Quarterbacks

Jordan Love has been one of the NFL's most prolific passers this season. Frankly, this one was easy to see coming, but the fantasy community let Love slip to the late rounds while chasing all his pass-catchers. That math didn’t add up. 

The Packers’ run game was destined to take a step back with Josh Jacobs’ turbulent offseason and the degradation of their offensive line. Green Bay is up 19 spots in total pace of play from last season and is second in pass-rate over expected. The theory of the case played out. 

The offense is built around Love as a downfield passer launching the ball to two excellent and ascending wideouts in Christian Watson and Matthew Golden. I don’t see any reason why this would change. 

• • FPTS/G:QB5

  • Preseason: QB22 (+14)

C.J. Stroud’s ascension is similar to Love's; the offense is now built around the quarterback. Houston ranks sixth in pass rate over expected in 2026 and first in adjusted yards per attempt when it gets five pass-catchers out in the route. The Texans can spread the field with a ton of eligible receivers and let their quarterback cook. He’s responded with easily his best pro season. 

Stroud was simply unfairly maligned for a horrific showing in the NFL playoffs last year. Yet, he was a top-10 quarterback by EPA per dropback in 2025. Now, he’s surrounded by a deep and diverse set of aerial weapons for the first time in years. I think he will continue to roll.  

• • FPTS/G: QB8

  • Preseason: N/A

When he’s been kept clean this year, Kirk Cousins has performed like a top-10 quarterback. The Raiders are the 11th-best unit in my offensive efficiency metrics, despite having a poor rushing attack. They are up this high because Cousins executed Klint Kubiak’s well-designed pass game at a high level. 

Now, he heads to Minnesota to retake his gig as the starting quarterback in a Kevin O’Connell offense he knows well. Cousins may not have to throw the ball as much with the Vikings defense in peak form. That could lead to a dip in his overall raw production, but he should still be quite efficient. 

Running backs

• • FPTS/G: RB2

  • Preseason: RB7 (+5)

Kenneth Walker III has been a complete identity-changing force for the Kansas City Chiefs. He should have been a top-12 selection in fantasy drafts this summer but was a total steal in Round 2. 

The Chiefs rank first in EPA per rush on their running back runs and are second in explosive rushing rate. That's wildly different from the team they were in previous seasons. Unless Walker gets hurt — knock on every piece of wood in your home — this train isn’t stopping.  

• • FPTS/G: RB6 

  • Preseason: RB33 (+27) 

Chuba Hubbard has handled a whopping 78% of the Panthers' running back touches in 2026. The only backs who have handled a higher share of the backfield work for their teams are Jahmyr Gibbs, James Cook III and the aforementioned Walker. He’s been on the field for 81% of the team’s snaps; no other back has cleared 80%. 

Hubbard has been given Round 1 fantasy running back workhorse-level touches and the Panthers offense, even with some recent struggles, is hanging onto the 10th spot in my offensive efficiency metrics. It’s simple: if you almost never leave the field and get workhorse volume in a good offense, you’re a high-end RB1 in fantasy. 

• • FPTS/G: RB7

  • Preseason: RB20 (+13) 

The revival of Bucky Irving has been one of my favorite developments of the season. As a rookie, Irving was a revelation as an explosive screen-receiver and power runner. He slipped last year due to injuries but is all the way back this year.

Irving is the engine of the Tampa Bay offense. The Bucs rank dead last in EPA per dropback but 13th as a rush unit. That 19-point gap is the third-largest in favor of the run game among all NFL offenses. Over the last month, Tampa Bay has leaned into more gap-scheme runs, which is Irving’s specialty, but it still leads the NFL in yards per carry on zone runs by running backs. With an elite defense and Baker Mayfield still struggling, the Bucs should run heavy ground-and-pound game scripts going forward. 

