January 29, 2026
Indianapolis Colts wide receiver
Josh Downs followed up a solid second season in the NFL with his worst yet in Year 3. Downs had career-lows in receptions (58), targets (88), and receiving yards (566) while scoring four touchdowns in 16 games played. The 24-year-old pass-catcher also had a career-low 9.8 yards per catch as he operated as the team's No. 3 receiver behind
Alec Pierce and
Michael Pittman Jr. Even with quarterback
Daniel Jones having a career resurgence before his season-ending torn Achilles tendon in the second half, Downs was unable to take advantage. He never clicked with Jones in the passing attack, and it didn't help that rookie tight end
Tyler Warren caught 76 passes for 817 yards. Unless Indy releases Pittman this offseason to give Downs a clearer path to consistent targets, he won't be much more than a late-round dart throw with limited upside in 2026 fantasy drafts.
--Keith HernandezSource: Pro Football Reference
January 29, 2026
Tennessee Titans tight end
Chig Okonkwo never really became all that interesting in fantasy football in his fourth year in the NFL in 2025 in a Titans offense that struggled with consistency under rookie quarterback
Cameron Ward. Okonkwo played in all 17 games for the fourth straight year and had career-highs in receptions (56), targets (79), and receiving yards (560) while finding the end zone only two times. In addition to the Titans' offense being one of the worst in the league, Okonkwo shared valuable targets with rookie TE
Gunnar Helm, who finished his rookie season with 44 catches for 357 yards and two touchdowns on 55 targets. Both of Okonkwo's touchdowns came late in the year, but Helm also saw more involvement in the passing game in the second half of 2025. For fantasy purposes, Okonkwo would be better off going elsewhere in free agency, with Helm likely only becoming more of a factor on offense in Tennessee in 2026.
--Keith HernandezSource: Pro Football Reference
January 29, 2026
Tennessee Titans general manager Mike Borgonzi said that quarterback
Cameron Ward (shoulder) is "doing well" as he rehabs a right-shoulder injury that he suffered in the Week 18 regular-season finale, according to Jim Wyatt of TennesseeTitans.com. It's unclear yet if Ward will be ready for the start of organized team activities in the spring after the 23-year-old suffered an AC joint sprain in his throwing shoulder against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Barring some sort of setback, though, he should be fully recovered well before training camp, the preseason, and the 2026 regular season. The first overall pick in last year's draft started all 17 games in his rookie season and completed 59.8% of his passes for 3,169 yards, 15 touchdowns, and seven interceptions to finish as the QB22 in fantasy. Ward added 159 yards and two TDs on the ground while also fumbling a whopping 11 times (seven lost) and taking a league-high 55 sacks. The Miami product must improve his accuracy, but working with new offensive coordinator Brian Daboll should be seen as a plus. Consider him a low-end QB2 with upside going into his second year in the NFL.
--Keith HernandezSource: TennesseeTitans.com - Jim Wyatt
January 29, 2026
Baltimore Ravens running back
Derrick Henry had some issues with ball security and inconsistency in 2025, but overall he remained a highly productive player. Across 17 games, Henry recorded 307 carries for 1,595 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns. Going into 2026, Henry will be entering his age-32 season with more than 2,800 career regular-season touches under his belt. Traditional aging curves indicate that Henry is long overdue for a decline in production. Additionally, his PPR fantasy value remains limited by his lack of production as a receiver, as he recorded just 15 receptions for the season in 2025. However, Henry may be enough of a physical outlier that he can continue to stave off father time. He will also presumably get the benefit of playing a full season next to Ravens quarterback
Lamar Jackson, who missed time in 2025 due to multiple injuries. As long as he makes it through the offseason healthy, Henry profiles as a high-end running back option for 2026. In dynasty formats, Henry's long-term outlook is murkier due to his age.
--Will BradySource: RotoBaller
January 29, 2026
New York Jets wide receiver
Adonai Mitchell is coming off an up-and-down 2025 season. A second-round pick by the Indianapolis Colts in the 2024 NFL Draft, Mitchell recorded just 32 catches over the first 25 games of his career with Indy. However, he was seemingly rejuvenated by a midseason trade to New York, where he finished the season by hauling in 24 receptions for 301 yards and two touchdowns on 58 targets across eight games played. The Jets afforded Mitchell his first chance at extended playing time, as he played at least 80% of the team's offensive snaps in six of his eight contests. Heading into 2026, star Jets wideout
Garrett Wilson's (knee) return from injury will push Mitchell down the depth chart. However, Mitchell appears to be in the mix for the team's WR2 role, depending on the additions made by New York in free agency and the draft. It's worth noting that Mitchell remained an inefficient pass-catcher even after being acquired by the Jets, as he averaged just 5.2 yards per target. Still, he's a talented young player with a possible playing time runway who should be on the radar of fantasy managers in both dynasty and redraft formats.
