Are mock drafts worth it?

[YoloinOhio]

They are just for fun. 

[Chandler#81]

52 minutes ago, WotAGuy said:

Every time I see a mock draft I do a shot. 

How can you still be alive??😲

[dje85]

It's fun to make for some people. I read them to get an idea about the prospects leading up to the draft. I don't personally make any mock drafts though. Way too much work imo.

[Bookie Man]

Kind of an odd question. People do them for fun. Some people get paid for their content. I guess that's like asking "Are video games worth it?". Worth what exactly?

[Jay_Fixit]

No. No they’re not.

[Albany,n.y.]

Mock drafts before mid-late April are worthless because pre-draft rosters aren't set yet.  You can take any February 2022 mock draft and throw it out, since so many high picks have been traded this month.  

 

As the mocks get closer to the 1st day of the draft they can be more valuable,  However, you have to evaluate your source-for example Mel Kiper tends to make his mock drafts based on his ratings rather than who might realistically be picked.  He kept mocking Josh to Cleveland because Josh would have been his pick if he was drating for Cleveland.  One time I found a list of many mock drafts compiled in 1 place.  In 2018 there were a lot of mocks that had the Bills trading up for Josh.  Some were due to the fact it wasn't a well kept secret who the Bills wanted among the media.  So the mock drafters who have good sources & don't apply their own biases are the best ones.  I don't have any specific names, here's a link back to 2018.  I stopped after looking at 36, 21 of which had josh going to the Bills.  Once I got past the 1st page I figured it would take forever to open up all the mock drafts 1 at a time, but there's a ton of them here:   https://www.nflmockdraftdatabase.com/mock-drafts/2018

[hondo in seattle]

I'm the wrong person to ask if mock drafts are worth it because I don't usually read them.  This year, with the Bills picking 25th, it's really hard to guess who'll be available and who the Bills will actually choose.  

 

But if we were picking in the top five, I might feel differently.   A lot of draft gurus will get the top 3, 4, 5 picks correct.  

[HOUSE]

I am very impressed by somebody that would take the time to research every available player  in the draft.

 

Kudos

 

 

 

 

 

[Mr. WEO]

Is anything outside of the game itself "worth it"?

 

Strange question...it has no costs of any kind, so how can you assign "mock drafts" worth?  It's entertainment you don't have to pay for.  

[NoSaint]

5 hours ago, The Red King said:

Sorry, honest question.  Not looking to ruffle feathers.  I know draft speculation can be fun, and I'm all for it.  Thinking who a team might want in what round and all.  But mock drafts are all balanced on the head of a pin.  One team makes one unexpected move and the whole thing falls apart.  How accurate do they end up being, especially this early on?  It seems like an incredible amount of effort trying to get into the head of 32 GMs and understanding each team's needs, only to have the whole thing blow up on a single pick that doesn't go as predicted.

 

As I noted, I'm more interested in speculation such as, "Will the Bills go for a CB in round one or two?" and "What round should we nab a WR, and who's out there?".  That kind of stuff.  I mean, how accurate has any mock draft been in the past?  Have there been any that have actually been close to the actual draft they predicted?  I mean, there are a million of them, so I'm guessing I'm missing something.  To me it just seems too fragile to be worth the time and effort.  It would be like "Predict the first 10 offensive snaps for the Bills opening day."  It just takes one play not going as planned to completely invalidate the list from that point on.

 

So, why do people do them?  Again, not being nasty about it.  I'm honestly curious.

It’s really simple. And you know the answer
 

if you are looking for 32 correct picks, log out 

 

if you want a good way to learn a little bit about 32 teams needs and 32ish prospects so you can talk football in the off-season, proceed to the mock draft 

[oldmanfan]

Just a fun off season diversion 

[coloradobillsfan]

I'm not exactly sure if you are talking about reading mock drafts done by media, or mock drafts where you play the GM.  But I usually bang out 2 or 3 rounds once or twice per day on these sites just for fun:

 

https://www.pff.com/draft/nfl-mock-draft-simulator

https://thedraftnetwork.com/mock-draft-machine

 

Since I don't play fantasy any more, I also have fun tiering the players.  Once I get around 30, I know that at least 5 or more will be available at the Bills pick.  It helps me to see trends.  For example, if there is the expected run on CB's there will almost undoubtedly be a stud WR that falls, and vice versa.  And if somehow all these CB's and WR's go, it's because one of those monster OL surprisingly didn't and that could be a huge opportunity for the Bills.  I'm no expert for sure, and trades throw monkey wrenches in the whole thing, but I feel I have a better beat on things after doing these for a few weeks.  

