New Fantasy Football 2026 Early Printable Cheat Sheet for Flex Rankings

Flex positions are the real—or figurative, depending on your league setup—money-makers in fantasy football.

Think about it. Experts routinely advise you to wait on quarterbacks, because there are always enough to go around in one-quarterback leagues. Similarly, you never want to reach too early on a defense or a kicker, because it's hard for either spot to deliver a true difference-maker.

Where you separate from your league mates, then, is with the traditional flex spots: running back, wide receiver and tight end. Those are the ones who can pile up yards and points in bunches, and the ones who consistently produce at high rates often wind up dominating the early draft rounds and even deciding championship races.

Given how much this group means to your fantasy success, let's bypass any more buildup and just get to our top-30 flex rankings for the upcoming NFL season and then spotlight a few rookie sleepers who could be locks on this type of list by this time next year.

Flex Rankings

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Top 30

1. Ja'Marr Chase, WR, CIN
2. Puka Nacua, WR, LAR
3. Bijan Robinson, RB, ATL
4. Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, SEA
5. Jahmyr Gibbs, RB, DET
6. Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR, DET
7. Jonathan Taylor, RB, IND
8. CeeDee Lamb, WR, DAL
9. De'Von Achane, RB, MIA
10. Christian McCaffrey, RB, SF
11. Justin Jefferson, WR, MIN
12. Ashton Jeanty, RB, LV
13. James Cook III, RB, BUF
14. Drake London, WR, ATL
15. Derrick Henry, RB, BAL
16. Saquon Barkley, RB, PHI
17. Trey McBride, TE, ARI
18. Brock Bowers, TE, LV
19. Nico Collins, WR, HOU
20. Jeremiyah Love, RB, ARI
21. Chris Olave, WR, NO
22. George Pickens, WR, DAL
23. Omarion Hampton, RB, LAC
24. Garrett Wilson, WR, NYJ
25. A.J. Brown, WR, NE
26. Tee Higgins, WR, CIN
27. Josh Jacobs, RB, GB
28. Zay Flowers, WR, BAL
29. Breece Hall, RB, NYJ
30. Malik Nabers, WR, NYG

Sleeper: De'Zhaun Stribling, WR, San Francisco 49ers

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Rookie receivers can have trouble finding much field time under 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan. De'Zhaun Stribling, this year's No. 33 pick, could be an exception, both for what he brings and what's happening around him.

Stribling has size, speed and explosive athleticism, and his acceleration could make him a yards-after-catch monster in this offense. The Niners need someone who can turn short passes into long gains, and the rookie might already be one of their best options.

San Francisco also doesn't have a ton of other places to turn at the moment. Ricky Pearsall is out for the year, and Christian Kirk is fighting a calf injury that could linger into the regular season. The injury risks tied to 30-somethings Mike Evans, George Kittle and Christian McCaffrey all speak for themselves, too.

The 49ers might have to lean on Stribling whether they planned to or not, and he has the kind of skills that should help him capitalize on these chances. The fact he is a ready, willing and able blocker should only help him stay on the field.

Sleeper: Emmett Johnson, RB, Kansas City Chiefs

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Emmett Johnson, a fifth-round rookie, offers the kind of sleeper profile that should excite fantasy football managers.

It starts with baseline appeal as a change-of-pace, pass-catching role that could be Johnson's right away. Over the past two seasons at Nebraska, he tallied 85 receptions for 656 yards and five scores. New Chiefs starter Kenneth Walker III fell below Johnson's numbers in all three categories despite playing three more games in that span.

So, as long as Johnson can fend off Emari Demercado, the rookie could have a fairly sizable role from the start. What really ups the intrigue with Johnson is that Walker has had some trouble staying on the field, and Johnson is a good enough rusher to take full advantage of any larger looks he might receive. This past season, he handled an absurd 251 carries and turned them into 1,451 yards and a dozen scores.

In other words, Johnson could at least be a valuable handcuff, only he could deliver stats from the start in supporting, pass-catching duties. If he wins the RB2 role, he could warrant immediate Flex consideration with RB2 upside should Walker ever miss some time.