It’s NFL mock draft season, as we’re a month away from the actual event. Is it all just a waste of time or did you enjoy all of the mocks?
With the 2025 Pride of Detroit Community Mock Draft underway, it marks the fast-approaching date that is the NFL Draft . While us readers and writers do not call the shots on draft day, mock drafts are an avenue that many utilize to put themselves in the shoes of general managers.
In the end, it is just fantasy, but is there value to them? For one, mock drafts can be overblown. The NFL Draft is a battle of 32 war rooms, and predicting what each one will do is an impossible task. It can also paint false narratives, such as projecting certain prospects higher or lower than most or all NFL teams.
Mock draft simulators can also be gamed to get prospects you want, something that is completely unrealistic. If your mock draft simulator has a player as a fifth-round prospect, you know you can wait to draft them, but real life is a far different story. Frank Ragnow is a prime example of this: in the lead up to the 2018 NFL Draft, Ragnow was viewed as a Day 2 prospect by many mock draft sites. Yet come draft day, Ragnow went 20th overall to the Detroit Lions , one spot ahead of the Cincinnati Bengals that had to settle for fellow center Billy Price. You never truly know if a player will be on the clock the next time around.
Mock drafts are more of a thought exercise than a true measuring stick for draft expectations. As we approach draft day, mock drafts will continue to be churned out for your viewing pleasure. All things considered, are they actually a pleasure for you or merely another symptom of a long NFL offseason?
Today’s Question of the Day is:
What is your opinion of NFL mock drafts?
My answer: I like them as a way to learn about prospects.
I have never liked mock drafts as a way to predict the outcome of the NFL Draft. Each year, you are guaranteed to see a trade or a reach that shakes up the foundation of the draft—looking at 2024 alone, how many people genuinely expected the Atlanta Falcons to draft Michael Penix Jr. just months after giving Kirk Cousins a mega deal? Trying to pinpoint each draft pick is, in the end, a fruitless endeavor.
Mock drafts become valuable to me as a learning tool, and you need look no further than our Mock Draft Roundups . The main benefit of this compilation article is just that: volume. It’s one thing to make a list of the recently mocked players, but it also inspires discussion. Why are certain prospects being mocked to the Lions? Are there certain prospects that are rising or falling on draft boards? It’s not just about the players being mocked, but how the public sentiment is changing. Mock drafts are, in essence, the NFL’s version of a stock market, and I find that fascinating to see how trends change in lead up to the big event.
While most published mock drafts are centered around just the first round—again, the first round alone is difficult to predict—the later rounds can become intriguing when you are running a mock draft simulator yourself. I use simulators as a way to learn about prospects that would have otherwise gone unnoticed. If the fifth round comes around and I want to draft a specific position, the available big board can send me down a rabbit hole of which prospects could be scheme or culture fits. Sione Vaki is one such player: as I ran more and more mock drafts last year, he was a recurring name on many of them due to his perceived draft value and stylistic fit with Detroit.
I view mock drafts as a stepping stone to more draft knowledge. Mock drafts can be easy to digest content, but they can also inspire you to do more digging on your own. If you enjoy the NFL Draft, mock drafts are a great way to dip your toes in.