Good morning.

Nothing says “Welcome to Fantasy Football Season” like injuries to Brock Bowers, A.J. Brown and De’Zhaun Stribling in the first two games. Not to mention TDs from highly-rostered studs like Eli Raridon and Demarcus Robinson.👍

As hard as it is to accept, that’s part of fantasy football, which is why our topic today is so important—Last-Minute Stashes. We’re going to highlight some players to throw on the end of your bench before Sunday’s action in case they either A) show some promise in Week 1, or B) benefit from an injury.

Let’s get after it…

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Last-Minute Stashes 🧐

Ring My Bell

Chris Bell // Matias J. Ocner, Miami Herald

Dolphins WR Chris Bell

• The rookie is already listed as a starter for the Dolphins, despite having ACL surgery just nine months ago. If not for the ACL injury, many argued Bell could’ve been a 1st round pick, as he drew play-style comps to A.J. Brown coming out of college.

Dolphins WR Caleb Douglas

• Miami’s going to roll with two rookies as their starting WRs in Week 1 (I’m sorry, Malik Willis). Douglas is set to be the team’s X receiver thanks to his massive frame (6’4” 205 lbs) and excellent speed (4.39). There’s been a steady drumbeat for him all through training camp, so there’s a chance he develops into a solid red zone weapon for the team’s new QB.

Ravens WR Ja’Kobi Lane

• “He could have a clear path to targets if Rashod Bateman misses time due to a suspension, as he is facing three charges. Lane may open the season as the team's WR3 but find himself opposite Zay Flowers in the No. 2 role very soon.” — RotoBaller’s Andy Smith

• "In 27 years of covering the Ravens, I’m not sure I’ve seen a rookie have a training camp quite like Ja’Kobi Lane." — Ravens reporter Jamison Hensley

• "This guy is different." — Lamar Jackson👀

Colts WR Keenan Allen

• Alec Pierce has returned to practice, but he's still working his way back from ankle surgery and might start slow in the opening month. The 34-year-old Allen is well past his football prime, but he was the WR13 in fantasy PPG through the first seven weeks last season while playing for the Chargers, per Yahoo’s Justin Boone.

Eagles WR Dontayvion Wicks

• Rookie WR Makai Lemon missed the majority of the preseason with a hamstring injury, leaving Wicks locked in as the WR2 in Philly to start the season. He’s a fun big play weapon who caught 11 of his 39 passes for greater than 20 yards during his 2023 rookie campaign in Green Bay, per Andy Smith.

Bucs WR Jalen McMillan

• McMillan won the No. 3 WR job behind Mike Evans and Chris Godwin as a rookie in 2024 and finished that season with a 37-461-8 line across 13 games. Those eight TDs ranked 2nd on the team, trailing only Evans, and tied for 12th among WRs league wide. He was particularly good over the final six games with Godwin out, where he ranked 18th among WRs in fantasy PPG and 26th among 104 qualifying WRs in yards per route (1.90), per Draft Sharks’ Jared Smola.

Chiefs WR Cyrus Allen

• The former Cincinnati Bearcat’s 13 TDs his senior year were tied for 3rd most in the FBS. He also posted strong advanced metrics: a 32.8% dominator rating and 2.42 yards per route. Both marks ranked top-16 among 52 of the top WRs in this year’s class, per Draft Sharks’ Shane Hallam. While he remains a longshot as the team’s WR5, there’s a world where he finds a way to live up to the preseason hype.

Saints WRs Devaughn Vele and Bryce Lance

• New Orleans is incredibly thin at WR, which should thrust these two into important roles. Vele is most likely to start the year at WR2 with Jordyn Tyson on IR. The team gave up 4th and 7th round picks for him last year, so it’s clear they like what the saw.

• As for Lance, he’s a high-upside stash in dynasty/super deep leagues. The younger brother of Trey Lance had unofficial 9.98 RAS out of a possible 10.00 coming out of college, which ranked 7th out of 3844 WRs from 1987 to 2026, per @MathBomb.

Texans TE Dalton Schultz

• This one may be a little boring, but Schultz is the #2 target in Houston after Jayden Higgins’ torn ACL. Schultz is quietly coming off a strong fantasy campaign where he averaged the 11th-most points at the position over the final 13 weeks. That included finishing tied for 3rd in receptions among TEs (82) and 6th in receiving yards (777), per Justin Boone.

Handcuff RBs

• As always, if you have an extra spot on your bench, handcuff RBs are the highest ceiling stashes you can add. Here’s how I’d prioritize some handcuffs you might find on waivers (not counting guys like Corum, Monangai, etc.)…

  • Tier 1: Tank Bigsby, Ray Davis, Kaelon Black (proved me wrong last night and is the clear CMC handcuff), Malik Davis, Brian Robinson, Keaton Mitchell, Jonah Coleman, Seth McGowan

  • Tier 2: Emmett Johnson, Tyler Allgeier, Justice Hill, Samaje Perine, Braelon Allen, Jaylen Wright, Jordan James, George Holani

  • Tier 3: Jacob Saylors, Chris Brooks, Kaleb Johnson, Kimani Vidal, Tyrone Tracy Jr., Kendre Miller

*Note: TE Terrance Ferguson is also a great stash, but you might not be able to pick him up until next week, since he played last night.

POLL 📊

ROOKIE SPOTLIGHT 🔦

Ted Hurst

Yet another big-bodied X receiver from this class, Ted Hurst stands tall at 6’4” 206 and will look to be a discount Mike Evans this year for the Bucs. He started his college career at Valdosta State (Division II) before transfering to Georgia State, where he mostly played out wide (83% of snaps) and dominated his competition with a 61% contested catch rate, per Fantasy Life’s Dwain McFarland.

Hurst was regarded as a very raw prospect, as he has tremendous athleticism (9.9 RAS out of a possible 10), but lacks the polish of a top tier WR. He’ll need some time to develop before seizing a full-time role in Tampa, but he’s at least shown flashes in camp that make him worthy of a dynasty stash.

RANKINGS ✍️

ICYMI: Our weekly Morning Huddle Cheat Sheet has converted to our Weekly Rankings, which will be sent to your inbox every Thursday morning. This spreadsheet has been meticulously put together by our guy, Anthony—the new Morning Huddle Rankings Specialist. Click the link below to upgrade your subscription for just $4/month. No contracts. No commitments. Money-back guarantee.

Grab yours now!👇

QUICK SLANTS 👀

📖 Read Scott Pianowski of Yahoo’s Fantasy Football Team Power Rankings for the start of the 2026 NFL season, where he orders each team according to “how much fantasy juice we can squeeze from every huddle.”

📖 Read 2026 NFL season sim: Predictions, surprises, playoff teams from ESPN’s Seth Walder, where he forecasts how this upcoming year is going to play out.

📖 Read “The Guru” John Hansen of Fantasy Points’ 2026 Fantasy Football Good Vibes/Bad Vibes ($), where he evaluates the general mood around all 32 NFL teams from training camp and the preseason to help inform his fantasy football plan for this year.

📺 Watch 2026 Fantasy Football Awards Predictions: MVP, Breakouts, Busts & Rookies Picks! from the guys at CBS Sports’ Fantasy Football Today:

TWEET OF THE DAY ✍️

Just two more sleeps until our prodigal son returns.👇

See you Sunday.

- Marcus

Good morning.

IT’S GAMEDAY!!!

We made it, guys. Welcome to football season.🥲 

To celebrate the season opener, we have our very first starts and sits newsletter of the 2026 season.🔥 This one will focus purely on the games tonight and tomorrow night. Then on Friday we’ll be back with some last-minute stashes before we begin our in-season schedule on Sunday, which will be as follows…

Sunday: Starts and Sits
Tuesday: Waivers
Thursday: Market Trends

Now without further ado, let’s get after it…

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STARTS & SITS 🧐

Start ‘Em ✅

Rhamondre Stevenson // Yahoo

WNF: Patriots @ Seahawks

• RB Rhamondre Stevenson: TreVeyon Henderson has officially been ruled OUT. While Rhamondre might not do a lot on the ground against a solid Seahawks run defense, his abilities as a goal-line hammer and a pass-catcher should make him a good FLEX, especially in PPR formats. Stevenson averaged a solid 10.8 yards per reception last year, and the Seahawks allowed a league-high 97 receptions to RBs, per USA Today’s Jacob Camenker.

• WR Rashid Shaheed: He led the NFL in yards per target from 2022-2024, per RotoWire’s Ian Hartitz, and will reportedly be a “big time player” for Seattle after a strong offseason. I wouldn’t start him in your typical redraft league, but his skillset makes him a valuable boom-or-bust target for deep leagues or DFS players.

• TE Hunter Henry: Seattle’s defense allowed the 6th-most receiving YPG (63.5) and the 4th-most receptions per game (6.2) to TEs in the 2025 regular season, per Fantasy Points’ Tom Brolley. That makes Henry another decent deep league/DFS option.

TNF: 49ers @ Rams (in Melbourne, Australia)

• QB Matthew Stafford: The Niners will have an improved pass rush with Nick Bosa back (limited to three games last year) and the addition of Osa Odihizuwa, but this is still a defense that had the 3rd-lowest pressure rate and the fewest sacks in the NFL last season. Last year, San Fran gave up the 11th-most passing TDs, the 10th-highest passing success rate, and the 10th-most passing yards, per FantasyPros’ Derek Brown.

• RB Blake Corum: San Francisco gave up the 9th-most adjusted yards before contact per attempt (2.33) and the 10th-most receiving YPG (35.7) to RBs last season, per Tom Brolley. Kyren Williams is an auto-start, of course, but Corum’s a frisky FLEX this week as well.

• TE Terrance Ferguson: This is another super deep sleeper for 16+ team leagues or DFS players, as Fergalicious averaged 21 yards per catch (albeit in a tiny sample) last year. He also had the highest aDOT in Fantasy Points Data history (18.3), so you could do worse as a boom-or-bust TE option.

Sit ‘Em ❌

Drake Maye // Yahoo

WNF: Patriots @ Seahawks

• QB Drake Maye: “He struggled against tough defenses in the 2025 postseason, including being held to 2.9 fantasy points by this week’s opponent, the champion Seahawks, in the 1st half of the Super Bowl. Seattle also allowed just 14 points per game to QBs last year, so Maye could struggle in Week 1.” — SI’s Michael Fabiano

• QB Sam Darnold: “Darnold scored under 13 fantasy points in four of his last five games last season, which included scoring just 12.6 fantasy points in the Super Bowl against the Patriots. Considering New England gave up the 5th-fewest fantasy points and 7th-fewest passing yards to QBs in 2025, it's best to sit the Seahawks signal-caller in most leagues.” — RotoBaller’s Joey Pollizze

• RB Jadarian Price: The Patriots ranked 6th in rushing yards allowed last season and gave up just 11 TDs on the ground, per Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox. There's also a very good chance that returning RB George Holani sees a large amount of the 3rd down and receiving work early in the season, so waiting a week to try out Price would be the prudent move for managers with other RB options.

• TE A.J. Barner: In games in which he didn't score a TD last season, Barner averaged only 5.9 PPR fantasy points. Unfortunately, the Patriots allowed just 0.3 TDs per game to opposing TEs in 2025 (12th-fewest), per Joey Pollizze.

TNF: 49ers @ Rams (in Melbourne, Australia)

• QB Brock Purdy: He ranked 1st in NFL last season with a 123.9 passer rating against teams that missed the playoffs, but was 22nd with a passer rating of 83.6 against playoff teams (dropped to 25th at 79.6 if include playoff games), per AP’s Josh Dubow.

• WRs De’Zhaun Stribling and Deebo Samuel: Last year, the Rams allowed the 14th-fewest yards per target and fantasy points per opportunity to receivers, per Derek Brown. It might be wise to fade this entire passing game.

• TE George Kittle: He’s a tricky one this week. 49ers beat reporters expect him to be on a snap count, but I’d expect plenty of those snaps to come in the red zone. If you have another quality TE, bench Kittle. If you’re desperate and have to start him, pray for a TD.

POLL 📊

ROOKIE SPOTLIGHT 🔦

Cyrus Allen

Cyrus Allen // Yahoo

Current ADP: WR68
Our Rank: WR77

At 5’11, 183 lbs with middling athleticism (4.49-second 40, 36” vertical), Cyrus Allen didn’t turn a ton of heads in the pre-draft process (it didn’t help that he wasn’t even invited to the Scouting Combine). But the former Cincinnati Bearcat’s 13 TDs his senior year were tied for 3rd most in the FBS. He also posted strong advanced metrics: a 32.8% dominator rating and 2.42 yards per route. Both marks ranked top-16 among 52 of the top WRs in this year’s class, per Draft Sharks’ Shane Hallam. He’s a twitchy route runner with plus ball skills who ran 92% of his routes out of the slot last year.

After a strong training camp (where he earned Patrick Mahomes’ trust during reps with the 1st team offense), Allen will look to find his role in the explosive Chiefs passing attack. It may not happen right away, though, as he’s currently listed at WR5 on the team’s unofficial depth chart, making him no more than a late-round flier in fantasy drafts.

RANKINGS ✍️

Now that we’re ready for the real games to begin, our weekly Morning Huddle Cheat Sheet is converting to our Weekly Rankings, which will be sent to your inbox every Thursday morning (Wednesday this week with the early game). This spreadsheet has been meticulously put together by our guy, Anthony—the new Morning Huddle Rankings Specialist. Check out a few of his favorite starts in Week 1…

Dak Prescott @ NYG – QB6

• Dak gets an appealing road matchup against the Giants and should have plenty of opportunities to produce with CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens leading the passing attack. With two elite playmakers and plenty of passing volume expected, Dak has a strong chance to open the season with a big fantasy performance.

D’Andre Swift @ CAR – RB15:

• Swift’s Week 1 outlook became a little more uncertain after he left practice with a cramp midweek. The matchup against Carolina is appealing and gives him RB1/RB2 upside if healthy, but his status is still worth monitoring as we get closer to kickoff. A clean bill of health would solidify Swift as a top-15 RB for Week 1, with the potential to finish even higher.

Garrett Wilson @ TEN – WR16:

• Wilson enters Week 1 in a favorable spot against Tennessee and should remain the focal point of the Jets’ passing attack. With a healthy start to the season and an improved QB situation, Wilson has an excellent opportunity to command targets and make an immediate impact. I have him ranked at WR16, but the matchup gives him legitimate top-10 upside to open the year.

Tucker Kraft @ MIN – TE7:

• Kraft is trending in the right direction after returning to team drills and participating in 11-on-11 work at practice. I’m ranking him aggressively at TE7 because of his receiving and TD upside, but his workload remains worth monitoring as Green Bay could ease him back following his ACL recovery. If Kraft can stay healthy and return without significant limitations, I fully believe he has the upside to finish the season as a top-5 fantasy TE.

For Anthony’s full Week 1 rankings, click the link below to upgrade your subscription for just $4/month. No contracts. No commitments. Money-back guarantee.

Grab yours now!👇

QUICK SLANTS 👀

📖 Read The Primer: Week 1 Edition from FantasyPros’ Derek Brown. This weekly banger of an article goes over every matchup of the week, highlighting Brown’s rankings, starts, sits, and more.

📖 Read The Inaugural Industry Experts Poll from Footballguys’ Sigmund Bloom, where he polled 45 experts across the internet to get their opinions on 13 questions, such as Underrated Players, Overrated Players, and more.

📖 Read Zain Dhanani of Fantasy Life’s Fantasy Football Flag Plants ($), where he highlights the five players he believes most strongly in this season.

📺 Watch Oz The Mentalist blow the New York Giants’ minds:

Twitter tweet

TWEET OF THE DAY ✍️

Enjoy the Super Bowl LX rematch tonight! Soak it all in… football season is finally HERE.

See you Friday.

- Marcus

Good morning.

IT’S GAME WEEK!

But let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves… some might call today Labor Day, but most of us know it as Draft Day. Many leagues around the world are picking their teams either tonight or tomorrow, so we’re here with one final “offseason” edition of the newsletter. And today’s topic is a fun one: Bold Predictions. So let’s see what kind of hot takes are floating around the fantasy football streets…🔥

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BOLD PREDICTIONS 🔥

The Slim Reaper

Smitty // Sam Hodde, Getty Images

1. DeVonta Smith will finish as a top-5 fantasy WR — Fantasy Life’s Matthew Berry

• Since 2023, when A.J. Brown has been off the field for the Eagles, Smith has been targeted on 29% of his routes. And in 43 career games with at least a 25% target share, Smith is averaging 17.3 fantasy PPG (for reference, only Puka Nacua and Jaxon Smith-Njigba averaged more PPG than that last season). Smith is sure to see plenty of looks this year as he steps into Philly’s WR1 role, which is perfect for a guy who has averaged an elite 8.5 yards per target in every season of his career.

2. Dalton Kincaid will finish as a top-4 fantasy TE — PFF’s Nathan Jahnke

• “When healthy, Kincaid has performed like one of the NFL’s best receiving TEs. Among TEs with at least 400 routes run over the past two seasons, his 82.0 PFF receiving grade ranks 6th. His 2.12 yards per route run trails only George Kittle and sits ahead of Trey McBride and Brock Bowers. Kincaid also leads all qualifying TEs in target rate (24.9%) while ranking 2nd in yards after the catch per reception (6.6).”

3. Omarion Hampton will finish as a top-5 fantasy RB — RotoBaller’s Michael F. Florio

• Mike McDaniel’s lead back has finished top-5 in total fantasy points in each of the last three years. McDaniel also used outside zone runs over 60% of the time during his time in Miami, a big upgrade from former Chargers OC Greg Roman (47%). Hampton averaged 5.5 yards per carry, the 6th best among RBs, on outside runs last season.

4. Blake Corum will finish as a top-20 fantasy RB — theScore’s Eric Patterson

• Corum was one of the most productive RBs when given the opportunity last season. He ranked 2nd in EPA per play and 5th in YPC among RBs with at least 100 carries. Plus, in five of the final six regular season games last year, Kyren Williams received 66 carries to Corum's 49. Even with a 60-40 split in Williams' favor, Corum has a chance to be viable in fantasy.

5. Brock Bowers will break the NFL single-season receptions record — NFL.com’s Matt Okada

• Bowers already set the rookie receptions record (112) in a season where Jakobi Meyers caught 87 passes and Gardner Minshew, Aidan O'Connell and Desmond Ridder were at QB. Bring in Kirk Cousins and Fernando Mendoza, and zero high-volume competition at WR, and Bowers will draw an absurd target share and snag a spot in the record books ahead of Michael Thomas (149 receptions).

6. Chris Godwin will be a fantasy WR1 — QB List’s Drew DeLuca

• The last time Godwin broke camp with Baker Mayfield to start the season, he was fantasy football’s overall WR1 (PPR). Then, a horrific ankle injury upended his 2024 season and threatened to end his career. He came back towards the end of last season, but didn’t look himself. Reports out of camp this year suggest he has his explosiveness back, though, so he’ll look to eat in a new scheme with OC Zac Robinson (who has worked closely with fantasy goldmine playcallers Sean McVay and Liam Coen).

7. A.J. Brown will finish as a top-3 fantasy WR — Chris O’Brien

• Brown’s going from the run-heavy Eagles to a much more balanced Patriots offense, where he’ll be the clear alpha. Double-digit targets ought to be the norm now, and in games with 9+ targets since joining the Eagles in 2022 (30 games), AJB averages 21.3 fantasy PPG and 104 receiving yards.

8. Trevor Lawrence will finish as the fantasy QB1 — FantasyPros’ Andrew Erickson

• From Week 5 onward last season, no other QB outscored Lawrence in fantasy PPG (23). After another offseason with Liam Coen under his belt, the upside is massive for T-Law.

