I'm feeling good about my team.

Matthew Berry's Fantasy Football Rankings

8.12: Jayden Reed | WR | Packers

Given that this is a superflex mock, I'm once again tempted to take Cam Ward or Bryce Young … but I have just one WR on my roster, and we're almost 100 picks into this thing.

I gotta double up on the position here.

Luckily, there are two guys I very much like still on the board, the first of whom is Jayden Reed, who has been a staple of my previous mocks.

He had a terrible 2025 (235 yards, 1 TD), but he missed 10 games with injuries, which impacted his entire season.

Even so, Reed was his typical efficient self (9.4 yards per target, 9.3 yards per carry), and in his two prior campaigns he proved himself to be a big-play producer (1,932 yards, 17 TDs).

For the Packers, Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks are gone, Matthew Golden looked lost last year as a rookie and Christian Watson has never had 700 yards in a season.

I see Reed as someone with league-winning 1,000-10 potential.

9.01: Alec Pierce | WR | Colts

Behold, another of my fantasy favorites.

Alec Pierce has been the NFL's most explosive WRs over the past two seasons (11.9 yards per target), and last year he popped off with a career-best 47-1,003-6 receiving.

With his strong development, Pierce secured a four-year, $116M contract from the Colts and pushed the team to part ways with WRs Michael Pittman and Adonai Mitchell over the past 12 months.

Now poised to emerge fully as the team's No. 1 receiver (a role he has secretly held in the shadows since 2024), Pierce is likely to see his efficiency decline, but he's also in line for 100+ targets for the first time in his career.

I think his floor is the 824 yards he got in 2024 and the 6 TDs he got in 2025. His ceiling, though, is 1,200+ yards and 10+ TDs.

10.12: Bryce Young | QB | Panthers

Ward just went off the board at 10.11, so you know what that means: It's time finally to take Bryce Young!

On the positive side: He has improved throughout his career. As a rookie, he was abysmal (5.0 AY/A, 2-14). In his second season, he was benchable (6.0, 4-8). This past season, he was almost tolerable (6.2, 8-8).

On the negative side, last year he was still No. 31 in passing efficiency, and his rushing regressed (54-216-2 vs. 43-249-6 in 2024).

Young is better than he was, but he's not yet good.

Still, he's a starter who's unlikely to be benched this year. That's good enough for my No. 3 QB, especially when I get him at the end of Round 10.

11.01: Wan'Dale Robinson | WR | Titans

Wan'Dale Robinson isn't exciting. His career efficiency is modest (6.3 yards per target), and he has just 9 TDs across four NFL seasons.

But he's effective at turning targets into receptions (68.9% catch rate): St. Brown, Ja'Marr Chase, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Justin Jefferson are the only WRs with more targets over the past two seasons (280).

With the Titans, Robinson's uncertain to repeat his 2025 success (92-1,014-4 receiving), but he has a history with OC Brian Daboll, and that gives him a real chance to be the No. 1 WR for the Titans this year.

If his target volume holds, Robinson will once again be a PPR cheat code in 2026

12.12: Keaton Mitchell | RB | Chargers

In the words of Eleanor Roosevelt: "Hot, nasty, badass speed."

What if Keaton Mitchell is OC Mike McDaniel's new De'Von Achane.

He's not … but what if he is?

13.01: Khalil Shakir | WR | Bills

Khalil Shakir has been an efficient receiver throughout his career (8.9 yards per target), and over the past two seasons he was easily the No. 1 WR for the Bills (148-1,540-8 receiving, 195 targets).

With veteran DJ Moore now on the team, Shakir's unlikely to remain the top pass catcher, but he still has a fair chance to approach the 95 targets he earned in 2025, and if Moore disappoints, then Shakir could resume his No. 1 role.

His ceiling might be shallow, but Shakir's fantasy floor is sneakily solid.

I love him as a situational stacking option with Allen.

14.12: Isiah Pacheco | RB | Lions

What if teammate Jahmyr Gibbs (the No. 1 pick in many non-superflex drafts) were to suffer a meaningful injury, as RBs unfortunately often do? Or what if Isiah Pacheco inherits much of the role previously occupied by the departed Montgomery?

At Pick No. 168, I'm simply looking for a guy who has at least a couple imaginable paths to more-than-expacted production.

15.01: Rams | DST

We've reached the final two rounds, so it's time to take K and DST.

Here, I have the opportunity to get the Rams, who markedly improved on defense this offseason with the additions of EDGE Myles Garrett and CBs Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson.

And if future Hall of Fame DT Aaron Donald decides to return to the team …

16.12: Eddy Pineiro | K | 49ers

Do you really want to read K analysis?

I guess you are a true sicko after all.

Also, what do you know? I got an A+ grade for my draft.

It's time to celebrate by cracking open a cheap beer and spinning up another mock draft.

Players Mentioned in this Article

JoshAllen
QBBUF
PPG
23.2
Proj
365.5
JamesCook
RBBUF
PPG
15.7
Proj
249.0
Amon-RaSt. Brown
WRDET
PPG
15.5
Proj
236.3
C.J.Stroud
QBHOU
PPG
14.1
Proj
254.7

Published Aug 10, 2026, 4:00 AM ET