5 NFL players who will define the fantasy football offseason

· Yahoo Sports

Fantasy football never ends. Over the next two months, teams will be reshaped in free agency and the NFL Draft, while fantasy draft boards begin to take their own shape. Analyst Joel Smyth goes over the five players who will define the offseason and shape the 2026 fantasy football season.

The top rookie running back has finished as a fantasy failure in three consecutive seasons, certainly setting up Jeremiyah Love to be a hot topic of discussion this August. One of the primary reasons talented rookie RBs have failed, especially in recent years, is due to landing spots. Ashton Jeanty was a prime example last season. However, the historical track record remains strong and can bounce back if Love lands in a favorable location.

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Since 2015, 12 of 15 first-round RBs have finished in the top 24 of fantasy football in Year 1. They may not always live up to high expectations, but even Bijan Robinson and Ashton Jeanty were RB2s immediately. Love is expected to be drafted inside the top 12 in fantasy, a spot where the last eight RBs drafted there have averaged 17.3 PPR PPG, with the last two (Robinson and Jeanty) being the worst of the bunch. Recency bias could be in our favor when it comes to how late Love is drafted. The Notre Dame prospect is versatile, explosive and young. At 20 years old, Love only has 433 career carries while adding an impressive 63 receptions in college.

The best news may come from the NFL teams Love is projected to be drafted by. As of now, the clear top two in most likely landing spots are just inside the top 10 picks of the NFL Draft: the New Orleans Saints and Kansas City Chiefs. Prior to the disaster of last season, the Chiefs ranked 10th in RB fantasy points in the Mahomes era. The Saints aren’t too bad themselves, as Kellen Moore’s offense makes it an under-the-radar spot. In three of his last five seasons, Moore’s RBs have scored inside the top six in fantasy points at the end of the year.

Every year, a rushing quarterback being selected late in fantasy drafts turns into a game-changer. Last season was Drake Maye, with Jaxson Dart coming off waivers as well. It looked as if there might be zero options to choose from in 2026, unless Malik Willis were to land in a starting spot during free agency.

The Packers’ fill-in quarterback led the NFL in designed rush rate and scramble rate in his small sample of 60 plays. It may not have been much, but combined with his aggressive downfield throwing style, Willis averaged the most fantasy points per snap among QBs. The most likely landing spots are Arizona (with his current head coach’s brother) or Miami, each providing a good amount of potential.

Kyle Pitts Sr. will be heavily discussed in fantasy until the end of time. Backed by a monster 166-yard, 3-TD day, the breakout at the end of 2025 is one of the reasons that the Falcons TE an intriguing draft pick once again.

The other reason is that he may not be a Falcons TE for much longer.

Pitts is the top TE in free agency this March, with Atlanta still an option to re-sign the former top-five NFL Draft pick. Incoming head coach Kevin Stefanski has a strong history with tight ends in recent years, producing a fantasy TE1 in PPG for three consecutive years. The Browns used a versatile piece in Harold Fannin Jr. last year right out the gate, as Cleveland ranked second in TE target share with plenty of 2-TE sets.

The positive of leaving Atlanta, however, is the overall upside. The Falcons are a generally safe return. The issue with staying is that Atlanta’s quarterback situation is below average and Pitts is rarely the focal point of the offense. When Pitts was the focal point — aka, in games without Drake London — he averaged 15.5 half-PPR fantasy PPG.

After returning to RB1 status in 2025, Travis Etienne Jr. may have to attempt a repeat somewhere other than Jacksonville. I’d argue that’s not so bad. Although he had an incredible season, it came via shocking touchdown success and benefited from injury. His 11.5% TD per target last season was the best by an RB since 2022. And to answer the question, “Well, can’t he score six receiving touchdowns again?” Yes, but unlikely, as he had one over his first three career seasons.

Bhayshul Tuten won’t make Etienne suddenly irrelevant, but he takes a larger chunk out of his game than I believe people perceive. Even in PPR leagues, which favor Etienne, his PPG dropped from 16.9 to 12.1 in the seven games where Tuten played 25%+ of the snaps. The rookie RB was a significant contributor when healthy, scoring five goal-line touchdowns to Etienne’s one in games played together.

With Liam Coen in 2024, Tampa Bay ranked second in RB fantasy points (16th in 2025), still making Jacksonville a good spot for Etienne to end up, but it could get better. The projected landing spots are similar to Jeremiyah Love: New Orleans, Kansas City and the Houston Texans added in. All three would likely come with better volume and scoring upside. If he returns to Jacksonville, I’d project a lower RB2 fantasy season, while being potentially a top-10 back elsewhere.

​The most polarizing pick in fantasy drafts this season will all but certainly be Emeka Egbuka. The pros are still there! Tampa Bay played against the hardest fantasy WR schedule in the NFL, Egbuka had the lowest catchable target rate in the league as Baker Mayfield fought through injuries but he still shone early, averaging 18 fantasy points in his first five career games. The downside is how it ended.

With the Bucs WRs back healthy, Egbuka was left behind, running just over 50% of routes in the last month of the season as he was consistently unable to connect with his QB. The upside is still there, especially if 32-year-old Mike Evans leaves in free agency, with Egbuka scoring a couple more PPG in Evan’s absence last season.

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