9. Tyler Shough will throw for over 4,500 passing yards — The Big Lead’s Ray Kuhn

• In 11 games last season, as a rookie (albeit a 25-year-old rookie), Shough threw for 2,384 yards while completing 67.6% of his passes. In the last four games of the season, though, he threw for 1,172 yards. If you extrapolate that over a 17-game season, then Shough would be projected to throw for 4,981 yards.

10. Bucky Irving finishes outside the top-30 fantasy RBs — RotoBaller’s John Laghezza

• Not only did Tampa Bay upgrade their receiving back in Kenneth Gainwell, but they also retained Sean Tucker. That's a direct threat to both pass-catching and goal line work—the two main aspects for fantasy RB domination. Fantasy gamers will get an encore of Irving’s post-Week 13 return from last year (3.4 yards/rush, 2.7 targets/game, 0% goal-line rush rate).

POLL 📊

ROOKIE SPOTLIGHT 🔦

Kaelon Black

Kaelon Black // Michael Zagaris, Getty Images

Current ADP: RB52
Our Rank: RB53

For those who don’t follow college football, Kaelon Black has seemingly come out of nowhere. The former Hoosier was part of a split backfield in college and wasn’t even invited to the NFL Scouting Combine. Despite that, the 49ers took him in the 3rd round and claimed he was the 2nd-rated RB on their draft board.

Early signs point towards Black being the real deal. He took advantage of his opportunity when teammate Jordan James went down, averaging 5.1 YPC during preseason action and earning the RB2 spot on the team’s unofficial depth chart.

The handcuff to Christian McCaffrey is always valuable in fantasy football, but I’m a little skeptical of that role being Black’s. HC Kyle Shanahan was “real excited about” James heading into this season, and said he wished he could’ve gotten him more touches last year. A fractured rib in camp slowed that momentum, but James is back healthy now and could earn that RB2 role back sooner rather than later. In reality, Black and James would likely split the backfield should CMC miss time, so I’m fine taking my shot on either one with one of my last picks—I just have a slight preference for James.

RANKINGS 📊

Cramming last-minute for your draft? Look no further than the 2026 Morning Huddle Cheat Sheet! It ranks over 200 players by position with tiers and consensus ADP—all on one convenient sheet of paper to help you dominate draft day. As of Wednesday morning, your subscription to the Cheat Sheet will transfer over to our Morning Huddle Weekly Rankings, available all season for just $4/month.

And since we’re never wrong about anything, you can cancel at anytime. No contracts, no commitments. We want you to be glad to have these, and if you’re not we’ll send your money back!

Grab yours now!👇

QUICK SLANTS 👀

📖 Read Matthew Berry of Fantasy Life's 10 Lists Of 10 For The 2026 Fantasy Football Season. Another annual column from the fantasy legend, where he presents ten different top-10 lists of players, trends, and takes for the upcoming season, such as “10 Preseason Storylines I’m buying,” “10 of my most drafted players this year,” and more!

📖 Read Fantasy Football Roundtable: Don't leave the party without 'em from the staff at Yahoo, where each guy shares his one must-draft player for 2026.

📖 Read Understanding the ‘Running Back Dead Zone’ and its impact on 2026 fantasy football drafts from The Athletic’s Ben Gretch. Gretch is known as the one who popularized this term back in 2019, so who better to analyze it through the lens of this upcoming season?

📺 Watch The Fantasy Footballers’ Fantasy MVP Episode, where Andy, Mike, Jason, and a number of expert guests from around the industry name players who can be true difference makers in 2026:

TWEET OF THE DAY ✍️

Just 2 days until the season opener!!! We’re almost there, you guys.✊

See you Wednesday, where we’ll go over some starts and sits for the two early games this week.

- Marcus

Good morning.

Is this the longest week ever, or is it just me? I’ve spent more time staring at my fantasy lineups at work than I have actually working.

But if you’re like me, you’re in way too many leagues—which means draft season isn’t over yet. So today, I’m going to dive into a topic that some find controversial, but I find helpful—strength of schedule.

While you shouldn’t base your picks entirely on a player’s schedule, it can serve as an extra data nugget for tie breaking. The key is to focus primarily on early season schedules, as well as the extremes—like Drake Maye last year, whose schedule was so easy all season that some are already calling him overrated.

Let’s get after it…

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Softest Schedules 📈

An Easy Road Can’t Hurt(s)

Jalen Hurts // Yong Kim, The Philadelphia Inquirer

Eagles QB Jalen Hurts

• Hurts has the easiest schedule among any QB in terms of fantasy matchups, per FantraxHQ’s Ryan Prosick. That’s due in large part to six games against the NFC East, where all three teams (WAS, DAL, NYG) were in the top-11 of fantasy points allowed to QBs. In addition to those division games, they will have three games against teams that were in the top-7 in fantasy points allowed to the position (CHI, PIT, TEN). The only downside is he’ll take on the Seahawks, Texans, and 49ers in the fantasy playoffs—making him a notable trade deadline sell candidate (hopefully after a hot start).

Vikings QB Kyler Murray / WRs Justin Jefferson & Jordan Addison

• The Vikings face the 2nd-easiest schedule against opposing pass defenses based on 2025 EPA allowed per dropback, per Player Profiler’s Jon Machado. Outside the division, they get several vulnerable defenses from a year ago. Even within the division, none of the pass defenses are especially intimidating. Green Bay, Chicago, and Detroit all ranked outside the top defenses against the pass last season.

Texans RB David Montgomery

• Montgomery will encounter three of the top-8 easiest opponents for fantasy RBs from last season in his first four matchups (BUF, CIN, DAL), per Yahoo’s Justin Boone. While each team has made changes to their defense, the Texans will have success moving the ball against them on the ground. Remember, this offense is just one season removed from helping Joe Mixon finish as the RB5 overall in fantasy with 1,325 scrimmage yards and 12 TDs.

Ravens WR Zay Flowers

• “Flowers got off to a hot start last season and could do the same this year with the Colts, Cowboys and Titans on the docket, a trio of defenses that were among the top-7 in terms of fantasy points allowed to wideouts in 2025.” — Boone

Browns TE Harold Fannin Jr.

• His first five matchups are all against teams in the bottom-13 in the league for fantasy points allowed to TEs, with two of them ranking bottom-5 (TB, NYJ), per Fantasy Life’s Owen Oates. It’s also worth noting that four out of the five defenses (JAX, TB, CAR, NYJ), all ranked significantly better against WRs, meaning whoever is at the helm for Cleveland should look in Fannin's direction early and often. It gets tougher after that (as you’ll read in the next section), but Fannin could at least get off to a hot start.

All Detroit Lions

• The Lions have the easiest overall schedule in the league this year, per Warren Sharp’s Strength of Schedule Analysis, and will be playing either indoors or in warm weather for all but one game (Week 17 @ CHI) on the fantasy football calendar. Their defense also lost three starters in their secondary, so Detroit is poised to be in plenty of shootouts.

D/STs to Target:

• Baltimore Ravens — They have the season's most favorable D/ST schedule—only the Cowboys (Week 3), Bengals (Weeks 7 and 17) and Bills (Week 8) stand out as particularly challenging matchups, and 12 of their 17 matchups grade average or better, per ESPN Tristan H. Cockcroft.

• L.A. Chargers — They host the Cardinals and Raiders to start the season.

• Green Bay Packers — Week 1 @ Minnesota is meh, but after that they get the Jets and Falcons.

• Cincinnati Bengals — They’re typically brutal on this side of the ball, but every one of their first five opponents grades as a middling-to-good D/ST matchup: TB, HOU, PIT, JAX, MIA, per Cockcroft.

Toughest Schedules 📉

Panthers in Peril

Bryce Young // FOX Sports

Panthers QB Bryce Young / WRs Tetairoa McMillan & Jalen Coker

• The Panthers are tied for the 3rd toughest overall schedule, and their slate outside the NFC South is loaded with dangerous opponents (BAL, DEN, SEA, PHI, DET, GB, CHI, MIN). When you isolate pass defenses specifically, Carolina faces the single toughest schedule against opposing pass defenses based on 2025 EPA allowed per dropback, per Jon Machado.

Jags WR Brian Thomas Jr.

• BTJ is likely to be the team’s X receiver, which often means he’ll lineup out wide against the opponent’s top cornerback. Gulp…

49ers TE George Kittle

• After tearing his Achilles tendon in last season’s Wild Card Round, most are expecting a slow start from Kittle and are banking on a late-season surge. The only problem with that is his fantasy playoff opponents ranked 32nd, 28th, and 26th in points allowed to TEs last season, per NBC Sports’ Kyle Dvorchak. It’s also worth noting that the 49ers will set an NFL record this year by traveling a total of 38,105 miles and going through 58 different time zones, per KTXL’s Asia Cymone Smith. The schedule takes San Fran through three different countries, including two international games.

Cardinals RB Jeremiyah Love

• The Cardinals landed the hardest overall strength of schedule in the NFL (they aren’t favored in a single game this season), and also have one of the hardest schedules against run defenses, per Jon Machado. That’ll put them in plenty of negative game scripts, resulting in a hefty dose of passing volume—not rushing attempts for their rookie RB.

Giants RB Cam Skattebo

• Much like Love, Skattebo will have a tough time finding positive game scripts down the stretch, as the G-Men face the toughest road schedule in the NFL, per FantasyPros’ Andrew Erickson. While their first six week are at least favorable (4th-easiest start), no team plays a tougher schedule of road games than Big Blue this year (LAR, WAS, HOU, PHI, IND, SEA, DET, DAL).

All Cleveland Browns

• The Browns have seven outdoors games from Week 10 onward. That includes home games in Week 10 (HOU), Week 12 (LV), Week 13 (CIN), Week 14 (ATL) and Week 17 (IND) with road games against the Giants (Week 15) and Ravens (Week 16), per FTN Fantasy’s Colin McTamany. If you’ve never been to Cleveland in the winter, just know there’s a reason the guys from The Ringer Fantasy Football Show played a game called “Cleveland or Siberia?” on their recent live show.

D/STs to Fade:

• Houston Texans — they might have the best overall defense in the league, so you can definitely still draft them. However, if you’re in a Guillotine/Chopped League, be wary of their opening schedule, as they take on the Bills in Week 1, Bengals in Week 2, and then the Cowboys in Week 4. They also have tough fantasy playoff matchups against the Jaguars, Eagles, and Packers.

• Denver Broncos — they’re in a similar boat as Houston, with a brutal opening slate (KC, JAX, LAR, SF, LAC, SEA), and then some tough fantasy semi-final and championship matchups against the Bills and Patriots.

POLL 📊

ROOKIE SPOTLIGHT 🔦

Malachi Fields

Malachi Fields // FOX Sports

Current ADP: WR73
Our Rank: WR67

At 6’4” 218 lbs, Fields is another massive wideout from this year’s draft class. The former Golden Domer is much more of a “tape” prospect than a “data” prospect, as his metrics are uninspiring—4.61 40 time, only a 4.6 YAC average (-0.3 over expected after adjusting for aDOT), and his targeted QB passer rating was one of the worst in the class, per Fantasy Life’s Dwain McFarland.

Regardless, Fields has reportedly earned a starting spot on the Giants opposite Malik Nabers, which is more than most rookies can say. What remains to be seen though is what kind of fantasy impact that will translate too. While he’s an intriguing red zone target, it’s more likely he’ll be no more than the 4th target on the team who will be a much better “football player” than a fantasy option.

RANKINGS 📊

📈 RB Malik Davis (+13) rises up after securing the Cowboys’ backup RB job. He enters prime handcuff territory in what should be one of the highest scoring offenses in the league.

📉 WR Malik Nabers (-7) falls after expressing hesitancy about his Week 1 status. It’s just too risky to take someone as high as I had him if we don’t even know for sure when he’ll be 100% healthy.

📈 WR Devaughn Vele (+11) is lowkey the WR2 in New Orleans…

📉 TE George Kittle (-2) did travel with the team to Australia, but the more I think about it, the less I want to deal with the headache of knowing when he’ll be fully healthy, how many snaps he’ll play, etc.—even if he is “active” on gamedays. I’m still fine taking Kittle late and pairing him with someone like Juwan Johnson, but I can’t rely on him as a clear TE1.

QUICK SLANTS 👀

📖 Read Is Fantasy Football Hard? Settling a Simple Question from The Fantasy Footballers’ Kyle Borgognoni, where he investigates the complexity of the game we all love and whether it’s all luck or skill.

📖 Read Fantasy Football Injuries: Which Players Should You Target, and Who Could Kill Your Season? from Draft Sharks’ Injury Analyst Tyler Smola for the latest updates and opinions on big-name injuries from an actual Doctor of Physical Therapy.

📖 Read Fantasy football predictions that can happen, from a Loveland breakout to a Skattebo bust from The Athletic’s Dalton Del Don ($) for predictions that are “unquestionably underdogs yet scenarios within reasonable range of outcomes.”

📺 Watch Mel Kiper’s 2027 Mock Draft to learn the names you need to watch this college football season:

TWEET OF THE DAY ✍️

Just 5 days until Patriots @ Seahawks! Until then, enjoy the last quiet weekend of your summer.

See you next Monday.

- Marcus

Good morning.

Only one more week without real NFL football until February! While my wife is distraught, I’m pretty fired up.🔥

But this week isn’t for resting, it’s for building an absolute juggernaut of a fantasy squad in your upcoming drafts. To help you with that, we’re doing the opposite of Monday’s newsletter as we highlight the worst pick you can make in every round. Once again, we'll use FantasyPros’ Real-Time ADP as a guideline and assume a typical 10-team, Half-PPR, single-QB league with 16 rounds.

Let’s get after it…

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Worst Pick in Every Round ❌

CMC? Not For Me

CMC // Ezra Shaw, Getty Images

Round 1: RB Christian McCaffrey (ADP: 5th overall)

• This one’s tough, because CMC could easily repeat as the RB1 if he stays healthy. But that’s the major concern here—McCaffrey turned 30 in June and just had 450 total touches in 2025, including the playoffs. This is the 3rd time in his career that he had at least 400 total touches in a season (2023 with the 49ers and 2019 with Carolina) and he missed 13 games due to injury the following year both times, per CBS Sports’ Jamey Eisenberg.

Round 2: RB De’Von Achane (ADP: 13th overall)

• Achane has been a PPR dream, averaging 86 targets and 72.5 receptions the past two seasons. That’s due in large part to Tua Tagovailoa targeting RBs at the 2nd-highest rate in the league (24.5%). Malik Willis, on the other hand, targeted his backs at the lowest rate (10.8%), per Fantasy Points’ Jake Tribbey. Achane will still be a workhorse on the ground, but with a projected dip in his receiving metrics and Miami having one of the worst offenses in the league, he’s a fade at his ADP.

Round 3: WR Malik Nabers (ADP: 27th overall)

• Nabers is still working his way back from last season’s ACL tear and was non-committal about his Week 1 status. He said he still doesn’t feel right while making some cuts and noted he hasn’t been hit yet, which should concern fantasy managers. It also doesn’t help that his OC is Matt Nagy, who gave up playcalling duties in the middle of the season each of the last two times he started the year with them, then saw his offense improve by most metrics both times he did so, per Fantasy Points’ Ryan Heath.

Round 4: RB Travis Etienne Jr. (ADP: 36th overall)

• Among qualifying RBs last season, Etienne ranked:

  • 37th in explosive run rate

  • 31st in missed tackle rate

  • 34th in yards after contact per attempt

    (per RotoBaller’s Matt Donnelly)

  He’s also due for TD regression (13 in 2025) and will likely lose receiving work to Alvin Kamara (once he returns from a knee injury).

Round 5: WR Tetairoa McMillan (ADP: 42nd overall)

• Carolina scored a whopping 74.3% of its TDs through the air last season, which should regress after 55% of their TDs came via the air in 2024. The Panthers also led the league with a 16.4% pass rate over expectation from inside the 5-yard line last season, but ranked 30th in PROE from outside the 5-yard line at -4.5%, per the staff at Fantasy Points. Bryce Young is coming off a 4.8% TD rate thanks to Carolina’s pass-heavy approach near the end zone, but he owns a meager 3.5% TD rate for his career. Meanwhile, T-Mac ranked 16th in target share (23.1%) as a rookie, but should face more target competition from a healthy Jalen Coker, who actually outplayed him down the stretch last season.

Round 6: RB Quinshon Judkins (ADP: 53rd overall)

• Yes, he’ll be the focal point of his offense… but it’s a terrible offense:

  “Judkins has a bad offensive line, bad quarterback play, is gamescript dependent, and comes off the field on obvious passing downs, two-minute drill, etc. don’t see a lot of monster games from him w/o targets/TDs.” — RotoBaller’s Adam Koffler

Round 7: WR Carnell Tate (ADP: 72nd overall)

• The 4th overall pick finished the preseason with as many catches as Daejon Love, thanks in large part to Cam Ward:

Round 8: TE Harold Fannin Jr. (ADP: 73rd overall)

• I love him as a talent, but he benefitted from a terrible supporting cast last season. Looking at a 10-year historical sample of 320 NFL team-seasons, Cleveland's 2025 WR group ranked 309th in targets, 307th in receptions, 298th in yards, and 318th in TDs and fantasy points, per Footballguys’ Jason Wood. With the additions of rookie WRs KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston, the departure of TE-lover Kevin Stefanski, and the same shitty QB situation as always, I’m not expecting much from Fannin in 2026.

Round 9: WR D.K. Metcalf (ADP: 81st overall)

• Last year, in his 15 games played, Metcalf finished outside the top 36 WRs in weekly scoring seven times. And among 109 qualifying receivers, he was 25th in yards per route run, 26th in red zone targets, and 37th in 1st downs per route run, per Fantasy Points Data. The Steelers also added significant target competition in Michael Pittman Jr. and are quarterbacked by a 42-year-old Aaron Rodgers. I’ll pass.

Round 10: WR Courtland Sutton (ADP: 93rd overall)

• Sutton has never finished inside the top-18 WRs in fantasy PPG in eight seasons (and inside the top-24 just once), despite an ideal set up the last couple years with no target competition in a good offense, per @ffdataroma. He’s never been close to an elite target-earner (0.22 targets per route run over the last five years) and is pretty clearly capped upside wise—especially after the addition of Jaylen Waddle.

Round 11: RB R.J. Harvey (ADP: 102nd overall)

• Harvey was fantasy-relevant last season thanks in large part to his 12 total TDs, but he ranked 46th out of 51 RBs in PFF Rushing Grade (69.2) and 48th out of 51 RBs in rushing yards over expected per attempt (-.64), per David J. Gautieri. Even if J.K. Dobbins goes down, Harvey will likely maintain his change-of-pace role, as rookie Jonah Coleman profiles as more of a complete back (2nd best tackle-breaking RB in this class / 1.22 YPRR / 6th in PFF Pass-Blocking Grade) and should slide into the Dobbins role if need be.

Round 12: QB Matthew Stafford (ADP: 114th overall)

Round 13: Broncos D/ST (ADP: 120th overall)

• It feels weird putting a D/ST on this list, especially one as talented as Denver’s. But they have the toughest schedule in the league through Week 6, per Warren Sharp: @ KC, vs JAX, vs LAR, @ SF, @ LAC, vs SEA. Are you comfortable starting them for that stretch? I’d rather wait and stream the position.

Round 14: WR Xavier Worthy (ADP: 131st overall)

• Last season, Worthy averaged just 7.9 fantasy PPG while commanding a paltry 16.0% target share and earning a target on just 18.6% of his routes run. His 1.36 yards per route run ranked 69th in the league, per PFSN’s Kyle Soppe.

