2018 Fantasy Football Draft Prep: Drafting receivers in a three-receiver league

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We went with a three-receiver lineup in our latest 12-team, 0.5 PPR mock draft because many of you like to use this format. And I wanted to see how it would change the approach to drafting receivers in this league.

Two owners started their teams going WR-WR with Adam Aizer (he drafted Antonio Brown and T.Y. Hilton) and George Maselli (he selected DeAndre Hopkins and Keenan Allen). But Michael Kiser took three receivers with his first three picks, getting Odell Beckham, Julio Jones and Larry Fitzgerald.

Kiser, who picked at No. 12, didn't draft his first running back until Round 4 with Royce Freeman, and he also added Dion Lewis in Round 5. The rest of his running backs are Isaiah Crowell, Giovani Bernard and Samaje Perine.

The strength of Kiser's team is his receiving corps since he also drafted Julian Edelman, Pierre Garcon, Anthony Miller and Paul Richardson. Matthew Stafford is his quarterback and David Njoku is his tight end.

We play a flex in this league, so either Edelman or Garcon should be solid in that spot. But I would have liked to see Kiser draft at least one more running back -- or maybe two as an upgrade over Perine.

For example, he could have had Marshawn Lynch, Marlon Mack, Rex Burkhead or Tevin Coleman in Round 6 instead of Edelman. And instead of Miller in Round 10, Kiser could have drafted James White, C.J. Anderson, Nick Chubb, Aaron Jones or Jordan Wilkins.

It's never a bad idea to have good receiver depth in a league where you can start up to four of them. But you also want balance, and Kiser could be in trouble if Freeman or Lewis struggle or get hurt.

I took a different approach by leaning on running backs in this league. This was done by design to see how my team would look by waiting on receivers.

Picking at No. 2 overall, my first four picks were Todd Gurley, Travis Kelce, Joe Mixon and Kenyan Drake. My first three picks were easy selections, but I struggled with Drake in the fourth round, especially since he could be sharing touches with Frank Gore this season.

I still expect Drake to be the best running back in Miami, and he's still worth drafting in Round 4 or 5. The reason I drafted him over a receiver was because my flex spot still counts as a starter, and he should outperform any receiver I picked at No. 47 overall.

My receiving corps ended up being Marquise Goodwin, Jamison Crowder, Cooper Kupp, Marquise Lee, Keelan Cole, DJ Moore and Chester Rogers. On paper (or the internet), that group is ugly. But I like it a lot.

Goodwin and Crowder are the No. 1 receivers on their teams, and both should have the chance for 120-plus targets and plenty of production. Kupp is still going to be in a prominent role with the Rams and should be a favorite target for Jared Goff. I have the top receivers in Jacksonville -- who doesn't covet those guys? -- and both could be fill-in starters when the matchup is right. Moore should be the best rookie receiver this year. And don't overlook Rogers as the No. 2 receiver for the Colts opposite T.Y. Hilton.

The strength of my team is my running backs, and I have Devontae Booker and Theo Riddick as reserves. Along with Kelce and Cam Newton at quarterback, this team could be fantastic if my receivers are better than average. But I'm counting on Goodwin, Crowder and Kupp to be quality starters all year, so I'm excited about this team.

In this league, 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 0.5 point for every reception. We feature a starting lineup of QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, TE, FLEX (RB/WR/TE), K and DST. There will also be six reserve spots for a 16-round draft.

Our draft order is as follows: