March 25, 2026
Across 16 games in 2025, Buffalo Bills wide receiver
Khalil Shakir recorded 72 receptions for 719 yards and four touchdowns on 95 targets. The 26-year-old has emerged as a steady contributor in Buffalo in recent years, recording back-to-back seasons as the team leader in both targets and receiving yards. However, Shakir's role could be slightly minimized in 2026 following the team's recent acquisition of former Chicago Bears wide receiver
DJ Moore. Shakir profiles more as a possession wideout than a downfield or red zone threat, so a reduction in his targets could further reduce his already middling fantasy production. RotoBaller currently ranks Shakir as the 56th-best wide receiver for dynasty formats.
--Will BradySource: RotoBaller
March 25, 2026
As long as he can stay healthy, Green Bay Packers wide receiver
Christian Watson will be a popular breakout candidate in fantasy football in 2026 in his fifth year in the NFL. Watson has yet to play in more than 15 games in a season due to injuries since being drafted in the second round in 2022 out of North Dakota State. The 26-year-old played in just 10 regular-season games in 2025 after recovering from a torn ACL that he suffered late in 2024, but he still ended up being a top-50 fantasy wideout. Watson excelled as a top playmaker for Green Bay upon his return from Injured Reserve, catching 35 of his 55 targets for 611 yards and six touchdowns. He finished second on the team in catches, targets, and receiving yards to
Romeo Doubs, who is now in New England. Tight end
Tucker Kraft (knee) will be returning from a torn ACL, and second-year wideout
Matthew Golden will have a bigger role, but all signs point to Watson being the projected clear receiving leader in 2026 if he's healthy. Watson's big-play ability (17.0 yards per catch in his career) will make him a high-risk/high-reward WR2 in fantasy drafts later this year.
--Keith HernandezSource: Pro Football Reference
March 25, 2026
Pittsburgh Steelers tight end
Pat Freiermuth's dynasty/keeper fantasy value is on the rise with
Jonnu Smith no longer in town, but there's also the looming question this offseason surrounding the team's quarterback situation. Freiermuth put up a career-high 65 receptions for 653 yards and a career-high seven touchdowns on 78 targets in 17 regular-season games in 2024, but he fell to a disappointing 41-486-4 line in 17 regular-season games with Smith in town in 2025. For fantasy football purposes, the 27-year-old was the TE24 in half-PPR scoring in his fifth year in the NFL. As long as veteran
Aaron Rodgers returns for another season in the Steel City, Freiermuth will have clear bounce-back potential with a higher target floor in what should be a more pass-happy offense under new head coach Mike McCarthy. The recent addition of receiver
Michael Pittman Jr. creates additional target competition for the former second-round selection in 2021 out of Penn State.
--Keith HernandezSource: Pro Football Reference
March 25, 2026
The Detroit Lions officially announced on Wednesday that they re-signed kicker
Jake Bates to an undisclosed deal. Bates was an exclusive-rights free agent. The 27-year-old will return for his third season with the Lions in 2026. The former undrafted free agent out of Arkansas has become one of the more reliable kickers in fantasy football over the last couple of seasons in a Lions offense that should remain formidable in 2026. Last year in 17 games, Bates made 27 of his 34 field-goal tries (4-for-9 from 50-plus yards) and a league-high 54 extra points on 56 tries. He has made 84.1% of his 63 field-goal attempts in his two years in the NFL while succeeding on 95.9% of his 123 extra-point attempts. Bates was the No. 6 fantasy kicker in 2025. It also helps that half of his games come indoors, mitigating his volatility.
--Keith HernandezSource: Detroit Lions
March 25, 2026
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback
Patrick Mahomes (knee) posted a video on Wednesday of himself in a training session where he dropped back and threw the ball, according to ESPN's Nate Taylor. It's the first public footage of him doing anything football-related since he had surgery in December to fix the torn ACL and LCL in his left knee. "Day by Day!" Mahomes wrote his Instagram story. "Felt Great being able to throw the ball around today!" Based on the video clip, Taylor writes that the Chiefs are "optimistic" that Mahomes is on track to take part in the team's voluntary offseason practices, which are expected to start in May. The 30-year-old six-time Pro Bowler and three-time Super Bowl MVP had surgery exactly 100 days ago and said a month after the surgery that he hoped to be in uniform for the season opener in September. It's still early in the offseason, but it's a positive development for Mahomes to be ready for the start of the 2026 campaign. The question now is whether he has already peaked in KC's offense after failing to reach the 4,000-yard passing mark in each of the last two years. It hasn't been fruitful to bet against Mahomes, but coming off a serious knee injury, he needs to be knocked down to the low-end QB1 tier going into 2026 fantasy drafts.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN.com - Nate Taylor
March 25, 2026
Former Los Angeles Chargers and Pittsburgh Steelers running back
Najee Harris (Achilles) visited with the Seattle Seahawks on Wednesday, and the plan is for him to visit with the Las Vegas Raiders next, a source told Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network. Harris played in every single game in his first four years in the league with the Steelers, but he only played in three games in 2025 with the Chargers before tearing his left Achilles tendon. The 28-year-old former 24th overall pick in 2021 out of Alabama has progressed to sprinting on a treadmill this offseason, though, and he could make sense for a Seahawks backfield that lost Super Bowl MVP
Kenneth Walker III to free agency.