Round 15: WR Deebo Samuel Sr. (ADP: 143rd overall)

• I’d rather be a part of The Strib Club…

Round 16: TE Hunter Henry (ADP: 153rd overall)

• Your last picks should be fun. Henry is boring. He was really just a TD-dependent streamer last season, despite being 2nd on the team in target share (18%) and 1st in TDs (7), per FantasyPros’ Richard Janvrin. And those metrics are sure to come down after the additions of A.J. Brown, Romeo Doubs, and rookie TE Eli Raridon.

POLL 📊

ROOKIE SPOTLIGHT 🔦

Ja’Kobi Lane

Ja’Kobi Lane // AP Photo

Current ADP: WR60
Our Rank: WR69 (nice)

At 6’4” 200 lbs, Ja’Kobi Lane is a big-bodied receiver capable of bullying defenders and making highlight reel circus catches. His 33% career contested-target rate (99th percentile) was tied for the highest mark in Dwain McFarland of Fantasy Life’s database, and he hauled in 49% of those looks, which was slightly higher than the 46% average for prospects.

The rest of Lane’s prospect profile is pretty average, though, as he wasn’t an elite producer (played behind Makai Lemon at USC) and rarely generated much separation on his routes. With that being said, Baltimore doesn’t have a proven WR2 behind Zay Flowers, so there should be plenty of opportunities for Lane to see the field. The rookie has also earned high praise this preseason, with Ravens reporter Jamison Hensley saying, "In 27 years of covering the Ravens, I’m not sure I’ve seen a rookie have a training camp quite like Ja’Kobi Lane." Take him as a fun late-round flier with potential TD-upside.

RANKINGS 📊

The 2026 Morning Huddle Cheat Sheet is HERE! Updated every Friday in August, it’s jam-packed with over 200 players ranked, tiered, and paired with their consensus ADP—all to help you dominate draft day. This year, it's included in our new weekly Morning Huddle Rankings, available all season for just $4/month.

And since we’re never wrong about anything, you can cancel at anytime. No contracts, no commitments. We want you to be glad to have these, and if you’re not we’ll send your money back!

Grab yours now!👇

QUICK SLANTS 👀

📖 Read Fantasy Environment Score from Draft Sharks’ Jared Smola, where he uses betting market data to spot the 2026 offenses built for printing fantasy points.

📖 Read Learning From Other Leagues' Fantasy Football Drafts from Fantasy Life’s Cooter Doodle, where she goes over some key lessons she learned from her home league draft to help you dominate yours.

📖 Read Fantasy Football Market Report: 2026 NFL Preseason Week 3 from Fantasy Points’ Jake Tribbey ($), where he recaps everything that actually mattered for fantasy football leagues during the final full week of the 2026 NFL preseason.

📺 Watch The Ultimate Guide to CRUSHING your Fantasy Draft from ESPN’s Fantasy Focus:

TWEET OF THE DAY ✍️

Just 7 days until the Patriots and Seahawks kick off the season next Wednesday night! Until then, good luck with the rest of your drafts.🫡

See you Friday.

- Marcus

Good morning.

After a big weekend of cuts and players being put on IR, NFL rosters are finally taking shape:

Source: @SharpFBAnalysis

I still haven’t emotionally recovered from my 2025 Jaydon Blue hype…🥀

With peak draft season in full swing, today’s newsletter is going to highlight the best pick you can make in every round. We’ll use FantasyPros’ Real-Time ADP as a guideline and assume a typical 10-team, Half-PPR, single-QB league with 16 rounds. While every league is different, this exercise should at least give you some targets to keep in mind at all levels of your upcoming drafts.

Let’s get after it…

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Best Pick in Every Round 🎯

Amon Top of the World

ARSB // Junfu Han, Imagn Images

Round 1: WR Amon-Ra St. Brown (ADP: 8th overall)

• The Sun God has finished as the WR3 in each of the past three seasons while averaging 159.3 targets, 1,393 yards and 11 TDs over that span. The Lions are also primed for shootouts with the softest schedule in the league, a bad defense, and the vast majority of their games being either indoors or in optimal conditions. This should allow St. Brown’s ceiling to be as enticing as his well-established floor (he leads all skill players with 34 games of 15+ PPR points, per PFSN’s Jason Katz). You can’t go broke taking a profit.

Round 2: RB Chase Brown (ADP: 14th overall)

• In the six games after Burrow returned from injury last season, Brown was the RB2 in fantasy PPG (22.3) and since Week 9 of 2024, the only RBs with more games of 15+ PPR points than Brown are De’Von Achane, Bijan Robinson, and Jahmyr Gibbs (per Fantasy Life’s Matthew Berry).

• If you have a late 2nd and miss out on Chase Brown, a good alternative is TE Brock Bowers (ADP: 21st overall), who’s finished as a top-3 fantasy TE on a per-game basis in both of his first two seasons, averaging 15.5 and 14.7 fantasy PPG, despite playing for a bottom-5 graded offense each year, per PFSN’s Kyle Soppe. He should once again be the team’s focal point, but this time with more upside should the offense improve under new HC Klint Kubiak and a combination of new QBs Kirk Cousins and Fernando Mendoza. A star TE is a huge advantage in shallow 10-team leagues—when everyone’s lineup is loaded, you need to find a way to separate yourself.

Round 3: WR Chris Olave (ADP: 28th overall)

• Olave had a career year in his 1st season with HC Kellen Moore calling plays, posting career-highs in targets (156), receptions (100), receiving yards (1,163) and TDs (9). With rookie WR Jordyn Tyson sidelined with a hamstring injury, Olave is set to once again be the focal point of a passing attack that finished 6th in pass rate (59.5%), 2nd in no-huddle rate (23%) and 1st in seconds per snap (25.1 seconds), per FTN Fantasy’s Dan Fornek.

Round 4: WR Zay Flowers (ADP: 35th overall)

• Among 76 WRs with at least 50 targets last year, Flowers was 3rd in routes run per dropback (92.1%) and 8th in target percentage (27.7%). Plus, among 10 wideouts with at least a 73.5% catch rate last year, only Jaxon Smith-Njigba had a higher aDOT than Flowers’ 10.1, per Fantasy Points’ John Hansen. The vibes are high in Baltimore, with the sportsbooks giving them the highest expected win total in the NFL (tied with the LAR at 11.5), and plenty of buzz surrounding new OC Declan Doyle’s explosive scheme.

Round 5: WR Garrett Wilson (ADP: 46th overall)

• Last year, the Jets had the worst passing-volume offense in the league and the 2nd-fewest passing yards as a team in the last decade, yet before his injury, Wilson was the WR5 averaging 19 fantasy PPG and on pace for 112 receptions for 1300 yards. He had four top-15 finishes in the first five weeks, joining Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Amon-Ra St. Brown, and Puka Nacua, per The Fantasy Footballers’ Jason Moore. If he sees even a marginal improvement with Geno Smith at QB this year, then the ceiling is the roof.

• Honorable Mention: RB D’Andre Swift (ADP: 43rd overall)👇

Round 6: WR Luther Burden III (ADP: 54th overall)

• This pick is all upside. Among 76 WRs with 50+ targets last year, Burden ranked 11th in targets per route, 3rd in yards per route, and 8th in PPR points per route. His 2.69 yards per route run trailed only two WRs league-wide. It was also the best mark by a rookie WR with 50+ targets since Odell Beckham Jr., per Draft Sharks’ Jared Smola.

Round 7: WR Parker Washington (ADP: 66th overall)

• From Week 9 on, Washington ranked 3rd in yards per route run (2.82) behind Puka Nacua and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, per RotoBaller’s Adam Koffler. He also ranked 3rd in red zone targets (13), 5th in fantasy points per route run (0.57), and 10th in first downs per route run (0.121), per Fantasy Points Data.

Round 8: QB Justin Herbert (ADP: 76th overall)

• New OC Mike McDaniel’s Dolphins led the NFL in TD percentage (6.3%) and yards per attempt (8.9) in 2022, and in 2023, Tua Tagovailoa led the league in passing yards (4624), per John Hansen. Herbert adds a lot on the ground, too. In 2025, he ranked 6th among QBs in rushing YPG (31.1, ahead of Jalen Hurts and Lamar Jackson), 1st in scramble yards (439, ahead of Drake Maye), and tied for 5th in total rush attempts (83, ahead of Caleb Williams), per Fantasy Points’ Ryan Heath.

Round 9: RB MarShawn Lloyd (ADP: 93rd overall)

• His ADP should continue to rise after Josh Jacobs was placed on the Commissioner’s Exempt List, and for good reason—he’s an explosive athlete on a Matt LaFleur offense, which has produced a Top-12 PPR PPG scorer at RB in 6 of the last 7 seasons, per RotoWire’s Theo Gremminger.

Round 10: TE Dalton Kincaid (ADP: 96th overall)

• In the later rounds, you should be shooting for upside👇

Round 11: TE Isaiah Likely (ADP: 111th overall)

• If you instead want to play it safe with a later round TE, go with Likely. He followed HC John Harbaugh to the Giants from Baltimore, where his coach saw him produce 322 yards and five TDs over a six-game stretch without Mark Andrews in 2023, per Athlon Sports’ Cory Bonini. Plus, he’s been getting peppered with targets from Jaxson Dart in camp.

Round 12: WR KC Concepcion (ADP: 115th overall)

• Among this year’s rookie WR class, Concepcion was #1 in success rate vs. man coverage, #3 in success rate vs. zone coverage, #1 in success rate vs. press coverage, #4 in contested catch rate, and #9 in rate of plays in space with a broken tackle, per Matt Harmon’s Reception Perception. Expect him to get plenty of “easy button” targets as HC Todd Monken’s new Zay Flowers.

Round 13: RB Mike Washington Jr. (ADP: 126th overall)

• With 4.33 speed and a 10/10 RAS, Washington’s an explosive runner who has shown tremendous promise this preseason (1st among rookies in yards after contact and total rushing yards, per @UnderdogNFL). Big Mike has reportedly earned a larger role than anticipated, especially with Ashton Jeanty’s return from his ankle injury is still TBD.

Round 14: WR Jalen Coker (ADP: 138th overall)

Round 15: TE Juwan Johnson (ADP: 146th overall)

• After the Rashid Shaheed trade last season, Johnson was the TE5 in yards per game and TE8 in receptions per game, per Yahoo’s Hayden Winks.

Round 16: QB Malik Willis (ADP: 164th overall)

• With your last pick… why not?! Over the past 10 seasons, only 27 QBs had at least 100 rushes, and they averaged 21.4 fantasy PPG, per The Athletic’s Jake Ciely.

POLL 📊

ROOKIE SPOTLIGHT 🔦

Omar Cooper Jr.

Current ADP: WR89
Our Rank: WR77

Cooper earned comps to Deebo Samuel as a physical slot receiver with elite contact balance and YAC-ability (+2.7 and +2.1 YAC-over-expected in his final two collegiate seasons, per Fantasy Life’s Dwain McFarland). The former Hoosier also had a respectable 70.8% success rate vs. man coverage and an excellent 82.6% success rate vs. zone, per Matthew Harmon’s Reception Perception, with Harmon also saying the former Hoosier had some of the best tackle-breaker results he’s ever charted.

With that being said, Cooper had a tough start to camp and shouldn’t be any better than the Jets’ WR3/4. He’s nothing more than a late-round flier/dynasty hold.

RANKINGS 📊

The 2026 Morning Huddle Cheat Sheet is HERE! Updated every Friday in August, it ranks over 200 players with tiered ADP to help you dominate draft day. This year, it's included in our new weekly Morning Huddle Rankings, available all season for just $4/month.

And since we’re never wrong about anything, you can cancel at anytime. No contracts, no commitments. We want you to be glad to have these, and if you’re not we’ll send your money back!

Grab yours now!👇

QUICK SLANTS 👀

📖 Read Jamie Calandro of RotoBaller's 2026 Fantasy Football Draft Guide for tips, tricks, strategy, targets, avoids, and more.

📖 Read Who will be this year's fantasy football 'league winners'? from ESPN’s Michael F. Florio for players he’s targeting as much as possible.

📖 Read The All Ten-Foot Pole Team: 35 Players I'm Not Drafting from Footballguys’ Sigmund Bloom ($) for players who won't fall far enough past ADP for him to even consider drafting them, including Jaxson Dart, Trey McBride, and more.

📺 Watch this hilarious edit of Brucie from The Longest Yard vs. Tua Tagovailoa:

Twitter tweet

TWEET OF THE DAY ✍️

Twitter tweet

ICYMI

Just 9 days until regular season NFL football! Until then, enjoy your last week of freedom before your hopes and dreams are tied to every snap of this fickle game we all love.

See you Wednesday.

- Marcus

Good morning.

The final week of the preseason is almost over, and as much as I love watching Dillon Gabriel and Taylen Green battle for a roster spot, I’m ready for the real deal…

On the bright side, the final week of the preseason is also peak draft season, so I’ve scoured all the variations of “My Guys” articles out there to identify which players the experts are targeting most.

Let’s get after it…

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“Their Guys” ✍️

Quarterbacks

Unlike the other trending pictures of him, this one isn’t AI… // Todd Rosenberg, Getty Images

Bears QB Caleb Williams (ADP: QB7; 74th overall)

• Last year he exploded with five games of 24+ fantasy points. He also averaged 4.5 rushing attempts (with the 8th-most total rush attempts at QB), and ranked 4th in end-zone pass attempts, per The Fantasy Footballers’ Andy Holloway. Chicago jumped from 28th in points per game (18.2) in 2024 to 9th (25.9) in 2025 under Ben Johnson, and with the 4th-ranked offensive line in 2026, they’ll look to continue that trajectory with Williams leading the way.

Chargers QB Justin Herbert (ADP: QB9; 83rd overall)

• In 2022, Tua Tagovailoa, with noticeable limitations and all, led the NFL in TD percentage (6.3%) and yards per attempt (8.9), and in 2023, he led in passing yards (4624) under Mike McDaniel, who has now taken over as the Chargers’ OC, per Fantasy Points’ John Hansen. Herbert is a much more talented passer than Poo-a, plus he adds a lot on the ground, too. In 2025, he ranked 6th among QBs in rushing YPG (31.1, ahead of Jalen Hurts and Lamar Jackson), 1st in scramble yards (439, ahead of Drake Maye), and tied for 5th in total rush attempts (83, ahead of Caleb Williams), per Fantasy Points’ Ryan Heath. And now with a healthier o-line (even despite the loss of center Tyler Biadasz), Herbert’s set to explode.

Dolphins QB Malik Willis (ADP: QB20; 159th overall)

• Over the past 10 seasons, only 27 QBs had at least 100 rushes, and they averaged 21.4 fantasy PPG. In 2020, Cam Newton, with just 2,657 passing yards and eight passing TDs, averaged the fewest amount of points (17.3), per The Athletic’s Jake Ciely. Plus, since 2011, there have been 25 QB seasons pairing 300+ attempts with 7+ PPG rushing; only three finished outside the top 10, and none finished outside the top 20, per JJ Zachariason. That’s a helluva ceiling and—maybe more importantly—a helluva floor, too.

*Honorable Mentions: Trevor Lawrence, Kyler Murray, and Jared Goff.

Running Backs

Chase Brown // NFL.com

Bengals RB Chase Brown (ADP: RB7; 15th overall)

• “Last season, in the six games after Burrow returned from injury, Brown was the RB2 in PPG (22.3) and ranked RB4 in utilization score over that stretch (19.2 touches per game, with a 14% target share). In fact, since Week 9 of 2024, here’s a list of the only RBs with more games of 15+ PPR points than Chase Brown: De’Von Achane, Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs. That’s it. That’s the list. That’s a pretty good list. Brown is also just one of four RBs with at least 275 touches, 10+ TDs and a double-digit target share in each of the past two seasons. As long as your fantasy league doesn’t charge tariffs on imported Canadian RBs, I’m all in on Chase Brown this season.” — Fantasy Life’s Matthew Berry

Chargers RB Omarion Hampton (ADP: RB11; 18th overall)

• In the first five weeks of 2025, Hampton led ALL RBs in avoided tackles per carry. He also averaged 19 routes per game and joined Kareem Hunt and De’Von Achane as the only rookies over the last decade with two games of 20+ fantasy points in their first four career games, per The Fantasy Footballers’ Jason Moore. The numbers came down for the entire offense after injuries to their offensive line, but with tackles Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater back this year—and the well-documented upgrade of McDaniel at OC—Hampton’s primed for a breakout.

Jags RB Bhayshul Tuten (ADP: RB25, 60th overall)

• The previous two RBs have higher ADPs than you might be looking for, so here’s an excellent value later in drafts…

  Tuten should thrive in HC Liam Coen’s fantasy-friendly system. Last season, Travis Etienne ran 21 screen routes, good for the 3rd-most among all RBs. And in his 1st season as a head coach, Coen led a Jacksonville offense that scored TDs on 27% of drives, the 6th-highest rate in the NFL, per Fantasy Life’s Adam Pfeifer. Given his 4.3 speed, receiving ability, and goal line production last season, Tuten’s built for this scheme.

*Honorable Mentions: D’Andre Swift, Jadarian Price, and Jonathon Brooks.

Wide Receivers

Jaylen Waddle // Jack Dempsey, AP Photo

Broncos WR Jaylen Waddle (ADP: WR17; 38th overall)

• Waddle ranks 18th in yards per route run and 13th in 1st downs per route the last three seasons, per Yahoo’s Matt Harmon. The only reason he didn't pop off last year without Tyreek Hill for most of the year was the Dolphins ranked 30th in neutral dropback rate and 32nd in plays per game. On the other hand, Denver ranked 6th and 5th. There will be much more raw opportunity awaiting this season, along with a major QB upgrade. Plus, Courtland Sutton is established as the X-receiver and Pat Bryant is emerging as the big, on-ball slot, so Waddle is about to play a movement Z role for the first time in years, which is huge:

Packers WR Christian Watson (ADP: WR28; 64th overall)

• Among 88 WRs with 100+ catches over the past four seasons, Watson ranks 2nd in yards per catch (17.0) and 1st in TD rate (15.0%). He's not just a deep threat, either, as he’s averaged 0.77 end-zone targets per game over the past three seasons—only nine WRs topped that mark last year, per Draft Sharks’ Jared Smola. Few receivers possess his combination of big-play ability and scoring upside. Plus, he should see more consistent opportunities following the departures of Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks. Watson has averaged 15.1 PPR PPG when reaching a 70% route rate—that would have ranked 11th among WRs last season and been inside the top 19 in each of the previous four years, per Smola.

Jags WR Parker Washington (ADP: WR30; 68th overall)

• “From Week 9 on, he ranked 3rd in yards per route run (2.82) behind Puka Nacua and Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Per Fantasy Points Data, he also ranked 3rd in red zone targets (13), 5th in fantasy points per route run (0.57), and 10th in first downs per route run (0.121). He did this while playing alongside Brian Thomas Jr., who put up 1,282 yards and 10 TDs as a rookie, and Jakobi Meyers, who’s earned 100+ targets in four of the last five seasons. The competition was strong, and Washington still prevailed as the go-to option for Trevor Lawrence.” — RotoBaller’s Adam Koffler

*Honorable Mentions: Luther Burden III (probably the most common breakout pick among experts, but I feel like he’s been talked about enough), D.J. Moore, and De’Zhaun Stribling.

Tight Ends

What’s not to love(land)? // AP Photo

Bears TE Colston Loveland (ADP: TE3; 42nd overall)

• Yes, another Bear, but hear me out… when Chicago started to feature him in Week 9, Loveland averaged more yards and more 1st downs per route run than both Trey McBride and Brock Bowers while being 2nd in fantasy points scored over that time. In Weeks 17-18 and the first two rounds of the playoffs, he was leading all receivers in receiving yards and red zone targets while being targeted on 35%(!!!) of his routes, per The Fantasy Footballers’ Mike Wright. Training camp reports suggest he’ll be “the sun of the Bears’ solar system of receivers”—that’s rare for a TE. Pounce on him early.