--Will BradySource: RotoBaller
January 29, 2026
As his team's first first-round wide receiver selection since 2002, Green Bay Packers wideout
Matthew Golden entered the 2025 season with plenty of hype. However, the 22-year-old failed to carve out a consistent role as a rookie, finishing the year with 29 receptions for 381 yards and zero touchdowns on 44 targets across 14 regular-season games. From Week 9 onwards, Golden played fewer than 50% of Green Bay's offensive snaps in every game but two. With another offseason to develop chemistry with Packers quarterback
Jordan Love and earn the trust of his coaching staff, Golden could be in line for a significantly larger role in 2026. However, Green Bay will likely still roster plenty of competition for playing time at the wide receiver position, even with veteran wideout
Romeo Doubs set to hit free agency. Between
Christian Watson,
Jayden Reed, and
Dontayvion Wicks, Golden will have to fight for playing time with three wide receivers who were all ahead of him on the team's depth chart at different times in 2025. While he remains an intriguing long-term prospect, Golden's value to fantasy managers in dynasty leagues has taken a hit relative to where it was this time last year.
--Will BradySource: RotoBaller
January 29, 2026
A fourth-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, Tennessee Titans wide receiver
Chimere Dike flashed upside throughout his rookie season. Across 17 games played, the 24-year-old recorded 48 receptions for 423 yards and four touchdowns on 74 targets. Dike also improved as the season progressed, earning at least five targets in five out of his last seven games of the season and scoring three touchdowns in that stretch. Heading into 2026, Dike figures to be in the mix for a starting role in Tennessee. However, the Titans will also have a new coaching staff in place, and could look to bring in additional talent at the position through both the draft and free agency. Still, Dike showed enough encouraging signs as a rookie that he will likely be in the organization's plans in some capacity. Dike may be a player worth stashing in dynasty leagues coming off a solid rookie campaign in 2025.
--Will BradySource: RotoBaller
January 29, 2026
Pittsburgh Steelers running back
Kenneth Gainwell was one of the more surprising breakout players of the 2025 season, recording 1,023 scrimmage yards and eight touchdowns on 187 touches across 17 games played. Gainwell emerged as one of the favorite targets of Steelers quarterback
Aaron Rodgers, as he hauled in 73 receptions for 486 yards and three scores on 85 targets. Coming off the best season of his career, Gainwell is now set to hit unrestricted free agency. If retained by Pittsburgh, Gainwell would likely remain in a playing time split with Steelers running back
Jaylen Warren. However, the Steelers have moved on from 2025 offensive coordinator Arthur Smith and may bring in a new quarterback for the 2026 season as well. As such, a return to Pittsburgh would not necessarily guarantee Gainwell the same role he enjoyed this past season. Fantasy managers should closely monitor Gainwell's free agency, as his next team will likely play a significant factor in his value going forward.
--Will BradySource: RotoBaller
January 29, 2026
Atlanta Falcons veteran quarterback
Kirk Cousins has two years left on his deal, but he's expected to be released in early March after the Falcons restructured his contract so that he'll be owed $68 million if he's on the roster on March 13, according to The Athletic's Josh Kendall. Cousins could be released and re-signed on a less-expensive contract as the Falcons look for insurance at the position behind
Michael Penix Jr. (knee). The 37-year-old QB started the final seven games in 2025 after Penix tore his ACL in Week 11. Cousins ranked 37th in the NFL in EPA per dropback and threw for 1,721 yards, 10 touchdowns, and five interceptions in his 10 games (eight starts). Even though new head coach Kevin Stefanski has a previous working relationship with Cousins from their time together with the Vikings in 2019, the feeling is that Atlanta is ready to move on from him this offseason. Penix's recovery this offseason could be the determining factor in whether Atlanta brings Cousins back in 2026.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - Josh Kendall
January 29, 2026
The Athletic's Josh Kendall writes that it's clear from new head coach Kevin Stefanski's past that running back
Bijan Robinson can "expect his heavy workload to continue" in 2026. Kendall even thinks that Robinson's workload could increase as he enters his fourth year in the NFL. The 23-year-old led the league in scrimmage yards (2,298) in 2025, putting him firmly in the running for the Offensive Player of the Year award. Robinson has been the only player in the league with more than 1,000 combined rushes and receptions since he was drafted eighth overall in 2023. He finished behind only
Christian McCaffrey and
Jonathan Taylor in half-PPR points last season, carrying the ball 287 times for 1,478 yards and seven touchdowns. Robinson added 79 receptions for 820 yards and four more TDs on 103 targets over 17 games. There's an argument to be made for Robinson being the No. 1 overall pick in 2026 fantasy football drafts.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - Josh Kendall
January 29, 2026
Not many fantasy football managers would have predicted Arizona Cardinals wide receiver
Michael Wilson being a top-12 wideout at the start of the 2025 season. Thanks to injuries to quarterback
Kyler Murray and receiver
Marvin Harrison Jr., Wilson took over as the team's WR1 in the second half of the season and finished with career-highs across the board in catches (78), targets (126), receiving yards (1,006), and touchdowns (seven) in 17 games played. In the first nine games of the year, Wilson had only 22 receptions for 231 yards and one score on 38 targets. In the final eight contests, he soared with 56 catches on 88 targets for 775 yards and six touchdowns in a pass-happy Cardinals offense. Backup QB
Jacoby Brissett peppered Wilson with targets as much as possible, and he scored in each of the final five games. Despite the impressive breakout, Wilson's 2026 fantasy value will be shaky with a giant question mark at QB and under a completely new coaching staff.
