Fantasy Football Mock Draft ADP Report: Kareem Hunt rising, Rob Gronkowski falling

Andy Spiteri

Fantasy Football Mock Draft ADP Report: Kareem Hunt rising, Rob Gronkowski falling image

Entering the last few weeks of fantasy football drafts before the 2020 NFL season, average draft position (ADP) can start to fluctuate wildly for some players. Without preseason games, the best drafters have to go by are the Twitter reports from beat writers about reps and highlights. Regardless, little bits of news have players like Kareem Hunt and Rob Gronkowski rising up and down ADP boards.

With players on the move in ADP, now is the time that values start to present themselves. Sleepers and busts often have more to do with where players are drafted than their raw production. Most stats are valuable at the right price, and so Fantasy Alarm has taken a look at which players are rising and falling to see who you should draft.

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Fantasy Football Mock Draft: ADP Risers

Flying up draft boards this week is Antonio Gibson. With the release of Derrius Guice, the age of Adrian Peterson, the lack of enthusiasm for Peyton Barber, and the questionable health of Bryce Love, Gibson is the darling of the Washington backfield. The question is: Is Gibson a viable NFL running back? He only ran the ball 33 times in 2019 at Memphis and had a total of 71 touches in 14 games. Despite this, he did have 12 touchdowns and averaged 15.5 yards per touch. He’s athletic, but I’m not sure if his ADP of 125 over the past two weeks is warranted. He’s a high risk/reward pick in the 11th round, and he’s gone as early as the late seventh round.

Philip Lindsay’s ADP is 103 since Aug. 1.  Lindsay has performed as the top back for the Broncos and may be called upon again as Melvin Gordon went down with a rib injury on Thursday.  The significance of the injury is unknown at this time. We do have some time before the season starts for Gordon to get healthy, but those rib injuries can linger. One thing we do know is that Lindsay’s stock will rise quickly if Gordon will miss some time. 

Kareem Hunt has been drafted very early despite Nick Chubb being one of the most talented running backs in the league. Many view Hunt not only as a handcuff but a viable RB in PPR leagues.  Hunt is being drafted ahead of Ronald Jones and Jordan Howard, both of whom are considered the top RB on their respective teams. He has already moved up about half a round since the beginning of August, and with Chubb’s concussion, expect that to creep up a little more. He has moved from an ADP of 57 to 51 over the last week.  It’s a high price to pay for a backup/third-down back, but his production the last half of last season has some thinking he’s worth the price.

Going back to May when the Packers didn’t draft a wide receiver, the question has been: Who will be the No. 2 receiver alongside Davante Adams? They signed Devin Funchess in April, but he opted out.  With camp starting and before the press was told to keep their lips sealed as to what was going on in camp, Allen Lazard has emerged as the favorite to take the No. 2 spot across from Adams.  His ADP has gone from 180 to 158 over the past three weeks, jumping almost three rounds. He’s still going in the 14th round, but this could be a bargain late when you’re looking to get a wide receiver near the end of the draft.

MORE FROM FANTASY ALARM: Draft Guide | Ultimate NFL Package 

Fantasy Football Mock Draft: ADP Fallers

Peter King recently reported that Rob Gronkowski may end up third in TE snaps behind O.J. Howard and Cameron Brate. Keeping Gronk healthy should be a priority for the Bucs this year. Coming off an injury-plagued 2018 and a year off in '19, Gronk appears healthy and ready to go. Since King’s report, Gronk has fallen a half-round over eight NFFC drafts from 115 to 121.  With his playing time a question, should he be taken as a low-end TE 1? With players like Jonnu Smith, Noah Fant, Blake Jarwin, and Jack Doyle available at the same time, does it make sense to take Gronk as your starting TE?

Ke’Shawn Vaughn continues to drop further down draft boards after reports that he is lazy. Jeff Kerr of CBSSports.com reported that Bruce Arians stated that Vaughn will most likely just be a kick returner in the season opener. This type of news isn’t good for his draft stock. Vaughn was the Buccaneers first draft pick this year so they obviously like him and felt they needed a RB. His ADP has gone from 94 to 114 over the last two weeks. At some point he may become a bargain, so be patient and maybe he’ll fall to you in the right spot.

When the internet shows the new shiny rookie barreling over defenders in practice, it’s not surprising that he rises and his competition for snaps falls. Over the last week, we have seen Marlon Mack take a half-round hit to his ADP as Jonathan Taylor continues to impress in camp. Kevin Hickey of Coltswire reports that Mack is seeing the most reps with the first-team offense, but that doesn’t dampen the wow factor of Taylor’s reps. As with most rookies, especially with the unusual 2020 preseason, they may take a little time to crack the lineup. Fantasy owners are now showing that they think that crack may develop even earlier than expected.

Andy Spiteri