Colts TE Tyler Warren (ADP: TE4; 52nd overall)

• In 12 games with a healthy Daniel Jones, Warren scored five TDs and averaged 13.1 fantasy PPG. In five games with Jones out, he failed to find the end zone and averaged just 6.3 PPG, per ESPN’s Mike Clay. Warren finished his debut season ranked in the top-5 among TEs in both targets and end zone targets. He also handled three goal-line carries. Michael Pittman Jr. is gone, Alec Pierce still isn’t right, and Jones is back under center, so Warren should dominate the targets in Indy.

Giants TE Isaiah Likely (ADP: TE12, 112th overall)

• “A slew of Giants camp reports made it clear that Likely was among the top targets for Jaxson Dart. Sure, all of them came without Malik Nabers participating in team drills, but it appears he's the best receiving threat after a healthy Nabers. If that means six targets per game, then his history suggests big things: Likely has had at least 12.5 PPR points in 8 of 9 career games with six targets.” — CBS Sports’ Dave Richard

*Honorable Mentions: Sam LaPorta, Brenton Strange, and Terrance Ferguson.

POLL 📊

ROOKIE SPOTLIGHT 🔦

Jonah Coleman

Jonah Coleman // David J. Griffin, IMAGO

Current ADP: RB46
Our Rank: RB55

Coleman was a team captain at Washington, earning his coaches’ trust with zero career fumbles and just one drop, per The Ringer’s Danny Kelly. He can run between the tackles, catch the ball out of the backfield (six catches of 20+ yards in 2025, 3rd most among FBS RBs, per The Athletic’s Dane Brugler), and hold his own in pass protection, too. The rookie’s only knock has been a lack of explosiveness, with only 12.8% of his 2025 carries resulting in a run of over 10 yards.

When it comes to his 2026 outlook with the Broncos, I’m torn. I started out very low on Coleman, as he’s likely slotted as the team’s RB3, but I’m starting to come around. R.J. Harvey was one of the least efficient backs in the league last year, and Coleman has earned rave reviews in camp from beat reporters and HC Sean Payton. If/when J.K. Dobbins misses time, Coleman is expected get the bulk of the carries, while Harvey should see more work in the passing game. With a role like that, I’m fine with Coleman in the handcuff territory.

RANKINGS 📊

📉 RB Josh Jacobs (-19) plummets after being officially charged with misdemeanor battery and criminal damage to property related to his May arrest. We knew this was coming, but details of the case have emerged that put Jacobs’ football status on even shakier ground—the police reportedly have video footage from inside Jacobs' garage that show his physical altercation with his girlfriend. Some speculate he could be suspended 4-6 games, while others think this could get pushed back into 2027 due to the lengthy court process. If you draft this weekend, I’d recommend just staying away for now and instead targeting his handcuff, MarShawn Lloyd.

📈 RB Jadarian Price (+4) sat out of Seattle’s final two preseason games, essentially because the team had seen enough. He should be the clear starter while Zach Charbonnet continues to rehab (still on the PUP list).

📉 RB TreVeyon Henderson (-4) is currently banged up, and multiple reports have suggested Rhamondre Stevenson looks better in all aspects so far in camp. I’ve officially bumped Stevenson ahead of Henderson by one spot.

📉 WR Emeka Egbuka (-2) is dealing with a vague toe injury, but most experts are assuming it’s a case of the dreaded turf toe, which could put him at risk of missing a couple games, or at least not being 100%.

QUICK SLANTS 👀

📖 Read Matthew Berry of Fantasy Life's Love/Hate For 2026 Fantasy Football. He’s been writing this legendary column for over 25 years, so it’s a must-read to see who the 🐐 is targeting and fading this season.

📖 Read Joel Smyth of Yahoo’s Top-50 Stats You Need to Know Before the 2026 NFL Season. My favorite stat from the list is about my most drafted player this year, Parker Washington:

“In Jacksonville's final four games, Parker Washington had 454 receiving yards. Brian Thomas Jr. and Jakobi Meyers combined for 267, despite both having more routes than Washington.“

📖 Read Jake Ciely of The Athletic’s From Last Year’s Trash to This Year’s Treasure ($) for his 10 bounce-back candidates in 2026.

📺 Watch this hilarious video from @WhosNextShow making the rounds on football Twitter. Pure cinema:

TWEET OF THE DAY ✍️

Just 12 days until regular season NFL football! Until then, enjoy the last two games of the preseason tomorrow. After that, we have to wait the longest week and a half of our lives for the real action to begin.

Even the early college football schedule looks a little rough, aside from a decent Ole Miss (#9) vs. Louisville (#24) game on Sunday, September 6th. Dynasty managers might want to check out Ole Miss QB Trinidad Chambliss.👀

See you next Monday.

- Marcus

Good morning.

And thank you to those of you who checked in on my mental health after the Browns named Deshaun Watson their starting QB…

Twitter tweet

Over the last two years, among 78 qualifying QBs, Shedeur Sanders' 2025 performance ranked 77th in EPA per pass play. The only performance that was worse statistically? Watson's 2024, which ranked 78th (h/t The Ringer’s Sheil Kapadia). Not only is he a freak, but he’s also objectively terrible at football.

But enough about me and my misery… on today’s newsletter, we’re getting you ready for much happier times. These next couple weekends are when most leagues will have their drafts, so today we’re comin’ at you with 10 tips to help you win the big day.

Let’s get after it…

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10 Tips to Win Your Draft ✍️

seahawks.com

#1: Be Prepared

(Source: Matthew Berry of Fantasy Life’s Draft Day Manifesto)

We highlight this as our top tip every year because it’s probably the most important one. Before showing up to your draft, you have to know your league settings—how many teams? Is it PPR? Superflex? Four or six points per pass TD? TE-Premium? IR spots? How many FLEX spots? That’s all critical to how you draft and will determine which positions become more or less of a priority.

But where you can gain the biggest edge is in ADP discrepancies. Fantasy Life’s ADP Tool is awesome for this—you can compare ADPs across the three main platforms (ESPN, Sleeper, and Yahoo) for free, or more platforms with FantasyLife+. In his article, Berry highlighted the following…

ESPN ADP vs. Yahoo ADP Differences

• Justin Herbert: 106.7 vs. 69.7

• Caleb Williams: 92.2 vs. 68.1

• Chase Brown: 22.3 vs. 16.4

• D’Andre Swift: 64.4 vs. 47.5

• Chuba Hubbard: 122.2 vs. 83.7

• Tee Higgins: 55.6 vs. 33.5

• Luther Burden: 76.8 vs. 58.7

• Michael Pittman: 91.2 vs. 119.9

• Christian Watson: 95.6 vs. 67.7

• Tucker Kraft: 89.4 vs. 60.9

• Dalton Kincaid: 131.7 vs. 99.1

Add some of these guys to your queue once you get in the draft room so you can keep an eye on them until you’re close enough to pounce (don’t be that person that doesn’t start thinking about their pick till they’re on the clock, then panics).

It also really helps to test out some Mock Drafts ahead of time. My personal preference is using the Sleeper app because of how quickly you can rip through them, but if you’re drafting on a different platform, it might be wise to do a mock on their site with their default rankings.

#2: Don’t Get Married to Anything

(Source: Cooter Doodle of Fantasy Life’s Last-Minute Fantasy Football Draft Tips)

“Drafting is like college. You’re allowed to experiment. But if you want to have a good time, you don’t want to be committed to anything during your draft.

• Don’t get married to any one draft strategy.

• Don’t get married to the ADP.

• Don't get married to a "must-have" player.

Your draft day will be unpredictable. Rather than fighting it, this is your time to experiment and scroll down a few picks.”

So don’t go into your drafts thinking you have to go Zero RB, or Hero RB, or Josh Allen-or-bust or whatever. Be water. Be flexible. Draft good players at whatever position gives you the best value in that moment and you’ll be just fine.

#3: Don’t Finish Positional Runs

(Source: Joel Smyth of Yahoo’s 10 Fantasy Football Draft Tips)

This one might be my favorite because I see it happen all the time…

“It's tempting when you see four straight receivers being drafted in front of you to follow suit. For the most part, you shouldn't. If you love a player, or truly believe the tier continues, go for it; otherwise, panic usually leads to loss of value. Rather than getting the lowest of a position to follow the herd, taking the best player available elsewhere naturally leads to more overall value. If QBs are flying early, be patient, and capitalize on the value at other positions while people reach for others.”

#4: Upside, Always

(Source: Andy Behrens of The Athletic’s Everything Fantasy Football Managers Need to Know for Draft Day)

“The ceiling is for winners; the floor is for cowards. The road to fantasy hell is paved with safe picks. Don’t manage your roster like it’s a retirement plan. If you play in a fantasy league of typical size and shape, your team will go as far as its best players take it.”

Some players Behrens views as high-upside targets include Kenneth Walker, Breece Hall, Cam Skattebo, Jalen Hurts, and more. In my opinion, this strategy is most important when it comes to your bench—I don’t mind “safe” players like Amon-Ra St. Brown early on, but once I’m looking at FLEX options and backups, I’m going balls to the wall.

#5: Draft Players in Good Offenses

(Source: 3 Fantasy Football Draft Tips to Win Your League from the staff at FantasyPros)

This seems intuitive, but it’s easy to fall into volume traps.

For example, Quinshon Judkins averaged 18.3 touches a game for the Browns as a rookie, but Cleveland’s QB situation is bleak and their remade offensive line includes a bunch of guys who have never played together. The Browns’ offense ranked 30th in yardage and 31st in points in 2025. Things aren’t likely to be much better in 2026.

On the other hand, D’Andre Swift will share some of the workload with Kyle Monangai, but it’s worth leaning into the Chicago backfield because the Bears should have one of the better offenses in the league and HC Ben Johnson is one of the best running-game designers.

I would rather have Swift than Judkins, even though Judkins is expected to have more touches. The same goes for WR2s in high-powered offenses (think George Pickens/Tee Higgins) vs. WR1s on terrible teams (think Garrett Wilson/Tetairoa McMillan).

#6: You Can Wait on QBs

(Source: “The Guru” John Hansen of Fantasy Points’ Draft Plan)

“2026 may be the deepest QB class in history, so I’m not paying up for one this year, just like last year, when roughly 60% of the top-12 producers (fantasy PPG) were drafted after the 8th round.”

The Guru can easily find holes in a lot of the top guys’ games, so he’d much rather wait and take one of his six targets: Trevor Lawrence, Justin Herbert, Brock Purdy, Kyler Murray, Tyler Shough, and Malik Willis.

#7: Avoid the Old Guys

(Source: The Fantasy Footballers’ Andy Holloway)

Holloway analyzed data for the 10 oldest fantasy players drafted over the last 10 years, looking at how they performed compared to ADP. He classified them as a win (exceeded ADP), a loss (worse than ADP), or a push (met ADP). Out of the 100 players over the last 10 years, there were 30 wins, 50 losses, and 20 pushes. That’s only a 30% win rate.

When you break it down by position, old WRs were the worst bet with only a 21% hit rate. Typically, the losses were due to availability, not decline, so avoid those guys who seem to always have nagging injuries (*cough *cough Mike Evans).

Over the last decade, drafting one of the 10 oldest players in the first nine rounds lost you money half the time. The only exceptions to this were players who have already proven they can produce in their old age, like Derrick Henry and Travis Kelce.

#8: Get Off to a Fast Start

(Source: Matt Harmon of Yahoo’s Fantasy Football Blueprint)

Best ball brain has many analysts focused on Weeks 15, 16, and 17. But last season, 90.9% of fantasy managers who started off 5-0 made the playoffs. That didn't automatically land you a championship but almost a quarter of them (24.5%) did win their leagues.

Of course, the end of the season is still important. But if you're riding hot coming into mid-October, you can start stacking your bench with late-season upside stashes like your favorite rookie WR or a high-end backup RB when you don't have to worry about chasing needs on waivers. You can get the best of both worlds with that hot start.

So how do you accomplish this? Harmon recommends avoiding the allure and delayed gratification siren song of the suspended replacement-level receiver or injury discount. He also suggests breaking ties in favor of players in proven situations with projectable volume.

#9: Championships Are Won on the Waiver Wire

#MambaMentality

(Source: Jay Felicio of QB List’s Draft Guide)

Your job’s not finished after draft day. While last year’s waiver wire wasn’t as fruitful as previous seasons, we still saw players like Jacoby Brissett, Kimani Vidal, Troy Franklin, and Michael Wilson all provide stretches of legitimate fantasy production. Hell, Wilson was the WR4(!!!) from Weeks 10 through 17.

As Felicio says in his article:

“Pay attention to your league. Pay attention to who’s dropped. For the love of Funyuns, don’t fill your bench with “safe” veterans because they’re recognizable names that make you feel warm and fuzzy about bye weeks and depth. Congratulations. You now have six players you’ll never start.

Your bench should be working for you. You want players who have the shortest or multiple paths to gaining value. A backup running back who could inherit a heavy workload if the starter gets hurt. A rookie receiver whose targets keep climbing. A player whose role suddenly looks different than it did in August.”

#10: Have Fun!

Our Morning Huddle league of record draft last week

(Source: Us)

Nothing beats draft day. Enjoy it! Catch up with friends, have a few drinks if you want, and don’t take it too seriously. Of course you want to win, but you’ve been reading the Morning Huddle all offseason, so don’t stress—you’ve got this!

At the end of the day, get your guys and ignore your friend who thinks you reached because his two month old fantasy football magazine says so.

POLL 📊

ROOKIE SPOTLIGHT 🔦

Mike Washington Jr.

Big Mike // AP Photo

Current ADP: RB42
Our Rank: RB40

At an impressive 6’2” 228 lbs, the Raiders’ 4th round pick clocked the fastest speed (21.21 MPH) among all RBs at this year’s Senior Bowl, and then went on to run a blazing 4.33 40 at the Combine. Washington’s perfect Relative Athletic Score (RAS) of 10.00 ranks him as the most athletic RB since at least 1987!

Unfortunately for Big Mike, he’s stuck behind 2025 6th overall pick Ashton Jeanty, who—despite an injury scare—is set to be the bellcow in Vegas. For that reason, we have Washington ranked among the other top-tier handcuffs in the RB3/4 range.

RANKINGS 📊

ICYMI: The 2026 edition of the Morning Huddle Cheat Sheet is HERE! Updated every Friday in August, it’s the only tool you’ll need on draft day, complete with over 200 players ranked, tiered, and paired with consensus ADP to help you crush your leaguemates’ hopes and dreams. And this year, the Cheat Sheet is included as part of our new weekly Morning Huddle Rankings, which will be available all season for only $4/month.

And since we’re never wrong about anything, you can cancel at anytime. No contracts, no commitments. We want you to be glad to have these, and if you’re not we’ll send your money back!

Grab yours now!👇

QUICK SLANTS 👀

📖 Read Risk Baked Into ADP: WRs from Javier Manzanera of The Fantasy Footballers, where he looks at risky players and determines whether their ADPs have fallen far enough that the possible reward now outweighs the cost of being wrong. While you’re at it, check out his articles from this same series on QBs, RBs and TEs as well.

📖 ESPN created its own Fantasy Football Hall of Fame and inducted it’s first two members: one player and one moment. Those who vividly remember the 2000s and 2010s will love them.

📖 Read League-Winners, Targets, and Values from the staff at Fantasy Points ($) for their favorite players to draft based on the current market.

📺 Watch this locker room speech from Cowboys rookie OT Shiyazh Pete, who became the first member of the Navajo Nation to sign with an NFL team. My favorite part is the guy in the background yelling “That’s a bar!!! That’s a bar!!!”:

Twitter tweet

TWEET OF THE DAY ✍️

Twitter tweet

Mike Washington RB1 szn was fun while it lasted.

Just 14 days until regular season NFL football! Until then, avoid filling your time with $140 prostitutes at trailer parks.

See you Friday.

- Marcus

Good morning.

And thank goodness for all you Ashton Jeanty managers out there who may have dodged a bullet… In case you didn’t hear, his injury is believed to be just a sprained ankle. Hallelujah!🙌

As for today’s newsletter, we’re looking at some players we have no idea how to rank, with the hopes that after digging through some additional insight, we can try to get off the fence and decide whether we’re in our out on them at their current ADP.

Let’s get after it…

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Hardest Players to Rank 🤔

Doubting De’Von?

De’Von Achane // Imagn Images

Dolphins RB De’Von Achane (ADP: RB9)

• Since entering the league in 2023, Achane ranks 1st among RBs with at least 150 carries in yards per carry and yards after contact per attempt, per Fantasy Life’s Adam Pfeifer. He’s also averaged 72.5 catches and 86 targets per year, thanks to Tua Tagovailoa’s healthy 14.5% checkdown rate. That likely won’t be the case with new QB Malik Willis, who has a 15% scramble rate, while sporting a checkdown rate of only 6.7%. Achane averaged only 10.5 fantasy PPG in eight games without Tua (compared to 19.9 PPG in 37 games with him), per PFN’s Jason Katz, so it’s hard to know which guy we’ll get in 2027.

• Take: HC Jeff Hafley said Achane should expect 40+ touches per week, so it’s hard to fully fade that kind of workload. But out of personal preference, I lean in favor of the RBs on good teams in this range (Brown, Cook, Barkley, Walker, Hampton) for their TD-upside.

Bucs RB Bucky Irving (ADP: RB23)

• “Out of 55 RBs who had 100+ opportunities last season, Irving ranked 52nd in rushing success rate and 55th in EPA per rush. When he returned from injury, he saw his passing-down work cut for Rachaad White and goal-line work cut for Sean Tucker. Given that Kenneth Gainwell joined the team in free agency and Tucker was brought back, Irving could be facing the same fate in 2026.” — Yahoo’s Matt Harmon

• Take: Irving’s among the last of the clear “starting” RBs I’m drafting. He’ll be efficient now that he’s fully healthy, but he’ll still lose valuable goal line work to Tucker and receiving work to Gainwell. Irving is no more than a low-end RB2 in my eyes.

Seahawks RB Jadarian Price (ADP: RB25)

• Price is an unproven prospect, as he was the first RB in NFL Draft history to be drafted in Round 1 or Round 2 and never reach 125 touches in a single CFB season, per Fantasy Points’ Scott Barrett. With that being said, he has a clear path to touches while Zach Charbonnet rehabs from his ACL tear. His only competition in the meantime is George Holani (UDFA with 28 touches in 16 career games) and Emanuel Wilson (former UDFA on a one-year $2M contract with under $600k guaranteed).

• Take: I’ve come around on Price as an RB2. I got cold feet after reports that Charbonnet could return as soon as Week 1, but now I’m thinking much more realistically. Charbonnet won’t be a full go till half way through the season at best, and Price could easily prove himself enough before then to earn a permanent role. Early reports are also very promising:

Bears WR Rome Odunze (ADP: WR27)

• Odunze charged out of the gates last year with 19.9 fantasy PPG as the fantasy WR3 from Weeks 1-4. But after suffering a foot injury, he scored only 7.6 fantasy PPG from Weeks 9-18. During that stretch, he had just a 38.2% catch rate, the 6th-most drops, and had 37.7% of his fantasy points come from TDs alone, per Fantasy Points Data. He didn’t look like the same receiver, as his 0.452 average separation score (ASS) over the first four weeks collapsed to 0.038 post-injury to end the season, per Fantasy Points’ Kyle Menton.

• Take: Odunze’s foot injury scares me. He said his foot structure has changed and he has to get used to this being his “new normal.” For that reason, I prefer Luther Burden and Colston Loveland in this offense, while I’m treating Odunze like a boom-or-bust WR3/FLEX who will mostly be used as a red zone weapon.

