5 Fantasy Football Offseason Losers to Buy Low in Dynasty Leagues

May 8, 2026

Dynasty fantasy football offseason losers to buy low in 2026. Patrick analyzes the dynasty trade value of buy-low players like Michael Penix Jr., Garrett Wilson, more.

Every year around this time, as NFL rosters round into form, pundits are quick to reach for the rubber stamp and declare their offseason losers. An incoming free agent or draft pick shakes up the depth chart … LOSER! A coach says something vaguely concerning … LOSER! A player commits the unforgivable sin of aging in sync with the Earth’s orbit around the sun … LOSER!

But history tends to be a little more forgiving. After all, was it over for Kurt Warner when he was stocking shelves at whatever a Hy-Vee grocery store is? Was it over for Middle-earth when the One Ring fell into the hands of a fuzzy little introvert and his gardener? And, out of referential respect, was it over for Bluto Blutarsky when his Pearl Harbor speech initially fell on deaf ears?

Of course not. And it’s far from over for these five perceived LOSERS who should still see meaningful fantasy production in 2026 and beyond.

Michael Penix Jr., Quarterback, Atlanta Falcons

Michael Penix Jr. was the eighth overall pick in one of the most offense-heavy draft classes in league history. In his limited run of starts, he’s occasionally shown us why, finishing as a QB1 in four of his last eight full games. That’s not typically the path of a player sitting at QB26 in dynasty rankings.

time to enjoy some @themikepenix dots 😮‍💨🎯 pic.twitter.com/Ohie1ls09c

— NFL (@NFL) July 7, 2025

Of course, the admittedly cherry-picked stat line omits a mid-game benching in a 30-0 blowout, and the market isn’t reacting to the highs, but to the elephant in the room. Penix’s Week 11 ACL tear was his third since 2018, adding to a list of season-ending injuries that now runs five deep.

Durability concerns are, and have been, the unavoidable focus of his profile, but for him to be within the same dynasty tier as new teammate Tua Tagovailoa seems a gross mispricing.

The addition of Tua should be viewed more as an opportunity signing than a long-term pivot. A bridge quarterback, still being paid by his former team, who allows the offense to function without a full schematic overhaul because he also prefers his corkscrews to turn counterclockwise?

The fact that new general manager Ian Cunningham didn’t go viral by tripping and putting a pen through his hand while rushing to sign that contract is already a sign the Falcons are under better care than they have been. But everything about the situation is clean, convenient, and temporary because when Penix is ready, he’s getting the job back.

2026 marks the third year of his rookie deal and the final chance for Atlanta to see what it has got before deciding on his fifth-year option. After years of wheel-spinning at quarterback by the previous regime, that suddenly accelerated timeline means Penix is going to get every opportunity to prove he’s the answer.

With that kind of runway, it would take another catastrophic injury for him not to outperform his current price tag.

Garrett Wilson, Wide Receiver, New York Jets

When it comes to losing the offseason, no one on this list has been doing it longer or with more dedication than Garrett Wilson, considering his 2025 season ended after only 6.5 games.

Before that, though, it was business as usual. Through six weeks, Wilson sat as the WR7, pacing toward 100+ catches, 1,100 yards, and double-digit touchdowns, despite catching balls from Justin Fields and Tyrod Taylor, two players whose combined quarterback rating dropped 17 points when throwing to anyone other than Wilson.

And while seemingly forgetting just how dominant Wilson can be, the market has seen new competition and begun to panic. Yes, the Jets added two first-round pass-catchers in tight end Kenyon Sadiq and wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr., but both profile as YAC-driven options working underneath and are more likely to cannibalize one another than meaningfully dent Wilson’s role.

Wilson is no stranger to fending off competition. When the Jets traded for Davante Adams in 2024, they brought in a receiver who had not only averaged more than 171 targets across his previous four seasons but who also happened to be best buds with the current quarterback. None of that stopped Wilson from earning 7.9 targets per game in their time together.

And then there’s coaching and quarterback. Frank Reich’s system may not be flashy, but it has consistently funneled volume to a primary option, with at least one player clearing a 25% target share in each of his last four seasons as a head coach. Meanwhile, Geno Smith is somehow the best Jets quarterback since Geno Smith.

His Vegas stint went sideways, but perhaps if he’d written his haters back in 2022, or on their multiple attempts to get in touch with him since, he might have learned that the league was moving in the direction of more mobile quarterbacks. Valuable information to have before gearing up to play behind the worst offensive line in the league.

In New York, the Jets have spent years building the line, and if Smith can return to anything resembling his Seattle form, Wilson could finally see a touch of quality added to the target quantity he’s certain to command. And if he doesn’t, the Jets are well-positioned to reload quickly, armed with three first-round picks in what looks to be a loaded 2027 quarterback class.

Jaylin Noel, Wide Receiver, Houston Texans

The market has decided Jaylin Noel is an offseason loser. The market is just flat-out wrong about this one.

Tank Dell, a former third-round pick and one of C.J. Stroud’s favorite targets, is expected to return after missing all of 2025 with a dislocated knee and multiple torn ligaments. For some reason, that’s been enough to push Noel down to WR72 in dynasty rankings.

