How to Master PFF Mock Draft Simulator?
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As an NFL and fantasy football fan, one of my personal favorite draft preparation tools is Pro Football Focus’ Mock Draft Simulator. This incredibly robust simulator allows us to experience the thrill of the draft day by customizing and controlling every aspect of a simulated NFL draft. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll dive into all the features and functionalities that make the PFF Mock Draft Simulator such an indispensable resource for draft preparation and analysis. Whether you’re an armchair GM getting ready for your fantasy draft or an NFL scout looking to hone your team-building skills, read on for pro tips on mastering the mock draft on PFF.
Choose Your Draft Board
The foundation of every mock draft is the draft board itself. The PFF Mock Draft Simulator provides two draft board options:
PFF Big Board: Compiled by PFF’s lead draft analyst Mike Renner. This board provides PFF’s own evaluations and rankings of prospects. This is the way to go if you want expert insights based on PFF’s signature analytics.
Public Big Board: Uses the average draft position data from Benjamin Robinson’s GrindingTheMocks, aggregating public mock drafts. This gives you a sense of consensus rankings.
The choice comes down to whether you want to rely on expert analysis or public opinion data. I tend to view the PFF board as a more accurate evaluation of true prospect value. On the other hand, the public board shows where prospects may land based on public hype and team needs.
Making Trades
One of the most exciting parts of the NFL draft is the trades! The PFF Mock Draft Simulator allows us to live out our wheeling and dealing fantasies to maneuver for better draft positions or acquire more picks.
When you see a team that might be looking to trade up or down, click Make the trade and send an offer. Use the traditional draft trade value chart to be reasonable with your trade proposals. If you’re giving up early picks, ensure you get good value in return.
My strategy is always to accumulate as many picks in the first three rounds as possible. More picks mean more top-end talent added to your roster. Don’t be afraid to consolidate later round picks to move up earlier.
Simulating Multiple Rounds
While most casual fans only focus on the early selections of the NFL draft’s first round, championships are won in the late rounds. One of the most useful features of the PFF Mock Draft Simulator is the ability to run multi-round mock drafts of up to seven rounds.
Exercising all seven rounds allows us to think through multiple days of the draft and the full scope of team needs. Make sure to consider age and roster balance – don’t draft five players at the same position without addressing other needs. Think through schemes, skill sets, and projected development.
The key is sticking to your draft strategy across all seven rounds instead of just picking the top ranked player regardless of fit. Mimic the real decision making involved for actual NFL GMs.
Analyzing Your Mock Draft
The magic happens after the mock draft is done when you analyze your haul. The PFF Mock Draft Simulator includes an analysis dashboard showing your mock draft results. Here we can evaluate if we successfully addressed critical team needs and how our haul compares to the rest of the league.
Pay attention to the graph showing your draft capital spent per position compared to average – this quickly identifies which positions you may have targeted more heavily. Also look at the draft capital remaining table to see upcoming opportunities in the later rounds.
If you notice you severely neglected a certain position group or some division rivals made out like bandits in the mock, don’t be afraid to reset and try a different draft strategy. Use the analytical tools to improve!
Custom Draft Boards
Serious draft heads know that no draft board ever truly matches your own player evaluations. That’s why the PFF Mock Draft Simulator allows us to create fully customized draft boards based on our own prospect rankings.
Spend the time really analyzing your favorite prospects through film study, data analysis, and scouting reports. Develop your own big board of top 150 prospects or more and upload it to reflect your truth.
This exercise makes your mock draft radically different than relying solely on the provided draft boards. Now every pick is determined by your own analysis – a great test of scouting skills that will make your mocks more authentic.
Sharing and Comparing Mocks
Part of the fun of mock drafts is sharing your results and getting feedback from other draft enthusiasts in your life. The PFF Mock Draft Simulator makes this easy by generating a shareable link containing your full mock draft results.
Post your mock link out on Twitter, your fantasy football group chats, or send directly to friends for input. Find out who did the best job addressing team needs and identifying value. It’s a great way to spark draft conversations!
For additional fun, join a PFF mock draft league to compete against other fans. See who can scout the best prospects and assemble the most well-rounded roster. Pit your skills as an armchair GM against the crowd!
Last Words
In the fast-paced world of the NFL draft, preparation is everything. By mastering the PFF Mock Draft Simulator and fine-tuning your team-building craft, you will step into your real fantasy or NFL front-office draft with confidence.
If you fully embrace all the possibilities for customization, analysis and sharing, the PFF sim can transform good armchair GMs into great ones. Use this guide as a roadmap to get the most out of the tool and enjoy the draft season!
FAQs
How accurate are the PFF draft rankings?
The PFF draft rankings are highly accurate as they are compiled by PFF’s own analytics team using their database of college grades and advanced stats. Their rankings often differ from mainstream draft analysts.
Should I pay more attention to expert rankings or public ADP data?
It depends on your priorities – expert rankings likely offer better insight into true prospect value, while public ADP better matches real draft positions. I use both!
How strictly should you follow ADP for your mock draft?
It’s fine to reach a little for players you’re high on, but don’t deviate too extremely from ADP early in drafts. The public data represents market value, so drastic reaches show poor strategy.
What are some good draft trade techniques?
Accumulate picks in rounds 1-3 by trading back, consolidate mid-late round picks to go get your guys, and give up depth instead of stars. Follow the draft trade value chart for reasonable proposals!
How many rounds of a mock draft should you run?
I recommend always running the full 7 round mock. The late rounds require the same thoughtful decision making as early ones when building balanced, scheme-appropriate depth charts.
In summary
For newcomers exploring the vast world of Divinity in Destiny 2, this guide serves as a beacon of knowledge, much like the PFF Mock Draft Simulator does for NFL and fantasy football fans, offering expert advice and tools to help you master the intricacies of the game and stand out among your fellow Guardians.
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