Cardinals WR Marvin Harrison Jr. (ADP: WR31)

• “Will we see the superstar who flashed at Ohio State, dominating his final two seasons and landing as the No. 4 pick in the 2024 draft? Maybe it will be the Harrison of his rookie year, who logged a respectable WR29 finish. And then there's the Harrison crash of last season, when he tumbled to WR48 (in part due to injury) and was outplayed by unheralded Michael Wilson.” — Yahoo’s Scott Pianowski

• Take: I’d rather not bank on a player as unpredictable as Marv, especially on a terrible team like Arizona. I’ll let someone else decide if they want what could be the Cards’ “sacrificial X”.

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield (ADP: QB18)

• Mayfield’s had an up and down career, as evidenced by his last three seasons:

  • 2023: 16.1 PPG (QB17)

  • 2024: 21.5 PPG (QB4)

  • 2025: 16 PPG (QB18)

  (per Ian Hartitz, formerly of Fantasy Life)

  So which Mayfield will we get in 2026?

• Take: Most of Mayfield’s troubles stem from injury, both dating back to his time in Cleveland and recently in Tampa. The reality is Baker’s been a stud since joining the Bucs, as he set career-high marks in passing yards (4,044) and TDs (28) in 2023 before exploding for 4,500 yards and 41 scores under Liam Coen's direction in 2024. Then, for the first month of last season he looked like an MVP before injuries to himself, Mike Evans, and others derailed things. He’s reportedly back healthy and will play pissed off after not getting a contract extension. I like a pissed off Baker. Give me him as my QB2 in every league possible.

Packers TE Tucker Kraft (ADP: TE5) & 49ers TE George Kittle (ADP: TE9)

• The case is similar for both of these guys—physical freaks and fantasy heroes, both recovering from severe injuries (torn ACL for Kraft, torn Achilles for Kittle). Before their injuries last year, Kraft and Kittle were tied with Brock Bowers for the 2nd-most fantasy PPG among TEs (14.7), per PFF’s Nathan Jahnke. Kraft is expected to be good to go for Week 1, but could see his reps limited, while Kittle’s Week 1 status is a little more questionable, but he was just activated off the PUP list and is trending in the right direction.

• Take: I certainly favor the younger Kraft. Being 25 years old and coming off major surgery is a little different than doing it at 32. With that being said, I’m fine with both at cost. But if I do draft one of these guys, I tend to take a strong backup TE like Juwan Johnson, who should have a good start to the season with Jordyn Tyson sidelined in New Orleans.

POLL 📊

ROOKIE SPOTLIGHT 🔦

De’Zhaun Stribling

Welcome to The Strib Club // ESPN

Current ADP: WR41
Our Rank: WR38

While many draft experts saw Stribling as a Day 3 pick, the Niners shocked everybody when they took him 33rd overall. The rookie was an underneath receiver in college, seeing 73% of his targets between 0 and 19 yards, with a career aDOT of 11.5 (52nd percentile). He aligned wide on 81% of snaps and was a plus-player in YAC, as his 6.0 average was +1 yard over expected after adjusting for aDOT, per Fantasy Life’s Dwain McFarland.

While his prospect profile was unimpressive, he’s done nothing but turn heads since training camp started. This preseason, Stribling has run 21 routes and been targeted on over 50% of them, per ETR’s Cody Main. He also has the highest targets per route run (59.1%) of any WR since 2015, per JJ Zachariason, and is the first player in at least 20 years to total 11 catches within the first 20 minutes of two consecutive preseason games, per Ryan Pagnetti. Following this strong showing and the season-ending injury to Ricky Pearsall, The Athletic’s Matt Barrows believes Stribling is “going to have a major role” in Week 1 against the Rams. Will that actually be the case, or is he just the latest preseason hype train that turns into nothing? We’ll see. But this drumbeat feels pretty real. I like Stribling as a solid FLEX option.

RANKINGS 📊

ICYMI: The 2026 edition of the Morning Huddle Cheat Sheet is HERE! Updated every Friday in August, it’s the only tool you’ll need on draft day, complete with over 200 players ranked, tiered, and paired with consensus ADP to help you crush your leaguemates’ hopes and dreams. And this year, the Cheat Sheet is included as part of our new weekly Morning Huddle Rankings, which will be available all season for only $4/month.

And since we’re never wrong about anything, you can cancel at anytime. No contracts, no commitments. We want you to be glad to have these, and if you’re not we’ll send your money back!

Grab yours now!👇

QUICK SLANTS 👀

📖 Read NFL Preseason Week 2 Takeaways For Fantasy Football: Cyrus Allen, Emmett Johnson & More from Fantasy Life’s Dwain McFarland, where he breaks down the biggest utilization and usage takeaways from this past weekend.

📖 Read Adam Koffler of RotoBaller's Fantasy Football League-Winners: 5 Mid-Round Must-Draft Players to see which Bears and Jags WRs he’s banking on.

📖 Check out The Athletic’s Fantasy Football Draft Kit ($) for links to their most important articles, rankings, and their all new Draft Assistant, where you can compare up to five players side-by-side to see fantasy scouting reports, rankings and point projections before or during your draft.

📺 Watch Biggest Winners & Losers from NFL Preseason Week 2 | Deshaun Watson struggles against Bills & MORE from CBS Sports HQ:

TWEET OF THE DAY ✍️

Just 16 days until regular season NFL football! Until then, I’ll be glued to my phone waiting for the Browns to name Shedeur Sanders as their starting QB.🤞 It’s not that I think he’ll be any good, it’s just that my mental health will be severely affected if I have to watch Deshaun Watson play another snap.🤦‍♂️

See you Wednesday.

- Marcus

Good morning.

Week 2 of the NFL Preseason is upon us, which might be even worse than Week 1 because half the teams are playing their starters in joint practices and not the games.😒 I guess I’ll just stick to watching baseball… at least my Cubbies are giving me something to cheer about #MVPete!

As for today’s newsletter, we’re taking a look at regression candidates. While that term usually has a negative connotation, it simply means a return to the mean (average) and can be either positive or negative. In the context of fantasy football, that means we’re trying to spot players who either overperformed or underperformed last year based on their expectations and career baselines.

Let’s get after it…

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Positive Regression 📈

A Big Jump for Jeanty

Ashton Jeanty — Raiders.com

Raiders RB Ashton Jeanty

• Jeanty owned the league’s highest share of backfield carries inside the 10-yard line (94.1%), but the Raiders scored an NFL-low 20.0% of their offensive TDs via rushing. Las Vegas became just the 12th team over the past decade to score at least 80% of its TDs through the air, per The Athletic’s Dalton Del Don. If that regresses to the mean, and if the team’s o-line improves (Jeanty was hit behind the line of scrimmage on nearly half of his runs, per Fantasy Points’ Ryan Heath), then the RB could see a big jump in production.

Bengals RB Chase Brown

• It was a tale of two seasons for the Bengals offense in 2025…

  Weeks 3-12 (without Burrow):

  • 36% drives with a score (20th)

  • 21% drives with a TD (23rd)

  • 15% rushing TD rate (32nd)

  • 59.4 plays per game (21st)

  Weeks 13-18 (with Burrow):

  • 47% of drives with a score (6th)

  • 34% of drives with a TD (6th)

  • 29% rushing TD rate (24th)

  • 68.0 plays per game (1st)

  (per Fantasy Life’s Adam Pfeifer)

  During this final stretch, Brown averaged 22.2 fantasy PPG (RB2) and scored eight TDs. A healthy Burrow could mean league-winning potential from Chase Brown.

Vikings WR Justin Jefferson

• In 2025, Jefferson managed a mere two receiving TDs on his way to 9.4 fantasy PPG. If the Vikings see at least league-average QB play from Kyler Murray, then we should expect JJettas to return to an output much closer to the 9.5 targets, 6.4 receptions, 107.5 receiving yards, and 16.2 fantasy PPG he posted from 2020-2024, per 4for4’s Neil Dutton.

Bucs WR Mike Evans

• Last season, Evans scored just three TDs, tied for the lowest of his career (his 2nd NFL season). Before that, he averaged 9.54 TDs per year. This season, he’ll be paired with Brock Purdy, who threw 20 TDs in only nine games in 2025, per Fantasy Six Pack’s James Knight. The only question for Evans will be health, but otherwise he should be a red zone monster for the Niners.

Bills TE Dalton Kincaid

• In 2025, there was no better TD on a per-route basis:

  • 1st in yards per route run – 3.02

  • 1st in first downs per route run – 0.143

  • 1st in fantasy points per route run – 0.67

  • 1st in yards per target – 11.7

  • 1st in target rate – 25.9%

  • 1st in QB Rating per target – 149.2

  • 1st in explosive plays – 13

  • 2nd in fantasy points per target – 2.57

  • 2nd in yards per reception – 14.6

  • 8th in Expected Points Added – +44.3

The problem is Kincaid had just a 38.3% snap share last year, which was 70th among all TEs, and ran only 189 routes, which ranked 47th at the position, per FantasyPros’ Wolf Trelles-Heard. The team was mostly managing his snaps due to knee issues, but if Kincaid is fully healthy and sees even the slightest uptick in usage, he’ll beat his ADP.

Negative Regression 📉

Johnny Touchdown

Jonathan Taylor // NFL.com

Colts RB Jonathan Taylor

• Taylor led the NFL with 42.7 fantasy points scored from the 1-yard line, blowing away his averages over the previous five years, per Dalton Del Don. The Colts also led the NFL in rushing TD% (51.9), which typically regresses the following season. In fact, Indy was one of the most efficient teams at the goal line in the last 25 years—scoring a TD on a whopping 30-of-32 opportunities. Thanks to that ridiculous efficiency, Taylor led the league in TDs scored over expected. That’s likely to come down in 2026.

Broncos RB R.J. Harvey

• Among 64 RBs with at least 50 carries last year, Harvey ranked 59th in EPA/rush (-0.15), 52nd in YPC (3.7), 51st in success rate (36.3%), and 62nd in explosive rush rate (2.74%), per Adam Pfeifer. Despite this, Harvey was a moderate fantasy success thanks to his 12 TDs (T-12th in the NFL), which he scored on only 193 touches—that’s unsustainable.

Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba

• JSN’s target share of 35.9% last year was the highest of any WR in at least 10 seasons, per Wolf Trelles-Heard. He needed that heavy of a workload to produce, as the Seahawks ranked just 30th in team pass plays per game (29.8) and tied for 30th in Pass Rate Over Expectation (-6.6%). With the departure of OC Klint Kubiak to Las Vegas, it’s hard to expect that type of efficiency to replicate itself.

Rams WR Davante Adams

• Adams’ league-leading 14 TDs last year were the 2nd highest of his career and most since 2022—the last of his six consecutive Pro Bowl campaigns. He managed this despite reeling in just 60 catches for 789 yards, his lowest marks in a decade. Heading into his age 34 season, it’s safe to account for some regression here. And since Adams averaged a pedestrian 9.3 fantasy PPG in the seven games he failed to score last year, per Bleacher Report’s Alex Kay, it’s unlikely we see him put up another top-10 WR season.

Eagles TE Dallas Goedert

• Goedert scored 13 TDs in 16 games (including playoffs) last season. Before that, he had never scored more than five TDs in a season. He’s not a bad low-end TE1—especially given the departure of A.J. Brown—but just remember he averaged a career-low 9.9 yards per reception, and eight of those 13 scores came from inside the five-yard line, per Fantasy Life’s Kendall Valenzuela.

Note: Matthew Stafford and Trey McBride are also major negative regression candidates, but I talked about that in our QB and TE Previews and didn’t want to repeat myself.

POLL 📊

ROOKIE SPOTLIGHT 🔦

Denzel Boston

Denzel Boston // AP Photo

Current ADP: WR60
Our Rank: WR60

At 6’3 5/8” 212 lbs, Boston is a prototypical ‘X’ receiver with elite ball skills, outstanding contested-catch ability (76.9% rate in 2025), and reliable hands (only five total drops in his entire college career), per The Fantasy Footballers’ Julia Papworth. That natural talent has shown itself in training camp, as the rookie has already been promoted to the team’s starting X receiver and has earned comps to Drake London and Mike Evans.

Twitter tweet

While that’s great news for Boston dynasty managers and Browns fans like myself, let’s not get too hyped up about the “sacrificial X” on what might be one of the worst passing offenses in the league this year. He’s worthy of a late-round flier, but KC Concepcion will be the primary option this passing offense, as he’s more likely to get “layup targets” and rely less on QB competency.

RANKINGS 📊

📉 Giants QB Jaxson Dart (-3) is surrounded by bad vibes. His new OC Matt Nagy found a way to make Patrick Mahomes—the best QB in the league—average, and last week’s preseason game was a reminder that Dart spends more time in the blue medical tent than he does in the pocket.

📈 Saints WR Chris Olave (+5) jumps up to the middle of that tier of WRs I love to draft in the 3rd round, largely due to Jordyn Tyson’s injury. My concern coming into the season was how many targets Tyson might take away from Olave, but now with injury concerns continuing to plague the rookie, I’m back in on the vet.

📉 Giants RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (-9) might’ve just tanked his career on one missed block. The team signed Najee Harris after the game (though they reportedly planned to do that anyway), but maybe more significantly, that one play put Tracy in a “different light,” with the coaching staff, per Giants beat reporter Art Stapleton.

📈 49ers WR De’Zhaun Stribling (+4) continues to impress. He had seven catches for 63 yards in the team’s first preseason game, LT Trent Williams praised him on the broadcast, he was called “the best WR on the team” by beat reporter Grant Cohn, and now he’s dominating the Chargers in joint practices. Consider me part of The Strib Club.💵

To see the rest of our rankings, download the 2026 Morning Huddle Cheat Sheet! This year, the Cheat Sheet is included as part of our new weekly Morning Huddle Rankings, which will be available for only $4/month. Grab yours now!👇

QUICK SLANTS 👀

📖 Read Nick Mariano of RotoBaller's Fantasy Football League-Winners: 7 Must-Draft Players. Unfortunately, one of them has since gone down with a hip injury, but he makes a strong case for the other six to be major values.

📖 Read Wide Receiver Sleepers and Breakouts: Vacated Air Yards and Targets from Dan Palyo (also at RotoBaller), where he outlines which WRs have huge opportunities in 2026 based on the amount of vacated air yards and targets on their teams.

📖 Read What to Do When Your Fantasy Draft Doesn’t Go as Planned by FTN Fantasy’s Jeff Ratcliffe for tips on how to respond when you inevitably get sniped on picks, miss out on positional runs, and more.

📺 Watch We Changed Our Minds on These 12 Players from Footballguys, where Dave Kluge and Jason Wood discuss players they've changed their opinions on throughout this offseason:

TWEET OF THE DAY ✍️

Twitter tweet

Just 19 days until regular season NFL football! Until then, enjoy another weekend of preseason action (or don’t, I won’t blame you).

See you Monday.

- Marcus

Good morning.

I don’t know about you, but it’s been feeling like Russian Roulette every time I refresh my Twitter feed with all these injuries. We really need a Madden “Sim to Season” button before my dynasty team is stuck starting Nick Westbrook-Ikhine…

As for today’s newsletter, we’re wrapping up our position previews with TEs. Usually the strategy for this position is “great or late,” but as you’ll see by our list, there are quite a few intriguing options in the middle rounds this year.

Let’s get after it…

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TE BREAKOUTS 🚀

All You Need is Love(land)

Colston Loveland // Bears Wire

Bears TE Colston Loveland (ADP: TE3)

• From Week 9 through the rest of the season, Loveland's 14.3 PPR PPG ranked 5th at the position, per Fantasy Life’s Danny Cross. But the rookie’s stock went nuclear after he put up 137 yards on eight catches (15 targets!!) against the Packers in the Wild Card round. After his mid-season breakout, Loveland led all Bears pass-catchers with a 23% target share, 25% yards per route run, and a 71% route share, per Cross, dusting the WRs in usage despite running fewer routes than either Rome Odunze or D.J. Moore. That suggests this passing game will go through him, especially with Moore off to Buffalo and Luther Burden likely missing the rest of camp with a groin injury.

Colts TE Tyler Warren (ADP: TE4)

• As a rookie last year, Warren was 5th among TEs in route share (79.9%), 3rd in targets (106), and 6th in targets per game (6.2) and target share (19.4%), per Fantasy Point’s John Hansen—and now veteran Michael Pittman and his 19.7% target share last year is off the roster. Sure, the team did recently add Keenan Allen, but that’s been offset by Alec Pierce’s lingering ankle/heel injury. With a little more TD luck and hopefully a healthy season, Warren could take a big step in year two.

Lions TE Sam LaPorta (ADP: TE6)

• New Lions OC Drew Petzing comes from the Arizona Cardinals, where he lead the league in TE target share in 2023, 2024, and 2025, per Draft Sharks’ Kevin English. Under Petzing, Trey McBride went from 6.2 to 9.9 targets per game, with his PPR production also jumping from 10.7 to 18.9 PPG in that span. In the 24 career games LaPorta has seen 6+ targets, he's scored 10+ PPR points 21 times and 13+ PPR points 18 times, per CBS Sports’ Dave Richard. Check out the thread below for even more insight on LaPorta👇

Twitter tweet

Giants TE Isaiah Likely (ADP: TE12)

• The Giants signed Likely to a 3-year, $40 million contract, reuniting him with HC John Harbaugh. That kind of money should place him atop the TE depth chart and firmly in 2nd on the team in targets (behind Malik Nabers). Likely has already shown his starting potential, producing 322 yards and five TDs over a six-game stretch without Mark Andrews in 2023, per Athlon Sports’ Cory Bonini.

TE BUSTS ❌

Cold Feet for McBride

Trey McBride // Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images

Much like the QBs, let me preface this section by saying I’m fine with any of these guys as my starter, but they’re the most likely of all to finish short of their ADP.

Cardinals TE Trey McBride (ADP: TE2)

• McBride reached 1100+ yards the last two seasons thanks to volume, but he was below average in yards per reception (9.83) and yards per target (7.51) among TEs last season, per the staff at Fantasy Points. Factor in the loss of Petzing, as I mentioned earlier, and it’s easy to make a case for some regression here.

Packers TE Tucker Kraft (ADP: TE5)

• Kraft was the TE2 in fantasy scoring behind only Trey McBride when he went down with a torn ACL last year, per The Big Lead’s Matt De Lima. But talent isn’t the issue… health is. Kraft will be a little over 10 months removed from his ACL tear by Week 1, so it’s safe to assume he might not be 100% from the jump. That was confirmed when he recently said, “They’re going to take into account my rep range probably until halfway through the season.” That isn’t what fantasy managers want to hear when they have to spend a 5th/6th round pick on a guy.

Falcons TE Kyle Pitts (ADP: TE7)

• Pitts finished as the TE2 last year with career-highs in receptions (88) and TDs (five). However, 35 of his catches, 422 of his yards, and three of his TDs came with Drake London on the sidelines. That's 45.4% of Pitts' final yardage in just five games, per RotoBaller’s Andrew Ball. He could benefit from HC Kevin Stefanski’s TE-friendly system this year, but given his inconsistencies last season and the team’s depressing QB battle between Tua Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr., he’s a risky pick.

Browns TE Harold Fannin Jr. (ADP: TE8)

• Fannin led the Browns in targets last season with 107 (21.36% target share, 5th among TEs), per Fantasy Six Pack’s Corey Pieper. However, there’s no guarantee he’ll be the team’s top target in 2026. The Browns used two of the top-40 picks in the draft to select WRs KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston, who have been dominating in training camp. Plus, Fannin did much of his damage last year with Shedeur Sanders at QB, but all signs are pointing to Deshaun Watson winning this QB battle. Regardless, this will be one of the lowest scoring offenses, and Fannin isn’t guaranteed the same “easy button” targets as he got last year:

TE SLEEPERS 😴

On The Mark

Mark Andrews // Getty Images

Ravens TE Mark Andrews (ADP: TE13)

• Not gonna lie, Andrews could be washed—he finished as the TE18 last year and was TE24 on a per-game basis. But there’s a chance that was just an outlier—he did have 11 TDs the previous season after finishing as TE4 on a per-game basis the year before that. Plus, the team gave him a 3-year, $39M extension and then let Isaiah Likely and Charlie Kolar walk. At the end of the day, Andrews will likely be the #2 target on what could be a strong offense this season.

