Fantasy Football News

Veteran cornerback Stephon Gilmore has officially announced his retirement from the NFL. Gilmore crafted a thoughtful Instagram post in which he thanked his family, coaches, and fans for their continuous support throughout his 13-year career. He spent his first nine seasons in the AFC East with the Bills and Patriots before embarking on one-year stints with the Panthers, Colts, Cowboys, and Vikings. Gilmore expressed a desire to play football in 2025 but ultimately sat out last season. The former first-round pick finishes his career with 32 interceptions and 149 passes defended. He led the league in both categories with the Patriots in 2019, when he was also named Defensive Player of the Year. While not a Hall of Fame lock, Gilmore was as good as anyone during the peak of his career.

Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford could have a limited workload leading up to the 2026 regular season, according to Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com. Stafford missed most of training camp last summer due to a back injury, and the Rams will likely modify the number of throws he makes this upcoming summer to ensure that he stays healthy. Jimmy Garoppolo took most of the QB1 reps when Stafford was sidelined last summer, and the Rams will likely follow a similar plan during training camp this year. Not only does reducing Stafford's workload keep him healthy, but it also increases the reps for Garoppolo, who needs to be ready in case his number is called at any point during the regular season. As long as Stafford stays healthy, he remains a low-end QB1 in fantasy football because of his role in a high-volume passing offense and the tremendous presence of receivers Puka Nacua and Davante Adams.

New York Giants head coach John Harbaugh said that he is "certain" tight end Isaiah Likely will take a major leap in 2026, according to Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com. Harbaugh explained that he saw tremendous upside in Likely when the two were together in Baltimore, but the tight end never had much of an opportunity to break out because of the scheme and personnel. Indeed, Likely had his career-worst fantasy finish last year, checking in as the TE45 with 27 catches, 307 yards, and one touchdown. If Harbaugh is right, Likely could be due for his first-ever top-18 finish in 2026. However, we also need to be careful of just how much trust we invest in offseason coachspeak. Likely finds himself in a crowded Giants offense that also features Malik Nabers (knee), Theo Johnson, Darius Slayton, and Darnell Mooney. Likely is a high-risk, high-reward trade target this offseason. He could break out, as Harbaugh suggested, but he could also be headed for another year in a depth role.

NFL officials in Phoenix all believe that free-agent wide receiver Jauan Jennings is asking for too much money on the open market this offseason, according to Matt Barrows and Vic Tafur of The Athletic. "He's outplayed his talent," one head coach said. Jennings and the San Francisco 49ers couldn't work out a long-term deal last summer and instead worked out a one-year deal. The 28-year-old is by far the best remaining player on the free-agent market, but his financial demands might need to come down a bit for him to find a new home. Jennings, a former seventh-round pick in 2020 out of Tennessee, wasn't very involved in the Bay Area in his first three NFL seasons before breaking out in 2024 with a 77-975-6 line in 15 regular-season games. Jennings had a career-best nine touchdowns in 2025, but he also regressed elsewhere with just 55 catches for 643 yards in 15 regular-season starts. His 2024 campaign could easily end up being Jennings' high-water mark, but he could still have plenty of fantasy relevance as a chain-mover in 2026, depending on where he ends up.

The San Francisco 49ers have made it clear that wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk (knee) won't be back with the team in 2026, but they are in no rush to get rid of him, according to The Athletic's Matt Barrows and Vic Tafur. If an NFL team is interested in Aiyuk's services and wants him in their building this spring to learn their offense, they can trade for him, but there's no reason for the Niners to do any other team a favor by handing Aiyuk over now for a draft pick. They may release him after the NFL draft at the end of April if they can't find a trade suitor by then, but they can also wait longer if they want to, as the 49ers don't owe Aiyuk anything until his option bonus is due on Sept. 1. The Washington Commanders seem like the logical destination because of general manager Adam Peters' familiarity with Aiyuk from his time in the Bay Area. Aiyuk was also teammates with Washington quarterback Jayden Daniels at Arizona State. The 28-year-old former first-rounder had back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in 2022 and 2023, but he played in only seven games in 2024 before tearing his ACL, and he didn't play at all last year. There are questions about Aiyuk's motivation, making him a very risky option for NFL teams and fantasy managers going forward.

Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson confirmed that wide receiver Luther Burden III will be a big part of the team's passing attack heading into his second year in the NFL, according to CHGO Bears. "[Luther] is exactly what we thought we were getting out of the draft last year...this guy loves football. If you took football away from him, I don't know what he would want to do with himself," Johnson said. Especially since the Bears traded receiver DJ Moore to the Buffalo Bills this offseason, Burden will be a popular breakout candidate in fantasy football in 2026 as he heads into his sophomore campaign. The 22-year-old former second-rounder out of Missouri started slow last year but finished with 47 catches for 652 yards and two touchdowns on 60 targets in 15 regular-season starts. Target volume could be an issue with Rome Odunze and tight end Colston Loveland also being involved, but Burden will be a focal point for explosive plays in Chicago's offense going forward. His dynasty/keeper value is rising by the day.

NFL executives expect the New England Patriots to acquire wide receiver A.J. Brown from the Philadelphia Eagles in June, once the salary cap implications "become more tenable for the Eagles," according to Mike Sando of The Athletic. The Patriots have not closed the door on adding Brown this offseason despite signing Romeo Doubs to a deal worth $17 million per year. Brown previously played for Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel with the Titans in Tennessee, so the two have a history. The 28-year-old seven-year NFL veteran had his sixth 1,000-yard season in 2025 in 15 regular-season games, but Brown has been in a three-year decline, and he had a career-low 12.9 yards per catch. Still, landing Brown would be huge for a New England team coming off a Super Bowl appearance with young quarterback Drake Maye. Perhaps a change of scenery will be a plus for Brown, who publicly voiced his displeasure with Philly's offense in 2025.

Green Bay Packers running back MarShawn Lloyd has struggled to stay healthy through two NFL seasons. He has logged offensive snaps in just one game so far, totaling seven touches. Nevertheless, we're intrigued by the possibility of Lloyd stepping into the No. 2 running back role next season. Emanuel Wilson departed in free agency, leaving an open competition for the role of Josh Jacobs' backup. Lloyd has significant draft capital attached to him as a 2024 third-round pick, whereas fellow depth option Chris Brooks is a former Dolphins undrafted running back with a minimal track record of his own. Given that Brooks hasn't built much momentum for a push to the No. 2 role, it seems like Lloyd is the early favorite to back up Jacobs, as long as he stays healthy. Lloyd's availability is far from guaranteed, but he has a clean bill of health this offseason and should be near 100 percent entering training camp. As long as the Packers don't spend a premium pick on a rookie running back in this month's draft, Lloyd will be an intriguing dynasty trade target this offseason. In addition to being a handcuff in 2026, he has long-term upside in case he takes on a bigger role after Jacobs' contract expires in two years.

Seattle Seahawks running back Emanuel Wilson represents an intriguing buy-low candidate in offseason dynasty fantasy football trades. After three years in Green Bay, Wilson jumped ship and signed with the Seahawks this offseason. He'll join a Super Bowl-winning offense that had a glaring hole at running back with Kenneth Walker III departing in free agency and Zach Charbonnet (knee) expected to miss a portion of the 2026 season. The lead-back role is anyone's to win. While we can't rule out another signing or draft selection at the running back position, as it stands, Wilson seems to be the frontrunner for the No. 1 running back role. He has been a top-50 fantasy running back in the past two seasons, and he showed in 2025 that he was capable of stepping into a larger role when the usual starting running back goes down. Wilson may eventually relinquish the lead-back role to Charbonnet by the middle of next season, but even then, he'll continue to be a top handcuff option. The 26-year-old is currently quite affordable in dynasty leagues and is an intriguing trade target given that he should open the 2026 season as a high-end RB3 or low-end RB2 in fantasy football.

Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Jalen Nailor signed a lucrative three-year deal with the team this offseason. The signing rewarded him for a solid two-season stretch in Minnesota, during which he caught 57 passes for 858 yards and 10 touchdowns. His nose for the end zone is very encouraging, as it suggests that he could get onto the WR3/flex radar if he handles more volume and produces more yardage. Therein lies the big question for the 2026 season, though. As it stands, Nailor is in line to compete for No. 1 receiver duties with Tre Tucker. However, neither Nailor nor Tucker has much of a track record in a No. 1 receiver role. With the Raiders expected to draft Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 pick, we wouldn't be surprised if they bring in an established veteran to serve as the rookie's favorite target. Players like Keenan Allen and Jauan Jennings have both been heavily linked to Vegas. If the Raiders were to sign either one of them, Nailor would take one step down the pecking order, lowering his fantasy upside for 2026. Managers looking to buy low on the 27-year-old receiver should make sure they avoid overpaying, in case Nailor slips down the depth chart as free agency continues.