Zach Charbonnet (knee) isn't expected to be ready for Week 1 this fall, either, so the team could certainly use extra depth alongside
Emanuel Wilson and
George Holani. Harris had four straight 1,000-yard rushing seasons in the Steel City to begin his career, but his dynasty/keeper stock has taken a big hit coming off an Achilles tear. If he were to land in Seattle, he could be in a three-man committee backfield with Wilson and Holani until Charbonnet returns.
--Keith HernandezSource: NFL Network - Ian Rapoport
March 25, 2026
Alabama quarterback
Ty Simpson is scheduled to hold a private workout with the New York Jets on Friday, according to Field Yates of ESPN. The Jets traded for veteran QB
Geno Smith this offseason, but they are very much in the quarterback market heading into this year's NFL draft and hold the No. 2 and No. 16 overall picks in the first round. Simpson threw for a large contingent of NFL personnel at his school's pro day on Wednesday and was "razor sharp," per Yates. "His accuracy and tempo stood out." Indiana QB
Fernando Mendoza is expected to go first overall to the Las Vegas Raiders, but it remains to be seen if the Jets like Simpson enough to pull the trigger at No. 2 overall. In his first year as a starter for the Crimson Tide in 2025, Simpson looked great, leading the SEC in completions (305) and pass attempts (473) while throwing for 3,567 yards, 28 touchdowns, and only five interceptions in 15 games played. He has quickly become the consensus No. 2 overall QB prospect in this year's draft class, with ESPN's Dan Orlovsky going as far as to say that Simpson could end up being a better franchise signal-caller than Mendoza.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN - Field Yates
March 25, 2026
The Los Angeles Rams re-signed running back
Ronnie Rivers to an undisclosed one-year deal on Wednesday, according to Stu Jackson of the team's official website. Rivers will return for a fifth year in L.A. after carrying the ball just nine times for 46 yards in 11 regular-season games in 2025. The 27-year-old former undrafted free agent out of Fresno State latched on with the Rams and made his NFL debut in 2022, also carrying the football just nine times that year for 21 yards in eight games. In his four seasons in the NFL with the Rams, he's had a very limited role on offense with only 72 carries for 295 yards (4.1 yards per carry) and no rushing touchdowns in 45 games (two starts), adding 15 receptions for 85 yards through the air. Rivers will return to the Rams as primarily a special-teamer in 2026 while also adding RB depth behind
Kyren Williams,
Blake Corum, and
Jarquez Hunter. Fantasy managers can continue to ignore him in all formats.
--Keith HernandezSource: Rams.com - Stu Jackson
March 25, 2026
The Las Vegas Raiders will host Indiana quarterback
Fernando Mendoza on a top-30 visit in two weeks, sources told Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network. The Raiders are expected to take Mendoza with the first overall pick in next month's draft. Mendoza will take part in Indiana's pro day on Wednesday, April 1, after not taking part in any drills at the scouting combine at the end of February. The Hoosiers' signal-caller led the team to an undefeated season in 2025 and the national championship. He completed a career-high 72% of his 379 pass attempts for 3,535 yards, 41 touchdowns, and only six interceptions in 16 games played and added 90 carries for 276 yards on the ground and seven additional touchdowns. Even though the Raiders are fully expected to make him their franchise QB in April, they reportedly don't want him to open the 2026 season as the starter under center. That shouldn't change the fact that Mendoza should be the first overall pick in rookie-only drafts this fall. Mendoza can do everything on the football field and has an incredibly high floor at the next level.
--Keith HernandezSource: NFL Network - Ian Rapoport
March 25, 2026
The Atlanta Falcons will have a quarterback competition this year between
Tua Tagovailoa and
Michael Penix Jr. (knee) whenever Penix is cleared to resume football activities after having knee surgery last season. Tagovailoa, a former first-rounder by the Miami Dolphins, has embraced the competition after starting 76 of the 78 games he appeared in for the Dolphins. He's also fine with helping Penix improve as a QB. "I think whatever I can do to help Mike's game will help me because if I'm helping get him better, it's helping me get better, vice versa, we're then helping the team get better," Tagovailoa said. The 28-year-old went 44-32 in his six seasons in Miami and led all QBs in 2022 in touchdown percentage (6.3%), yards per completion (13.7), and passer rating (105.5). He then led the league with 4,624 passing yards in 2023. Since then, though, Tagovailoa has suffered multiple concussions and has regressed as a passer. He thinks he can still be dangerous as a passer and that his best football is ahead of him, but he'll first need to beat out a recovering Penix for the starting gig in Atlanta in 2026. If Tagovailoa wins the job, he'll merely be a low-end QB2 with a short leash.