Saints TE Juwan Johnson (ADP: TE18)

• Tyler Shough’s 27.9% target rate to TEs is 5th-highest from 2023-2025, per Fantasy Points’ Jake Tribbey, and it led to some sneaky production last season. Johnson averaged 57.4 receiving YPG, 1.94 YPRR, and 11.4 FPG in his 10 full games with Shough. Over the full season, those numbers would have ranked 3rd-best, 8th-best, and 9th-best among TEs. Factor in the recent injury to Jordyn Tyson, and JJ’s a steal at his current ADP.

Rams TE Terrance Ferguson (ADP: TE23)

• LA’s TE room is deep, but Ferguson’s the young, high-upside deep threat you want to target. The 2025 46th overall pick ranked behind just speedsters Tyquan Thornton and Alec Pierce with a 21.0 yards per route average, while easily leading the league with a 70% explosive catch rate, per the staff at Fantasy Points. He was also the league leader in total deep targets (passes of 20+ yards) with 15, per Fantasy Life’s Tipp Major, and has the highest average depth of target (18.3) by a TE in Fantasy Points Data history.

Dolphins TE Greg Dulcich (ADP: TE26)

• Last year, among 59 qualifying TEs, Dulcich ranked 5th in targets per route run, 2nd in yards per route run, 2nd in yards after catch per reception, and 5th in first downs per route run, per FantasyPros’ Derek Brown. He has the least target competition of any TE in football and is virtually free in drafts.

POLL 📊

ROOKIE SPOTLIGHT 🔦

Kenyon Sadiq

Kenyon Sadiq // Adam Hunger, AP Photo

Current ADP: TE21
Our Rank: TE28

Sadiq was built in a lab. At 6’3” 241 lbs, the 21-year-old had one of the best days ever by a TE at the Combine this past February:

40-Yard Dash: 4.39 (best ever by a TE)
Vertical Jump: 43.5’’ (2nd-best ever by a TE)
Broad Jump: 11’1’’ (3rd-best ever by a TE)

On top of that, he hit 23.2 mph, which is as fast as Jahmyr Gibbs (despite being 40+ lbs heavier) and has the 6th best run blocking grade among TEs in this class, per Warren Sharp.

Unfortunately, Sadiq got drafted by the Jets—football hell. Last year’s Jets had only two players exceed 11.0 yards per catch and totaled just 15 TD receptions, per Draft Sharks. For Sadiq to be fantasy-relevant this year, we’ll need to see this offense take a huge jump under Geno Smith. And even then, the WR/TE rooms are suddenly pretty crowded (Garrett Wilson, AD Mitchell, Omar Cooper Jr., Mason Taylor…). This makes Sadiq difficult to draft this year, but New York's three 2027 1st-round picks could help land a franchise QB, making him desirable in dynasty.

RANKINGS 📊

ICYMI: The 2026 edition of the Morning Huddle Cheat Sheet is HERE! Updated every Friday in August, it’s the only tool you’ll need on draft day, complete with over 200 players ranked, tiered, and paired with consensus ADP to help you crush your leaguemates’ hopes and dreams. And this year, the Cheat Sheet is included as part of our new weekly Morning Huddle Rankings, which will be available all season for only $4/month.

And since we’re never wrong about anything, you can cancel at anytime. No contracts, no commitments. We want you to be glad to have these, and if you’re not we’ll send your money back!

Grab yours now!👇

QUICK SLANTS 👀

📖 Read Matt Harmon of Yahoo’s 2026 Fantasy Football Blueprint for a thorough draft guide with info on fantasy ecosystems, fast starts vs. hot finishes, Harmon’s “My Guys,” and more.

📖 Read Kyle Ziegler of FantasyPros’ 5 Hot Takes For the 2026 NFL Season, which include a bullish prediction for Cam Skattebo.

📖 Read Cooter Doodle of Fantasy Life’s Fantasy Football Team Names for 2026, where she has over 200 ideas based on movies, players, and more, including my personal favorites, That’s What Shaheed Said and Unsolicited Nix Pics.

📺 Watch Sleeper Picks + Late Round Steals from The Fantasy Footballers, where Andy, Mike, and Jason each dig deep to pick some players that are going LATE in drafts. Plus, the latest injury updates, and a look at the biggest ADP risers from recent drafts:

TWEET OF THE DAY ✍️

Twitter tweet

Just 21 days until regular season NFL football! Until then, I’m going to continue doing 58 Sleeper mock drafts a day because I don’t have any other hobbies.

Twitter tweet

See you Friday.

- Marcus

Good morning.

Week 1 of the NFL Preseason is officially in the books! That means if your favorite sleeper played well, you were 100% right—he’s gonna be a stud. But if he played like shit, it doesn’t matter—it’s only the preseason.✊

As for today, we’re continuing our position previews with QBs. So let’s get after it…

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QB BREAKOUTS 🚀

Watch Out For Williams

Madden 27 Cover // NFL.com

Bears QB Caleb Williams (ADP: QB7)

• The “Iceman” is entering his 2nd year under HC Ben Johnson, and he’s coming off a 3.4 fantasy PPG jump from his rookie season. In 34 career games, Williams has 47 TD passes and just 13 INTs, while adding 483 and 383 rushing yards, respectively, in his two seasons, with three TDs in 2025 after zero in his rookie year, per The Athletic’s Jake Ciely. In his final six outings, including the playoffs, Williams averaged 23.7 fantasy PPG and will look to continue this upward trajectory in 2026 with one of the best combos of coach + supporting cast in the league.

Jags QB Trevor Lawrence (ADP: QB10)

• You could argue last year was his breakout, but T-Law could take it up a notch even further in 2026. He only played six games with Brian Thomas Jr., Jakobi Meyers, Brenton Strange and Parker Washington all in the lineup last season. In those 6 games, he averaged 27.6 fantasy PPG, per FantasyPros’ Andrew Erickson. If Jacksonville can stay healthy, look for another leap for this offense in Year 2 of Liam Coen’s system.

Twitter tweet

Giants QB Jaxson Dart (ADP: QB11)

• Dart averaged 20.13 fantasy PPG in his 12 starts. Over the full season, that figure would have made him the QB4, per NFL.com’s Matt Okada. He's one of the most dangerous rushing QBs in the league—hitting 487 yards and nine TDs in those 12 starts—and could improve as a passer with the return of Malik Nabers and the addition of Isaiah Likely.

Saints QB Tyler Shough (ADP: QB20)

• “In Weeks 13-18 last season, Shough had 117.5 fantasy points (QB4) and he scored at least 17 in each game. He's a timing-and-location thrower in Kellen Moore's system, plus he can create as a runner (186 yards rushing, 3 TDs). With a boost from the addition of rookie WR Jordyn Tyson (if healthy) to play opposite Chris Olave, Shough has the skill set—and the coach—to push the QB1 line.” — ESPN’s Matt Bowen

QB BUSTS ❌

Maye-be a Fluke?

Drake Maye // The Boston Globe

Let me preface this section by saying I’m fine with any of these QBs as my starter, but they’re the most likely of all to finish short of their ADP.

Patriots QB Drake Maye (ADP: QB4)

• The Pats had the easiest strength of schedule in the league last season, avoided every top-10 scoring defense, and feasted on eight games against bottom-9 units, per Yahoo’s Matt De Lima. After winning the AFC East, that won’t be the case this year—New England will now carry the 5th-hardest strength of schedule for passing as they’ll go up against Pittsburgh, Seattle and the defenses of the NFC North and AFC West. This will certainly be a “prove it” year for Maye.

Commanders QB Jayden Daniels (ADP: QB5)
*crossed out his ADP out of respect

• Injuries are always a concern for a slim, mobile QB like Daniels. But even when he was healthy last season, he produced more like a mid-tier option than an elite one. Daniels averaged 18.9 fantasy PPG (QB13) in Weeks 1 through 9 and regressed across most metrics—his completion % dropped by 8.4% compared to 2024, his TD rate also declined, in tandem with a much-reduced QB rating, and he netted 1.2 fewer yards per carry on a steep drop in rushing attempts per game, per Touchdown Wire’s B.J. Rudell.

Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes (ADP: QB13)

• Mahomes rushed for career highs in yards (422) and TDs (5) last season, despite missing the final three games, per SI’s Michael Fabiano. Coming off an ACL tear and with the addition of Kenneth Walker III, it’s hard to expect him to put up similar rushing totals in 2026. I’d rather not rely on outlier passing numbers from a guy coming off major knee surgery on a team that many expect to lean on the running game.

Rams QB Matthew Stafford (ADP: QB15)

• Last year’s MVP is due for some regression. His 46 TDs were more than he tossed in 2023 and 2024 combined. Outside of Stafford’s 2025 campaign, there have been seven instances in NFL history of a QB throwing for at least 46 TDs in a single season—those passers averaged 16.4 fewer TD tosses in their next full season, per FantasyPros’ Wolf Trelles-Heard. This should be especially noticeable inside the 10-yard line, where Stafford’s passing TD rate spiked to 46.6% (7th) in 2025 from just 25.6% (34th) in 2024, per Ian Hartitz, formerly of Fantasy Life.

Twitter tweet

QB SLEEPERS 😴

Goffenheimer

Jared Goff // NFL.com

Lions QB Jared Goff (ADP: QB16)

• Goff brings both a high floor and ceiling this year. First off, he’s as safe as they come, throwing for at least 4,400 yards and 29 TDs in each of the past four seasons. As for his ceiling, it comes from two factors—his schedule and his defense. Per Warren Sharp’s Strength of Schedule Analysis, the Lions have the easiest schedule in the league this year and will be playing nearly all of their late-season games either indoors or in optimal conditions. Plus, the team has lost three starters in their secondary and could find themselves in several shootouts, forcing Goff into more pass attempts (think previous Joe Burrow and Dak Prescott seasons).

Vikings QB Kyler Murray (ADP: QB17)

• Under Kevin O’Connell, the Vikings have ranked 2nd > 1st > 6th > 30th in passing yards and t-3rd > t-4th > 5th > 18th in passing TDs, per Fantasy Points’ Bill O’Brien. O’Connell was able to achieve those numbers with the likes of Kirk Cousins, Josh Dobbs, and Nick Mullens while resurrecting the career of Sam Darnold before the bottom fell out with J.J. McCarthy at the helm last season. It’s certainly within the range of outcomes that KOC can pull a Darnold-like resurrection out of Murray and return this offense to a top-5 passing offense.

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Dolphins QB Malik Willis (ADP: QB21)

• In his three relief starts over the last two years with the Packers, Willis posted rushing totals of 41, 60 and 73 yards while averaging a TD per game on the ground. Unsurprisingly, he finished as a top-7 fantasy QB in two of those three contests, per Yahoo’s Justin Boone. The resume is lacking, but the upside is huge.

Titans QB Cam Ward (ADP: QB25)

• According to NFL Pro, Ward’s passer rating, TD rate, completion rate, EPA/dropback and several other metrics jumped significantly after Tennessee’s Week 10 bye last year. During that closing stretch, Ward threw 10 TD passes and just one INT, while nearly doubling his fantasy points per pass attempt (from 0.24 to 0.46), per Matt Bowen. New OC Brian Daboll had success in the past with Josh Allen and Jaxson Dart, and as a former 1st overall pick, Ward has the tools to follow in their footsteps.

POLL 📊

ROOKIE SPOTLIGHT 🔦

Fernando Mendoza

Fernando Mendoza // AP Photo

Current ADP: QB29
Our Rank: QB29

Last year’s Heisman Trophy winner is the future in Vegas. The 6’5” 236 lbs 1st overall pick has the size, mind, and heart to be a franchise QB, but can he be dominant for fantasy football?

While his arm is adequate, it isn’t elite (his deep throw rate of 16.5% was below average, per NBC Sports’ Kyle Dvorchak). But his calling card as a pro will be his accuracy—PFF charted 69% of his throws as accurate and he earned a 19.4% “accurate plus” rate. Those marks rank 8th and 11th out of 111 individual seasons from 1st-round QBs since 2012, per Dvorchak. He also has decent enough mobility to add a few fantasy points on the ground, as he finished last season at Indiana with 276 rushing yards and seven rushing TDs.

As for this season, Mendoza will likely sit for a while—or until Kirk Cousins plays his way off the field. Minority owner Tom Brady has repeatedly stated he believes rookie QBs need to sit and learn, and it seems the team is determined to follow that approach. For that reason, Mendoza is nothing more than a deep Superflex stash this year, but 2027 could be much brighter if the team can continue to build their o-line and get him some more WRs.

RANKINGS 📊

ICYMI: The 2026 edition of the Morning Huddle Cheat Sheet is HERE! Updated every Friday in August, it’s the only tool you’ll need on draft day, complete with over 200 players ranked, tiered, and paired with consensus ADP to help you crush your leaguemates’ hopes and dreams. And this year, the Cheat Sheet is included as part of our new weekly Morning Huddle Rankings, which will be available all season for only $4/month.

And since we’re never wrong about anything, you can cancel at anytime. No contracts, no commitments. We want you to be glad to have these, and if you’re not we’ll send your money back!

Grab yours now!👇

QUICK SLANTS 👀

📖 Read Hayden Winks of Yahoo’s NFL Preseason Week 1 Fantasy Football Takeaways, where he goes over his observations from last weekend and offers measured takeaways.

📖 Read Matthew Berry of Fantasy Life's 100 Facts For The 2026 Fantasy Football Season, where he utilizes data-driven insights, historical trends, and advanced statistics to identify potential player value, sleepers, and pitfalls. I found myself making the Kombucha Girl face often while reading through all 100 of these bad boys.

📖 Read 2026 "Mr. Relevant" Late-Round Sleepers from the staff at Fantasy Points ($) for some names to target with the last couple picks of your drafts. Their philosophy is to swing for the fences here, rather than settle for boring players who’ll get you 8-10 fantasy PPG.

📺 Watch 24 League-Winners Picked by Experts! Pickens, Loveland, Mahomes, & More! from the guys at CBS Sports’ Fantasy Football Today:

TWEET OF THE DAY ✍️

Twitter tweet

Just 23 days until regular season NFL football! Until then, spend some quality time with your loved ones before you’re M.I.A. for the next 4-6 months.

See you Wednesday.

- Marcus

Good morning.

We have big news out of Carolina! Oh… you thought I was talking about Chuba Hubbard’s hamstring injury?

No, the Panthers signed Darren Waller!🤯 Yet another example to never give up on your dreams, kids…

As for today, we’re continuing our position previews with WRs. So let’s get after it…

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WR BREAKOUTS 🚀

Big Play Zay

Zay Flowers // AP Photo

Ravens WR Zay Flowers (ADP: WR16)

• Last year, Flowers topped 1,200 receiving yards on 86 catches, but scored just six total TDs—an outlier since every other receiver who cleared 1,200 yards scored at least eight. Despite that TD shortfall, he still finished as the WR7 overall, backed by elite consistency: a top-5 target share, a top-12 air yard share, and the 4th-best yards per route run mark in the league behind only Puka Nacua, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and Amon-Ra St. Brown, per the staff at FantasyPros. If he sees positive TD regression, he could elevate into that elite tier of fantasy WR1s.

Bucs WR Emeka Egbuka (ADP: WR17)

• If Egbuka produces for 17 games as he did for the first nine games of his rookie season last year, he’ll have 1,278 receiving yards and 11 TDs, per The Athletic’s Dan Pompei. The primary reason he hit a rookie wall was that he had to fill in as the X receiver for an injured Mike Evans, rather than playing the Z role he did early on. Reports out of camp this year suggest rookie Ted Hurst is taking on that X role following Evans’ departure to San Fran, allowing Egbuka to play Z, where he’s most effective. With that news in mind, we could see a season full of those early-2025 spike weeks from Egbuka.

Bears WR Luther Burden III (ADP: WR24)

• Burden’s stock certainly took a hit with his recent groin injury, but he’s still THE breakout player of 2026. Burden ranked 3rd among NFL WRs in yards per route run (2.69) as a rookie, trailing only Puka and JSN (YPRR stats vary from source to source, which explains the discrepancy between this stat and the previous one for Flowers—regardless, just know that both guys are good, lol). He was especially effective out of 12 personnel (1 RB/2 TEs/2 WRs), generating 6.51 YPRR, the highest mark by any WR in any personnel grouping with at least 40 routes run, per PFF’s Nathan Jahnke. Chicago should lean more heavily into 12 personnel in 2026 following the departure of D.J. Moore and the addition of 3rd-round rookie TE Sam Roush. Plus, when you watch Burden on the field, the guy just moves different. And HC Ben Johnson sees it too:

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Packers WR Christian Watson (ADP: WR25)

• Watson is coming off career-highs in receptions per game (3.5), receiving YPG (61.1), and fantasy PPG (13.2, WR17) after missing the first seven games to recover from an ACL injury. Green Bay let Romeo Doubs walk and traded Dontayvion Wicks, setting the table for Watson to easily clear his career-best 68% route share and 22.9 routes per game he set last season, which ranked 58th and 65th at the position, respectively, per the staff at Fantasy Points. Watson averages an elite 17.5 fantasy PPG across 13 career games where he has above a 75% route share, and that’s a threshold he could easily achieve often in 2026.

Jags WR Parker Washington (ADP: WR30)

• If you took his production from the final nine regular-season games plus the Wild Card Round and projected it over a full season, you'd be looking at 82 catches for 1,270 yards and nine TDs. That would have made him the WR7 in 2025, per NFL.com’s Matt Okada. He’s reportedly continuing that domination in training camp and is seeing his stock start to skyrocket. Some still prefer Brian Thomas Jr., but not me (more on BTJ later).

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WR BUSTS ❌

Everybody Hates Chris

Saints WR Chris Olave (ADP: WR12)

• Olave thrived off volume last year, but wasn’t very efficient. Among WRs with at least 100 receptions, he finished:

  • 17th in yards per target

  • 20th in yards per reception

  • Last in yards after the catch

    (Per QB List’s Jay Felicio)

  Olave will open the season as New Orleans’ WR1, but 1st-round receiver Jordyn Tyson is showing out in training camp and will offer much more target competition than anyone did last year.

Panthers WR Tetairoa McMillan (ADP: WR19)

• Don’t hate the player, hate the ADP. The problem with T-Mac is his environment—according to RotoViz’s pace app, in Dave Canales’s two years as Carolina’s head coach, the Panthers are tied for 24th in situation-neutral pass rate (53%) and dead last in plays per 60 minutes (60), while also being 29th in pass rate over expectation (-4.0% PROE) in 2025. This resulted in the Offensive Rookie of the Year being the WR21 in fantasy PPG and the WR20 in expected fantasy PPG. As long as Bryce Young remains under center, it’s hard to see a much higher ceiling than that. Plus, it’s concerning that he was outperformed by Jalen Coker down the stretch…

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Titans WR Carnell Tate (ADP: WR31)

• The 4th-overall draft capital is carrying way too much weight here. If he was the unquestioned WR1, that’d be one thing, but Tennessee has a crowded WR room. Wan’Dale Robinson is expected to dominate targets in the slot, and then Calvin Ridley, Chimere Dike, and Elic Ayomanor are all expected to mix in on the outside. Plus, Cam Ward doesn’t appear ready to support a high-powered passing game—he ranked 35th in catchable throw rate (69.1%), 36th in expected points added per dropback (-.17), and 37th in yards per attempt (5.87) among 38 QBs with 200+ dropbacks, per the staff at Fantasy Points. Tennessee’s offense was so bad last season that he attempted just 19 end-zone passes in 17 games. I’ll pass.

