2015 Fantasy Football Mock Draft: Round 4

Scoring: This mock draft is based on standard-scoring formats and is for the 2015 season only (i.e., not keeper or dynasty leagues). Passing touchdowns are worth four points while rushing and receiving touchdowns are worth six points. In addition, one point is earned per 25 passing yards, 10 rushing or 10 receiving yards.

Mock Draft Start Date: Saturday, August 22nd
Mock Draft End Date: Tuesday, September 1st

Four of our site's contributors — Kevin Hanson, Brendan Donahue, Sean Beazley and Dan Yanotchko — will make picks for three teams of this 12-team mock. The mock will go 12 rounds with no kickers or team defenses selected.

Although this is a slow draft, we will post picks as they occur, along with comments from Kevin Hanson, as opposed to waiting for the entire mock draft to be completed.

Round: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 - Teams | Positions

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Here are Round 4 results of our 2015 Fantasy Football Mock Draft:

4.01 - Sean Beazley (Team III): Carlos Hyde, RB, San Francisco 49ers

With Frank Gore signing a free-agent deal with the Colts, Hyde enters 2015 atop the 49ers depth chart at running back. With Gore ahead of him last year on the depth chart, Hyde had just 83 carries for 333 yards and four touchdowns as a rookie. Not only will his workload expand significantly, but I expect his effectiveness on a per-carry basis to increase from last year's 4.0 yards-per-carry average. On a positive note, Hyde has shed some weight and is now in the "mid 220-pound range," which should improve his elusiveness yet still allow him to flourish near the goal line.

4.02 - Brendan Donahue (Team III): Emmanuel Sanders, WR, Denver Broncos

With previous career highs of 67/740/6, Sanders blew those numbers out of the water in his first season in Denver with 101 receptions for 1,404 yards and nine touchdowns in 2014. Given a new coaching staff and more balanced philosophy, repeating a 101/1,404/9 line appears unlikely, but Sanders is a solid WR2 behind Dez Bryant (1.10) for Brendan.

4.03 - Kevin Hanson (Team III): Jordan Matthews, WR, Philadelphia Eagles

I'm thrilled that Matthews made it to me at 4.03. Playing only 65.0 percent of the team's offensive snaps as a rookie, that ratio will undoubtedly spike in his second season as the team lost Jeremy Maclin via free agency. In his first season in the league, Matthews finished with 67 receptions for 872 yards and eight touchdowns and finished as a top-25 fantasy wide receiver. With Maclin gone, it wouldn't surprisie me if he posted top-10 numbers (like Maclin last year) as the No. 1 receiver in such a high-volume offense.

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4.04 - Kevin Hanson (Team II): Jonathan Stewart, RB, Carolina Panthers

Over the final five games of the season, Stewart, who recently turned 28, rushed for 486 yards on 91 carries (5.34 YPC) and only DeMarco Murray (491) had more rushing yards during that span. Entering 2015 as the team's clear featured back, Stewart will finally get the opportunity to carry the load for a full season. Well, the "full" season part is the only concern with him as Stewart has played only 28 games over the past three seasons. If, a big if, he can stay healthy for a full season, he has legitimate top-10 fantasy upside.

4.05 - Dan Yanotchko (Team III): Keenan Allen, WR, San Diego Chargers

While his receptions increased from 71 to 77 in 2014, Allen's yardage (1,046 to 783) and touchdowns (eight to four) both dropped and he finished as only the 48th-highest scoring wide receiver last season. Allen turned 23 this spring and should have a bounce-back season in 2015.

4.06 - Dan Yanotchko (Team II): Amari Cooper, WR, Oakland Raiders

No rookie receiver is more pro-ready than Cooper, the first Biletnikoff winner in Alabama history. Cooper racked up 124 receptions for 1,727 yards and 16 touchdowns last season and should become Derek Carr's go-to receiver immediately for a team that ranked fourth in the league in pass attempts per game (39.3) in 2014.


4.07 - Sean Beazley (Team II): Joseph Randle, RB, Dallas Cowboys

While he had only 51 carries in 2014, 11 (21.6 percent) of those 51 carries resulted in runs of more than 10 yards and he averaged 6.73 yards per carry on the season. More than anything, that production is a result of running behind one of the best offensive lines in football, which should be even better this year. His YPC average will certainly decline with a bump in volume, but Randle is expected to get the largest share of the workload within the team's committee backfield. The upside certainly warrants a selection higher than this and MG3/Randle give Sean two quality backs despite waiting until Rounds 3/4 to draft his first two running backs.

4.08 - Sean Beazley (Team I): Andre Johnson, WR, Indianapolis Colts

After back-to-back 1,400-yard seasons, Johnson finished with 85 receptions for just 936 yards and three touchdowns in 2014. Johnson's 62.4 Y/G and 11.0 Y/R were his lowest since 2005. Now 34 years old, Johnson may never have another 1,400-yard season, but he goes from a team with one of the league's worst quarterback situations to one of the best with Andrew Luck.

4.09 - Brendan Donahue (Team II): Todd Gurley, RB, St. Louis Rams

Arguably the best running back prospect since Minnesota's Adrian Peterson, Gurley ended the drought of first-round running backs and possesses all of the physical tools to be a dominant RB1-type back for years to come. With his combination of size and speed, Gurley has the ability to run over and/or outrun opposing tacklers. Recovering from his torn ACL, however, Gurley will be eased in slowly before eventually settling on a featured-back role. That said, there a few running backs still available that I'd prefer over Gurley including the guy that Brendan took next ...

- Dynasty Rankings: Gurley is my No. 4-ranked dynasty running back

4.10 - Brendan Donahue (Team I): Latavius Murray, RB, Oakland Raiders

Loaded with potential and upside, Murray is a physical freak that runs a sub-4.4 forty at 6-foot-3 and 225 pounds. Murray finally got a chance to showcase what he could do down the stretch last season as he gained 478 yards from scrimmage over his final five games on a total of 83 touches (72 carries and 11 receptions). With Darren McFadden and Maurice Jones-Drew out and Trent Richardson and Roy Helu in, Murray will be given every opportunity to be the team's lead back in 2015.

4.11 - Kevin Hanson (Team I): T.J. Yeldon, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars

Selected with a top-36 pick in this year's draft, Yeldon has excellent size (6-1, 225) and immediately goes to the front of the line in terms of the team's backfield depth chart. General manager David Caldwell said that he sees Yeldon as "a three-down back." Playing in an offense that ranked in the bottom two in both scoring and total offense last year could limit Yeldon's fantasy upside as a rookie, but he could end up leading rookie backs in touches in 2015.

4.12 - Dan Yanotchko (Team I): Julian Edelman, WR, New England Patriots

After his breakout 2013 season (105/1,056/6), Edelman actually averaged slightly more receptions (6.57 in 2014 vs. 6.56 in 2013) and yards (69.43 in 2014 vs. 66.0 in 2013). I'd prefer a few receivers before Edelman, but he is in the low-end WR2/high-end WR3 range for standard-scoring leagues and is the WR20 in this mock.

> Continue to Round 5 of our Fantasy Football Mock Draft
> Go back Round 3 of our Fantasy Football Mock Draft

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