2026 Fantasy Football Mock Draft: 12-Team Half-PPR Mock (2nd Pick)
Updated: Saturday, August 1, 2026The best way to become good at something is to practice. So, what should you do if you want to draft a better fantasy football team?
Practice, of course!
Leading up to the start of the 2026 NFL season, we will use the fantasy football mock draft simulator to complete fantasy football mock drafts. And we will do so using a variety of scoring formats — point per reception (PPR), half-PPR, standard scoring and even 2-QB leagues — and league sizes. The goal is to provide you with a good representation of the team that you may be able to draft given your league settings while also providing the rationale of why we made the picks we did.
> Our 2026 mocks will be centralized here: Fantasy Football Mock Drafts.
That said, nothing beats practicing yourself so (check out the simulator) and complete a mock in a matter of minutes.
Half-PPR Mock Draft: 12 Teams, 2nd Pick
Starting positions: 1 QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, 1 TE, 1 Flex (RB/WR/TE), 1 K, 1 DST; Bench spots: 6
1.02 - Jahmyr Gibbs, RB, Detroit Lions
With two elite options at the top of draft boards, there is no wrong pick at 1.02 — simply take the one who falls out of Bijan Robinson and Gibbs. Given the superior offensive environment in Detroit (over Atlanta), that could be the tie-breaker for many between these two elite do-everything backs. Gibbs has racked up 3,655 yards from scrimmage and 37 touchdowns in 33 games over the past two seasons. With David Montgomery traded to the Houston Texans, the expectation is for the team to put even more on his plate in 2026.
2.11 - A.J. Brown, WR, New England Patriots
As long as his health cooperates, a highly-motivated Brown should bounce back from last year's numbers (78/1,003/7, career-low 12.9 Y/R). Brown will face less target competition (Romeo Doubs vs. DeVonta Smith as WR2) and gets a quarterback upgrade with Drake Maye.
3.02 - George Pickens, WR, Dallas Cowboys
The only real concern with Pickens is the potential for franchise-tag frustration to set in, but he had a career year (92/1420/9) in his first season with the Cowboys.
4.11 - Jaylen Waddle, WR, Denver Broncos
Going into this draft, I would have preferred to have more than one running back at this point. That said, Waddle could be a steal here and I didn't want to let him slip any further.
5.02 - D'Andre Swift, RB, Chicago Bears
Chicago ranked top three in rushing in 2025, and Swift remains the top dog in a relatively static running back room from last year. Swift set or tied career highs in yards from scrimmage (1,386) and touchdowns (10).
6.11 - Tucker Kraft, TE, Green Bay Packers
Kraft tore his ACL in Week 9, but he is already back on the practice field. Through Week 8, he was top three among tight ends in receiving yards (469) and touchdowns (six). Kraft averaged only 5.85 targets per game over that span, but a consolidation among the team's receiving options could see that number increase some.
7.02 - Justin Herbert, QB, Los Angeles Chargers
With bookend tackles (Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt) healthy and Mike McDaniel providing a shot in the arm to the offense, it's a smart bet to get as much exposure to the Chargers offense as possible.
8.11 - Quentin Johnston, WR, Los Angeles Chargers
What Johnston does well is a perfect fit for McDaniel's offense. As much as I like Ladd McConkey, the gap between these two in year-end production will likely be much closer than their draft capital would suggest.
9.02 - Kenneth Gainwell, RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
This team starts two WRs (Brown and Pickens) and a flex (Waddle) and those spots will be filled by top-50 picks (WRs). And while Gainwell is unlikely to match his stats from last year's breakout season (73 receptions, 1,023 YFS and eight TDs), he provides some solid running back depth.
10.11 - Woody Marks, RB, Houston Texans
Montgomery should handle the lion's share of touches in Houston's backfield, but Marks was top-30 in fantasy points per game from Weeks 4 to 17. (He had only 14 combined touches in the first three games.)
11.02 - George Kittle, TE, San Francisco 49ers
While I wouldn't typically draft two tight ends, especially with a stud like Kraft already on this roster, but there is a lot of upside from Kittle once he hits his stride. Even if he starts slowly, many signs point to Kittle being ready for Week 1.
12.11 - Keaton Mitchell, RB, Los Angeles Chargers
Omarion Hampton is the obvious RB1 on this roster, but McDaniel has had multiple running backs have elite seasons in the same year. If Mitchell gets 8-10 touches per game, he could become flex-worthy in many 12-team leagues.
13.02 - Deebo Samuel Sr., WR, San Francisco 49ers
Nobody should expect a return to 2021 (1,770 YFS and 14 TDs), especially given that he was in Santa Clara from 2022-2024 as well. At a minimum, however, a return to the 49ers and a Kyle Shanahan offense is intriguing, especially with the injuries to and/or age of the team's wide receiver corps.
14.11 - Vikings DST
15.02 - Tyler Loop, K, Baltimore Ravens
MORE: View full mock