• • FPTS/G: RB9

  • Preseason: RB27 (+18) 

For years, we’ve all wondered why the Steelers coaching staff didn’t unleash a clearly electric talent in Jaylen Warren as the lead back. We finally got our wish this year, even if it took an injury to Rico Dowdle to get Mike McCarthy and Co. to tilt the scales to Warren. For three weeks when Dowdle missed time (Weeks 3 to 5), Warren handled over 90% of the backfield touches and averaged 22.3 points per game.

Since Dowdle has returned, Warren is still the lead back but has seen his workload share dip to 58%. He’s still been quite good, averaging 14.9 points per game, but is settling into more high-end RB2 production. That’s totally fine and still makes him one of the best picks on the board. The Steelers have an even larger gap (23 spots) than the Bucs’ between their rush and pass EPA. Pittsburgh should keep leaning on both backs as the offense's leading actors.  

• • • FPTS/G: WR5

    • Preseason: WR27 (+22)

With Jordan Love, as discussed above, dominating as a passer this season, he’s taken both of his top two receivers with him. The Packers are now one of the most concentrated passing offenses in the NFL. They rank third in target share to their top three players and first in air yard share to their top two. Losing Jayden Reed for the season has further boosted what was always going to be excellent seasons for Christian Watson and Matthew Golden. 

As for Watson, it was a miracle he put up what was clearly his best season on tape in 2025, despite coming back from an ACL tear in January of that year. Yet, he’s taken another step up this year, as a high-end ball-winner and full-field route runner against man coverage. No receiver over the last five seasons has improved more than Watson. 

• • FPTS/G: WR8

  • Preseason: WR47 (+39)

Despite Watson’s excellent play, second-year receiver Matthew Golden leads the team in targets and air yards. He’s been a revelation for this team after he moved from a nebulous role as a rookie to a featured X-receiver in Year 2.

Beyond the structural changes we highlighted above in the Love section, Golden has also made massive strides as an individual player. He wasn't bad on tape in 2025, but he's still destined to be the most improved wide receiver in the NFL from 2025 to 2026. 

The wild part: Golden isn’t done getting better. Golden has dropped an NFL-high 10 passes (second closest is six) and only won two of seven contested catches, per Fantasy Points Data. I actually think Golden has good tracking, late hands and catch technique; he’s just suffered mental lapses and focus drops. The good news is that Love doesn’t care and keeps firing the ball to him right after his mistakes. Last week, as Golden caught all 10 of his targets for a season-high 164 targets and a touchdown against a good secondary, is a reminder of why you keep the faith in these guys. 

• • FPTS/G: WR4

  • Preseason: WR15 (+11)

Tee Higgins was such a fantastic draft pick this year. It is and was another simple case. As long as Higgins and Joe Burrow are both healthy and available to play, the gifted receiver produces like a WR1 in fantasy football despite sharing the field with Ja’Marr Chase. 

This year, though, he’s been even better. The Bengals flirted all offseason with changing their offense to a more under-center and run-oriented attack to stick with the current NFL meta. It didn’t take long for them to ditch that idea. Through nine weeks, the Bengals rank 31st in under-center rate and lead the league in pass rate over expected. The Bengals are essentially running an air-raid offense, and it’s been a joy to watch.

As for Higgins himself, he leads the league in yards gained on dig and post routes this year. Those chunky, downfield in-breakers haven’t always been his specialty. He’s typically operated as a sideline ball-winner. He’s now blended both styles to produce like a top-five wideout. 

Tight end

• • FPTS/G: TE3

  • Preseason: TE13 (+10) 

For the most part, tight end has met expectations and is really just a mess beyond a small handful of players. Not that there is anything unusual about that. As such, when you get a hit like Isaiah Likely has been for drafters, it moves the needle. 

Likely was one of my favorite picks on the board for most of the summer, before we started to get positive Malik Nabers injury updates. I should have held strong. Just over 56% of the Giants' passing targets go to their top two options in Nabers and Likely. That is the highest rate in the NFL. Regardless of who is at quarterback, these two guys have thrived. I have to give credit to Greg Roman and Matt Nagy; they’ve done a fantastic job of designing route concepts to use these two in tandem.