Dynasty Fantasy Football Buys and Sells: Second-Year Risers and Fallers

January 14, 2026

John's favorite 2nd year fantasy football dynasty buys, sells for dynasty trades. Which sophomores are fantasy football risers and fallers for 2026 trade targets?

The second-year breakout expectations for players in dynasty fantasy football are often taken as a given. It makes sense because many great NFL players break out at some point in the first three years of their career.

Being in the biggest professional football league in the world has a steep learning curve, and players benefit from completing their rookie seasons and absorbing knowledge while refining their physical craft. That doesn't mean every sophomore player is a buy in dynasty leagues, though.

That second-year boost in production is often priced in too aggressively, meaning there's value to be had in trading some players after their rookie seasons. So, which second-year players should you buy and sell in dynasty fantasy football ahead of the 2026 season? Let's dive in.

Fantasy Football Dynasty Buy: RB

Ashton Jeanty, RB, Las Vegas Raiders

Jeanty had a good rookie season, but it was apparent that he was held back by a variety of factors. He was the only consistent bright spot on an offense that really only had two good players all season -- he and tight end Brock Bowers, who dealt with injuries.

Despite clearly the worst combination of run-blocking, defensive setups faced, and play-calling in the NFL, Jeanty finished his first season with 1,321 yards from scrimmage and 10 total touchdowns. This was in spite of constantly being hit in the backfield.

ASHTON JEANTY ALL THE WAY!

LVvsHOU on CBS/Paramount+https://t.co/HkKw7uXnxV pic.twitter.com/szuynuAtqu

— NFL (@NFL) December 22, 2025

Per Pro Football Focus Fantasy Football, Jeanty finished with 1,021 of his yards after contact, meaning an astonishing 77.3 percent of his yards came after he was hit by an opposing defender. If the Raiders make shrewd coaching hires and the offensive line can play as even a middling unit, he could have a massive season.

Thanks to his draft capital, he's likely to be the clear workhorse RB for this team for quite some time. He has a good history of being durable, too, meaning he should be able to handle his workload and stay relatively healthy, and his passing game involvement was a big green flag.

GENO TO JEANTY FOR THE 60-YARD TD!

LVvsHOU on CBS/Paramount+https://t.co/HkKw7uXnxV pic.twitter.com/k8CknFOEcy

— NFL (@NFL) December 21, 2025

He should have a very nice PPR floor moving forward. Five trips to the end zone through the air were impressive. We should see that number climb in the future. The Raiders would do well to center their offense around Jeanty and Bowers, though they'd also be wise to add more offensive line talent.

Building one of the NFL's best offensive lines is a cheat code to making it to the playoffs and having sustained success. It's likely the unit Vegas has is much better than they looked this year, too, because now-fired head coach Pete Carroll's nepo-baby hires for the offensive line coaching staff will also be gone.

.@AshtonJeanty2 went off for over 150 total yards and 3 TDs in Week 4 🏴‍☠️ pic.twitter.com/URAnQrwrBK

— NFL (@NFL) September 30, 2025

Jeanty's massive performance against the awful Chicago Bears run defense in Week 4 showed us what he could do when he faced a defense that was outmatched by the Raiders' offensive line. If that becomes more commonplace, we could see multiple top-5 RB finishes for Jeanty over the next five years.

His price was quite high entering his rookie season, and it's fallen just a tad. It might be possible to get a solid deal for him, considering just how awful the Raiders are as a franchise. It's worth a shot to try to acquire him.

Fantasy Football Dynasty Sell: WR

Tetairoa McMillan, WR, Carolina Panthers

McMillan didn't have a bad rookie season, by any means. But it's hard to see a future in which he's not held back by quarterback Bryce Young. Young is expected to have his fifth-year option picked up for 2026, and he's likely to be the starter in Carolina for a long time. It's just too tough to get good starting QBs in the NFL without top-8 draft picks.

Young is far too inconsistent to make McMillan an every-week elite starting option. We saw flashes of T-Mac's catch radius, vertical leaping ability, and size and fluidity combination help him beat defenders well, some weeks. But that was mixed in with him nearly disappearing in other contests.

Probably my favorite Bryce Young throw against the Rams 🤌

Easier to see the anticipation he threw this with from the all-22 angle, but just a perfectly timed, beautifully layered throw just over the LB. Drops it right in Jalen Coker’s bread basket. 51 yards.

And THE CROWD 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/Zow9XLVftE

— Keep Purring Podcast (Ben) (@KeepPurringBen) January 12, 2026

Of course, he's made amazing throws. But Young had 11 games in which he threw for less than 200 yards. That's hardly enough to support even one good receiver. With WR Jalen Coker getting healthier as the season went along, he ended up outproducing McMillan in two contests down the stretch.

He easily crushed his production in the playoff game against the Los Angeles Rams. Coker caught nine of his 12 targets for 131 yards and a touchdown, while McMillan caught five of his seven looks for 81 yards. Coker having five more targets than T-Mac shows pretty clearly that there are games in which he can be the team's WR1.

