The Herd with Colin Cowherd: FantasyPros – PPR Mock Draft with Jerry O’Connell

Episode 1680 | Release Date: September 2, 2025

Overview

This episode of the FantasyPros Football Podcast, hosted by Joe Pisapia (“Joey P”), brings together fantasy experts Pat Fitzmaurice and Derrick “D-bro” Brown—and special celebrity guest Jerry O’Connell—for one final PPR fantasy football mock draft before Labor Day weekend. Amid lively banter, audience questions, and real-time draft decision-making, the group offers insight into player values, positional strategies, and how to handle obstacles like family interruptions to your draft. Jerry O’Connell brings humor, authenticity, and stories from his own league experience, making the episode accessible for beginners and diehard fantasy footballers alike.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Opening and Guest Introduction

• Joe Pisapia welcomes listeners, jokingly bans the overused “szn” slang in fantasy circles, and highlights this as the most important draft weekend of the year.

• Pat Fitzmaurice and D-bro Derrick Brown join, with Pat in a good mood (celebrating a Packers trade).

• Jerry O’Connell (actor, fantasy enthusiast, and self-described “degenerate”) explains how using FantasyPros DraftWizard tools turned his results from perennial last place to winning and placing in his leagues.

  “I use power ranking. I just use the power rankings with my team...Not this last year I came in second, but the year before I finally won my fantasy league that I came in last place in every year. So I'm a real believer in fantasy pros.” —Jerry O’Connell (02:47)

2. Mock Draft Structure & Team Builds

• Draft Format:
  • 1 QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, 1 TE, PPR, no kickers.
  • Jerry drafts fifth, Pat fourth, D-bro eighth, Joey P twelfth.
• Early Rounds:

  • Pat goes CeeDee Lamb (1.04) for WR anchor, favoring WRs in 3-WR leagues.

  • Jerry: Drafts Jameer Gibbs over Justin Jefferson (concerns about QB play) and then grabs Brock Bowers early—a move he shares consistently pays off.

    “I’ve been really designing every draft I'm in...Brock in the second.” —Jerry (09:14)

  • D-bro: Double taps rookie WRs—Malik Nabers and A.J. Brown—anticipating increased Eagles passing volume and betting on upside.

    “It's not a question of if, it's a question of how much they are going to throw more this year.” —D-bro (08:30)

3. Flexible Drafting and Adjusting to Runs

• Tight End Run:

  • Jerry’s early Bowers pick forces others to adjust; Pat pivots to Bucky Irving when Bowers is sniped.

• Quarterback Strategy:

  • Early selection of Jaden Daniels by Jerry (despite ‘expert’ recommendation he wait till later), believing in Daniels’s dual-threat upside.

    “I think he's going to break all sort of rushing and passing records this year." —Jerry (11:54)

• RB and WR Depth:

  • D-bro hammers RB middle rounds (Kenneth Walker, RJ Harvey, Tony Pollard), exploiting value and loading up at positions with scarcity.
  • Joey P and Pat “win race to flex” by stacking productive WRs early.

4. Balancing Family, Life, and Fantasy Football

• Jerry discusses the very real challenge of drafting with family distractions at home, resonating with listeners:

  “The hardest thing is finding a couple of hours...where no one is bothering you and your family doesn't understand...You're stuck with this team for the rest of the season, and your family's like, didn't you already do a draft?...I have six more leagues. You don't understand." —Jerry (16:10)

• Laughter and commiseration from the co-hosts follow; strong “voice of the people” moment (33:32).

5. Key Player Debates and Notable Picks

• Brock Bowers: Is his drop in expert mocks justified? Jerry and Joey P think not, grabbing him wherever possible.
• Mike Evans: Perpetually undervalued; Jerry selects him asserting, "Every single year people say, well, maybe this is the year Mike Evans doesn't do it, but no one's been right yet." (13:46).
• Malik Nabers, George Pickens, Travis Hunter: All identified as upside WRs—D-bro calls Jerry’s mid-draft recovery “all upside picks” (20:46).
• Running Backs:
  • RJ Harvey, Tony Pollard, Jacory “Bill” Croskey-Merritt: D-bro articulates why late value RBs on high-volume roles with touchdown upside are coveted (32:14).
• QB Rushing Value: The team discusses the new meta in targeting mobile QBs; D-bro and Jerry debate where rushing should weigh in on ranks (24:32).

