This past Saturday the knowledgeable folks here at Belly Up Fantasy Sports did their weekly NFL mock draft. The theme this time around was a rookie mock draft. Five rounds of drafting rookies made it very interesting. Let’s dive into Team Sutcliffe.

Pick 1.01

In the randomized draw I was given the first pick overall. We did not do a snake draft this time around. It was the same 1-12 order for all five rounds.

Joe Burrow, QB, Cincinnati Bengals/LSU

It was a tough choice between Burrow and Clyde Edwards-Helaire out of LSU. In the end I went with Burrow. I picked him simply because of the longer shelf life of quarterbacks over running backs.

Burrow had a tremendous final season at LSU, winning the Heisman Trophy along with a National Championship. He will take his bumps as a rookie. However, with a great group of receivers (AJ Green, Tyler Boyd, John Ross and Tee Higgins) plus Joe Mixon in the backfield, he is well equipped with surrounding talent for early success. Some of his top numbers in college were via the play action pass. We might expect to see Cinci utilize that a bit with Burrow under center. He should be a QB2 weekly to start off his career as well as a top pick in alot if not most dynasty or keeper leagues.

Pick 2.01

Brandon Aiyuk, WR, San Francisco 49ers/Arizona St

The speedy and flashy wideout was my second choice in the rookie mock draft. With Deebo Samuel possibly missing the start of the season with injury, Aiyuk has a great opportunity to jump in and make an immediate impact. He is best at obtaining yards after the catch which makes him a great fit for the San Fran offense.

Pick 3.01

Chase Claypool, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers/Notre Dame

The wideout from Notre Dame was my third pick. Having great hands, Claypool will also have an excellent chance to make early impact, as the WR2 in Pittsburgh opposite of JuJu Smith-Schuster.

Pick 4.01

Cole Kmet, TE, Chicago Bears/Notre Dame

This pick I feel has potential to be a top sleeper pick of the entire rookie mock draft. He may not beat out Jimmy Graham for the starting tight end role, but his big frame could make him a viable redzone/endzone target for the Bears (six of his 43 catches went for a TD). If they use alot of two TE formations, expect Kmet to see a fair bit of playing time.

Pick 5.01

Dezmon Patmon, WR, Indianapolis Colts/Washington St

My final pick was little to nothing more than picking a name of those remaining and hoping to find a needle in the haystack. His best shot at making the Colts roster may very well be as a special teams player.

Writer’s Take

Despite not choosing any running backs, I feel I drafted quite well for the future. I got a future franchise QB, two receivers with great potential, a tight end also with good potential and well….. a third wideout.

Give me your thoughts of my rookie draft by following me on twitter @tonysutcliffe6, also just to share your opinions on other topics. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the great content of Belly Up Sports and Belly Up Fantasy Sports.