Dynasty one-QB startup mock draft: Drake Maye rises, Josh Allen slides in surprising early rounds

The Dynasty Fantasy Football world seems to be moving more and more towards Superflex leagues. I get it. That is my preferred format as well. But the swing may have gone a little too far. There are still a lot of one-QB Dynasty leagues out there. I still have a few myself, and that market may be underserved at this point when it comes to content. I heard that complaint recently, so I'm going to try to balance that out a bit better, starting with this one QB startup mock. 

The thing I do like about one QB leagues, from a mock draft perspective, is there is a little more intrigue early in the drafts. In a Superflex draft, you can assume that half of the first two rounds will be quarterbacks. In the mock below, the first QB wasn't taken until 3.01. Also, in a Superflex league, Josh Allen is going to be the first pick in the majority of drafts. In one QB leagues, it could be Jahmyr Gibbs, Bijan Robinson, or Ja'Marr Chase.

I had Ryan McDowell from Dynasty League Football on Fantasy Football Today Dynasty to break this mock draft down live. Check it out:

Here are the first four rounds of this mock draft with my general thoughts on each round:

Round 1

1. Bijan Robinson, RB, Falcons 2. Ja'Marr Chase, WR, Bengals 3. Jahmyr Gibbs, RB, Lions 4. Puka Nacua, WR, Rams 5. Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, Seahawks 6. Malik Nabers, WR, Giants 7. Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR, Lions 8. Brock Bowers, TE, Raiders 9. Ashton Jenty, RB, Raiders 10. Justin Jefferson, WR, Vikings 11. CeeDee Lamb, WR, Cowboys 12. Drake London, WR, Falcons

I was a little surprised that Robinson went 1.01, but any of the top three picks are fine in that spot. What was more surprising was that Nabers went sixth and Bowers went eighth. This is not a tight end premium league. I would have taken multiple running backs over Nabers and Bowers, but they are both still young enough and have high enough upside that I understand why they were picked when they were. My pick was London, at 1.12. I think in most one QB drafts you will see more than three running backs drafted in Round 1, but this draft didn't swing towards backs until late Round 2.

Round 2

1. Jeremiyah Love, RB, Cardinals 2. Tetairoa McMillan, WR, Panthers 3. Omarion Hampton, RB, Chargers 4. Trey McBride, TE, Cardinals 5. George Pickens, WR, Cowboys 6. Colston Loveland, TE, Bears 7. Emeka Egbuka, WR, Buccaneers 8. Chris Olave, WR, Saints 9. Jonathan Taylor, RB, Colts 10. De'Von Achane, RB, Dolphins 11. James Cook, RB, Bills 12. Garrett Wilson, WR, Jets

Taylor and Achane could be the two best values in the early rounds of this draft. Taylor is discounted a little bit for his age, but he won't be 28 years old until January. If his age curve looks more like that of Derrick Henry and Christian McCaffrey, then he's a steal any time after Round 1. Achane is both young and elite, but we are terrified of the Dolphins offense. While futility is a concern, the bigger concern may be Malik Willis' low running back target rate. Still, he's 24 years old and coming off a 1,800-yard season. It seems odd for him to fall outside of the top 20 picks.

Round 3

1. Drake Maye, QB, Patriots 2. Nico Collins, WR, Texans 3. Ladd McConkey, WR, Chargers 4. Tyler Warren, TE, Colts 5. Chase Brown, RB, Bengals 6. Carnell Tate, WR, Titans 7. Luther Burden III, WR, Bears 8. Kenneth Walker, RB, Chiefs 9. Quinshon Judkins, RB, Browns 10. Josh Allen, QB, Bills 11. Christian McCaffrey, RB, 49ers 12. Rashee Rice, WR, Chiefs

There are so many interesting things in Round 3. From Drake Maye going before Josh Allen to the first real contender-only pick in Christian McCaffrey, to Rashee Rice and his off-field concerns. While I would prefer Allen over Maye, that is only true for true contenders. Jeff Blaylock of Footballguys took McCaffrey. I think it's great value, but also dictates that you need to go win the league in Year 1. Blaylock definitely got the message. He drafted Saquon Barkley in Round 4 and added Davante Adams, George Kittle, and Mark Andrews in later rounds. I can't imagine any team is projected for more 2026 points than his.

Round 4

1. TreVeyon Henderson, RB, Patriots 2. Saquon Barkley, RB, Eagles 3. Breece Hall, RB, Jets 4. A.J. Brown, WR, Eagles 5. Zay Flowers, WR Ravens 6. Jordyn Tyson, WR, Saints 7. Jayden Daniels, QB, Commanders 8. DeVonta Smith, WR, Eagles 9. Joe Burrow, QB, Bengals 10. Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Cardinals 11. Harold Fannin Jr., TE, Browns 12. Rome Odunze, WR, Bears

I started this round off with Henderson and thought the three running backs taken at the start of the round were the best values in Round 4. In fact, I would have drafted more running backs in this round, particularly over Brown, Burrow, Fannin, and Odunze. This was a double flex league, which opens up the possibility of starting four running backs, and any team that is contending in Year 1 should leave its roster open to that possibility.

Check out the full draft board here.