Fantasy Football Player Outlooks for The 2026-26 Season

There's a strong case to make for Robinson as not just the fantasy RB1, but the 1.01 pick in most formats. As much as players like Jahmyr Gibbs and Christian McCaffrey are capable of claiming the RB1 title themselves, Robinson's combination of huge workload (including pass catching), elite efficiency and uncommon durability give him the highest combination of floor and ceiling. With Tyler Allgeier off to Arizona and a strong offensive line still in place back in Atlanta, Robinson's workload is locked in around a league-leading level. He compounds that volume with explosive production as both a runner and pass catcher, averaging 4.9 YPC and 6.7 YPT for his career. New Falcons coach Kevin Stefanski will probably want to use backup RB Brian Robinson at times, but Robinson may quickly prove a downgrade on Allgeier, who poached 143 carries and eight rushing touchdowns last year, including 10 carries inside the 5-yard line and 19 carries inside the 10. With standout power, 4.46 speed and polished pass-catching skills, Robinson should continue to provide elite per-touch efficiency while boasting better volume/durability projections than Gibbs or McCaffrey.

With at least 5.0 yards per carry and blistering touchdown production in each of his three NFL seasons, Gibbs has a strong case as the most explosive from-scrimmage threat in the league. Last year brought decline for Detroit's offense as a whole, and while Gibbs' rushing efficiency eventually suffered down the stretch, he still finished with 5.0 YPC, 18 TDs (five receiving) and 1,839 yards from scrimmage, proving that he carries the Detroit offense rather than the other way around. The Lions traded David Montgomery to Houston and have so far only replaced him with Isiah Pacheco, who signed a guaranteed contract for one year and $1.81 million. As much as the Lions might want to avoid overworking Gibbs, their present depth chart hints at huge snap counts for the 5-foot-9, 199-pound superstar. Detroit's offensive line is undergoing notable transition for the second offseason in a row, this time due to the subtraction of long-time left tackle Taylor Decker. Superstar right tackle Penei Sewell should be up to the task of moving to the left side, allowing 17th overall pick Blake Miller to take over at right tackle after his four-year run as Clemson's starter in that same spot. There's no guarantee Detroit's offensive line improves on its disappointing 2025 form, but it at least shouldn't get any worse.

The arrival of Daniel Jones proved a godsend for Taylor, with the improved quarterback play such a contrast to what Anthony Richardson had provided that it looked like Taylor was playing on a lower difficulty level. Though Taylor has always been highly successful for the Colts, that was often the case in spite of the offense around him. If Taylor were ever truly empowered by a surrounding offense, he might enjoy the kind of glow-up that Christian McCaffrey and Saquon Barkley got after leaving their original NFL teams. Unfortunately for Taylor and the Colts, Jones was made less effective by a fibula fracture mid-season, before suffering an Achilles' tendon tear Dec. 7 while playing through the first injury. Great as Taylor's final numbers were -- 20 touchdowns (18 rushing) and career-high receiving stats -- the season was still largely a tale of before and after Jones' injuries. Taylor averaged an ordinary 12.9 PPR points after a Week 11 bye, losing more than half of his production compared to a league-high 27.2 PPR points through the first 10 games. On pace for a 1,900-yard rushing season at one point, Taylor instead finished with 1,585 yards on the ground. He still has the stuff to pull off a 2,000-yard campaign in the right circumstances, but he'll never catch as many passes as other top RBs, instead relying on rushing yardage and TDs for fantasy production. It'll be a lot easier for Taylor to live up to his first-round ADP if Jones comes back healthy and effective, though there's also reason to question Jones' pre-2025 track record (medical and otherwise).

A perennial first-round fantasy pick, Chase was the popular 1.01 selection last year and mostly lived up to it, becoming the third player ever with 125-plus receptions in back-to-back seasons. He finished 2025 with a career-high and league-leading 185 targets, yet his fantasy production (19.5 PPR points) didn't quite match the 2024 level (23.7 PPR), with Chase dropping from 9.8 YPT to 7.6, including just 7.9 YPT on his 78 targets from Joe Burrow. In five games with Joe Flacco under center, Chase averaged an absurd 14.4 targets, producing 21.5 PPR points despite 6.8 YPT. With Burrow now healthy and Flacco re-signed, Chase is as close to a sure thing as there is in fantasy football, having played at least 16 games in four of five seasons. He's averaged at least 16.4 PPR points and 76 receiving yards each year, piling up short catches for easy points while also doing damage downfield. The only possible criticism is that he relies on massive route volume rather than pacing the league in per-route stats, but it doesn't much matter for fantasy when he's once again positioned for an every-down role in a pass-heavy offense.

McCaffrey began the 2025 season with an unspecified Achilles' tendon issue casting ominous clouds overhead, but somehow he shook it off and evaded the worst fears of his fantasy investors. McCaffrey not only started all year for San Francisco; he was almost certainly overworked as the 49ers scrambled to fix production shortages caused by injuries to other skill-position players. McCaffrey played in every game and logged 927 snaps, his most since 2019 and the third-most of his career. With McCaffrey turning 30 in June and having plenty of injuries in his past, the 49ers might want to lessen his workload relative to last year's career-high 311 carries and 102 receptions. The question is whether the 49ers will actually have that luxury. Second-year fifth-round prospect Jordan James offers some promise, and third-round rookie pick Kaelon Black brings a little more firepower between the tackles, but it's not clear either will become a viable starter, nor is it clear fourth-year pro Isaac Guerendo will have a roster spot. It wouldn't be shocking if the 49ers overworked McCaffrey again, which would again be to the delight of his fantasy investors.