--Keith HernandezSource: AtlantaFalcons.com - Will McFadden
March 25, 2026
The Baltimore Ravens are making a contract extension for wide receiver
Zay Flowers a top priority this offseason, according to Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic. Flowers has made two Pro Bowls in three years, something no other homegrown Ravens receiver has done, and he's also gone over 1,000 receiving yards twice. His 3,128 receiving yards since 2023 rank 10th-most among NFL receivers during that span, and his 237 catches rank 13th. It's a pretty impressive feat, considering the team's run-first offensive philosophy. The 25-year-old pass-catcher may not be a prototypical No. 1 NFL wideout, but the Ravens love that he's a legitimate playmaker, a major threat with the ball in his hands, and that he's hard to cover by cornerbacks. In addition to Flowers' skills on the field, he's been durable, missing just one game in three seasons. He's also a close friend of quarterback
Lamar Jackson. The Ravens fully intend to keep him after he signed a four-year, $14.04 million contract back in June of 2023. The Athletic's Jeff Zrebiec writes that the Ravens would like to reach a deal "sooner rather than later." They have until May 1 to pick up his fifth-year option and keep him under contract through at least 2027, but that's viewed as a formality.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - Jeff Zrebiec
March 25, 2026
Minnesota running back
Jordan Mason was a popular sleeper pick after being traded from the 49ers and signing a two-year, $10.5 million contract extension with the Vikings in the opening days of the 2025 league year. Instead, he spent most of the season as the 1B to 30-year-old
Aaron Jones. Mason finished the year with only five more total opportunities than the nine-year veteran despite playing in four more games. However, Mason was the more efficient option on the ground, outgaining Jones by more than half a yard per carry and leading the team with six rushing touchdowns. With the Vikings signing quarterback
Kyler Murray to a one-year deal, the team could find itself in more positive game scripts, which should benefit Mason more than Jones. Murray's scrambling could also eat into the running back passing work, but that has never been a part of Mason's game, as his 15 targets and 14 receptions in 2025 both marked career highs. While Mason was never able to consistently string together week-winning performances, he showed flashes while Jones was sidelined, and with the latter heading into 2026 with nearly 2,000 career touches, Mason could again be a popular breakout candidate.
--Patrick McGrathSource: RotoBaller
March 25, 2026
While 42-year-old quarterback
Aaron Rodgers remains unsigned two weeks into the start of the 2026 league year, new Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy would seem to welcome a reunion with the player he coached for 13 seasons and with whom he won a Super Bowl in 2010. At an event honoring late Packers president Bob Harlan, McCarthy was asked about the potential reunion and offered that, "It'd be a great story." A four-time MVP, Rodgers has been noncommittal about his future in the league following a 2025 campaign with the Steelers that saw him throw for 3,322 yards and 24 touchdowns, both among the lowest totals of his 20-year career. If he does choose to return for a 21st season, Pittsburgh would be the most obvious fit. A playoff team in 2025, the hiring of McCarthy suggests they still view their competitive window as open, but they head into 2026 with
Mason Rudolph and
Will Howard atop the depth chart.
--Patrick McGrathSource: Rob Demovsky - ESPN
March 25, 2026
Dallas Cowboys quarterback
Dak Prescott has missed significant time in three different seasons, all occurring within the last six years, but of the seven seasons in which he played at least 16 games, he has finished as the QB8 or better five times, only once finishing outside the top 12, all the way back in 2018. And yet he is currently being drafted around QB17 in dynasty startups. Longevity is certainly working against him as he enters his age-33 season, but for contending teams, he is a severely undervalued asset who has finished as the QB3 and QB6 in his last two fully healthy seasons. The Cowboys' offensive core remains intact heading into 2026, with
CeeDee Lamb,
George Pickens,
Javonte Williams, and
Jake Ferguson forming one of the most fantasy-friendly surrounding casts in the league, and Brian Schottenheimer enters his second season as head coach having already shown a propensity for pushing the ball downfield. Prescott's 4,552 passing yards in 2025 marked the second-highest total of his career, and while his rushing efficiency has declined in recent years, he's one of the few quarterbacks in the league who is a consistent threat to top 30 passing touchdowns.
--Patrick McGrathSource: RotoBaller
March 25, 2026
Dallas Cowboys wide receiver
CeeDee Lamb finished the 2025 season with 1,077 yards and three touchdowns on 75 receptions. It was his fifth straight year finishing above 1,000 yards, and with the team returning the same offensive core in 2026, he is confident in where things are headed under head coach Brian Schottenheimer. The Cowboys finished second in the NFL in passing and overall offense, and Lamb recently praised his first-year coach for his receiver-friendliness and command of the team. While missing three games, he finished behind teammate
George Pickens in most major statistical categories, and the Cowboys have made moves to improve their basement-dwelling defense from 2025, which could lead to more run-heavy game scripts, but Lamb remains one of the safest options in fantasy football. His connection with
Dak Prescott is real, and more big things should be in store for what has become one of the most consistently strong offenses in the league.
--Patrick McGrathSource: RotoBaller
RADIO