Ayo Tetairoa McMillan has caught some BODIES this season as a ROOKIE dawg 😂 pic.twitter.com/i7UNScUOCC

— IAmWestsideFetti 💙🖤🤟🏾 (@4MR_Fetti) December 23, 2025

It's worrying to think what could happen if Carolina invests heavily in another good WR option. Young's passing output needs to rise sharply for McMillan to reach his potential, and after four years in the NFL as a low-volume passer, he's been previously benched for QB Andy Dalton.

Seeing T-Mac show great efficiency while never becoming a consistent top-8 fantasy receiver isn't unlikely. In many leagues, what you can get for him might be more representative of the idea that he will become so, meaning what you can get in return by trading him away could be the better side of the deal.

Fantasy Football Dynasty Buy: TE

Colston Loveland, TE, Chicago Bears

Most of the first half of the 2026 tight end rookie debate was filled with Indianapolis Colts TE Tyler Warren fans victory-lapping how he was so clearly better than Loveland and that the Bears selected the wrong player. The second half of the year flipped that narrative.

Loveland struggled through recovery from a shoulder surgery he had after his 2024 season in college. As he got better and got worked into the offense, we saw the true mismatch weapon he is. He was an absolute monster in the game against the Cincinnati Bengals and showed steady improvement in his other games.

Colston Loveland is 6-foot-6, 250 pounds, and 21 years old, and is already routing up corners like this?

This offseason might be your only realistic chance to go and get him in dynasty. Trade for him now before the hype goes nuclear after a strong playoff game. pic.twitter.com/AnujWZFmmV

— Dan Fornek ↗️ (@fornekdf) January 7, 2026

He's a fantastic route-runner regardless of his size. He's 6-foot-6 and nearly 250 pounds, is a very young player, and has already shown that he's far too physical and big for cornerbacks to handle and far too explosive and technical with his routes for linebackers to cover effectively.

Elite tight ends like Rob Gronkowski and Travis Kelce simply terrorize defenses for long stretches of their careers due to their elite combinations of size, strength, and change-of-direction ability. Loveland clearly has all those traits with more to spare.

Colston Loveland holds on for the first down 😤

GBvsCHI on Prime Video
Also streaming on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/wWXk4HWIu8

— NFL (@NFL) January 11, 2026

This absolutely screams buy in dynasty leagues. Loveland's value isn't quite what Warren's was early in the season. It wouldn't surprise me if Loveland is a top-5 TE in the league every year from now on. He's just uncoverable when healthy.

Fantasy Football Dynasty Sell: RB

Kyle Monangai, RB, Chicago Bears

The Bears didn't invest much in the running back position in the 2025 NFL Draft, opting to stick with their veteran RB D'Andre Swift and add his backup in the seventh round. Monangai has certainly exceeded expectations, thanks to the Bears having a great offensive line.

But Chicago would be wise to add a better RB in free agency. A true stud at the position could elevate the offense behind arguably the NFL's best run-blocking offensive line. It's not like Swift and Monangai have been bad, but it's not generally advisable to leave meat on the bone when you could have an elite running game.

Kyle Monangai with another big game for the Bears:

▪️9 carries for 50 yards 5.6 YPC (4.3 yards after contact per attempt)
▪️3 catches 43 yds (37 YAC)

Guy continues to run physical and show uncommon contact balance. Very good in pass pro also. Absolute steal. #DaBears #Bears pic.twitter.com/AtaJ1NeA8w

— Clay Harbor (@clayharbs82) December 21, 2025

A fantasy manager expecting Monangai to eventually take over the RB1 job as the team moves on from Swift probably won't be excited when the Bears add a better RB to their roster. It could only be a matter of time. They might not technically desperately need to do so, but it makes sense.

They invested first and second-round picks at pass-catcher in the 2025 NFL Draft, bolstered the offensive line quite massively, and have a first-overall pick playing at QB. On offense, RB is the biggest position that needs an upgrade.

Fantasy Football Dynasty Sell: RB

Jacory Croskey-Merritt, RB, Washington Commanders

Croskey-Merritt's long touchdown run against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 17 capped off a three-game streak to (almost) end the season with four touchdown runs. In Week 18, he regressed to his typical form, taking his 13 carries for just 29 yards and zero scores on the ground.

While he occasionally makes big plays, he's mostly been disappointing in his rookie season. Obviously, the best selling window was earlier in the year, after he had a huge game against the Los Angeles Chargers. He had considerable hype in the offseason, so this was seen by many dynasty managers as a legitimate breakout.

Chris Rodriguez probably maintains his goal line role for the Commanders because Jacory Croskey-Merritt is not capable of running through linebackers. Doesn't have the strength or power to do so even with some speed built up. pic.twitter.com/NoHxG9Jf2Q

— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) November 13, 2025

It's hard to see JCM ever having a consistent role at the goal line because he lacks the power to consistently break tackles. Most of his big plays feature big holes to run through, where he's minimally contacted, if at all. He's not bad at dancing behind the line of scrimmage and finding gaps to run through.

But he has a severe lack of power and contact balance that will make it hard for him to consistently be an RB1 in the NFL. It's more likely that Washington actually invests in the position to bring in a veteran or draft pick to take the RB1 job. I like them taking Penn State RB Nicholas Singleton in the 2026 NFL Draft.

Whatever value you can get for "Bill" at this point is something you should take.

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