--Keith HernandezSource: Pro Football Reference
January 29, 2026
Dallas Cowboys tight end
Jake Ferguson didn't have much of a chance in 2024 after quarterback
Dak Prescott's season-ending hamstring injury, finishing his third year in the NFL with 59 catches, 494 yards, and zero touchdowns in 14 starts. Ferguson was able to bounce back in 2025, though, with a career-high 82 receptions on 102 targets for 600 yards and a career-high eight touchdowns in 17 contests. It wasn't all great for the 27-year-old, though, as he didn't go over 20 receiving yards in any of his final four games while also finishing with a career-low 7.3 yards per catch. All in all, it was a successful fourth year in the NFL. Ferguson was the TE7 in half-PPR scoring, and he will be a no-doubt TE1 target in fantasy football drafts this fall as the top pass-catching tight end in the Cowboys' high-scoring offense. Despite receivers
CeeDee Lamb and
George Pickens seeing their fair share of targets, Ferguson was one of only eight TEs who saw over 100 targets in 2025.
--Keith HernandezSource: Pro Football Reference
January 29, 2026
Cincinnati Bengals running back
Chase Brown said his representation is in talks with the team about a new long-term contract extension, according to Ben Baby of ESPN. Brown, 25, is eligible for an extension after completing his third year in the NFL in 2025. "I would love to do something and be a part of this team," Brown said. "I don't want to go anywhere else." The 25-year-old finished 11th in the NFL last year with a team-high 1,456 scrimmage yards. He was also sixth among all RBs with 437 receiving yards, and he had his first 1,000-rushing campaign (1,019 yards). Given all of the other financial commitments to key players on the offensive side of the ball in Cincy, and the fact that the Bengals' defense needs a lot of help, it remains to be seen if the Bengals will extend Brown going into the final year of his deal. Regardless of his contract going into the 2026 season, Brown should at least be viewed as a low-end RB1 target as the team's No. 1 backfield option in a high-scoring offense.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN.com - Ben Baby
January 29, 2026
The New York Giants are scheduled to meet with Indianapolis Colts offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter to discuss their vacant offensive-coordinator position, according to Peter Schrager of ESPN. Cooter has also interviewed for the offensive-coordinator job with the Philadelphia Eagles. The 41-year-old has been the Colts' OC since 2023, but he hasn't called plays while working under offensive-minded head coach Shane Steichen. Moving to either New York or Philly would allow Cooter to call plays. Under Cooter in 2025, the Colts' offense ranked eighth in points per game and yards per play. He was also the OC for the Detroit Lions from 2015 to 2018. Cooter has previous ties to the Eagles after serving as an offensive consultant in 2021. The Giants were expected to go with Todd Monken as their OC, but he took the job as the next head coach for the Browns.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN - Peter Schrager
January 29, 2026
New England Patriots quarterback
Drake Maye (shoulder) did not throw the football around during the period of practice open to the media on Thursday, according to Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald. Maye injured his right (throwing) shoulder in the AFC Championship victory of the Denver Broncos last weekend and was listed as limited on Wednesday's estimated injury report. The Patriots have downplayed the second-year QB's injury and said he should be fine for the Super Bowl against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, Feb. 8. With an extra week off before the big game, the Pats are likely just resting their star signal-caller to make sure that he's closer to full health next week. The North Carolina product was the QB3 in overall fantasy points during the regular season in his first full year as the starter, completing a league-high 72% of his pass attempts for 4,394 yards, 31 touchdowns, and eight picks. He hasn't been nearly as good in his first three career playoff games, though, completing 55.8% of his passes for 533 yards, four TDs, and two interceptions while fumbling six times (three lost).
UPDATE: Maye was officially listed as limited in practice on Thursday.--Keith HernandezSource: Boston Herald - Doug Kyed
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