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2026 fantasy football QB rankings - Week 1 start, sit quarterback rankings. Win more with our updated QB fantasy football rankings and tiers for Week 1.
After a quick intro to the 2026 NFL season on Wednesday, it's time to set the rest of your fantasy football lineups! A quarterback spike week can win you a weekly matchup, so find the right option with our updated Week 1 quarterback rankings for 2026. Where do Trevor Lawrence, Dak Prescott, Jared Goff, Matthew Stafford, Bo Nix, Patrick Mahomes, Kyler Murray, and Cam Ward stand for the opening slate of 2026? Let's find out in the table below!
Our QB fantasy football rankings for Week 1 are put together by Nick Mariano. Below the rankings, you will also find a summary of the important fantasy football news for this week. There are always key injuries and developments to keep track of, so check back throughout the week for updates.
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Week 1 Fantasy Football Quarterback Rankings
Bookmark our PPR rankings, Half-PPR rankings, and standard (non-PPR) rankings
| QB Tier |
QB Rank |
Player Name |
Pos. |
| 1 | 1 | Joe Burrow | QB |
| 1 | 2 | Lamar Jackson | QB |
| 1 | 3 | Josh Allen | QB |
| 2 | 4 | Justin Herbert | QB |
| 2 | 5 | Jalen Hurts | QB |
| 2 | 6 | Trevor Lawrence | QB |
| 2 | 7 | Jayden Daniels | QB |
| 3 | 8 | Baker Mayfield | QB |
| 3 | 9 | Dak Prescott | QB |
| 3 | 10 | Jared Goff | QB |
| 3 | 11 | Drake Maye | QB |
| 3 | 12 | Caleb Williams | QB |
| 4 | 13 | Jaxson Dart | QB |
| 4 | 14 | Matthew Stafford | QB |
| 4 | 15 | Brock Purdy | QB |
| 4 | 16 | Tyler Shough | QB |
| 4 | 17 | Patrick Mahomes II | QB |
| 5 | 18 | Bo Nix | QB |
| 5 | 19 | Kyler Murray | QB |
| 5 | 20 | Malik Willis | QB |
| 5 | 21 | Jordan Love | QB |
| 5 | 22 | C.J. Stroud | QB |
| 5 | 23 | Daniel Jones | QB |
| 5 | 24 | Sam Darnold | QB |
| 6 | 25 | Jacoby Brissett | QB |
| 6 | 26 | Cam Ward | QB |
| 6 | 27 | Kirk Cousins | QB |
| 6 | 28 | Aaron Rodgers | QB |
| 6 | 29 | Geno Smith | QB |
| 6 | 30 | Bryce Young | QB |
| 6 | 31 | Tua Tagovailoa | QB |
| 6 | 32 | Deshaun Watson | QB |
Week 1 Fantasy Football Quarterback Outlooks
Deshaun Watson, Cleveland Browns
Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson, whose tenure with the Browns has been defined by suspension and injury-related layoffs, has seen his accuracy downfield decline in recent years, according to Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN. Watson ranked third among 34 qualifying QBs in completion rate (58.8%) on downfield passes in 2018, according to Next Gen Stats. He led the league in passing yards in 2020. But in 2023, Watson completed only 39.3% of his downfield attempts, which would have ranked as the worst in the league if he qualified.
In 2024, he completed a career-low 37.9% of his downfield attempts before tearing his Achilles, sidelining him for the final 10 games. Additionally, Watson has been less aggressive in pushing the ball down the field, which was impacted by a shoulder injury in 2023 that eventually required surgery.
Although Watson was fully healthy this summer in training camp, he was inconsistent and continued to struggle to push the ball downfield in the preseason. Still, he won the starting QB job over Shedeur Sanders, and head coach Todd Monken has confidence that Watson will be able to find explosive plays down the field in his offense in 2026. "I'm confident in Deshaun and our ability to push the ball down the field; otherwise, we wouldn't be starting him," Monken said.
CJ Stroud, Houston Texans
Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud could be headed for a high passing volume and plenty of scoring opportunities in Week 1 against the Buffalo Bills. Stroud was consistently drafted in fantasy leagues with 14+ teams, leaving him available on the waiver wire in eight-team and 10-team formats, as well as some 12-team leagues. The former No. 2 overall pick is looking to shake off a frustrating 2025 season in which he threw for a modest 3,041 passing yards with 19 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
His production continued to go downhill in the playoffs. Stroud has now seen his fantasy ranking decline every year since being drafted, but he could trend back up in a revamped offense this year. He also stands to benefit in a big way from the Texans' Week 1 matchup against the Bills.
Although Buffalo allowed the fourth-fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks last year, Texans-Bills projects as a potential shootout, leaving plenty of touchdown upside for Stroud. Managers who are already looking for some quarterback help in Week 1 should look to add Stroud off the waiver wire. He'll continue to get some favorable situations after the Bills game, as he runs into a stretch of matchups against the Bengals, Colts, Cowboys, and Titans.
Baker Mayfield, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield signed a three-year extension with the Bucs on Tuesday and enters the 2026 season with a bit of a chip on his shoulder after finishing the 2025 season as the QB17 on a points-per-game basis (17th) after finishing as the QB4 in 2024.
Mayfield dealt with a handful of injuries last season and finished the year throwing for 3,693 yards, 26 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. He also contributed on the ground with 382 rushing yards, giving him a safe floor to go with his passing volume.
Mayfield has a strong matchup in Week 1, going up against the Cincinnati Bengals, who ranked bottom 10 against opposing quarterbacks last season, allowing roughly 19.1 fantasy points per game to the position. Second-year standout receiver Emeka Egbuka (toe) appears to be trending toward playing in Week 1 to go along with another of Mayfield's go-to targets, Chris Godwin. Mayfield is being drafted as a QB2 in most formats, but his Week 1 matchup may be too good to pass up. Fantasy managers looking to stream a quarterback in Week 1 should look Mayfield's way.
Jordan Love, Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers 27-year-old quarterback Jordan Love is poised for a stellar season in 2026. With star running back Josh Jacobs facing a potential suspension and currently on the NFL's Commissioner's Exempt List, the Packers will need to rely on Love to carry this offense, and he should see his passing volume climb.
Back in 2023, Love finished as the QB5 in fantasy points per game (19.4), and star receiver Christian Watson is healthy coming into the season to go along with Tucker Kraft (knee), who appears to be on track to return in Week 1. Although Love has struggled the past two seasons from a fantasy standpoint (QB16 and QB18 finishes), it's mostly due to his lack of volume.
In 2025, he ranked 19th in pass attempts and 28th in team pass plays per game. Even with that, he was highly efficient, ranking seventh in true passer rating, second in QBR, and seventh in explosive rating and EPA. Love is a must-add on the waiver wire heading into Week 1, as he is being treated like a QB2 but has a clear path to QB1 upside.
Who Should I Start Tool
Compare up to four players and we'll tell you who to start...
Week 1 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players: Trevor Lawrence, Dak Prescott, Jared Goff, Matthew Stafford, Bo Nix, Patrick Mahomes, Kyler Murray, Cam Ward. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 1.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player name. In the second box, search for the second player name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed that our 'Who Should I Start?' tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, stats, projections, strength of schedule, player news, and enhanced search results with data to compare with a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week, our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do is select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circle), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 1 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 1 (2026)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 1 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Week 1 for Trevor Lawrence, Dak Prescott, Jared Goff, Matthew Stafford, Bo Nix, Patrick Mahomes, Kyler Murray, Cam Ward:
More Fantasy Football Analysis
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