The 8 Most Valuable Fantasy Football Players Heading Into 2026 NFL Season

Value is the name of the game in fantasy football. The path to championships, trophies, prize money and everything that comes with it.

The surest way to maximize your chances of success in fantasy football is to draft players who will outperform their draft slots in the season to come. To get guys at positions of value.

However, many fantasy managers simply conflate value with scoring the most points.

There's no doubting Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson and Los Angeles Rams wideout Puka Nacua are valuable fantasy assets, but they carry price tags that match their gaudy point totals. You're paying retail for their production.

No, the most valuable fantasy options are the players who offer production at a deep discount. Mid-range starters with elite fantasy upside. Players drafted as reserves with the potential to be sure-fire weekly starters. They are the names who win fantasy leagues.

And while the summer may still be young, these players all have the potential to be fantasy football MVPs in 2026.

QB Drake Maye, New England Patriots

AP Photo/Julio Cortez

ADP: QB7

Drake Maye won more than a few fantasy managers leagues last year. He had an ADP outside the top 15 at the position, but he finished third in fantasy points among quarterbacks after ranking fourth in the NFL with 4,394 passing yards and fourth in rushing yards among signal-callers with 450.

It was a true breakout from the 23-year-old.

However, if early ADP information is any indication, fantasy managers appear to be expecting some regression from Maye this year. What Dwain McFarland and Ian Hartitz of A Fantasy Life see is an opportunity for Maye to again be a value at cost:

"Maye's 2025 breakout featured him scoring more fantasy points per game than any AFC quarterback other than Josh Allen. This was thanks to a mix of high-end passing efficiency (NFL-best 72% completion rate, 8.9 yards per attempt) and all sorts of rushing upside (6th most fantasy points from rushing among QBs). The ceiling is the moon with a new-and-improved wide receiver room."

That improved wide receiver room already features Romeo Doubs, and according to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated, there is a "framework in place" for the Patriots to acquire A.J. Brown in a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles.

Bringing in Brown would give Maye something he didn't have last season: a true "go-to" wide receiver. New England improved the offensive front with the additions of guard Alijah Vera-Tucker and tackle Caleb Lomu.

Maye may not quite be the steal he was a year ago, but he's still a mid-range QB1 with elite upside.

QB Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams

AP Photo/Stephen Brashear

ADP: QB15

Here's a not-so-secret truth about fantasy football: Managers are notoriously wary of aging veterans on draft day.

That appears to be what's happening to reigning NFL MVP Matthew Stafford of the Los Angeles Rams.

Despite leading the league in both passing yards (4,707) and passing touchdowns (46) on the way to a second-place finish in fantasy points, the 38-year-old is barely ranked inside the top 15 at the position in ADP.

As Richard Janvrin of Fantasy Pros noted, that low valuation is puzzling:

"Stafford finished as the QB2 last season, but his ADP is down to QB15. I understand he's older, but he hasn't really shown any signs of slowing down. Sure, I would've liked to see the Rams add another wide receiver rather than a quarterback at No. 13 overall in the draft. However, Stafford still has Davante Adams and Puka Nacua at his disposal, along with several tight ends, including second-round pick Max Klare out of Ohio State. Last season, Stafford was third in pass attempts and tied for second among all quarterbacks with at least 300 dropbacks in average depth of target (aDOT) at 9.5 yards."

Yes, Stafford isn't getting any younger, but he knows Sean McVay's offense like the back of his hand. Nacua and Adams are one of the best one-two punches at wideout in the league, and the QB has a pair of top-five fantasy finishes over the past five years.

If you're the type who likes to wait as long as possible to draft a starting quarterback, Stafford should be a prime target—elite fantasy upside with a QB2 price tag.

RB Cam Skattebo, New York Giants

AP Photo/Daniel Kucin Jr.

ADP: RB19

For a time last season, it appeared Cam Skattebo's breakout was coming quickly.

Over a four-week stretch of starts, the fourth-rounder out of Arizona State topped 90 total yards in all four games, found the end zone four times and ranked eighth in PPR points among running backs. But in a Week 8 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, he broke his right fibula and dislocated his ankle, abruptly halting his momentum.