[Mojo44]

They are fun, fun , fun until daddy takes the T-Bird away

[Rock-A-Bye Beasley]

It’s fun if you’re a Bills fan and go back to a year before and see Josh, Oliver, and Rousseau we’re all mocked at #1 overall. 

[Dopey]

I have fun doing them. Better than solitaire.

[Milanos Milano]

28 minutes ago, Mojo44 said:

They are fun, fun , fun until daddy takes the T-Bird away

Well the Saints took our J-Byrd away. 

[Ya Digg?]

I really enjoy that every time I come back to the site today I see this thread and either immediately before or after it is a thread for Joe B’s latest mock draft! Gotta love the irony 

[BigAl2526]

It depends on what you're expecting from them.  They actually do two things.  The help rabid fans familiarize themselves with prospects.  And they have entertainment value.  There is no mock draft that can unequivocally predict what a given team is going to do with its first round pick let alone the other six rounds of the draft

[HappyDays]

For those of us that don't watch college football, mock drafts are our introduction to the prospects that might be drafted by the Bills and by our competition. I have no clue who we're going to pick in round 1 or round 2 but whoever it is I'll probably know what they're about because of all the mock drafts I've read. So in that light I'd say they're very useful.

 

Edited March 25, 2022 by HappyDays

[CDogg20]

10 hours ago, The Red King said:

Sorry, honest question.  Not looking to ruffle feathers.  I know draft speculation can be fun, and I'm all for it.  Thinking who a team might want in what round and all.  But mock drafts are all balanced on the head of a pin.  One team makes one unexpected move and the whole thing falls apart.  How accurate do they end up being, especially this early on?  It seems like an incredible amount of effort trying to get into the head of 32 GMs and understanding each team's needs, only to have the whole thing blow up on a single pick that doesn't go as predicted.

 

As I noted, I'm more interested in speculation such as, "Will the Bills go for a CB in round one or two?" and "What round should we nab a WR, and who's out there?".  That kind of stuff.  I mean, how accurate has any mock draft been in the past?  Have there been any that have actually been close to the actual draft they predicted?  I mean, there are a million of them, so I'm guessing I'm missing something.  To me it just seems too fragile to be worth the time and effort.  It would be like "Predict the first 10 offensive snaps for the Bills opening day."  It just takes one play not going as planned to completely invalidate the list from that point on.

 

So, why do people do them?  Again, not being nasty about it.  I'm honestly curious.

Its kinda like doing a march madness bracket. Won’t be perfect, might hit a few here and there but overall just fun to do 

[FireChans]

6 hours ago, YoloinOhio said:

They are just for fun. 

Seriously.

 

Is posting on TBD “worth it?”

 

God I hope so.

[cage]

As someone who doesn't know jack about college football, I'm a big consumer of mocks.  They lead me to watch YouTube videos of players the Bills may pick.  By the time draft-time rolls around I have a pretty good idea of who's going where and what their needs were.  While any given mock itself may have been inaccurate, the process of seeing them in the two month leading up to the draft are great for the fan experience.  That's all they're meant to be... entertainment for us fans

Edited March 25, 2022 by cage

[BritBill]

I like mocks as folk have put the time and effort in which I'm too lazy to do (I kid, I just don't have the will or time). 

 

I watch extremely little college ball and I couldn't tell you a college player's name until the mocks start coming out. However, I don't treat them as gospel as to where a player will be drafted. 

[filthymcnasty08]

Mock drafts are what we do when there's no baseball, your hockey franchise blows, it's not golf season yet and you don't care about college hoops.

[Nitro]

It is a fun way to pass the off season down time and can generate spirited conversations. 

[BobbyC81]

17 hours ago, Buffalo_Stampede said:

Mock drafts are click bait. That’s why people do like 5 now before the draft. Easy content.

 

Fans love it.

 
I think I’ve even seem more than 5 by some.  They make a couple changes to get people to click but based on what?

[sherpa]

I think they're kind of useless, and I only read a few just before the draft.

Most folks choose players that they view as need.

Since the Bills philosophy is best player available, it makes little sense.

 

My view this year is that the Bills don't have roster room for all their picks, so they package a deal for a trade up.

No point in guessing where, for how much or for whom.