Cleveland Browns running back Dylan Sampson was mostly overshadowed by Quinshon Judkins last season, but the former did flash significant upside when he got on the field. Sampson had eight catches for 64 receiving yards when Judkins missed Week 1, and he finished the year with the 23rd-most receptions among running backs despite playing just 23.2% of the offensive snaps. Judkins suffered a dislocated right ankle last December, and while he should be ready for the 2026 season opener, Sampson would be in line for a large role if he's not ready to go. Even if Judkins does have a clean bill of health, Sampson could carve out standalone value given his impact as a receiver. He profiles as a third-down back who could be a low-end RB3/flex in PPR leagues, and he would jump to the RB2 tier if Judkins misses time.

Houston Texans wide receiver Jaylin Noel may remain in the fourth spot on the depth chart ahead of the 2026 season. During his rookie campaign in 2025, Noel typically operated as the No. 4 receiver behind Nico Collins, Jayden Higgins, and Christian Kirk, finishing the year with a modest 26 catches, 292 yards, and two touchdowns. Kirk has departed for the Bay Area, but he'll likely be replaced next season by a healthy Tank Dell (knee). While Year 2 is a common time for wide receivers to break out, Noel may struggle to get meaningful playing time if Collins, Higgins, and Dell are all healthy. He's merely a hold in dynasty leagues right now; although he does have long-term upside, he faces an uphill battle to achieve consistent fantasy relevance in 2026.

Veteran wide receiver Keenan Allen remains a free agent as we turn the calendar to April. The 33-year-old has spent 13 seasons in the NFL, including a dozen with the Los Angeles Chargers. He essentially shared No. 1 receiver duties with Ladd McConkey last year and ultimately led the team with 81 catches. He also tallied 777 receiving yards and four touchdowns, ranking as the overall WR29 in PPR leagues. Allen has previously said he only wants to play in Los Angeles, but his stance may have changed this deep into free agency. If he's open to playing elsewhere, several NFL media personalities have identified the Las Vegas Raiders as a potential landing spot. Vegas currently doesn't have an established No. 1 receiver, and Allen could be a great veteran target for rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza, the projected first overall pick. Allen doesn't have much value in dynasty trades, so he's purely a hold for now. Depending on the landing spot, he could be an intriguing buy-low receiver with short-term value.

The Cleveland Browns have publicly praised quarterback Deshaun Watson (Achilles) this offseason, but The Athletic's Zac Jackson said he feels "stronger than ever" that Shedeur Sanders, not Watson, is the "favorite to win the starting job." Sanders wasn't Cleveland's first choice in 2025 and might not be their first choice for the future, either, but giving him every chance to win the job and to make real progress is "clearly the best option right now." The 24-year-old fifth-rounder is signed for three more seasons, and Jackson thinks that the best path to escaping the Watson mess is to let Sanders take the job and provide "at least league-average QB play." There will be a true competition between Sanders and Watson in training camp this summer after Sanders was highly inconsistent in his rookie season in 2025, throwing for 1,400 yards, seven touchdowns, and 10 interceptions in eight games (seven starts). The former Colorado star has been working on getting stronger this offseason and is the Browns' "best option" at the position. Fantasy managers in dynasty/keeper leagues looking for help at QB might want to consider buying low on Sanders.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport says that the money that the Las Vegas Raiders gave veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins indicates that he "could or maybe should end up being the starting QB" to begin the 2026 regular season. Somehow, Cousins will be guaranteed $20 million in 2026, with almost half of the money being paid by the Atlanta Falcons, who released the 37-year-old at the start of the new league year. Even though the Raiders are expected to take Indiana QB Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 overall pick at the end of April, Cousins is expected to be the team's Week 1 starter as they let Mendoza sit and learn early on in his first year in the NFL. The four-time Pro Bowler played in 24 games (22 starts) in his two years in Atlanta and completed 65% of his passes for 5,229 yards, 28 touchdowns, and 21 interceptions. At best, he'll be a low-end QB2 option for those in superflex fantasy leagues in 2026, and his run as Vegas' starter could be short-lived, depending on his performance and Mendoza's development.