Jags WR Brian Thomas Jr. (ADP: WR33)

• People have been chasing BTJ’s talent since he went off with Mac Jones at QB in 2024. But over 24 games with Trevor Lawrence in 2024 and 2025, he averages:

  • 3.6 rec/game

  • 57.4 yards/game

  • 12.0 PPR/game (would have been WR30 in 2025)
    (Per @EthanKreagerFF)

  Plus, reports suggest Thomas will remain in the “sacrificial X” role he had in 2025. During Parker Washington’s breakout last season (Weeks 9-18), BTJ ran a go route on 30.5% of his snaps (3rd-highest rate of go routes in the league among all WRs), per @KyleM_FF. He’ll have some spike weeks when he hits those big plays, but don’t rely on him to be a consistent fantasy asset week in and week out.

Colts WR Alec Pierce (ADP: WR36)

• Michael Pittman Jr. is gone and Pierce signed a huge deal in the offseason to be Indy’s WR1. Unfortunately, his recovery from offseason ankle surgery hasn’t been smooth and his timeline to return to the field remains unknown. Even if he’s available Week 1, it’s hard to imagine he’ll be able to capitalize on this new role without any training camp reps. He was already risky, given his previous high-aDOT/deep threat profile, and now with the health concerns, too… I’m out.

WR SLEEPERS 😴

Air Jordyn

Jordyn Tyson // Saints Wire

Saints WR Jordyn Tyson (ADP: WR34)

• The main reason some experts are low on Olave is because of this guy. Tyson joins a Saints offense that led the NFL in no-huddle rate last year (22.7%), while their 2.2 plays per minute also paced the league, per Fantasy Life’s Adam Pfeifer. New Orleans also used shift-motion 63% of the time (5th-most), which should allow for plenty of free releases for the explosive rookie. We’ll have to keep an eye on his recent hamstring injury, as health was the biggest knock on him coming out of college, but up until then he was dominating in camp.

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Colts WR Josh Downs (ADP: WR40)

• In 2025, despite leading the team in targets per route run (0.24) and 1st downs per route run (0.101), Downs had just a 62.8% route participation rate while running 80.6% of his routes from the slot. It was the same story in 2024, despite Downs again leading the way in TPRR (0.30) and 1D/RR (0.114), per RotoBaller’s Adam Koffler. He's an elite target earner; he just needs more reps on the outside to maximize his value. That could very well happen in 2026, with Michael Pittman Jr. being traded to Pittsburgh and Alec Pierce continuing to nurse an ankle injury. In fact, HC Shane Steichen came out and said he wants to get Downs the ball more and will get him some reps on the outside. He’s a steal at his current ADP.

Texans WR Jayden Higgins (ADP: WR51)

• Among 15 rookie WRs with at least 30 targets last season, Higgins ranked:

  • 5th in targets per route

  • T-4th in yards per route

  • 3rd in PFF receiving grade

    (Per Draft Sharks’ Jared Smola)

  He also finished 2nd on the Texans in red-zone targets (20) and end-zone targets (nine), trailing only Nico Collins. Higgins has reportedly had a strong camp, and Collins even went so far as to say he’s going to be the “face of this franchise one year.”

49ers WR De’Zhaun Stribling (ADP: WR56)

• Stribling’s stock has been rising since Ricky Pearsall’s season-ending PCL news and the electric substation taking out pretty much all of San Francisco’s starters. While it seemed like a reach when the Niners took him 33rd overall, reports out of camp have been nothing but glowing for the rookie—beat writer Grant Cohn called him "The best wide receiver on the team. Full stop." Given his well-built frame (6’2”, 207 lbs) and elite speed (4.36 40-yard dash), Stribling is destined to be a Brock Purdy favorite.

Seahawks WR Rashid Shaheed (ADP: WR57)

• Shaheed has quietly been one of the NFL's most efficient receivers—among 102 active WRs with 100+ career catches, he ranks 12th in yards per catch (14.7) and 13th in yards per target (9.3), and before suffering a season-ending injury in 2024, Shaheed ranked 24th among WRs in PPR PPG, per Draft Sharks’ Jared Smola. The Seahawks gave up 4th- and 5th-round picks to acquire him last year. Then, in March, they signed him to a three-year, $51 million extension. Shaheed wasn’t able to fully acclimate to the new offensive environment, but given a full offseason, we could see him make a jump as Seattle’s clear WR2.

Some other deep sleepers who have made some noise in training camp (the type of guys you could take with one of your last picks):

• Bucs WR Jalen McMillan

• Broncos WR Pat Bryant

• Chargers WR Tre’ Harris

• Browns WR Denzel Boston

• Ravens WR Ja’Kobi Lane

• Giants WR Malachi Fields

• Chiefs WR Cyrus Allen

• Dolphins WR Caleb Douglas

…just to name a few.

POLL 📊

ROOKIE SPOTLIGHT 🔦

KC Concepcion

KC Concepcion // Sue Ogrocki, AP Photo

Current ADP: WR53
Our Rank: WR49

Concepcion broke out early for Texas A&M in 2023, flashing the best Dominator Rating (0.43) of any Power Conference Receiver younger than 19 since 2004—just ahead of Calvin Johnson (0.40), per Fantasy Points’ Scott Barrett. The 24th overall pick is also a jack-of-all-trades, recording the most receiving TDs (25) by an FBS player with 400+ rushing yards and multiple rushing and punt return TDs in their college career, per Barrett.

The Browns are planning to use him all over the field, similar to how Todd Monken used Zay Flowers (Concepcion’s most common pro comp) in Baltimore last year. He could definitely emerge as the WR1 in Cleveland, but given the state of their QB room and their crowded group of pass-catchers (Fannin, Boston, Jeudy, etc.), it’s hard to see him hitting a high ceiling in Year 1. He’s much better as a dynasty asset.

RANKINGS 📊

📉 Rams WR Puka Nacua (-1) continues to make questionable decisions this offseason. He recently was cut by a glass window pane at Michael Rubin’s white party, and reports suggest he isn’t out of the woods yet for a potential suspension after he bit a woman and made an “unprovoked antisemtic sentiment.” At this point, I’d rather take Amon-Ra St. Brown. He’s the S&P 500 of fantasy assets—WR3 three years in a row, top-10 four years in a row, and has one of the league’s softest schedules.

📈 Panthers RB Jonathon Brooks (+11) continues to shine in training camp, and will now get a chance to prove he can be the lead back after Chuba Hubbard suffered a hamstring injury. I’m betting on him overtaking the RB1 role in this offense for the majority of the season.

📉 Colts WR Alec Pierce (-14) now reportedly had surgery on both his ankle AND heel this offseason. That’s news to everyone… His situation gets sketchier every week, and he wasn’t a trustworthy player to begin with.

📈 Packers RB MarShawn Lloyd (+6) continues to look healthy in camp. Meanwhile, Josh Jacobs could potentially face a suspension for his offseason issues, and he’s dealing with a groin injury, too. Lloyd’s always had the talent, he just needs to stay healthy and have the opportunity. He may get both in 2026.

To see the rest of our rankings, download the 2026 Morning Huddle Cheat Sheet! This year, the Cheat Sheet is included as part of our new weekly Morning Huddle Rankings, which will be available for only $4/month. Grab yours now!👇

*Please note: due to technical limitations, it may take up to 24 hours after purchase for you to receive an email with your first copy of the rankings. However, you will receive the weekly updates every Friday morning at 6:00am sharp.

QUICK SLANTS 👀

📖 Read Fantasy Football ADPs That Have to Be Wrong from FTN Fantasy’s Matt Okada, where he uses logic to highlight gaps in ADP that shouldn’t be there, like Jared Goff only being the QB16, yet his skill position players are RB1, WR4, WR26, and TE6.

📖 Read Mike Clay's Playbook, Part 2 on ESPN, where he offers draft tips for nontraditional formats. While you’re there, check out Part 1, too, where he offers a game plan for your draft day.

📖 Read Graham Barfield of Fantasy Points’ Superflex/2-QB Draft Guide ($) if that’s your preferred league type. In this article, Barfield offers tips on when to take your QBs, which ones to take, and insight on how this format affects the ADP at other positions as well.

📺 Watch Rich Eisen’s Way-Too-Early NFL Power Rankings Heading into Preseason Week 1. He’s drinking the Kool-Aid when it comes to hot teams like the Jags, Bears, and Chargers. Watch the video to see where they land in the top-10:

TWEET OF THE DAY ✍️

Just 26 days until regular season NFL football! In the meantime, enjoy some preseason football this weekend. After all, that’s where legends like Taylor Heinicke, Dorian Thompson-Robinson and Haynes King are born.

See you Monday.

- Marcus

Good morning.

We’re officially entering Week 1 of the NFL Preseason, with all 32 teams set to have at least one game under their belts by the end of next weekend. That sounds great in theory, but I’m ready for the real deal.

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Can’t wait to sweat over which player to put in my FLEX, knowing well and good the guy I pick will get hurt and the guy I bench will put up three TDs.

As for today, we’re going to sift through some ambiguous backfields to find value. Years ago, fantasy analyst JJ Zachariason combed throw boatloads of data to prove that managers should be attacking middle-round team RB1s who have teammates who are also being drafted in the middle rounds—that’s where the majority of breakout RBs come from. So let’s get after it…

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AMBIGUOUS BACKFIELDS 🤔

Betting on Bill

Jacory Croskey-Merritt // Jayne Kamin-Oncea, Imagn Images

Washington Commanders

• Jacory Croskey-Merritt was the RB10 during last year’s fantasy playoffs, topping 95 yards on two occasions and scoring four TDs over that stretch, per Yahoo’s Justin Boone. The question is how involved he’ll be in the passing game, given that he only caught nine passes all of last season and the team signed veteran Rachaad White (who has averaged over 51 receptions per season since entering the NFL in 2022). Washington also added rookie power back Kaytron Allen and pass-catching specialist Jerome Ford to the mix, but they’ll likely serve depth roles the majority of the year.

• Take: Croskey-Merritt is the pick to be the breakout here, as he’s the most talented pure runner of the bunch. Reports out of camp suggest he’s flashed some pass-catching chops, as well, and the team is giving him every opportunity to be a feature three-down back, per Zain Dhanani. With Jayden Daniels healthy again, the leader of this backfield has some serious upside.

Jacksonville Jaguars

• Bhayshul Tuten is the most dynamic weapon in this room with elite 4.32 speed. He showed flashes last season, posting three top-24 finishes as a rookie despite being the clear No. 2 back behind Travis Etienne Jr. (who’s now in New Orleans). The reason his ADP is so low (RB24), though, is the presence of Chris Rodriguez Jr., who is an early-down grinder and racked up 1,440 scrimmage yards and 12 TDs with Jags HC Liam Coen while the two were together at the University of Kentucky. Meanwhile, LeQuint Allen Jr. is an excellent pass protector and will have a 3rd down role.

• Take: Tuten feels primed for a breakout, as there’s plenty of fantasy points to go around in this backfield—they averaged an elite 32.8 PPG from Week 9 to Week 18 in 2025, with Etienne finishing as the RB10 overall (despite Tuten and Allen having complimentary roles). Rodriguez’s talent (or lack thereof) doesn’t typically lead to that kind of ceiling, but Tuten’s does.

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Seattle Seahawks

• Jadarian Price is expected to be the team’s RB1 to start the year, but the rookie has been splitting 1st-team reps with George Holani, and Zach Charbonnet could possibly be ready as soon as Week 1. While the latter is highly unlikely, signs are pointing to a Charbonnet return sooner rather than later. He’ll be eased in, for sure, but reports suggest he and Price may form a similar tandem as he and Kenneth Walker did last year.

• Take: Holani feels like nothing more than a late-round flier, while Price and Charbonnet’s ADPs should be much closer than they are (RB26 vs. RB43). If his health continues to trend the way it has been, give me the cheaper, more proven player whose coach talks about him like a proud father:

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Denver Broncos

• Denver had a top-10 rushing attack last season when J.K. Dobbins was healthy, per Footballguys’ Bob Harris, but when he went down in Week 10 and R.J. Harvey took over as the lead back, the efficiency cratered. Per FantasyPros' Kyle Zeigler, Harvey ranked 23rd of 30 backs with 80+ carries in yards after contact per attempt over that span.

• Take: Dobbins can be a low-end RB1 if he finally stays healthy (but don’t count on it), while Harvey showed explosiveness in the passing game (356 receiving yards and 12 total TDs). They’re dirt cheap (RB32 and RB36, respectively) for a RB tandem on an above-average offense with one of the best o-lines in the league. I like them both at cost, while rookie Jonah Coleman feels more like a Dobbins insurance policy at best.

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Pittsburgh Steelers

• Newcomer Rico Dowdle (HC Mike McCarthy’s starting RB for much of his 2024 season in Dallas) is fresh off his 2nd consecutive year with at least 235 carries, 1,000 rushing yards, 39 receptions, 200 receiving yards, five total TDs, and top-24 fantasy finishes, per RotoBaller’s Dan Fornek. Meanwhile, Jaylen Warren is coming off his highest-volume season as a professional, handling 211 carries for 958 yards and six TDs while adding 40 receptions for 333 yards and two TDs, finishing 17th in PPR PPG among RBs with 10 games played.

• Take: This could be a frustrating platoon. Both backs have well-rounded skillsets and will likely spell each other for entire drives at a time. Gun to my head, I prefer Warren in PPR leagues, but I can see a higher ceiling with Dowdle, as he’s risen to the top of depth charts before in Carolina and Dallas. Both are solid picks at cost, but I wouldn’t say I’m actively targeting them.

The Other Guys

These backfields are a little less ambiguous, but still worth noting…

• It feels like Tampa Bay is leaning towards a 3-headed monster, with Bucky Irving as the “1A,” Kenneth Gainwell as the “1B” / receiving specialist, and Sean Tucker mixing in for short yardage situations. To further that theory, reports out of camp suggest Gainwell hasn’t “toted the rock much,” but has emerged as a dynamic receiving back. This type of split will hurt the ceiling of all involved (barring injury), but I still don’t mind taking any/all of them at cost—they’re on a potentially high-powered offense and in the easiest division in all of football.

• Once again, TreVeyon Henderson is the sexy pick in New England, while Rhamondre Stevenson remains a boring, yet productive, zero-RB target. This should be close to a true 50-50 split, but I don’t mind drafting Henderson—his ADP is slightly more tolerable this year (RB25, compared to RB21 as a rookie), and he showed flashes last season, ranking 5th among qualified RBs in EPA per attempt (+.03) and 10th in rushing yards over expected per carry, per Next Gen Stats. Let’s just hope he gets better at the “little things”…

• Minnesota has the cheapest backfield in fantasy by far. Jordan Mason looks to be the primary ballcarrier, while Aaron Jones Sr. (washed) will still have a receiving role. I tend to avoid Jones, as mobile QBs like Kyler Murray rarely target RBs, but Mason feels like a value at his cost (RB39)—if Kyler can lift this offence back up to KOC’s standards, there’s some TD-upside here.

• Chuba Hubbard will likely start the season as Carolina’s feature back, but don’t be surprised if Jonathon Brooks takes over before you know it—he’s gotten some 1st-team reps in camp and is showing off some impressive receiving skills. I’m starting to lean Brooks > Hubbard, but unfortunately their ADPs get closer together every week.

• New Orleans will feature Travis Etienne Jr. as their primary back after signing him to a four-year $47 million contract. Expect Alvin Kamara to be a thorn in his side, though, as the vet should still see plenty of passing down work. I tend to fade both guys in drafts…

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• Who knows wtf Arizona will do. It’s hard not to be enticed by a talent like Jeremiyah Love, but with Tyler Allgeier, James Conner, and Trey Benson all still on the roster, I’d rather avoid this backfield altogether. They’re favored in exactly zero games this season and will likely have to throw the ball a ton again like they did last year.

ROOKIE SPOTLIGHT 🔦

Makai Lemon

Makai Lemon // Bill Streicher, Imagn Images

Current ADP: WR44
Our Rank: WR41

A prototypical slot receiver, Makai Lemon had 75 of his 108 targets at USC last season come in the middle of the field, per @DynastyZoltanFF, with 42% of his career receiving yards coming on screens and slot fades (4th-highest among Round 1 WRs since 2015, per Fantasy Points’ Ryan Heath). However, many experts believe the 20th overall pick is capable of winning from anywhere on the field—including CBS Sports’ Jacob Gibbs, who points out that Lemon averages an elite 3.34 YPRR if screens are removed, as well as 3.62 YPRR when lined up outside of the slot. He’s also the WR6 in yards per target on throws of 10+ air yards and avoided tackle rate on receptions.

The talent is undeniable, but the fit in Philly is a little questionable…

With A.J. Brown shipped off to New England, though, those 121 vacated targets will have to go somewhere. DeVonta Smith and Dallas Goedert will get theirs, but Lemon will surely have a role. He’s a good pick at his current ADP as a high-upside bench asset.

POLL 📊

RANKINGS 📊

ICYMI: The 2026 edition of the Morning Huddle Cheat Sheet is HERE! Updated every Friday in August, it’s the only tool you’ll need on draft day, complete with over 200 players ranked, tiered, and paired with consensus ADP to help you crush your leaguemates’ hopes and dreams.

But wait, there’s more…

This year, the Cheat Sheet is included as part of our new Morning Huddle Rankings, which are available for only $4/month. This will give you access to the Cheat Sheet throughout August, and once draft season wraps up, that will seamlessly transition into our exclusive Rest-of-Season Rankings, updated regularly until fantasy football trade deadlines.

And since we’re never wrong about anything, you can cancel at anytime. No contracts, no commitments. We want you to be glad to have these, and if you’re not we’ll send your money back!

Grab yours now!👇

QUICK SLANTS 👀

📖 Read Eric Karabell of ESPN’s “Do Not Draft” List, where he highlights several players at each position he’s avoiding at cost—most notably a talented young trio from the New York Giants, Jaxson Dart, Cam Skattebo, and Malik Nabers.

📖 Read Fantasy Football League-Winners: 5 Dark-Horse RB1 Contenders from RotoBaller’s Adam Koffler. He highlights Bhayshul Tuten, Jadarian Price, Blake Corum, J.K. Dobbins, and Jordan Mason as names to watch. Read the full article to see why.

📖 Read Using trends from the best and worst fantasy football teams to craft draft strategies for 2026 from Yahoo’s Hayden Winks, where he utilizes historical data in order to determine when to draft each position. He calls it one of his favorite annual columns, and it’s definitely one of ours, too.

📺 Watch 6 Fantasy Football Players High-Stakes Drafters LOVE That Home Leagues HATE from RotoWire’s Ian Hartitz, including names like Christian Watson and R.J. Harvey:

TWEET OF THE DAY ✍️

Twitter tweet

Just 30 days until regular season NFL football!

In the meantime, for the sake of my dynasty team, please pray for Luther Burden’s groin🙏 (pause).

See you Wednesday.

- Marcus

Good morning.

Did you watch the Hall of Fame game? …No? You have a life? Aw man, you missed a show…

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It means nothing, but at least it’s football. And that’s more than we’ve had for the last six months.

Today, we're taking a look at the new offensive playcallers hired this offseason to identify potential targets and fades. This exercise paid off last year, helping us spot the Bears, Jags, and Patriots as ascending offenses. Let's see which teams could follow that path in 2026…

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RANKINGS 📊

The 2026 edition of the Morning Huddle Cheat Sheet is HERE! Updated every week in August, it’s the only tool you’ll need on draft day, complete with over 200 players ranked, tiered, and paired with consensus ADP to help you crush your leaguemates’ hopes and dreams.

