Analysts show patience with drafting quarterbacks in surprising 2026 Industry Superflex Mock Draft

The first thing you'll notice with this 12-team, Superflex mock draft is how far Christian McCaffrey fell. I'm worried about his production this season -- he's 30 and just had 450 total touches in 2025, including the playoffs -- but I never expected him to make it to No. 20 overall. That will be a steal if McCaffrey stays healthy.

The other thing that stood out was only four quarterbacks being drafted in Round 1 with Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, Drake Maye and Joe Burrow. The position is deep this season, but usually we'll see five or six quarterbacks get selected in the top 12 overall picks in this format.

We saw the quarterback activity pick up after Round 1. Justin Herbert, Jalen Hurts, Jayden Daniels and Dak Prescott all went in Round 2. Trevor Lawrence, Caleb Williams, Matthew Stafford, Brock Purdy, Patrick Mahomes and Jaxson Dart went in Round 3. And Bo Nix, Jared Goff, Jordan Love, Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray went in Round 4.

That's 19 quarterbacks in the first 48 picks, and Tyler Shough and Malik Willis were also selected in Round 5. Only 11 other quarterbacks were drafted from Rounds 6-15.

Heath Cummings started QB-QB with Maye and Daniels from the No. 7 spot, and Heath built a solid roster. His running backs are Breece Hall, Tony Pollard, Jadarian Price, Rhamondre Stevenson, Tyjae Spears and Kaytron Allen. At receiver, Heath has Rashee Rice, George Pickens, Emeka Egbuka and Antonio Williams. And Heath has Dallas Goedert and Travis Kelce at tight end, along with Bryce Young as a third quarterback. It should be a competitive squad.

Brandon Howard took a different approach at quarterback. He drafted Mahomes in Round 3 and then Shedeur Sanders in Round 12, and those are the only two quarterbacks on his roster. At running back, Brandon has De'Von Achane, Derrick Henry, Braelon Allen and Mike Washington Jr. Brandon's receivers are CeeDee Lamb, D.J. Moore, Tetairoa McMillan, Jameson Williams, Matthew Golden, Xavier Worthy and Savion Williams. And the tight ends are Kyle Pitts and Kenyon Sadiq.

I prefer Heath's roster because of the quarterbacks, but Brandon's starters at running back (Achane and Henry), receiver (Lamb, Moore, McMillan) and tight end (Pitts) are impressive, with Jameson Williams at one of the flex spots. And Brandon's team could be excellent if Sanders wins the starting job for the Browns.

I took a different approach from Heath and Brandon by selecting Burrow in Round 1 and Willis in Round 5. In between, I selected James Cook in Round 2, Omarion Hampton in Round 3 and Saquon Barkley in Round 4. 

It's risky to avoid receiver through the first five rounds in a three-receiver league, but I love my quarterbacks, running backs and flex at this point in the draft. And now it was time to attack receiver, which happened with Ladd McConkey (Round 6), Parker Washington (Round 8), Courtland Sutton (Round 9), Jordan Addison (Round 10), Jalen Nailor (Round 13) and Denzel Boston (Round 14).

My tight end is Sam LaPorta (Round 7), who I love, and I added Blake Corum (Round 12) as a backup running back with upside. I also drafted both Falcons quarterbacks with Tua Tagovailoa (Round 11) and Michael Penix Jr. (Round 15), and whoever starts in Atlanta will be my No. 3 quarterback.

I would have preferred a better receiving corps, but this group has plenty of potential. And good luck to the rest of the league if Cook, Hampton and Barkley perform as expected. Burrow is elite, and Willis could be a great Fantasy quarterback with his rushing ability. LaPorta also has top-five upside at tight end. I expect this team to be a playoff contender. 

As a reference point for this mock draft, all touchdowns are worth six points, and we award one point for every 10 yards rushing and receiving and one point for every 25 yards passing. We also award one point for every reception. We feature a starting lineup of QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, TE, FLEX (RB/WR/TE) and SUPERFLEX (QB/RB/WR/TE) with six reserves for a 15-round draft.

Our draft order is as follows:

1. Rob Thomas, FFT Facebook Moderator

2. Dan Schneier, Senior Fantasy Editor

3. Erik Guenther, FFT Podcast Listener

4. Jake Grogins, CBS Sports HQ Production Staff

5. Meron Berkson, CBS Sports HQ Senior Coordinating Producer

6. Mike Eisley, FFT Social Media Coordinator

7. Heath Cummings, Senior Fantasy Writer

8. Sam Davis, FFT Podcast Producer

9. R.J. White, Managing Editor, SportsLine and CBS Fantasy

10. Brandon Howard, Fantasy Editor

11. Todd Rones, FFT Podcast Listener

12. Jamey Eisenberg, Senior Fantasy Writer