However, while speaking at a team town hall event just before the beginning of OTAs, Skattebo said he's on track to be 100 percent for Week 1 and he has his sights set on well and truly breaking out in 2026:

"Obviously there's ups and downs in the injury process and coming back and rehabbing, but the mental battle has been the hardest part: making sure that I trust it fully. I'm a little ways out. Not too far, but I'll be ready to go. Week 1, I'll be ready to go. When I play 17-plus games this year, it's going to be 300 carries for over 2,000 yards."

Expecting a 2,000-yard season may be a tad optimistic, but we have already seen Skattebo perform at a top-10 level over multiple weeks. If you believe the Giants will be a substantially improved offense this year (and this analyst does), then he should be a beneficiary, whether it's lighter boxes or playing behind a sneaky-good offensive line.

Getting a back with that kind of upside in lower-end RB2 territory is the textbook definition of value.

RB David Montgomery, Houston Texans

AP Photo/Ashley Landis

ADP: RB21

As Jahmyr Gibbs' star rose in the Motor City, David Montgomery's role in the Lions offense was scaled back.

After 219 carries, over 1,000 rushing yards, 13 touchdowns and an RB17 PPR finish in 2023, his usage dropped. Last season, the eight-year veteran carried the ball a career-low 158 times and fell outside the top-25 fantasy options.

Now, however, Montgomery finds himself in Houston as the Texans' lead back after an offseason trade.

Justin Boone of Yahoo sees the move as a prime opportunity for the 28-year-old to return to fantasy starter status:

"There's very little competition for work on Houston's depth chart, with backup Woody Marks best deployed in a pass-catching role. Being a starter is nothing new for Montgomery. Prior to the last two seasons, the veteran handled at least 235 touches or more in his first five campaigns, including being a bell-cow for the Bears. Now, as he prepares to turn 29 in June, Montgomery has a chance to produce fantasy RB2 numbers once again—with the potential for even more. Remember, Joe Mixon finished as the RB5 overall in 2024 while racking up 1,325 scrimmage yards and 12 touchdowns as a member of the Texans."

Montgomery's per-carry numbers have never been especially impressive—just 4.1 yards per carry over his career—but that's the same per-carry average Mixon posted two years ago.

And the only time Montgomery has had 300 touches in the NFL (2020), he was fourth in PPR points.

Mixon averaged just over 20 touches per contest over 14 games in 2024, a workload that would again put Montgomery firmly in RB2 territory if it materializes.

WR Jaylen Waddle, Denver Broncos

AP Photo/Lynne Sladky

ADP: WR25

Over Jaylen Waddle's first three NFL seasons, he appeared to be headed for stardom.

The 27-year-old topped 1,000 receiving yards in each of his first three years in the NFL. In 2022, he led the league in yards per reception at 18.1 and ranked eighth in PPR points among wideouts. But as the Miami offense leveled off, so did Waddle's production, and by 2025 he was mired in low-end WR2 territory—right about where he's valued currently.

Of course, Waddle is no longer in Miami—he was traded to the Denver Broncos this offseason.

Broncos head coach Sean Payton wouldn't go so far as to call Waddle the team's top wideout, but he did tell reporters the team was going to find ways to get its new weapon the ball in 2026:

"He's played everywhere. I've seen him outside as a tremendous route runner, inside. The route tree is pretty expansive. The best thing that I think he does is he's explosive; he's dynamic. A lot of times, the guys run fast, but I think he sends his hips in transition. I think you'll see him play inside in the slot; you'll see him outside. We'll have speed packages that will feature [him]."

Courtland Sutton remains the X receiver in Denver. But make no mistake: Waddle is a better player who will likely lead the Broncos in most receiving categories.

Last year, Sutton turned a 74/1,017/7 stat line into a WR14 finish in PPR points. That's closer to Waddle's floor this year than his ceiling.

WR Michael Wilson, Arizona Cardinals

AP Photo/Rick Scuteri

ADP: WR42

Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Michael Wilson was one of fantasy's biggest surprises last year. A waiver-wire pickup in most leagues, he caught 78 passes for 1,006 yards and seven scores—numbers good enough for a WR10 finish in PPR leagues.