But wait, there’s more…

This year, the Cheat Sheet is included as part of our new Morning Huddle Monthly Rankings, which are available for only $4/month. This will give you access to the Cheat Sheet throughout August, and once draft season wraps up, that will seamlessly transition into our exclusive Rest-of-Season Rankings, updated regularly starting yesterday.

And since we’re never wrong about anything, you can cancel at anytime. No contracts, no commitments. We want you to be glad to have these, and if you’re not we’ll send your money back!

Grab yours now!👇

WINNERS 📈

Herbie Fully Loaded

Justin Herbert, Sky Sports

📈 Justin Herbert is finally getting paired with a scheme that will accentuate his already impressive skillset. New Chargers OC Mike McDaniel comes to the team from the Dolphins, where he engineered an offense that had Tua f—ing Tagovailoa ranking as 7th-best in Adjusted Net Yards per Attempt (ANY/A) since McDaniel arrived in Miami in 2022. That's ahead of Drake Maye, Matthew Stafford, Dak Prescott, Joe Burrow, Patrick Mahomes, Herbert himself, and several other clearly more talented QBs, per Fantasy Points’ Ryan Heath. Pair that system with a Josh Allen clone, and the sky’s the limit. (It goes without saying that this should benefit WRs Ladd McConkey and Quentin Johnston as well).

📈 Omarion Hampton has a chance to be the biggest winner of all in LA, though, as McDaniel was the author of the only backfield over the past five years to support two top-12 RBs by fantasy PPG; Raheem Mostert and De’Von Achane ranked as the overall RB4 and RB5 respectively in 2023, each averaging over 17.0 PPG, per Heath.

Source: @FantasyKash

📈 Sam LaPorta is the middle round TE you want to target. New Lions OC Drew Petzing comes from the Arizona Cardinals, where he lead the league in TE target share in 2023, 2024, and 2025, per Draft Sharks’ Kevin English. Under Petzing, Trey McBride went from 6.2 to 9.9 targets per game, with his PPR production also jumping from 10.7 to 18.9 PPG in that span. In the 24 career games LaPorta has seen 6+ targets, he's scored 10+ PPR points 21 times and 13+ PPR points 18 times, per CBS Sports’ Dave Richard.

• Check out this detailed thread from ETR’s Mark Dankenbring for more insight on LaPorta and the Lions offense.

📈 Kyle Pitts is in a similar boat, with HC Kevin Stefanski and OC Tommy Rees heading to Atlanta. Petzing worked under Stefanski in Cleveland, so their schemes are very similar. Stefanski’s offenses averaged an insane 167 TE targets per year over the last three years, per CBS Sports’ Health Cummings. Atlanta’s QB situation limits Pitts’ upside, but he should at least see consistent targets for once.

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📈 Ravens’ new OC Declan Doyle joins the team after previous stops in Chicago, Denver, and New Orleans, and he’s rumored to be bringing heavy play action to Baltimore. That’s music to my ears, as Lamar Jackson ranked as QB1 in passer rating from play action in both 2024 and 2025, while Zay Flowers leads all qualifying WRs in yards per route run on play action over the past two seasons (4.6, ahead of Puka Nacua, Rashee Rice, and Nico Collins). But the player who could benefit most is Derrick Henry. Among 44 qualifying playcallers over the past five seasons, Doyle’s influences Ben Johnson (29.4) and Sean Payton (23.6) rank 2nd and 13th-best by total backfield expected fantasy PPG, per Ryan Heath.

📈 OC Eric Bieniemy rejoins Kansas City after serving as Chiefs OC from 2018-2022, when the offense ranked 1st, 6th, 1st, 3rd, and 1st in yards, as well as 1st, 5th, 6th, 4th, and 1st in points, per Kevin English. Much of their success will depend on the health of Patrick Mahomes, but expect major TD-upside for Kenneth Walker III and even a possible resurgence from Travis Kelce.

• Another notable winner includes Ashton Jeanty, whose new HC Klint Kubiak will be bringing the “McShanahan” wide-zone running scheme to Vegas, while other new OCs Sean Mannion (PHI), Zac Robinson (TB), David Blough (WAS) have all earned some positive reviews thus far in training camp.

LOSERS 📉

Nagy-tivity

Jaxson Dart // Vincent Carchietta, Imagn Images

📉 Jaxson Dart and the rest of the Giants offense is on shaky ground with new OC Matt Nagy. Nagy spent the past three years as a non-play-calling OC under Andy Reid, with Kansas City’s offense slipping to 9th, 16th, and 20th in yards and 15th, 15th, and 21st in points. His play-calling history in Chicago looks even shakier—he gave up those duties twice during his HC run, and the results explain why: the Bears cracked the top 20 in scoring only once across his four seasons and never finished better than 21st in yards, per Kevin English.

📉 Breece Hall and Garrett Wilson continue to be punished. New Jets OC Frank Reich has been out of the league since 2023. He was hired as interim HC for Stanford last year, though, where his team ranked 122nd of 136 FBS teams in PPG (18.8). They also ranked bottom-5 in play action rate and made no effort to get the ball to their best player, Sam Roush, who had just two screen catches all season, per Ryan Heath. Avoid Jets at all cost.

📉 While Drew Petzing’s hire in Detroit bodes well for LaPorta, it doesn’t look as good for Jameson Williams. There have been just 10 career games when both LaPorta and Williams have had 6+ targets each, as one’s success usually means the opposite for the other, per Dave Richard.

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📉 While new Browns HC Todd Monken brings a resume of success to the team, his system may not bode well for Quinshon Judkins. Monken’s backfields have always had two different RBs playing clearly separate rushing and receiving roles, and Judkins and Dylan Sampson (who ranked 2nd among RBs in YPRR behind only Bijan Robinson last year, per Ryan Heath) form a natural rushing/receiving duo like the pairs below:

Source: @RyanJ_Heath

📉 Lastly, it’ll be extremely challenging for Sam Darnold and Jaxon Smith-Njigba to replicate their ridiculous efficiency from last season. Seattle hired former Niners run-game coordinator and TE coach Brian Fleury as OC, hoping that another Shanahan disciple (like Klint Kubiak) would allow for some familiarity. While that could be a wise strategy, I’d still bet on regression from this offense after losing their top-notch playcaller to a HC gig and hiring someone who’s never held the position before.

ROOKIE SPOTLIGHT 🔦

Jordyn Tyson

Jordyn Tyson // CBS Sports

Current ADP: WR36
Our Rank: WR36

Jordyn Tyson’s fit in New Orleans is likely the best of entire rookie WR class. The Saints led the NFL in no-huddle rate last year (22.7%), while their 2.2 plays per minute also paced the league, per Fantasy Life’s Adam Pfeifer. NOLA also used shift-motion 63% of the time (5th-most), which should allow for plenty of free releases for the explosive rookie.

As a prospect, Tyson’s talent is undeniable. When excluding screen plays, he drew an uncontested target on 26% of his career routes—the best of any WR to be drafted in Round 1 since at least 2018, per Ryan Heath. This separation ability, combined with his size (6’2” 203 lbs) and playmaking ability ranked him as the WR1 in J.J. Zachariason’s ZAP model.

The main issue for Tyson has been health:

• 2022: Left knee torn ACL/MCL/PCL (played in just three games, but did not catch a pass)

• 2024: Broken collarbone (missed final two games)

• 2025: Hamstring strains to both legs (missed final three games)

But if he can stay on the field and Tyler Shough can continue to grow as a passer, Tyson’s the type of asset you want in fantasy football.

POLL 📊

QUICK SLANTS 👀

📖 Read Who's This Year's Jaxon Smith-Njigba? Finding 2026’s League Winners from Draft Sharks’ Jared Smola. Last year, his article identified breakouts from Drake Maye, Jonathan Taylor, and Travis Etienne. This year’s names include Kyler Murray, TreVeyon Henderson, Luther Burden III, and more!

📖 Read The Worst Pick In Every Round Of 2026 Fantasy Football Drafts from Fantasy Life’s Adam Pfeifer, where he goes through the first 10 rounds of fantasy football drafts to highlight potential busts you should avoid.

📖 Read John Hansen’s 2026 Fantasy Football Draft Plan ($) for The Guru’s overall strategy, targets and fades.

📺 Watch Keep It Simple - Draft Good Players on Good Teams from Yahoo’s Josh Norris, Hayden Winks, and Nate Tice, where they discuss 2026 NFL Team Point totals and what teams might over or underperform their projections this season.

TWEET OF THE DAY ✍️

Twitter tweet

Just 33 days until regular season NFL football! Until then, enjoy your summer weekends while you can before a pretend football team takes full control of your emotional well-being.

See you Monday.

- Marcus

Good morning.

Sorry for the delayed post, we had some technical difficulties. But on the bright side… we have FOOTBALL tomorrow! And if Carson Beck vs. Kenny Pickett doesn’t fire you up in the middle of August, I don’t know what will…🙄

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While we’re stuck with mediocre “football” for the next few weeks, we’re going to take some time to reflect on general fantasy football strategy. Today, we’ll begin with the lessons we learned from our biggest hits and misses at each position last season.

Let’s get after it…

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HITS 🎯

Maye the Force Be With You

Drake Maye // Gene J. Puskar, AP

1) Drake Maye
- Our 2025 Rank: QB9
- Consensus 2025 Rank: QB16
- 2025 Finish (PPG): QB3

Maye was our most impactful win of 2025. He stood out as a late-round QB target due to his draft capital (3rd overall in 2024), mobility (averaged 41 rushing YPG in 10 full starts during his rookie year), and improved scheme (Josh McDaniels hired as OC).

So, who could be this year’s Drake Maye? My pick is Justin Herbert. He has the draft capital (6th overall in 2020), mobility (leads the NFL in rushing yards per scramble (9.4) over the past two seasons, per CBS Sports’ Jacob Gibbs), and now gets Mike McDaniel as his OC. Under McDaniel in 2022, a physically limited Tua Tagovailoa led the NFL in TD percentage (6.3%) and YPA (8.9), and then in 2023, he led the league in passing yards (4624), per Fantasy Points’ John Hansen.

2) Trevor Lawrence
- Our 2025 Rank: QB16
- Consensus 2025 Rank: QB20
- 2025 Finish (PPG): QB6

We were a little higher on T-Law than most last year, but even we didn’t expect he’d put up over 4,000 passing yards while scoring a whopping NINE rushing TDs. As the season went on, Lawrence looked more and more comfortable in new HC Liam Coen’s scheme, which was able to showcase the talent that made him a 1st overall pick in 2021.

This year, the same could happen for another former 1st overall pick—Kyler Murray. Murray has the same number of top-5 fantasy weeks in the last two seasons (five) as Lawrence, Herbert, and Dak Prescott, per RotoWire’s Ian Hartitz, and now gets to benefit from Kevin O’Connell’s offensive scheme. Before last year’s J.J. McCarthy monstrosity, KOC’s Vikings ranked 2nd, 1st, and 6th in passing yards and t-3rd, t-4th, and 5th in passing TDs, per Fantasy Points’ Bill O’Brien. Murray’s the ideal late round dart throw/QB2.

3) Travis Etienne Jr.
- Our 2025 Rank: RB28
- Consensus 2025 Rank: RB32
- 2025 Finish (PPG): RB13

J.J. Zachariason has always touted the value of taking players in ambiguous backfields, and last year that came to fruition with Travis Etienne. Tank Bigsby (traded to Philly after Week 1) and Bhayshul Tuten (used sparingly) turned out not to be as big of threats as some thought, allowing Etienne to average nearly 15 half-PPR fantasy PPG.

History might be repeating itself in Jacksonville, as Bhayshul Tuten’s ADP continues to be suppressed due to fears of Chris Rodriguez and LeQuint Allen. Tuten’s the most explosive back in this room and should see the majority of the work, giving him a similar RB1/2 ceiling. And while some see C-Rod as a threat to take the goal line work, don’t just assume that’s a guarantee…

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4) Marvin Harrison Jr.
- Our 2025 Rank: WR27
- Consensus 2025 Rank: WR15
- 2025 Finish (PPG): WR39

We’re calling this a “hit” for being lower than most on Maserati Mazda Marv. Ahead of last season, Harrison Jr. ranked 41st (ahead of only Xavier Legette) in yards per catchable target on throws of 10+ air yards to the sideline, per Jacob Gibbs. That’s an oddly specific stat, but it showed that Marv resembled the type of receiver you want to avoid—the “sacrificial X.”

This year, I’m worried that could be Brian Thomas Jr. One thing BTJ has over Marv is that he’s in a much better offense, which could lead to a higher success rate and some spike weeks. However, in 24 games with Trevor Lawrence, he averages just 3.6 rec/game, 57.4 yards/game, and 12.0 PPR pts/game (would have been WR30 in 2025). Also, Coen has indicated that Thomas will likely continue in a downfield route-focused role—a similar role to 2025 when he was WR47 in PPR pts/game, per Ethan Kreager.

5) Hunter Henry
- Our 2025 Rank: TE15
- Consensus 2025 Rank: TE18
- 2025 Finish (PPG): TE12

Henry wasn’t a league-winner by any means, but he was a solid streaming option on an up-and-coming offense. Drake Maye had the highest target rate to TEs (32.7%) of any QB from 2022-2024, per Fantasy Points’ Jake Tribbey, so a bet on Maye correlated well with a bet on Henry.

Similarly, Juwan Johnson could be that late-round streamer you want to keep an eye on. Tyler Shough’s 27.9% target rate to TEs is 5th-highest from 2023-2025, per Tribbey, and it led to some sneaky production last season. Johnson averaged 57.4 receiving YPG, 1.94 YPRR, and 11.4 FPG in his 10 full games with Shough. Over the full season, those numbers would have ranked 3rd-best, 8th-best, and 9th-best among TEs. He’s well worth his current TE21 ADP.

MISSES ❌

Mine-Fields

Justin Fields // Adam Hunger, AP

1) Justin Fields
- Our 2025 Rank: QB10
- Consensus 2025 Rank: QB13
- 2025 Finish (PPG): QB22

We loved Fields as a mid-round QB last year. His rushing upside allowed him to finish as a top-10 QB in fantasy PPG for three seasons in a row, per FantasyPros’ Derek Brown. But what we didn’t factor in was just how bad of a passer he was. That led to some miserable performances as the Jets fell behind in just about every game, and ultimately Fields was benched.

This makes me a little worried about Malik Willis this year. He looked great in short spurts with Green Bay the last two seasons, but was god awful during his two years in Tennessee. Fortunately, Willis is going much later (QB21) than Fields was last year, making him the perfect high-upside backup QB.

2) Kaleb Johnson
- Our 2025 Rank: RB31
- Consensus 2025 Rank: RB27
- 2025 Finish (PPG): RB115

Boy oh boy… is Kaleb Johnson’s NFL career already over? The 2025 3rd-round pick was thought to be the favorite to win the RB1 job in Pittsburgh, but he ended up amassing just 69 yards on 28 carries. Jaylen Warren stepped up as the team’s primary back, with veteran Kenneth Gainwell making the biggest fantasy impact thanks to his work in the passing game.

This year’s Kaleb Johnson could very well be Jonah Coleman. The veteran JK Dobbins is set to be the starter in Denver, with R.J. Harvey providing some serious juice in short spurts. Fortunately, Coleman isn’t going in the range Johnson was last year, but even at RB52, the rookie RB isn’t someone I’m actively targeting.

3) Jaydon Blue
- Our 2025 Rank: RB32
- Consensus 2025 Rank: RB46
- 2025 Finish (PPG): RB70

Much like with Kaleb Johnson, Jaydon Blue taught me not to count out veteran RBs too soon. It was obvious there was value to be had in Dallas—prior to last season, in the last three years in which Dak Prescott had been healthy, the Cowboys were a top-5 scoring offense with a RB finishing as a fantasy RB1, per TWSN’s Michael O’Hara. Little did we know that RB1 would be Javonte Williams (who looked absolutely washed before then).

We could see something similar unfold in Seattle this season. Jadarian Price is expected to be the team’s RB1 for the majority of the year, but recent reports say the rookie has been splitting 1st-team reps with George Holani, and Zach Charbonnet could possibly be ready as soon as Week 1. While I highly doubt that, it’s safe to assume Price’s value will plummet the second Charbonnet returns. And if that’s sooner rather than later, then I’d rather look elsewhere around Price’s current ADP of 60th overall.

4) Chris Olave
- Our 2025 Rank: WR39
- Consensus 2025 Rank: WR34
- 2025 Finish (PPG): WR9

We all docked Olave wayyyy too much for his injury risk. While both his concussion history and the Saints’ QB situation heading into 2025 looked scary, we forgot that Olave was a top-25 WR in each of his first two seasons in the league.

While it may not be as drastic, something similar is happening to Mike Evans. While I’d hate to bet against the electrical substation, Evans scores a TD on 7.2% of his career targets, per Fantasy Points’ Tom Brolley, and was the WR3 in first downs per route run over the past two seasons, behind only Puka Nacua and Amon-Ra St. Brown, per Yahoo’s Hayden Winks. His recent quad tweak has me a little cautious, but it’s hard to ignore the ceiling here.

5) Kyle Pitts
- Our 2025 Rank: TE19
- Consensus 2025 Rank: TE15
- 2025 Finish (PPG): TE6

A man can only be burned so many times… We just simply could not trust Kyle Pitts going into last season—he hadn’t finished better than TE14 since his rookie year and the vibes were at an all-time low. In our defense, Pitts’ final statline was incredibly misleading—he scored 40.1 of his 166.8 half-PPR fantasy points in one game, and went from the TE12 overall to the TE3 after that one single game.

A similar TE with a strong athletic profile who could benefit from spike weeks this season is Isaiah Likely. The newly acquired weapon should do some damage for the Giants, as he generates a 136.8 passer rating when targeted since 2023 (2nd among TEs), per PFF, and looked good when Mark Andrews missed time at the end of 2023, ranking as the TE5 in fantasy PPG (13.9) in Weeks 12-18.

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Carnell Tate

Carnell Tate // Steve Roberts, Imagn Images

Current ADP: WR30
Our Rank: WR38

Carnell Tate should instantly become Cam Ward’s WR1. The Ohio State product profiles as a legitimate boundary X receiver, boasting an impressive 69% contested catch rate (5th-highest in Dwain McFarland of Fantasy Life’s Rookie Super Model database) while dropping just 3% of balls thrown his way.

However, upside is the question—Tate doesn’t offer special athleticism after the catch (his 4.8 career YAC was -0.5 over expected after adjusting for his aDOT, per McFarland), and Tennessee’s offense finished 30th in passing yards last season, averaging just 166.1 per contest, per SB Nation’s Justin Melo. Because of this—and the likelihood of Wan’Dale Robinson stealing targets from the slot—I find it hard to draft him where he’s currently going.

POLL 📊

QUICK SLANTS 👀

📖 Read Fantasy Football "All-Value" Team: 8 Must-Have Draft Targets from Roto Baller’s Matt Donnelly for expert insight on later round values like Baker Mayfield, Jalen Coker, and more.

📖 Read Here are some dos and don'ts to simplify your approach to drafting in 2026 from Yahoo’s Chris Allen for advice on opportunity cost, finding value late in drafts, and more.

📖 Read Scott Barrett of Fantasy Points’ 2026 Draft Guide ($), where he breaks down his draft strategy with rankings, must-draft players, and his legendary “Exodia” player targets.

📺 Watch Cardinals rookies give weather reports😂:

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TWEET OF THE DAY ✍️

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Just 35 days until regular season NFL football! Until then, try to enjoy tomorrow’s Hall of Fame Game—consider it an appetizer! A really shitty, boring, and sloppy appetizer…

See you Friday.

- Marcus