On The Clock NFL Mock Draft Simulator Tutorial
The On The Clock NFL Mock Draft Simulator puts you in control of any NFL franchise and lets you experience the draft exactly how you want it. Run quick one-round mocks or deep seven-round simulations with trades, custom prospect rankings, and multi-team drafting. No signup required to start drafting.
How the Setup Works
Select Your Team
Click any NFL team logo to draft from that team's real draft position. The simulator loads that franchise's current picks, roster needs, and pick order. Premium users can select multiple teams and control them all in the same draft.
Number of Rounds
Choose between 1 and 7 rounds. One round is great for quick scenarios. Seven rounds gives you the full NFL draft experience with late-round value picks and developmental prospects.
Big Boards
A Big Board is a ranked list of every draft prospect from #1 through the entire class, regardless of position. Your Big Board determines how players are ordered in the Available Players panel and how the simulator scores your picks. Multiple analyst boards are available, and each one produces a different draft because prospect rankings vary across evaluators.
CPU Draft Preference
Player Ranking mode makes CPU teams prioritize the highest-ranked player available regardless of need. Team Needs mode weighs roster holes heavily — a player filling a team's top need gets a 5x multiplier while non-need positions get a 0.2x penalty. Team Needs mode produces more realistic positional runs and creates opportunities for prospects to slide.
Draft Speed
| Setting | Delay Between Picks |
|---|---|
| Slow | 2 seconds |
| Classic | 1 second |
| Fast | 0.5 seconds |
| Very Fast | Instant |
Randomness
The Randomness slider controls how strictly CPU teams follow their draft logic. At Strict (0), teams follow rankings closely and drafts are predictable. At Chaotic (100), teams frequently deviate, creating wildly different outcomes every time.
| Randomness | Effect |
|---|---|
| 0 (Strict) | 50% stricter than baseline, highly repeatable |
| 30 (Default) | Balanced between realism and variety |
| 100 (Chaotic) | 67% looser, every draft is different |
During the Draft
Draft Tracker
The Draft Tracker shows live results for the current round — which players each team selected, remaining team needs, and how many rounds are left. Use it to anticipate positional runs and decide whether your target will still be available.
Available Players
All players still on the board, ranked by your selected Big Board. Position filters let you narrow to specific positions. When it's your turn, click the Draft button next to any player to make your pick.
Controls
Start Round begins each round's auto-draft. Pause / Resume lets you stop and study the board mid-round. Propose Trade opens the trade interface for premium users.
Trades
Trades use the Jimmy Johnson Trade Value Chart, the same system NFL front offices reference for evaluating draft pick trades. Every pick has a point value, and trade packages must match or exceed the target pick's value.
CPU teams will occasionally offer to trade up to your position. Offers are most common in rounds 1 through 3 from teams picking 3 to 16 spots behind you. You can also initiate trades yourself — select the team, choose your picks to offer, and select which of their picks you want.
In Team Needs mode, CPU teams require you to overpay by at least 100 chart points, simulating tougher negotiations. Premium users controlling multiple teams can trade between their own teams freely.
Draft Grades
After your final pick, your draft receives a letter grade from A+ to F based on two components:
Value Score
Measures whether you got good value with each pick. Drafting a player ranked higher than your pick position is a steal. Drafting a player ranked lower is a reach. Evaluated using the Jimmy Johnson chart.
Needs Score
Measures how well you addressed roster needs. Filling your #1 need earns full credit, while lower-priority needs earn progressively less due to exponential decay weighting.
| Score | Grade |
|---|---|
| 97+ | A+ |
| 93–96 | A |
| 90–92 | A- |
| 87–89 | B+ |
| 83–86 | B |
| 80–82 | B- |
| 77–79 | C+ |
| 73–76 | C |
| 70–72 | C- |
| 67–69 | D+ |
| 60–66 | D / D- |
| Below 60 | F |
Each pick also gets its own letter grade and breakdown showing slide delta, Jimmy Johnson chart value comparison, need priority, and overall pick quality.
Tips for Better Drafts
Watch for positional runs. If three cornerbacks go in a row, remaining CBs will slide. Use the Draft Tracker to spot trends and exploit them.
Trade before starting the round. Once the round starts, CPU picks happen fast. If you see a target slipping, trade up before clicking Start Round.
Use Team Needs mode for realism. It creates realistic positional drafting with more trade-up opportunities compared to Player Ranking mode.
Adjust Randomness for variety. Increase randomness to see wildly different outcomes. Lower it for predictable, repeatable results.
Try different Big Boards. Switching boards dramatically changes which players are available at your pick. A player ranked #15 on one board might be #30 on another.
Use Redraft to iterate. Click Redraft after finishing to return to setup with your previous configuration loaded. Run the same setup multiple times and compare results.