However, that outburst came mainly over the season's second half with Marvin Harrison Jr. on the shelf, so many in the fantasy community appear to be skeptical the 26-year-old came anywhere near last season's numbers.

However, Michael Fabiano of Sports Illustrated cautioned that fantasy drafters are throwing in the towel on Wilson too soon:

"Some would suggest that Wilson broke out last season, but he did all of his damage after Week 10. In fact, he didn't score double digits in his first nine contests! That means there's room for statistical improvements. The addition of an offensive-minded head coach, Mike LaFleur, should be a positive, and the eventual decision on who will be the No. 1 quarterback in Arizona will tell the real fantasy tale. But for now, Wilson is on the breakout radar for next season."

To be clear, Jacoby Brissett is expected to be Arizona's quarterback come Week 1—contract impasse or not, this could well be his last opportunity to start in the NFL. And when the 33-year-old was under center last season, he targeted Wilson early and often.

If all Wilson does is return WR2 value in fantasy with an ADP outside the top 40, he'll be a strong value pick. If he even comes close to last year's fantasy finish, that's a league-winning outcome.

TE Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons

AP Photo/Danny Karnik

ADP: TE8

For a good chunk of his five-year NFL career, Kyle Pitts of the Atlanta Falcons has been a thorn in the side of fantasy managers.

After exploding into prominence as a rookie with a 1,000-yard season, he spent most of the next three years disappearing from fantasy relevance.

However, in 2025 we once again saw the elite talent from Pitts—he was second in targets among tight ends, second in catches, second in yards and second in PPR points at the position.

Despite that big year, though, he's being drafted early as a below-average weekly starter, largely because of a new coaching staff and (potentially) quarterback in Atlanta.

While speaking to the media, new Falcons head man Kevin Stefanski said he has been impressed by what he has seen from Pitts so far:

"He's trying to be the best version of himself—to be the most complete player at his position. Obviously, he's had some great, great moments in his young career and we're trying to build off of those. And also, like any player, there's always things you can work on."

Stefanski is no stranger to featuring tight ends in his offense, as evidenced by Harold Fannin Jr.'s usage in Cleveland last year. If Tua Tagovailoa supplants Michael Penix Jr. under center, his track record with TEs—including Jonnu Smith's top-five fantasy campaign in Miami in 2024—only bolsters Pitts' outlook.

Trey McBride of the Arizona Cardinals and Brock Bowers of the Las Vegas Raiders are the likely top two tight ends in fantasy this year.

An argument can be made that Pitts should be No. 3.

TE Isiah Likely, New York Giants

AP Photo/Terrance Williams

ADP: TE14

There are some big changes afoot in New York this year, including the arrival of a new head coach in John Harbaugh.

Harbaugh brought multiple players with him from Baltimore, including tight end Isaiah Likely, who signed a three-year, $40 million deal with the Giants.

In Baltimore, Likely played second fiddle to Mark Andrews. But $13 million and change a year isn't second-fiddle money.

Harbaugh told reporters that he expects Likely to become a priority target for Jaxson Dart in short order:

"He's gonna bring a lot to the table. He's a talented football player. He's a playmaking football player. He's gonna make plays for us. I think Jaxson's gonna really like him, running the routes, and, you know, being in his line of vision–he's got a big catch radius. He can, he can make plays after he makes a catch, and he makes people miss. He can run people over. He's a very good perimeter blocker. You'll see that that'll be good for our run game."

There was just one team in the NFL last year that ran more 12 personnel sets (two tight ends) last year than Harbaugh's Ravens—the Giants. Dart wasn't especially shy about targeting his tight ends as a rookie. And the Week 1 status of wide receiver Malik Nabers remains in question as he rehabs an ACL tear.

Even with a healthy Nabers on the field, there's a real path to Likely being the No. 2 option in New York's passing attack. A top-10 finish is absolutely doable, and the top five isn't out of the question.

Gary Davenport is a two-time Fantasy Sports Writers Association Football Writer of the Year. Follow Gary on X at @IDPGodfather.