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Brett breaks down six sneaky fantasy football team stacks with high upside and low downside for 2026 leagues. His top fantasy football stacks for 2026 include the Green Bay Packers, Houston Texans, and more.
When it comes to success in most things, risk-taking seems to play a huge role. This is not to say that taking risks directly leads to success. A more accurate description of the correlation is that without taking risks, the chance of success is much lower. While not all risk-takers succeed, most people who succeed in business, sports, or life have taken substantial risks. I’ll stop boring you with the logic, but the bottom line is that taking risks, especially in fantasy football, is essential to winning because it increases your potential ceiling.
Ok, phew, we got that out of the way so we can get to the heart of the article: stacking. Stacking is one of the best ways to take risks and is featured in over 50% of winning fantasy teams in high-stakes leagues. I’m going to be transparent with you; I love a good stack. But not all stacking strategies are the same, and I’m here to give you some strategy on how to increase your upside risk while actually minimizing your downside risk. When people think of stacks, they often cite the most desirable and sexy ones like Joe Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase, Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb, Jalen Hurts and DeVonta Smith, Lamar Jackson and Zay Flowers, and Drake Maye and A.J. Brown. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love all of these combos. But because of the high draft capital of both, or at least one, of these stacks, there is substantial downside risk. There is another way…
I’m not suggesting that I am the only one to suggest the Low Downside Stack, but I am a massive believer and try to address it before every season’s draft. So, what is the Low Downside Stack? It is a stack with two or more players with middle- to low-draft capital. Ideally, at most one player would have middle-level draft capital, with the rest having low draft capital. One of the best ways to identify Low Downside Stacks is to look at teams that could make a large offensive leap. New coaching, young players, and a top defense from 2025. Why a top Defense from last year? Because the number of teams that repeat as a top defense is surprisingly low, and when defenses are on the down slope, the respective offenses need to score more points! Below are my favorite stacks for 2026. Go ahead and take two, three, or even four players, because if that team hits, you will reap the increased upside without having to waste high draft capital.
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Top Fantasy Football Upside Stacks with Low Risk
Tennessee Titans
Cam Ward gets the second-year QB Boost (approximately six fantasy points) after one of the hardest schedules in 2025. The Titans brought in Brian Daboll as Offensive Coordinator, who has a particular affinity for developing quarterbacks. They brought in Carnell Tate and Wan'Dale Robinson and have two second-year talents in Chimere Dike and Elic Ayomanor.
They round off their WR room with the return of Calvin Ridley, who has the talent if he can stay healthy to have an impact. They also added veterans Austin Schlottmann and Cordell Volson to the offensive line, which gave up 55 league-leading sacks to Ward last season.
Players I like to stack (2-4): Carnell Tate, Tony Pollard, Cam Ward, Wan'Dale Robinson, Chimere Dike, Elic Ayomanor, Calvin Ridley and Tyjae Spears
Ideal Low Downside Stack: Cam Ward, Carnell Tate, Wan’Dale Robinson, Tyjae Spears
Green Bay Packers
Here’s one of the top defenses from last year (fifth DVOA) that could take a step back. Even a modest step back should lead to more offense. Green Bay had a 46.8% success rate in the low red zone (16th) but only converted 12.8% of those plays into touchdowns (28th).
The WR room has been consolidated following the losses of Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks, providing a huge opportunity for Christian Watson, Jayden Reed, and Matthew Golden. Josh Jacobs should benefit from more offense and greater red-zone efficiency, and is currently being drafted as a potential value due to off-field issues.
Players I like to stack (2-4): Josh Jacobs, Christian Watson, Tucker Kraft, Jordan Love, Jayden Reed, and Matthew Golden
Ideal Low Downside Stack: Jordan Love, Tucker Kraft, Jayden Reed, Matthew Golden
Jacksonville Jaguars
Another team that had a very strong defense last year (sixth DVOA). The key to this team’s Low Downside Stack value is Trevor Lawrence, who finished fifth in Half PPR and QB1 over the second half of the season. He is being drafted around QB12. Team that up with uncertainty around a talented WR room, and there’s a lot of opportunity for a cheap stack.