6. Round-by-Round Banter, Trades, & Snipe Stories

• Many picks made for strategy and to “spite-draft” or snipe a rival, reflecting authentic league behavior.
• Hosts regularly reference ESPN/FantasyPros tools, discuss chasing “upside,” and direct listeners to lean on draft software.

7. Mock Draft Results and Review

• Draft Grades:

  • Pat Fitzmaurice ("hero RB" build) takes the win (A grade), Jerry O’Connell finishes 2nd, Joey P 3rd, D-bro 7th (51:15–54:00).

• Jerry’s Draft Blueprint:

  • Analysis shows how going early on BOTH QB and TE can work if you aggressively target high-upside WRs/RBs in middle rounds.

• Honest Self-Assessment:

  • Jerry offers a candid breakdown of his own team—calls out where he reached, where others “let him have” targets, and appreciates FantasyPros mock tools for trial-and-error.

  “I think you laid out the blueprint for people here. It's a really good roster.” —Joey P (52:10)

8. Final Advice and Fantasy Philosophy

• Be flexible: “Get your guys, be prepared, stay flexible.”
• Use the full draft board, price enforce at premium positions when value falls.
• Family-friendly takeaway: Football and fantasy can “actually bring us all together, have a good time, get us passionate, give us an hour to zone out and hang out.” (57:41)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On recovery from early positional picks:

  “You’re putting yourself in a hole going premium quarterback and premium tight end. But Jerry dug himself out, man.” —D-bro (20:46)

• On life/fantasy balance:

  “I don't do drugs. I don't cheat. I don't like...I'm not with hookers. Like I ask for a couple fantasy drafts. Leave me alone.” —Jerry (33:33)

• On family reactions:

  “One of the hardest things about fantasy football is not like being on the clock and making choices. The hardest thing is finding a couple of hours...where no one is bothering you.” —Jerry (16:10)

• Draft snipes as friendly rivalry:

  “Let me just talk about my pick...I had jsn, I had Garrett, I had Devonta Adams, all those guys. I'm too afraid to take any Rams..." —Jerry (11:21)

• On trusting the process/tools:

  “I just believe in all of your abilities.” —Jerry (39:57)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:01] — Jerry’s introduction and FantasyPros success story
• [06:09] — Jerry’s thought process: Avoiding Jefferson, trusting the tools, landing Jameer Gibbs
• [09:14] — Jerry’s early Brock Bowers pick and TE strategy
• [13:46] — Jerry grabs Mike Evans: Perpetual value
• [16:10] — Jerry on family life & the real cost of fantasy football passion
• [20:46] — Hosts analyze Jerry’s ability to recover after early TE/QB
• [33:32] — Jerry becomes “voice of the people” for frustrated parents/fantasy GMs
• [51:15] — Draft results: Pat wins with hero RB build, Jerry second
• [56:35] — Jerry’s honest breakdown of Joey P’s roster

Episode Flow & Tone

• Conversational and playful, with competitive energy.
• Expert analysis meets “everyman” perspective (Jerry bridges both worlds).
• Accessible for fantasy players of all levels – no jargon left unexplained, emphasis on process over luck.

Conclusion:

This mock draft episode serves not just as a tactical tutorial for late-drafters, but as an ode to the communal, sometimes chaotic, always passionate world of fantasy football. Jerry O’Connell’s openness about victories and struggles both on the draft board and at home makes this episode especially relatable—and fun.

“I am such a degenerate. I had an awesome...The league I hate the most — I hate these people. I don't even care if they hear me saying this. I hate them. ... It took four hours to do it, but...how can we use fantasy pros to our benefit in these stupid, useless auction drafts?”

—Jerry O’Connell, on what unites fantasy managers everywhere (58:18)