At 5’8” and 165 pounds, Dell is a lot of things. He’s an absolute blast to watch, an easy player to root for after such a devastating injury, and an early front-runner for the league’s Comeback Player of the Year Award, but a legitimate threat to Noel’s role in the slot he is not.

Despite looking the part, fewer than 30% of Dell’s professional snaps have come on the inside. While 2026 will be his first year in Nick Caley’s system, it’s more likely the 6’4”, 215-pound Jayden Higgins who will be impacted by his presence in two-receiver sets. Sounds improbable, but it worked with DeVito and Schwarzenegger, and it should work for Caley and Stroud.

The real obstacle to Noel’s playing time … well, he’s in San Francisco now.

Christian Kirk, who soaked up the majority of Houston’s slot work in 2025, signed with the 49ers in free agency, leaving a clear path for Noel to step into a full-time role and recreate the spark he showed in his limited opportunities as a rookie.

THE call that changed it all for Jaylin Noel 📞 pic.twitter.com/MrUjpMs7xT

— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) April 26, 2025

In two midseason starts while Kirk dealt with a hamstring injury, Noel caught nine of 13 targets for 140 yards, averaging 3.7 yards per route run while making plays and flashing the reliable hands that made him a Day 2 pick.

Over the full season, he dropped just one pass. After posting a top-36 finish in three of the six games in which he saw the field for at least a 30% snap share, a bump in playing time should make him a regular fantasy contributor moving forward.

De'Von Achane, Running Back, Miami Dolphins

First, they came for the coach. Then, they came for the quarterback. Then, they came for the wide receiver, and before he’d even had time to brush up on his post-war confessional prose, no one was left in Miami but De’Von Achane.

By almost every metric, the Dolphins fielded one of the league’s worst offenses in 2025. On paper, it doesn’t look much better heading into 2026. One of the most respected offensive minds in the game is out, replaced by the defense-focused Jeff Hafley and an offensive coordinator, Bobby Slowik, who wore out his welcome in Houston thanks to predictability, poor communication, and a stubborn refusal to adjust.

The quarterback shift from Tua Tagovailoa to Malik Willis doesn’t help Achane’s case, either, at least not initially. Tua made a living underneath, consistently involving his backs in the passing game. Willis, in a limited body of work, has leaned the other way, working high to low and taking off when things break down, resulting in just 2.8 targets per game to running backs across his six career starts.

But with such a small sample size, none of his tendencies are set in stone. Even if they were, there may be no greater proclivity breaker than Achane.

He was the only running back in the league to score double-digit fantasy points in every game last season. Following Miami’s latest reset, he is kind of the entirety of the offense, despite a combined five swings at wide receiver and tight end in the draft.

Achane has caught 145 passes over the past two seasons, while no other player on the roster has ever recorded a 50-catch campaign. On the ground, his 5.7 yards per carry in 2025 raises a fair question about what exactly Jaylen Wright and Ollie Gordon II were doing to combine for 3.5.

He's Himmothy 😎

RT to #ProBowlVote De'Von Achane pic.twitter.com/2UmJuy0RkW

— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) December 14, 2025

Along with Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs, Achane is the only other running back with a top-6 fantasy finish in each of the past two seasons. Yet at only 24 years old, he’s fallen several tiers below both Ashton Jeanty and Jeremiyah Love in consensus dynasty rankings -- two backs tied to similarly unfavorable offenses, but without the hard evidence they can survive them.

If league economies dictate that either can be flipped for Achane-plus, feel free to cash in on hype and buy back production.

David Njoku, Tight End, Free Agent

Football is the ultimate cat-and-mouse game. Though for that analogy to truly sing, the mouse probably needs some sort of advanced Rescue Rangers gadgetry, or maybe just a really long stick. Like, a long, durable stick that’s still super light. Maybe if there’s some crazy element out there that could produce a long, durable cat-whacking stick that's still light enough to be wielded by a mouse…

The point is, offenses and defenses are in a constant state of adjustment, and the latest wave of two-high safety shells has been met with a renewed emphasis on heavier personnel.

With offenses still wanting to remain multiple, there may be no greater mismatch in today’s NFL than a tight end who can both block and catch. Even pushing 30, with maybe a few extra inches around the waistline, David Njoku still fits the suit.

Njoku is a willing, capable blocker, and his 35-inch arms make off-target throws nearly impossible. With the ball in his hands, he’s consistently been a problem, adding at least five yards after the catch per reception in four of the past five seasons.

The 2026 NFL Draft reinforced the league-wide demand at the position, with 21 tight ends selected in total and nine in the first three rounds, but very few enter the league with Njoku’s level of versatility.

With his recent streak of TE13, TE6, and TE11 fantasy finishes ended only when he wound up in a room with the current dynasty TE6, Harold Fannin Jr., there aren’t many other players in the league capable of holding Njoku to his floor, even in his 10th season.

Given the sheer amount of tight-end-needy teams still seeking the final piece of their offense, namely the Panthers, Bengals, Dolphins, or Chargers, there are enough clear paths for him to land in a role that will make his current TE23 dynasty price feel fleeting.

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