This is also Liam Coen’s second year with the team, with consistency in coaching and personnel. I truly don’t know which WR has the greatest boom opportunity between Parker Washington and Brian Thomas Jr., but I like taking whichever falls later. I also think Chris Rodriguez Jr. could look like a 2012 Detroit Lions’ Jamaal Williams with this offense.
Some people think Bhayshul Tuten is much more talented, but Rodriguez is a bruiser and looked fantastic in Week 11 before getting hurt, with 15 carries for 79 yards (5.3 per carry) + TD, and then TDs in five of Washington’s last seven games.
Players I like to stack (2-4): Parker Washington, Brian Thomas Jr., Trevor Lawrence, Jakobi Meyers, Chris Rodriguez Jr.
Ideal Low Downside Stack: Brian Thomas Jr., Trevor Lawrence, Chris Rodriguez Jr.
New Orleans Saints
Tyler Shough and the possibility of him taking the second-year QB leap have people like me excited about the Saints. Shough averaged almost 20.0 PPG in Weeks 9-18 last year, and it wasn’t all check-downs; he had the ninth-highest deep throw rate.
The Saints are also entering their second year under Kellen Moore and have added some serious talent in Travis Etienne and Jordyn Tyson. Lastly, their offensive line should improve in terms of consistency with the additions of Kelvin Banks Jr. and David Edwards.
Players I like to stack (2-4): Jordyn Tyson, Tyler Shough, Devaughn Vele, Alvin Kamara
Ideal Low Downside Stack: Jordyn Tyson, Tyler Shough, Devaughn Vele
Houston Texans
With the second-best defense in football last year, there is a good chance we see a dip. Any dip could mean more offensive production. We’ve been waiting for C.J. Stroud to return to rookie form, and if there ever was a year, it’s a year where we hopefully get a healthy Nico Collins and Tank Dell.
Also, Second-year upside for Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel, and there are big additions to their offensive line with Wyatt Teller, Braden Smith, and Keylan Rutledge. Let’s not forget David Montgomery, who is a major upgrade to the RB room.
Players I like to stack: David Montgomery, Jayden Higgins, C.J. Stroud, Jaylin Noel, Tank Dell, Woody Marks
Ideal Low Downside Stack: David Montgomery, Jayden Higgins, C.J. Stroud, Tank Dell
Chicago Bears
Caleb Williams has every opportunity to jump to superstar status in 2026. He has three receiver studs in Luther Burden III, Rome Odunze, and Colston Loveland, and the return of what was a very solid run game (third in the NFL) with D'Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai. It will be the second year for Ben Johnson after he had a massive impact in year one.
Players I like to stack (2-4): Rome Odunze, Luther Burden (if he drops due to injury), Caleb Williams, D'Andre Swift, Kyle Monangai
Honorable Mentions and Summary
Before I give my last two cents on this strategy, I want to give honorable mentions to the Las Vegas Raiders, New York Jets, and Minnesota Vikings, who all have a big opportunity to improve dramatically.
Here’s the bottom line when it comes to a Low Downside Stack Strategy: you must take risks to win fantasy, like drafting Christian McCaffrey last year coming off of an injury-plagued season. The best fantasy players and leagues increase this risk-taking with stacks.
Why not take a lot of this risk in the middle to later rounds, where the opportunity cost isn’t that high? Taking a Reed alone could work out, but won’t have nearly the impact if coupled with Love and the Packers go boom. Just…do…it!
Sincerely,
Brett Mitchell @BrettMitchellFB on X
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2026 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Jayden Reed, Carnell Tate, Jordan Love, Luther Burden, Rome Odunze, Christian Watson, Nico Collins, Tyler Shough, Chris Olave. These are some common searches for 2026 fantasy football drafts.
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