The Jacksonville Jaguars signed defensive end Travon Walker to a four-year, $100 million contract extension on Friday, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. The deal includes $77 million guaranteed and $50 million fully guaranteed at signing. The 25-year-old is heading into his fifth NFL season in 2026 after racking up 200 tackles (101 solo), 27.5 sacks, 36 tackles for loss, 57 QB hits, one interception, seven pass breakups, three forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries (one returned for a touchdown) in 63 games (60 starts). Walker had back-to-back 10-sack seasons in 2023 and 2024 before totaling just 3.5 sacks last year in 14 games (12 starts). The Jaguars are hoping that the former first overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft out of Georgia can bounce back in the sack department in 2026 in his fifth year in the league after his big extension.

Seahawks running back George Holani has handled 25 career carries since joining Seattle as an undrafted free agent in 2024, and yet he was a popular dynasty waiver add in the early offseason. Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III left for Kansas City in the opening hours of free agency, and Zach Charbonnet, who tore his ACL in a Divisional Round playoff win, is unlikely to be ready for the start of the season, which briefly left Holani and 2023 seventh-round pick Kenny McIntosh as the healthiest options at the top of the depth chart. Seattle has since signed former Packer Emanuel Wilson to a modest one-year deal, and the team is expected to address the position early in the NFL Draft. The Seahawks have already met with Washington's Jonah Coleman on a local visit and will reportedly host Arkansas' Mike Washington Jr. on a 30-visit in the coming weeks. Whoever Seattle targets with early draft capital will likely rise to the RB2 spot behind Jeremiyah Love in most rookie drafts, while Holani's dynasty value could settle outside the top-100 at the position after a sudden offseason spike.

Browns tight end Harold Fannin Jr. was selected in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft after an unfathomably productive college career at Bowling Green, and in his rookie season with Cleveland, it was more of the same. His 72 receptions on 103 targets ranked second among all rookies and eighth among NFL tight ends. A case could be made that Fannin benefited from one of the weakest wide receiver cores in the league, with Jerry Jeudy the only other Cleveland player to top 35 catches or 50 targets. The Browns are expected to return the same quarterback room from 2025, with hopes hinging on either a meaningful second-year leap from Shedeur Sanders or a return to form from Deshaun Watson, now five years removed from his last impactful season. Additionally, the team holds the sixth pick in the NFL Draft and is expected to spend early capital on the wide receiver position. That said, Fannin finished his rookie season as the TE6 in half-PPR formats, behind two 30+ year olds in Travis Kelce and Dallas Goedert, as well as Kyle Pitts, whose TE2 finish was propped up by the single most productive game by a tight end in NFL history. Fannin is RotoBaller's TE6 in dynasty rankings, but could easily crack the top five if the Browns are unable to add significant target competition through the draft.

With the Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver room among the league's most ambiguous offensive units, it's easy to forget that it was tight end Brenton Strange who finished third on the team in both receptions and receiving yards despite missing five games in 2025. A case could be made for any of Jakobi Meyers, Brian Thomas Jr., Parker Washington, or Travis Hunter to be the Jaguars WR1 heading into 2026, but a similar case could also be made that one of those players might not be on the roster by training camp, and another could be playing defense. While gameplans and opponents could drastically affect how Jacksonville deploys its wide receivers, Strange might be locked into the safest role of any of the team's pass catchers, and with Travis Etienne Jr. vacating almost 50 targets from last season, a good share of that work could go the tight end who saw nearly 78% of his targets within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage.

A rash of injuries has limited New Orleans Saints running back Kendre Miller to only 21 games through his first three years in the league, and when he has found the field, he's done little to prove he can be anything more than a committee back. The 2023 third round pick has averaged less than four yards per carry to this point in his career and has yet to spring a run for more than 18 yards, and with the Saints spending big in free agency for Travis Etienne Jr., Miller could be left battling for scraps behind a back who has carried the ball more than 250 times in three of the past four seasons. Alvin Kamara is still on the roster, and Devin Neal showed flashes in his three late-season starts, making Miller a cut candidate in all but the deepest dynasty leagues.